It should really be expected that a night spent in Edinburgh – even in a five-star hotel – would be no ordinary stopover. After all, there’s barely a building in Scotland’s capital without its resident ghost. The Scotsman has five ghosts, the hotels barman tells me. In any other city this might seem a bit…
It may be part of the Costa del Sol, but you’ll soon forget this five-star complex’s not-so-glamorous location and will be rewarded with multiple delights. Head west from Malaga International Airport on the Autopista del Mediterrneo, past the meandering golf courses and tennis courts. Shortly, you will arrive at the little known, but somewhat historically…
Just off the breathtaking Piazza Popolo is the elegant yet contemporary Hotel de Russie. Ask any Roman in the know. This is the place they go to for the all important aperitivo hour and to mingle with Hollywood A-listers. I was slightly disappointed to not be able to get a room on a Saturday, only…
I’m finally reading Simon Mawer’s The Glass Room. It has moved up and down the teetering pile of books beside my bed for months, gently taunting me. I have heard great things about it, but always something more pressing has intervened. This Friday, though, I will read it, losing myself in the wartime world of…
Bovey Castle, sitting in 400 acres of rolling hills in the middle of Dartmoor National Park, is a delight to discover. You really do get the sense of getting away from it all down here: the remote setting, the sheer length of the drive down and even the final few directions: turn right on to…
Anyway, I am trying to move on, helped by the patriotically attired crew of British Airways who moved me to a seat with extra legroom. I can’t help having legs that go on forever. This is my longest assignment to date – in terms of haul, not legs of course – and to Brazil’s first…
The luxury resort in Mauritius, the Grand Mauritian, has launched a new evening cruise for guests and it sounds spectacular. The cruise gives guests the opportunity to admire the views whilst enjoying local specialities such as lobster. For those more adventurous, there is the opportunity to partake in private snorkelling trips whilst the boat is…
From art deco lidos in Miami to the futuristic bird’s nest of the Park Hyatt’s pool in Tokyo, I wanted my swimming – which I think of as an aesthetic, as much as an athletic, pursuit – to take place in suitably picturesque surroundings. I had seen a photograph of the swimming pool at the…
It should be like sitting down to watch an action film where the lead role of a New York taxi driving sociopath is taken by renowned bad boy The Honourable Sir Rocco Forte: “You talking to me? Well, I’m the only one here. Who the fuck would you like to talk to? Concierge finishes at…
It’s just one of those things that has to be done. Perhaps as a sort of joke or once in a lifetime experience – once in a lifetime in the sense that you won’t want to experience it a second time. Not unless you’re one golf club short of a set or a sandwich short…