LOVE SUMMIT AND THE RISE OF SEX DISCOUNTS IN THE CARIBBEAN
Think a dirty weekend won’t do the trick? Prepare to bring a third ‘person’ into your marriage with a sex retreat. You can go super luxurious by flying to the private Aerial in the British Virgin Islands to attend the Elevate Love Summit. It promises to work on the basics of intimacy (communication, conflict resolution, understanding your partner’s emotional life; you know, the sexy stuff) while also reigniting passion — all while eating delicious food, swimming in mind-bogglingly picturesque aquamarine Caribbean waters, and basking in the October sun .
If you’re looking for something a little more personal, try a private four-day intensive sexual healing retreat offered by Intimacy Moons. Expect pre-retreat counseling, six-hour private workshops with sexuality educator Marissa Nelson, and two post-retreat sessions to keep you on track and most importantly, satisfied. Settings vary: opt for the Conrad hotel in downtown Washington DC, or ask for a sunnier location like Miami, Barbados or the Bahamas to start your ‘studies’.
SAFARI IS VERY GOOD
To think safari Is it still in the hands of royalty and men who put tiger pictures on their dating profiles? Think again…
New Big 5
Lush Madagascar is the place to watch Africa’s alternative Big 5 by helicopter. Forget lions, elephants and rhinos; The marine alternative boasts whales, dolphins, seals, sharks and even penguins embracing warmer climates. Something you can pair with the seductive seclusion of Miavana resort. (miavana.com)
different lines
If tracking tigers sounds like too much work, Suján’s opulent camp at Sher Bagh has 12 larger-than-average two-bedrooms in Zone 1, located in Rajasthan’s best big cat sanctuary, to make things a little less tiring. It offers a shaded suite. (thesujanlife.com)
made in britain
Observe wildlife closer to home and encounter sharks and dolphins with a seabird safari in the Scilly Pelagics off the Cornish coast, and learn about rare species of Corys and great shearwaters, as well as the holy grail of Wilson’s. storm petrel (scillypelagics.com)
white things
Walking with lions? Ah! That annoying guy at the bar has probably already bored you with his adventures. But polar bears… yes, navigating these animals is a whole new snowball game, and Churchill Wild in Canada’s Hudson Bay is the only place to do it. (churchilwild.com)
AS SEEN ON THE SCREEN
Recreate your own cinema journey
Priscilla – Las Vegas
Time travel to 1967, to Elvis and his new wife’s wedding at the Aladdin Hotel and Casino, which closed in 1997. There’s no shortage of lookalikes on the Strip to keep the legend alive — and the AI spectacle is coming soon, too.
Poor Things – Budapest/Lisbon
Only part of Emma Stone’s Grand Tour was filmed on real locations, so set designers created a miniaturized, stunning setting of Lisbon and 19th-century London. The Metropolitan Ervin Szabó Library in Budapest replaced Lord Blessington’s house.
Saltburn-Northamptonshire
There’s more midlands rock’n’roll than bat-eating Ozzy Osbourne at Drayton House (aka Saltburn) in Lowick, once sheltered by Jane Austen adaptations and National Trust grandmothers. Seeing a naked Barry Keoghan is (sadly) unlikely.
Killers of Flower Moon – Oklahoma
Not that you’ll necessarily want to relive that heartbreak, but the historic sites of Pawhuska, Osage County, are worth a visit for a glimpse of the 1920s setting and the area’s local heritage.
Maestro – Connecticut
Everything looks better in black and white (except Bradley’s nose), but interestingly Connecticut is even more beautiful in person. To experience the nautical feel of the East Coast, head to Fairfield, home of Leonard Bernstein.
STARRY NIGHTS
There’s no need to check the weather forecast anymore: 2024 will be the clearest opportunity to catch the northern lights in the last 20 years, which means there’s never been a better time to spot them.
Take your sky-gazing gaze to Deplar Farm, located on Iceland’s atmospherically named Troll Peninsula (you never know if you might spot a troll). The award-winning lodge features 13 superbly appointed rooms, a world-class spa (including i-sopod flotation tanks for getting away from it all), a geothermal indoor and outdoor pool with a swim-up bar, and it’s all accessible via not one but two helipads. – if you want a Succession-style look at the wildly unique landscape from above.
If you want a longer star-spotting adventure, New Zealand’s Mt John Observatory is the southern hemisphere’s premier location for the world’s largest certified International Dark Sky Sanctuary, thanks to minimal light pollution. From here you can tour Mt Cook, the highest point in the region, where you can enjoy the lesser-seen splendor of the aurora australis accompanied by Maori tales and waiata (songs).
By the way, if you want to add a party atmosphere to your look, Detour Discotheque, the world’s most remote club in Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland, returns in May. Being 3,000m above sea level is the best way to see the stars; Not to mention Erol Alkan on deck.
