SLEEPING WITH THE FISHES
BORA BORA NUI, BORA BORA, FRENCH POLYNESIA
As islands go, Bora Bora is barely there: an 11-square-mile blip in the Tahitian islands chain. But this tuft of French Polynesia is what South Pacific dreams are made of. Lush with vegetation, trees dripping with exotic fruit, graced with sandy beaches, encircled by coral reefs, Bora Bora’s distinctive Mt. Otemanu reaches 2,385 feet above a lagoon teeming with fish. After World War II, GIs stationed here returned home with tales of an exotic paradise, which only fueled the Western passion for Polynesia first ignited by the paintings of Paul Gauguin in the 1890s. These days, paradise Bora Bora-style is complemented by memorable restaurants, non-motorized water sports, shopping for cultured black pearls-a cottage industry on Bora Bora-and, by all means, sleeping in an overwater bungalow.
Why stay here? Overwater bungalows were invented in Bora Bora, and some of the world’s most lovely ones are still here. The best have a knock-out view of Mt. Otemanu from beneath the gauzy canopy of the room’s mahogany bed or a lounge chair on your private deck. Indoors, lift the hinged-glass tops of the built-in sofa’s side tables to drop food to the fish in the lagoon below. For a closer look at the fish, descend the deck’s private steps into the lagoon. Don’t worry about packing snorkel, mask or fins; you’ll find them in the bungalow’s three-section closet.
Why not? Do you really need your room-service breakfast delivered by outrigger canoe?
Who goes there? A lot of young Japanese honeymooners who arrive in groups, go their separate ways to the bungalows, re-emerging, maybe, only for dinner in the French-influenced international restaurant Iriatai. Past-their-prime Americans who don’t smile.
What’s it cost? $1,298 for one of the 1,012-square-foot Horizon Over Water Bungalow Suites. If that’s not plush enough, the 1,453-square-foot Horizon Over Water Bungalow Royal Suites can be had for $2,543. Yes, per night.
Is there a way to cheap it out? Air-hotel packages can save quite a few dollars. Otherwise, it’s possible to reserve a 912-square-foot Beach Bungalow Suite for $727. Though still luxurious, those aren’t over water, in which case you’d do just as well in any upscale hotel in the tropics at half the price.
Delicious detail: In suites, double doors papered with real tapa cloth slide apart to reveal a vast bathroom of Italian marble and a soaking tub big enough for two.
The only way to arrive/depart: By private shuttle boat from the airport, unless you want to spring for the helicopter.
Over-the-top touch: Paddling the lagoon in the “glass” kayak.
–Toni Stroud
GREEN HILLS AND GOLF
GLENEAGLES HOTEL, AUCHTERARDER, PERTHSHIRE, SCOTLAND
No one can say where the Scottish Highlands begin, but a little north and west of Edinburgh would be a worthy guess. The tree-covered hills start rolling dramatically. The lakes, such as Loch Lomond, often do sport bonnie, bonnie banks. The Highlands are perhaps the best places to experience what’s left of true wilderness in Europe-long and varied hiking trails, forests, pristine glens, challenging mountains and breezy ocean shore.
Why stay here? The beautiful green hills of the Scottish Highlands by themselves might be worth the expense. Throw in a grand French chateau-style resort hotel and nearly every conceivable sports activity-from golf to tennis to falconry to horsemanship to off-road driving. Then add a restaurant named after and run by Michelin-starred chef Andrew Fairlie. The Gleneagles combination compels guests to work up an appetite and then satisfy it in a most delightful way.
Why not? Tour buses stop in the driveway and passengers troop through the grand hallways.
Gleneagles has become one of Scotland’s major tourist attractions.
Who goes there? A lot of American and Japanese golfers and their spa-loving wives and kids, serious equestrians, United Kingdom weekenders celebrating very special occasions.
What’s it cost? The Royal Lochnagar Suite (including chauffeur-driven transport to and from the Glasgow or Edinburgh airports) is $2,846 per night until October, then goes down to $2,646, November through next April. That’s the top end. Other rooms and suites in season cost from $602 to $1,725, per room per night.
Is there a way to cheap it out? A standard room from November through April is only $484. Or take a guided bus tour and soak up the lobby atmosphere for a few minutes.
Delicious touch: One lobby shop sells nothing but bottles of the finest single-malt and blended Scotch.
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The only way to arrive/depart: Edinburgh airport isn’t far, and, really, neither is Glasgow’s. Most guests (except maybe those using the chauffeur-inclusive Royal Lochnagar suite) prefer to rent a car. There’s a lot of countryside to admire.
Over-the-top touch: A bagpiper in tartans strolls around the front lawn, heralding the cocktail hour.
