hotels articles

Oh, what a difference a year can make. After taking a not-so-subtle beating at the hands of low occupancy rates, reduced bookings and the exhaustion of anticipation, there is finally relief in sight for Miami-Dade’s tourism industry. Looking toward 2004, industry experts and hoteliers are optimistic–and there’s nothing cautious about it.

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“The near future is certainly positive for Miami,” says Richard Millard, CEO of Miami-based Tecton Hospitality, a hotel owner and management company, who predicts the tourism market will pick up “a great deal” in the coming months. And he is far from alone. “We have a nice little window with the economy recovering, no new supply and a general lift in the market,” agrees Gregory Rumpel, senior vice president of Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels.

In terms of product, the December triple opening of the Ritz-Carlton in South Beach, the Four Seasons on Brickell, and the adjacent Conrad Miami, added another layer to the crop of luxury hotels that have appeared in the last few years. Far from being too much of a good thing, says Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau (GMCVB) president and CEO William Talbert, the additions will add to the lure of Miami as a destination. “I have been here 35 years and this is the best thing that has ever happened to us,” Talbert says. “The bar gets raised and it has a spin-off effect. The product attracts clients.”

The new luxury hotels are a coup for Miami, agrees South Florida-based Chase Burritt, managing partner of Burritt Associates, a hotel marketing advisory firm. “From a consumer’s perspective, it’s a great thing,” he says. “They have more to pick from, probably at pretty good prices, relative to what they would in Boston, Chicago or Atlanta.”

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The time was right for the South Beach-based Ritz to enter the luxury market, says Ezzat Coutry, the company’s senior vice president who oversees its hotels in the Southeast, Caribbean, Central America and Mexico. Some nights at the South Beach Ritz are already sold out in January and March, says Coutry, who cites Smith Travel numbers to illustrate the booming Miami market. Those statistics show Greater Miami led all major US markets in 2003 (as of October), with 7.1 percent growth in room revenue; Miami Beach, weighing in at 12.6 percent, had the highest growth of any destination.

What’s coming for 2004 is a new effort by the GMCVB to sell Greater Miami year-round, not just in winter’s high-season. There is even talk of putting on a July-based “Miami Fashion Week,” and other like events to lure visitors during summer’s steamy months. “One of my top objectives is to improve tourism in the low season,” says R. Donahue Peebles, this year’s chairman of the GMCVB. “I think it’s critical to our economic well being that we have demand in the summer.”

“Sometimes we become too complacent and think it is too hot and nobody wants to come here,” says Jorge Gonzalez, general manager of Miami’s 5-diamond Mandarin Oriental on Brickell Key, and chair of the GMCVB marketing committee. “But there are people who go to Palm Springs and New Orleans and hotter places. I think sometimes they are just excuses we give ourselves.”

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For his hotel, Gonzalez is trying different approaches. One that is working–to the tune of 5 percent of bookings–is pushing the Mandarin’s luxurious spa. Although the Mandarin sees 60 percent business bookings and 40 percent leisure travelers, the hotel is positioned as an “urban resort for leisure with a beach and spa experience.” The result? Leisure market growth of 20 percent in 2003 compared to 2002.

One strategy the Mandarin did not pursue was rate reduction, which Gonzalez says would have been a temporary “bandaid.” Fontainebleau Hilton spokesperson Lisa Cole agrees, concluding that “rate slashing benefits no one.” What the Fontainbleau has done is go after more family business–which dovetails with the summer marketing push–investing in such add-on attractions as their $5 million water theme park for children.

For hotels that cater to the business traveler, such as the Hyatt Regency Coral Gables and the Hyatt Regency Miami, business is on the upswing as well. Victor Lopez, divisional vice president of Hyatt Hotels and Resorts, oversees the Hyatt Regency Coral Gables and Hyatt Regency Miami. He anticipates 4 percent to 5 percent growth for 2004 over 2003. “Bookings are really strong for the first few months of the year,” Lopez says.

Loews Miami Beach Hotel is anticipating that 2004 will be “slightly better” than 2003 based on the fact that advanced bookings in the meetings and convention markets are slightly ahead of last year’s pace, says Debbie Castillo, director of sales and marketing. In the first quarter 2004, Loews’ individual leisure traveler bookings are also ahead of first quarter 2003, Castillo adds.

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One positive indicator is an expected increase in 2004 bookings–and slightly higher pricing–for Miami’s cruise lines. With nearly 40 percent of vacationers who arrive at Miami International Airport boarding cruises, the industry can mean the difference between area hotels sinking or swimming. Anne Kalosh, U.S. editor for Seatrade Cruise Review, says several new ships serving Miami and Port Everglades will enter service in 2004, adding even more berths for passengers in search of the cruise experience through South Florida’s ports. “This means more business for local tour operators, retailers, taxis, and restaurants,” says Kalosh, “because passengers spend the day in port as part of their cruise instead of just flying in and out to join or leave the ship.”

