A Modern Wayfarer

The Nai Harn Hotel Phuket: Elevated Calm

What do Roger Moore, Prince Albert of Monaco and Rudolf Nureyev (you know, the Russian Swan Lake dude) have in common? They’ve all stayed at The Nai Harn Hotel property in Phuket over the last two decades. One of them even swam naked in the pool… It’s safe to say this property has seen some amazing things during its long and illustrious career. But the most amazing of them all has to be its recent Madonna-like reinvention, which saw predecessor The Royal Phuket Yacht Club transform into The ... Read More

Hotel Droog Amsterdam: Expect The Unexpected

It’s not often you stay in a hotel with only one room; but then again, what defines a hotel anyway? Is it an establishment offering daily room service and cleaning? Is it a place to stay overnight when you want a little luxury in your life? Hotel Droog (pronounced ‘drock’ with that phlegmy throat twang only the Dutch do well) is all of the above and more. Part hotel-part-design-studio-part-retailer-part-event-room-part-gallery-part-café....phewf, this collective space takes the traditional and ... Read More

The Balè Bali: A Striking Seduction

Bali's Lifestyle Retreats always manage to make me feel like a queen. The striking, architectural design of each hotel's facade and the sheer brilliance of their personalised service never ceases to seduce me every single stay. The Balè is no different. Just as The Amala and The Santai before it, The Balè Bali proves that space, privacy and modern luxury are paramount to the hotel group's ethos as a whole. Walking up the enormously vast steps from reception to the 29 individual pavilions and ... Read More

Shock Chic: The Cullen Hotel Melbourne Review

When I think of Melbourne travel I think boutique hotels. You know the ones I’m taking about, the little gems tucked away on inconspicuous laneways or roads just far enough from vibing main high-streets to feel like you’re in it but not actually on top of it... More specifically, I think of the Art Series Hotel Group. These three 5-star hotels are like cool party guests – always nailing fashionably late but never the last to leave! They are synonymous with the edgy and artful nature of ... Read More

Boutique Beach Lodge: Palihouse Santa Monica Review

The first thing you'll notice when walking into Palihouse Santa Monica - apart from the vintage-chic décor in the lobby and the perfectly manicured gardens out the front - is the scent. The smell of fresh linen and lavender lingers in every nook and cranny, as if to signify a kind of welcoming warmth a lot of the larger and to-cool-for-school boutique hotels tend to lack. And let me tell you, it works a charm... Combining comfort and livability with a chic design is no mean feat these days. ... Read More

The Rise Of The Pop-Up Hotel

I’ll admit the whole pop-up thing is pretty done. We’ve seen enough boutiques, eateries and even galleries randomly sprout-up into the urban-stratosphere it’s lucky we’re not allergic. But what about a pop-up hotel … now there’s a concept fairly new to the scene. I’m not talking about the portable ‘glamping’ tent villages haunting music festivals like Splendour, but rather, a new breed of designer lodging offering unique stays in interesting places. Aimed at creative travellers, a pop-up hotel ... Read More

Hotel Jashita Tulum: A Palm Labyrinth Leading Into The Blue

Hotel Jashita is about as close to Robinson Crusoe perfection as you’ll get on the Yucatan Peninsular. But for those of you not too keen on spearing your own fish or thatching your own palapa never fear, the deserted island type experience comes with some luxurious offerings. In fact, the intimate 14-room boutique hotel has everything you could ever want right in front of you. From the labyrinth of swaying palms leading into the blue abyss to the sleek and sophisticated rooms with an ... Read More

La Zebra Hotel Tulum Review: Rustic Beach Chic

Located on one of the most tranquil and pristine stretches of beach in the Caribbean, this luxuriously low-key hotel is a far-cry from those terrifyingly commercial all-inclusive resorts dotting more of the Riviera Mayan coast than I’d care to share.  With its 16 simple, yet modern bungalows and palm-lined private beach, La Zebra Hotel Tulum is the epitome of a chillaxed jungle-meets-seaside hotel where the point is to pretty much to do just that, relax. You could probably get a PhD in ... Read More