–Robert Cross
ULTIMATE MEXICO
HOTEL VILLA DEL SOL, ZIHUATANEJO, MEXICO
Zihuatanejo is beaches, a bay that sparkles by day and twinkles by night, and a growing town that’s retained its fishing-village sensibilities. Away from the two luxury hotels-La Casa Que Canta and Villa del Sol-Zihua may not be for Mexico first-timers, but for those who understand the way of things, there may be no finer Mexican destination.
Why stay here? Set on one of the country’s most enchanting bays, Hotel Villa del Sol manages to be a luxury compound without the high walls that can separate visitors from the cultural richness of a destination. You may be in a $600-per-night suite, but you never forget you’re in Mexico-especially when from your palapa-shaded beachfront chaise, a cold Corona or an expert margarita (or a silver-hawking vendor, invariably polite here) is never more than a happy glance away.
Why not? It’s verrrry quiet: No jazz aerobics in the big pool, and the nearest disco is a hike. Kids will be bored or nuisances. And the town may be too rustic for some.
Who goes there? Mostly couples in love. It’s popular with honeymooners, some celebs (Lauren Bacall was a regular) and Europeans who prefer understatement to bustle.
What’s it cost? From $420 in-season, including mandatory $60 per person meal plan, for a “superior” double, but the luxury (and value) is really in the suites. They run from $450 up to $1,320 for the oh-my-god panoramic-view Presidential.
Is there a way to cheap it out? Prices drop a bit out of season, and the meal plan turns optional. Summer price, nightly, for the Presidential Suite: a mere $950. Same view.
Suite touch: Variably private “infinity-edge” plunge pools with most suites. You may never actually plunge, but they’re cool anyway.
The only way to arrive/depart: Non-stop flights, in-season, are available from Chicago, but you may have to share the plane with charter-package peasants headed to the more affordable (and just-around-the-bend) Ixtapa. In other seasons, expect to make a stop or two.
Over-the-top touch: White-tablecloth lunch service (you’ll be in the shade, of course) set up on the sand. Dinner too. Sweet.
–Alan Solomon
ROOMS TOP AT THE TOP
MANDARIN ORIENTAL, NEW YORK
It’s not just the theaters and restaurants and saloons and clubs that bring us back, time and again, to New York. It’s the sheer humanity of this city, and we’re not just talking numbers here. It can be intense-ever been in Yankee Stadium when the Red Sox are in town?-or it can be as gentle as a child’s laughter on a stroll through Central Park on a quiet Sunday morning. And no other place better celebrates the American immigrant experience, in its museums and neighborhoods and, of course, in its harbor.
Why stay here? Three reasons: the view, the view, the view. The Mandarin Oriental, New York’s newest luxury hotel, opened last fall in one of Manhattan’s hottest new locations: the new Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle, overlooking Central Park. The hotel occupies the 35th through 54th floors of the center’s north tower, and the 203 rooms and 48 suites, decorated in a harmonious mix of Asian and Art Deco styles, offer a choice of three jaw-dropping panoramas: the park, the Hudson River or the spires of midtown Manhattan. The view is also not bad on the high-definition flat-panel televisions in all the rooms.
Why not? You expect to pay a premium for pampering, but $12 for a bowl of room-service cereal?
Who goes there? Bicoastal types in the entertainment and computer industries, just off the redeye from L.A. or Silicon Valley; CEOs in town to make deals; CEOs with their families, in town to make merry; and a few Eurotourists, especially Brits, who are familiar with the Mandarin Oriental name from Hong Kong, that former outpost of empire where the chain is based.
What’s it cost? Rooms start at $595 a night, although booking over the Internet can bring that down to $429. If money’s no object, consider the Presidential Suite, complete with a baby grand Steinway piano, home theater with surround sound, a dining-room table that seats eight, and a shower stall big enough to hold all of those dinner guests. At $12,595 a night, they might even throw in some free cereal.
Over-the-top touch The VIP suite within the hotel’s 14,500-square-foot spa has the feel of a private Asian home, albeit one with a stunning view of Manhattan. The suite, available for a minimum of $975 for a three-hour treatment for two people, features a fireplace, steam room, elevated bath, dual massage beds and sprawling kang treatment bed for shiatsu and Thai massage. Oh, yes, lunch is included.
–Stevenson Swanson
AT HOME WITH THE HEPBURNS AND THE WINDSORS
CLARIDGE’S, LONDON
London. Londinium. World’s second most expensive city (after Tokyo). Whatever you call it, this town just might be the most happening place around. Nowadays, the food scene arguably takes second place to none, theater is plentiful and reasonably priced, and a vast network of museums holds precious art and antiquities. Another reason to go is to take in the pomp and circumstance that surround the queen and the royal family. For an over-the-top view of the city before leaving, ride the London Eye Ferris wheel. In the words of writer Samuel Johnson: “When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life . . .” That was in the 18th Century. It rings true today.