“We’ll go through seven mountain ranges and some virtually inaccessible terrain, and over one stretch of rail no other passenger trains use,” says author and historian David J. Mitchell from a plush seat in the dome car of the Rocky Mountaineer. The train–offering the only daylight rail trip into the Canadian Rockies–runs past a parade of looming, purple-hued mountains, like an Imax movie come to life. Along with the view, the Rocky Mountaineer delivers pampering service and a menu ranging from eggs Benedict to roast duck breast with cranberries.

It is if you’re traveling with one of today’s top-notch private rail companies. These tour operators use their own specially outfitted railcars and build trips around destinations and amenities you might associate with the great trains of the past. Depending on the company, you may ride in a modern car or in lovingly restored historic equipment like a classic dome or wood-paneled dining car. Excursions include at least one night aboard the train or in a luxury hotel. Trips typically run several times a month in season; reserve early for popular trips such as those that include autumn color.

Excursions across the West

Prices usually include meals, hotels, and transportation, but check to be sure.

* American Orient Express. This is America’s version of Europe’s famous luxury train, the Orient-Express. Vintage carriages (restored at a cost of $15 million) include two dining cars, two club cars, a 1948 rear observation car, and Pullman sleeping cars (compartments have twin berths and enclosed toilets). Trips run March through November.

SIGNATURE RUN: The 10-day Great Transcontinental Journey includes New Orleans, the Grand Canyon, and side trips (from $3,990).

MORE TRIPS: Seven-day National Parks of the West (from $2,990); seven-day Rockies and Yellowstone (from $2,990). Seven-day Pacific Coast Explorer (from $2,490) goes through famous Feather River Canyon, which was closed to passenger trains for 30 years.

CONTACT: (800) 320-4206 or www.americanorientexpress.com.

* American Spirit. Formerly called the Montana Daylight, this restored streamliner train offers 12 tours through the Pacific Northwest and Rockies regions. The train uses streamliner equipment from the 1940s and ’50s, considered the golden age of rail travel. Trips run June through mid-September.

SIGNATURE RUN: Three-day Montana Rockies tour from Spokane to Livingston, Montana, edges Lake Pend Oreille and the Clark Fork River (from $499).

NEW: Three-day Gateway to Glacier by Rail tour runs between Portland and Whitefish, Montana, and features the Columbia River Gorge and Selkirk Mountains (from $549); seven-day In the Path of Lewis and Clark travels to spots made famous by the explorers (from $1,249).

CONTACT: (888) 533-7245 or www.americanspiritrail.com.

* Great Train Escapes Rail Tours. Tours in the Southwest and Mexico use restored streamliner carriages (including dome cars). Trips run May through June (Southwest) and January through March (Copper Canyon, Mexico).

SIGNATURE RUN: The eight-day Enchanting Southwest trip on the North American Explorer train from Phoenix or Colorado Springs features swing bands onboard (from $1,899).

MORE TRIPS: The five-day Mysteries of the Copper Canyon trip in Mexico takes you along the edge of the spectacular 8,000-foot-deep Copper Canyon, crossing 35 bridges (from $1,599).

CONTACT: (888) 544-7245, (206) 935-6848, or www.greattrainescapes.com.

* Rocky Mountaineer Railtours. North America’s largest privately owned train tour operator runs modern equipment for its 21 package tours; most run mid-April through mid-October.

Low-frills airlines in Europe currently hold 18 percent of the market share, and that could go to 32 percent in just the next few years, according to Kark Garnadt, senior vice president-Network for Lufthansa. Speaking at the 13th annual Phoenix Aviation Symposium, Garnadt said that how quickly they grow depends on the response of the legacy carriers, which have been complacent in responding to the new competition. Michael Whitacker, vice president of alliances, international and regulatory affairs for United, said airlines no longer fit neatly into buckets of domestic and international and low- cost and point-to-point carriers. Most experts agreed that global aviation would eventually evolve into a system of three global alliances with many partners, and then many smaller operators.

According to a new report from PricewaterhouseCoopers, record gasoline prices will not stop Americans from hitting the road this summer. The report predicts that the increase in domestic summer travel will create an increase of 5.3 percent in revenue per available room for hotels.

