On walking into the Philippe Starck-designed Faena hotel in Buenos Aires you’re immediately transported into another world. Thick Alice and Wonderland meets a sexy dragon’s lair and you’ve got it in one. Triple-height ceilings give way to dramatic draped curtains and the place is dripping in blood-red swathes of fabric, from the carpet to the scatter cushions. Outdoors, the rouge theme continues and there is even an over-sized gold crown erected defiantly at one end of the swimming pool. I taxied over to the 105-room Faena hotel on a Friday night, to catch on of the best tango shows in the A...
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I found two return tickets to Bordeaux with Ryanair for £40 and that was that. On a Wednesday, after a 1 hour 40 minute flight, I'd landed in the French capital of wine. My travel buddy had found a beautiful Airbnb in the heart of the city. So after taking a fairly swift and cheap bus ride into the centre from the airport, we went to check into our homestay. A friendly local lady met us and showed us around the apartment, which oozed of old-school opulence with high ceilings, polished wooden floors and elegant fittings. With not much time to spare, we had a quick freshen up and bounced ou...
Read more →Recently we found ourselves in the bustling Burmese city of Yangon, which is home to more than 7 million people. With 48 hours to spare, here's a lowdown of some of the things we got up to: ROOM WITH A VIEW We checked into enormous Sule Shangri-La, which is one of the oldest hotels in Yangon. Located in the centre of the bustling metropolis, it is a stone's throw from the gleaming Sule Pagoda and the colourful Bogyoke Aung San market. We found ourselves on the 21st floor in a spacious room with views over the jam-packed city. A tip is to get a room at the Sule Shangri-La above ...
Read more →I felt pretty rock 'n roll carrying Cava up to my room at the Sir Adam hotel in Amsterdam. It had just hit midday, I'd checked in and found a bottle of bubbly at reception, so I poured myself a glass of vino and headed off to explore. My headed started to spin a little as I got in the lift to my room on the 4th floor. There was a giant disco ball and the floor was flashing in different colours. Some funky music was playing too. The doors opened and it was very dark. I felt like I'd entered a secret bunker as I tried to crack the code for the key card-activated door with my Cava wobbling aw...
Read more →'Not Times Square!' Was the first thing that all my friends said when I told them I'd checked into a hotel in the heart of Manhattan, where it never gets dark due to the neon glow and the streets are interspersed with men dressed in Muppets costumes - not to mention a Naked Cowboy strumming his guitar. However, The Time Hotel in New York isn't your average Times Square tourist / business haunt, with hard beds and greying carpet tiles. I was suprised to find this place is refreshingly hip, with a sense of character that's playfully slick. After battling my way past Muppets - unfortunately no...
Read more →Seville is a city of lavish and grandeur. On almost every street and corner you’ll find awe-inspiring buildings, which leave you gazing sky-wards, jaw wide-open in wonder at how man managed to construct so many beacons of glory in one city.
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