Desert Modern Commune: Ace Hotel Palm Springs Review

Ace Hotel Palm Springs is the coolest roadside motel since the ones from Thelma and Louise. Basically, if Elvis Presley and Young Hollywood teamed up to produce a place for the hipster bohemia to spend a few nights then this hotel would be it. On the outside, the kitschy, two-level buildings look like they were cryogenically frozen in the sixties only to rise in 2009 from their Austin Powers-like slumber with a lick of white-wash and some seriously edgy interior renovations. And in reality, this ... Read More

Youthful Creativity: Michelberger Hotel

There aren’t many hotels in the world like the Michelberger Hotel; but then there aren’t many cities in the world like Berlin. In fact I can think of none. The anti-thesis of perfection, both destinations are built on the same raw and rebellious energy that drives the souls who visit. The Michelberger Hotel is a kind of modern-day mirror-image of Berlin – which is, funnily enough, anything but modern and far, far from finished. But that’s the whole point, says head interior architect, Till ... Read More

Courtyards and Cool Spaces: Avenue Hotel Copenhagen

I’ll let you in on a little secret: I’ve found the best hotel courtyard in all of Scandinavia… and it just happens to live out the back of award-winning luxury Avenue Hotel Copenhagen. It’s a truly gorgeous and inviting space, with comfy pillows strewn all over the carved wooden benches, and in the warmer months it’s filled with the most divine Geraniums you ever did see. There’s nothing better than coming home from a day of exploring Copenhagen, grabbing your laptop (and a rose from the ... Read More

A Danish Doll House: The Hotel Alexandra Copenhagen

The warm, friendly vibe of Hotel Alexandra Copenhagen was the perfect start to my whirlwind Copenhagen trip. After landing at the airport and catching the train through what seemed like an actual full-force hurricane, complete with horizontal rain, 100 kilometre winds and requisite upside down street umbrellas to match, all I felt like doing was curling up in a ball somewhere that felt familiar. Sometimes when you’ve been travelling for a while you wish you could snap your bright red heels ... Read More

A Modern Twist on Artful Chic: The Hotel Claris Barcelona

The luxury design Hotel Claris Barcelona is anything but your typical five-star, 500-million plus room chain hotel. Perfectly complimenting the architectural audaciousness of the city that surrounds it, Hotel Claris is a wonderland full of curiosities and class and I feel like Alice exploring a new artful realm inside a hotel rabbit-hole. Except the rabbit-hole is a modern metal-and-glass building encased in the shell of an old 18th Century Palace called Verdruna, and the antiquities, like the ... Read More

The Limes Hotel Brisbane: Backstreet Boutique

It’s not hard for die-hard fromage lovers to fall in love with The Limes Hotel – it’s exterior looks like a giant block of Swiss Cheese! Except, for obvious reasons, it’s not a giant block of Swiss Cheese, but rather it is black and made of bricks and mortar and houses a neat little boutique hotel in the heart of Brisbane’s most popular nightlife precinct, Fortitude Valley.  Even though The Limes Hotel was one of Australia’s first member's of Design Hotels some six years ago, it hasn’t been the ... Read More

Romantic Getaways in Australia

The calendar (and Hallmark) says in exactly one week it’s the most romantic day of the year, a time to celebrate the L-word and to surround oneself with all things red and rosy. So, in the spirit of an impending Valentine’s Day, I thought it appropriate to highlight some of the most romantic getaways in Australia to take your sweetheart. Note: Sorry to the singletons among us, I’ll counteract this post next week with a showcase of the best anti-romantic party destinations in Australia, just for ... Read More

Best Airstreams on Airbnb from Around the World

Airstreams are to pensioners what backpacks are to twenty-somethings. So what happens when you invert the two? These trusty silver bullets are no longer playing centre stage in the archetypal post-retirement cross-country trip, or any sort of trip for that matter... okay, maybe that kinda trip might be on the cards. Indeed, the old aluminium airstream has been given a good old hipster makeover and they're the next big thing in retro-modern travel stays. It’s true, some of the Airstreams below ... Read More

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