Why stay here? Art Deco elegance at this Mayfair icon envelops you the moment you cross the Front Hall’s glistening black-and-white marble floor to reception. Your eyes will be diverted to the striking Dale Chihuly glass-sculpture chandelier in the Foyer, where live music accompanies afternoon tea. Decor in the 201 rooms and suites is Art Deco, Victorian or contemporary; Art Deco for one penthouse, traditional for the other.
Why not? You could stay four nights at the cozy Henley House in Earls Court for the cost of one night here. But you’d miss the exquisite rooms, impeccable service and charmingly efficient “hall porters” (concierges); try getting reservations at London’s hottest restaurants without them.
Who goes there? Heads of state, captains of industry, movie stars, celebs, socialites and folks just like you and me on a splurge.
How to get there: Airport transport in the hotel’s Bentley. Or arrive in a London black cab for the same welcome treatment by affable doormen.
What’s it cost? About $583 (single occupancy) to $7,122 (penthouse), plus 17.5 percent VAT and 5 percent “discretionary service charge.”
Is there a way to cheap it out? Special offers on the hotel’s Web site (www.savoy-group.co.uk; or call 011-44-207-629-8860).
Suite touches: Bathrooms stocked with luxurious Floris toiletries, and the hotel’s signature rainfall showerheads.
Delicious touch: Gordon Ramsay at Claridge’s, an elegantly appointed room under the direction of the chef whose restaurant in Chelsea has three Michelin stars; his head chef here, Mark Sargeant, now has one, too, for his modern French cuisine. Adjacent to the restaurant is the Macanudo Fumoir (Cuban cigars, cognacs); for those who dislike cigar smoke, Claridge’s Bar, London’s most popular bar in the Zagat Survey 2004, is across the hall.
Over-the-top touch: Woodburning fireplaces are great places to stave off a London chill. And note the photos of past guests: Katharine Hepburn, Audrey Hepburn and the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. . .
–Carolyn McGuire
LOLLING IN STYLE IN LA-LA LAND
THE BEVERLY HILLS HOTEL, BEVERLY HILLS
Los Angeles too often gets a bad rap. But within its sprawl, the promised land of fame and fortune glitters like diamonds in a Rodeo Drive jewelry store: Beverly Hills. Hollywood may churn out the stars, but Beverly Hills fixes them in the heavens. The stellar energy of the place is so powerful it makes visitors feel very much the celebrity themselves, yet never more so than when they bed down in one of Beverly Hills’ plushest hotels.
Why stay here? It’s amazing how quickly the hotel’s signature pink stucco and green banana leaves can at once feel as cozy as your favorite house slippers and render you as giddy as an Oscar nominee. Twelve acres of tropical landscaping, laced with walkways and smelling faintly of gardenias and jasmine, almost make you regret retiring to one of the individually decorated bungalows, which have become famous on their own as love nests for countless movie-star trysts. The Polo Lounge is still the place to eavesdrop on Hollywood dealmakers.
Why not? In a town that thrives on The Latest Thing, the BH isn’t the newest, trendiest or hottest hotel. In Beverly Hills, you’d go to Raffles l’Ermitage or Avalon for that. Or pop over to Mondrian in West Hollywood.
Who goes there? Well, if you knew for sure, it would shatter the mystique. Besides, the BH is very discreet. The excitement comes in anticipating which celeb you might see.
What’s it cost? $460 will get you a bungalow room and the tingle of having “arrived.” When that tingle wears off, work your way up the bungalow ladder to the Presidential Bungalow Suite-four bedrooms and a swimming pool-for $4,590.
Is there a way to cheap it out? You could stay in one of the $410 hotel rooms, but aren’t those for charity cases and has-beens? Better to just drop in for afternoon tea in the Sunset Lounge.
Suite touches: Turn-down service showcases luxury sheets monogrammed with the hotel’s coat of arms. A rose in a bud vase decorates your room service tray, even if all you order is the sorbet cup.
Delicious detail: Personal butlers on request.
Over-the-top touch: Not that there’s anything wrong with the complimentary limo for shopping Rodeo Drive, but what you really want to shoot for is one of the private pool cabanas. Yes, of course they’re furnished with fax machine and phone.
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–Toni Stroud
A LONG TRIP TO EXOTICA
LE SAINT GERAN HOTEL SPA & GOLF CLUB, BELLE MARE, MAURITIUS
The beaches are amazing, the people are friendly, and English is the national language. But the reasons you come to Mauritius are the sheer exoticness of the place and its opulent seclulsion. Best known to collectors of stamps (the 1-Penny Black) and extinct animals (the dodo), Mauritius is way out there-500 miles east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. The 788-square-mile island once was fought over by the British and the French. The Brits won, but the French held onto a consolation prize, the nearby isle of Reunion. Now independent, Mauritius is looking for class-not mass-in tourism. Beyond the beaches, it’s got a rugged and dramatic interior, good restaurants, prime shopping and the best hotels for thousands of miles around.