INCLINE BURNERS
Choose your ski tribe
Those who don’t know
The only view that matches the wispy licks of snow drifting off the Matterhorn? Impossibly stylish octogenarians who spend their lives smoking outside coffeehouses in the Alps. The uniform of the aforementioned Cortina cavalrymen is simple: beaver coats, whips of pearls, and a battered old Birkin each.
Après-luvvies
Having never walked in ski boots in their lives (“I’ll bruise my needles!”), the après-only herd are proud owners of Perfect Moment ski wear, sparkling new Moon Boots, fresh blow-dries and gorgeous Gstaad pairs. approved Gucci shades. One large Moet, half a dozen oysters and an outdoor jacuzzi, danke.
A-list Aspeners
It features new-season items for more street-style hillside shoots than an underperforming influencer carrying herself to fashion week. Notable suppliers include the Kardashian clan Rihanna and Justin Bieber; Pharrell Williams designed Louis Vuitton, Balenciaga’s ski capsule outfit and (ahem, Kendall Jenner) sold-out Phoebe Philo clothes are confirmed for 2024.
‘Cable cars start at 8am’ neurotics
Those who proudly set their 7am alarms and wear Uniqlo heattech thermals and TK Maxx’s best salopets are rustling through the breakfast buffet at 7.30am. They probably wear purple on the slopes and their pockets are always overflowing with heat pads and Snickers bars. I can’t bear to complain; We’re only here for a week!
NINE MONTHS TRAVEL
What is this?
More than 1,000 passengers; 65 countries; 274 days. At up to £92,000, Royal Caribbean’s longest ever cruise was always going to be an unforgettable experience. Although the on-board drama, brought to us via TikTok, is something to note, some passengers might want to forget. ‘There will be blood. TikTok user Marc Sebastian’s words: Someone is going overboard.
The ship set sail on December 10 and will continue its journey until September and has already been dubbed a nine-month-long social media reality show. Somewhere between the Triangle of Sorrow and Below Deck, in two weeks the hashtag #UltimateWorldCruise has received more than 150 million views.
There were already rumors of partner swapping, the emergence of a class system, allegations of racism and floods. Naturally, the creators on board are documenting every minute. Luckily for us, leaving the ship means turning off our phones; Meanwhile, for the passengers on the ship, the next eight months will be filled with cabin fever. To make matters worse, they’re running out of wine…
WITH PRAISE…
Ladies Scottish Climbing Club
Next time you’re in lycra and doing 270 degrees on a rock wall, spare a thought for the members of the Ladies’ Scottish Climbing Club, the oldest all-female mountaineering club still in existence, who spend their afternoons climbing the crags. ankle-length dresses, stylish jackets and lace-up heels – certainly a lot chicer than those funny little toe shoes you’ll be invited to rent on most of the capital’s climbing walls today (yes, even if they’re worn by Harry Styles).
The pioneering mountaineering association had just 14 members at its founding in 1908 and today has more than 100, but to qualify you’ll need to be proficient with an ice ax and navigate by compass in poor visibility conditions. Meetings are held on the rocky ridges stretching from Corsica to the Cairngorms, and excursions such as canoe and kayak tours are organised.
WE ARE STARTING EVERYTHING AGAIN
Speeds. Beach towels are placed with precision. Soltan in your eyes. Everyone resolutely eats the same ham, egg and chips from the buffet. It only took a colour-packed Hoxton Mini Press book to remind us why we love the unique charm of prix fixe sojourning. Give us the Thomas Cook brochure and fire up Teletext, we’re off to Lloret de Mar!
‘Package Holiday 1969-1985’ by Jake Clark, photographed by Trevor Clark, was published on 15 February
LONDON IS CALLING
After a huge season of multi-billion pound openings (The OWO, The Peninsula, 1 Hotel Mayfair etc) there are two more on the horizon. Six Senses opens its first London outpost (left) in Bayswater; Here, a lush oasis with 110 guestrooms and 14 branded residences rises at the center of the art deco shopping mall Whiteleys. Turning up the heat a bit, snake your way from the Serpentine to The Emory, which will be launched in April by the same group behind Claridge’s, The Berkeley and The Connaught. A haven of modern calm with clean lines and Jean-Georges Vongerichten preparing for a storm downstairs.
NOTIFICATION OF TV AWESOME
What do you mean you don’t have a 24-hour screen showing Aussie TV’s popular series ‘Nothing to Declare’? The appeal, according to our editor (who is obsessed) Ben Cobb, is that deep sense of discomfort we all experience when passing through the green corridor at customs. Shadowy glances over our shoulders, as if they were about to pull up and reveal that our trunk was full of smuggled turtles. The series is a perfect mix of humanity at its worst (nervous, sweaty with fear) and crime drama (the low-key ‘Peru Duo’ trying to explain their cocaine-laden mirrors). International smuggling is always less glamorous and more of a shady affair than you might think.