Honolulu media are reporting that a person suspected in a ticket scam involving Hawaiian Airlines transpacific tickets turned himself in to Honolulu police. According to reports, consumers may have lost $200,000 thus far, but that dollar figure could rise if additional victims come forward. Hawaiian Airlines had issued a warning to would-be travelers earlier this month that an individual was offering consumers five roundtrip tickets between Hawaii and the U.S. mainland for $250 each and promising a sixth ticket for free. In its warning, the airline noted that the first ticket was legitimate but the subsequent ones were not. Consumers who think they’ve been scammed should file a police report and call Hawaiian Airlines’ customer advocate line at 808-838- 3500 to confirm ticketed reservations.

Access America, a travel insurance company, has partnered with Continental to offer trip protection to passengers whom book from Continental.com. The insurance will be available starting next month. It will offer Airline Ticket Protector, which provides trip cancellation and interruption coverage, and 24-hour global emergency assistance. A site www.etravelprotection.com/continental has been developed exclusively for Continental’s customers.

A national survey conducted on behalf of Orbitz for Business by Harris Interactive reveals the majority of business travelers are equally or more cost-conscious when it comes to saving their company money in 2004. According to the poll, 83 percent of business travelers feel “more” obligated to save their company money when traveling for business this year. The survey also found that 35 percent of business travelers plan to use an online agency to book business travel in 2004, while one in five (19 percent) said they would use their company’s in- house corporate travel agent. Less than one in ten (8 percent) said they would use leisure travel agents for their business-travel needs. For business travelers who use corporate agents, 42 percent feel their corporate travel agent does not always give them the lowest price and 44 percent believe that corporate agents charge high service fees. In addition, more than a third (36 percent) of business travelers frequently search online to see if they can find a better deal than their corporate agent. Eighty-four percent of business travelers cite convenience as a reason for booking business travel online in 2004; 69 percent cite a preference for self-service. The survey, conducted online March 1-3 2004, sampled 2,272 U.S. adults 18 years or older, 733 of whom are employed and plan to travel for business at least once in 2004.

The FAA, at its Annual Forecast Conference in Washington, said as the U.S. and other economies rapidly recover over the next two years, aviation would benefit. Passenger demand will return to pre-Sept. 11 levels by 2005, and large and small airlines will see an annual growth rate of 4.3 percent, the FAA predicts. Low-cost carriers and regional airlines could account for more than 50 percent of all domestic passengers by the end of the 12-year forecast period–2004-2015. But rising fuel prices are still a concern, and the profitability of airlines hinges on the business traveler returning to enough degree. DOT Secretary Norman Mineta said passengers are using different airlines and different airports than in the past, such as Long Beach, Charlotte and Midway, which helps with traffic congestion.

St. Louis-based INTRAV is offering a series of four new private-jet tours that provide shorter, regionally focused journeys to North America, South America and Western Europe. The four itineraries visit:

* Southern California, the Grand Canyon, the Colorado Rockies and New Orleans

* Vancouver, Santa Barbara, Portland and San Francisco

* The countryside in England, Ireland and France and

* Argentina, Uruguay and Costa Rica

For these nine and ten day Luxury Getaways, INTRAV has partnered exclusively with Four Seasons Hotels and Ritz-Carlton. With an intimate group size, each journey consists of at least two nights in three different cities, plus a day-trip to another destination along the way. Deluxe accommodations, sightseeing excursions and select meals are included, as well as special events and all flights aboard the privately chartered jet. An INTRAV travel director will accompany each departure to handle all the details of baggage transfers, tips, etc., and serving as passengers’ private concierge. The tours are priced from 13,600 to $22,800 per person double.

Are We Rome? The Fall of an Empire and the Fate of America, by Cullen Murphy (Houghton Mifflin, 272 pp., $24)

IN the last decade, and especially after 9/11, it has become popular once again to compare the United States to ancient Rome. The pop analogies almost always appear in the pessimistic context of an American colossus betraying its origins and ideals–and, like Rome, facing the deserved end of its empire.

Those on the left warn about America’s hard imperial hand on the “Other” abroad. Meanwhile, our contemporary conservative elder Catos lament the corruption of the old, small, agrarian republic into an empire. Both predict–almost gleefully, and sometimes in apocalyptic terms–American “exhaustion,” “decline,” or something similar to a Roman “fall.”

Of course, there are a number of similarities between the two superpowers, ancient and modern. Both were practical, inclusive societies that rapidly incorporated foreigners. They alike unexpectedly achieved global stature and influence–at first through astounding feats of arms in filling the vacuum of eroding empires (the end of the Hellenistic East in the 2nd century B.C. was perhaps analogous to the postwar breakup of the British Empire).

Soon each upstart nation won further adherents by an insidiously efficient way of doing things, based on merit rather than mere class, that offered material prosperity to millions not to be found through local indigenous cultures. Likewise, brilliant Roman and American writers have left thoughtful observations about the ironies–and pathologies–of their seemingly unstoppable societies that changed the world abroad and, in the process, their once-traditional citizenry within.

