Posted by Paul Handley on Mon 16th August 2010 at 08:27 AM, Filed in Luxury Hotels
The Ritz Carlton Hotel group is synonymous with luxury, from London’s own Ritz Hotel to each and every Ritz Carlton Hotel around the world. The locations for these hotels is impressive, Ritz residences have successfully covered every corner and ensured a luxury stay is guaranteed in almost any location.
The Ritz Carlton is an amazing hotel, set in a superb location. The hotel overlooks 50 miles of pristine California coastline. Uniquely, The Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon Bay is the only oceanfront resort in the San Francisco Bay area.
Add to this excellent fine dining, award-winning 16,000-square-foot spa, world class golf on two adjoining courses and year-round wine tasting and wine education in the Hotel’s Wine Room.
What really makes the difference is the added extras. Someone at Half Moon Bay has an imagination and an understanding for what guests are after. Considering the location, or more importantly, the stunning views, the Hotel has provided private fire pits outside each individual terrace. Makes sense, with views like these the guests are going to spend a lot of time outside.
Another quirky but well received idea is the guided Segway tours that the hotel offer. Given the chance, You wouldn’t refuse!
Now, The Ritz Carlton Half Moon Bay have thought even further outside the box….
Relaxing by your (unlit) patio fire pit, taking in the view of the Pacific ocean, guests can now look forward to a fully customised golf buggy doing the rounds. A butler will service your needs including lighting your firepit and pouring the wine.
This service is available Thursdays through to Sundays and offers another reason to choose the Ritz Carlton Half moon Bay for your luxury stay. In terms of outlay, the Fire and Wine butler doesn’t cost the Hotel too much. In terms of giving the guests something a little bit different and an extra element of pampering, the Butler is something that will be remembered forever.
The hotel offers so many recreational pursuits such as whale watching, walks along the dramatic coastal paths, cycling and, of course, golf on the two adjacient courses. But, maybe now with the introduction of the Butler service, you may just want to kick back by the outdoor fire pit and enjoy a glass of something chilled and cheeky.
To learn more about this inspired luxury hotel or for reservations, please visit http://www.ritzcarlton.com/hmb.
Now…Lets have some fun!
Small Luxury Hotels Of The World is running a superb competition where you can win a 14-night trip for two together with £8,000 spending money. To enter the competition, all you have to do is choose three destinations from their great website. Small Luxury Hotels offer a vast choice, over 500 independent luxury hotels.
On paper, this seems easy. Then you look at each and every luxury hotel resort and realise that each one has its own merits. With Hotels this good, it is hard to choose between them!
The Aleenta Resort, Thailand
For me, the ultimate holiday destination has to include Thailand. For all the luxury hotels Thailand have, there is nothing like the Aleenta resort. The Aleenta resort and spa Hua Hin represents a modern take on all that is typical with Thailand. Custom built huts with thatch roof, authentic Thai food at its very best and a Thai spa for some real pampering.
The Modern twist of this destination is the huts come with a plunge pool and balcony….and even an iPod dock!
Would you maybe go for the Baros Maldives? A tiny tropical island set in a beautiful and naturally exclusive shallow lagoon, Baros Maldives is a scuba diver’s paradise with a reef vibrant with marine life, warm and crystal clear waters and a PADI dive school. Maldives luxury hotels are a-plenty, but The Baros goes on the list for the following reasons;
Baros Maldives
A fantastic selection of over-water restaurants, fashionable bars, lush vegetation and a pampering spa add to the charm of this idyllic retreat.
Thatched-roof villas with spacious verandas, the signature spa ritual aptly called Baros Indigenous Bliss, perfect white sands and clear blue seas…surely, this has to be on your wishlist?
What about Sun Rocks, in Santorini, Greece? If you are looking for a luxury hotel Greece offers an absolute paradise. An idyllic hideaway carved out of the cliffs of the Caldera with endless views of the azure Aegean Sea and the volcanic islands. The service level at this stunning retreat is well documented. Forget the gourmet food, This goes on my list, just for the awesome cliff side pool.
Sun Rocks, Greece
The competition, which is now live at http://www.slh-competitions.com, closes on 1st September 2010 and the lucky winner will be the entrant whose itinerary has received the most votes. To enter, simply choose your top three Small Luxury Hotels.
The runner-up will enjoy a luxury five-night stay in a Small Luxury Hotels property and there is also a luxury five-night holiday from the group’s worldwide portfolio up for grabs for the most original holiday photograph.
Luxury Hotels resorts like these make for a very difficult top three, but you will find great pleasure in trying to decide.
Are we surprised, when we arrive at the Sorrel River Spa & Ranch in Moab, Utah, that it’s been winning prestigious award after award these past few years? Amazingly the ranch is everything the last twenty minutes have not been; a oasis in the desert, settled and relaxed. The horses corralled by the entrance await their next outing are unaware of the severity of the landscape, the swollen Colorado river sweeps silent by just a few feet from the ranch buildings and the face that greets us as we pull up to the lobby is warm, inviting and unassuming.
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Posted by Paul Handley on Thu 29th July 2010 at 08:32 AM, Filed in Luxury Hotels
Part of the exclusive Relais & Chateaux Hotel collective, Sheen Falls Lodge is a beautiful 5 star hotel in a beautiful location.
Tucked right at the very bottom of Ireland, in County Kerry lies Kenmare, THE quintessentially Irish town. Surrounded by purple heather-coloured mountains and cascading blue waters into Kenmare Bay, the backdrop to this quaint town is breathtaking. Bright coloured houses, Typically Irish charm and craic flow through Kenmare.
For ultimate praise, Trip Advisor named Sheen Falls Lodge as one of the World’s top ten most relaxing destinations alongside uber-luxurious hotspots Thailand and Mauritius.
Sheen Falls Lodge is surrounded by 300 acres of dappled woodland, with views over Kenmare Bay and the stunning backdrop of the Macgillicuddy’s Mountains. This area of Ireland is largely unspoilt and has to be experienced.
The 5 star Hotel offers all the facilities and amenities that you could possibly wish for while retaining the warm, welcoming atmosphere of a country house hotel. The hotel has a variety of rooms and suites to suit all, from deluxe bedrooms, starting at €140 per night, to presidential and signature suites, starting at €620 per night.
Guests can enjoy fine dining in the hotel’s award-winning La Cascade restaurant overlooking the falls, or you can also take advantage of the Cocktail Bar to sample whiskeys from around the world. You may have a problem with the wine list, Sheen Falls Lodge has one of the largest private wine cellars in Ireland, however, the head sommelier is always on hand to help you make the best selection!
If you choose to stay here (and you should), ask to see the Wine Cellar. It’s very impressive.
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Posted by Chantelle on Wed 28th July 2010 at 04:26 PM, Filed in Luxury Hotels
Getting the train from London Euston to Manchester Piccadilly took just over 2 hours courtesy of Virgin Trains and Abode Manchester was just seconds walk from the station itself. It was in a great location within the city (very central indeed!) and the hotel’s grand stature still retained a lot of the period character of a Victorian cotton merchant’s wholesale warehouse. Having already stayed at Abode Exeter I was interested to see whether there might be any slight differences between the two hotels but I was delighted to see that all the facilities, services and personal touches were exactly the same, showing a high level of consistency within this boutique chain.
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