Why stay here? Le Saint Geran-a One&Only Resorts hotel-sits on the end of a small peninsula with a wrap-around beach, three restaurants (one with a Michelin three-star chef) and amenities galore.
Why not? If time and money matter, this might be the last place in the world to go. While a mere 11 or 12 hours away for Europeans, this Indian Ocean island is 25 hours from Chicago-with the best connection. Prices of its luxury hotels (think Paris or London, with a surcharge) are off the map too.
Who goes there? Mostly Europeans, with a smattering of Japanese, Aussies, Indians and other Indian Rim visitors. Nelson Mandela checked in while I was there, though few of us actually saw him; you are, after all, paying for seclusion if you want it.
What’s it cost? From $950 ($645 single) to $5,846 for La Villa-but that includes breakfast and dinner in the main restaurant.
Is there a catch? Dine with Alain Ducasse and his stars at Spoon des Iles, and it will cost more, more, more (the meal credit you’ll get might not even cover the soup). Or arrive over the Christmas holidays and pay $1,984 (double or single) and up, way up ($11,246 for the villa-a near bargain since it sleeps six).
Is there a way to cheap it out? No.
Suite touches: Terraces for all; “hand-selected furniture”; Egyptian-cotton sheets and goose-down pillows; oversized bathrooms with mist-free mirrors, aromatherapy oils and exotic bath salts; and, just outside your door every night, a serenade from the frogs. Also glass-bottom boat rides and a nine-hole Gary Player-designed golf course.
Only way to arrive/depart: A helicopter to the airport for a little over $400 (each way).
Over-the-top touch: Sunglasses-cleaning on the beach.
–Randy Curwen
FROM HERE TO INFINITY
PLUS A DAYBED ON THE SIDE
AMANKILA, BALI
Bah-LEE-the word rolls off the tongue so musically when the gentle people of this drop-of-green in the vastness of the Indian Ocean say the name of their homeland. It’s not a big island-about 84 miles wide and 56 miles north to south. But it’s a land of big memories: lush greenery; misty volcanoes; exotic culture; the tap-tap-tap of the maskmakers of the village of Mas; the perfume of spices in an open market at Candikuning; the cacophony of frenetic Kuta; the serenity of distant, pounding surf; brightly garbed dancers; delicately colored yellow and black butterflies. Bali-it’s almost paradise, any way you say it.
Why stay here? Is “casual elegance” an oxymoron? No matter, because that’s what you get at this resort whose 34 suites stairstep down a jungle-green hillside, offering comforting views of the Indian Ocean’s Lombok Strait, on Bali’s east coast. The suites, each a self-contained, thatched-roof mini-paradise, invite relaxation, whether on the huge daybed that graces the suite’s spacious terrace, or on the window-seat divan that looks out on a riot of emerald palms and other plants.
Why not? Bali is a very, very long way from Chicago. That means you’re looking at 25 to 30 hours in transit.
Who goes there? Princess Diana supposedly was a visitor here. And, understandably, it’s an attraction for honeymooners. Because of proximity, it’s also a draw for tourists from Japan, Singapore, Australia and other Far East locales.
What’s it cost? A lot. A Garden Suite, the cheapest here, will set you back $650 a night, regardless of the season. From there, you can dig as deep into your pocket as $2,600 for the Amankila Suite, which boasts two bedrooms, a private pool (some other suites have their own pools too) and butler service.
Is there a way to cheap it out? No. Still, because of the low occupancy caused by lingering fears after the 2002 terrorist bombing in Kuta, I was upgraded (without asking) to an Ocean Suite, which would have cost $150 more.
Is there a catch? Nope. But occasionally, like while enjoying a terrific lunch in the shady Terrace restaurant, I had that nagging feeling you get when you sneak into the box seats at a baseball game and keep expecting someone to tap you on the shoulder and ask, “Are you sure you’re supposed to be here?”
Suite touches: Large bales-thatched-roof, open-air structures covering large daybeds-are sprinkled around the resort, including on the black-sand beach, inviting lounging.
Delicious touch: A relaxing cup of hot ginger tea after a sinfully relaxing in-suite massage.
The only way to arrive/depart: Helicopter, of course. But one of the employees will pick you up anywhere on the island and chauffeur you to and from the resort.
Over-the-top-touch: Cooling down in the shady end of the 135-foot-long infinity pool down by the beach, as blossoms drop into the water from the overhead frangipani tree.
–Phil Marty