But for any valid comparison, some basic ground rules of this old game of “America as Rome” are to be followed. First, keep in mind that the idea of a monolithic “Rome” is a sort of construct–reflecting 700 years of Italian republican government, followed by another half-millennium of imperial Mediterranean rule. What “Rome,” then, do we of infant nations evoke? Is Rome to be the rather small, agrarian republic trying to stop Carthage in the first Punic war? Or Edward Gibbon’s 2nd-century A.D. hundred years of bliss? Or the chaos of a perennially tottering empire yet another 200 years later?

Second, recognize that Roman literature, usually written by disaffected elites, is as consistently reactionary as it is moralistic in nature. Juvenal, Livy, Petronius, Sallust, the younger Seneca, Suetonius, and Tacitus, all knee-deep in the luxury of their times, all nevertheless deplored the supposed decadence of their respective eras. They can be fine witnesses to Roman decline and the corrosive effects of luxus, but their pessimistic–and often hypocritical–genre of “things going to hell in a hand basket” needs to be weighed carefully against concomitant evidence from mute numismatics, epigraphy, and archeology that reflect a booming culture often at odds with what the cynical said about it.

For the once-great families, it might have been a seminal moment to see respected Roman matrons increasingly covered with blood and dust in the first row of the amphitheater, oohing and aahing the abs of the gladiators. But most in North Africa or Eastern Europe–who with Romanization at last had clean water and habeas corpus–could not have cared less. Petronius (Nero’s own arbiter elegantiae) saw the crass nouveau-riche upstarts as proof of imperial decadence. But some of the novelist’s gauche characters, like the Jewish buffoon Trimalchio and the rag-collector Echion, are more likely welcome evidence that millions by the 1st century A.D. were succeeding in a global system increasingly based on merit, not class–anathema to Petronius’s old Italian upper crust.

Third, there should be an up-front recognition that common Rome/America comparisons, from Oswald Spengler’s to Pat Buchanan’s, are rarely meant to be laudatory. Instead, they are admonitory in nature, warning that the “bread and circuses” of the United States, too, will–and should–soon end. Key is the superficiality that both Romans and Americans were somehow malevolent, forgetting that in comparison with the alternatives of the times, most of the “Other” voted with their feet to get within the imperial borders by any means at their disposal.

Cullen Murphy (editor at large at Vanity Fair and co-author of Rubbish! The Archaeology of Garbage) does not draw extensively from the evidence of the ancient world, other than selected quotes in translation from the usual grim Roman moralists. That paucity of ancient evidence is buttressed on the modern side by a plethora of references to contemporary culture. So evocation of everything from Abu Ghraib, the Green Zone, Halliburton (but of course), and Blackwater USA to Ahmed Chalabi, Ken Lay, and the Cheneys is used to hammer home the preordained point that our selfish right-wing elites have become like Suetonius’s vulgar Julio-Claudians in devouring public resources, eroding our freedoms, and ruining our name and influence abroad. But even the non-classicist will finally bristle at such simplicity, replete as it is with references to the movies Spartacus and Gladiator and the video game Rome: Total War.

I WAS BORN near the end of the Golden Age of Trains. As a child in Chicago between the wars I had little use for the Twentieth Century Limited–though my father took it often, on business trips to and from New York. But I did travel with my mother to various distant destinations-as far as Miami and Los Angeles–and I always enjoyed those trips. The napery in the dining cars was heavy and stiff; the silverware was thick and ornate. The car porter would come by during the evening and convert our compartment into a bedroom, with a good-sized bed for my mother and an “upper berth” for me. And then we would rocket through the night, swaying with the train carriage, and soon fall sound asleep.

All that is long since gone, in the United States. The advent of commercial aviation, beginning just before the Second World War and expanding explosively around 1950, completely transformed our travel habits. Yet, undeniably, we have lost something.

I remember President Reagan telling me once, when he was still governor, how much he used to enjoy taking the train from Los Angeles to Chicago and back in his acting days. The train would leave about 6 P.M., and there was time for a drink and a good dinner before turning in. The next morning it would be high in the Rockies. After a quiet day, and another pleasant evening and night, it would pull into Chicago. Plane travel was okay, Mr. Reagan thought, but boring. (Of course, Air Force One may later have changed his mind.)

Elsewhere–in areas of the world where major destinations are closer together-passenger trains not only survive but are the preferred mode of transportation. The great trans-European expresses will take you in thoroughly civilized comfort all over the Continent, crossing border after border with minimum inconvenience. And there are, in addition, still a few notable trains on the major routes within countries–like the TGVs of France, which now hold the Continental speed record for their runs between Paris and Lyon.

In Japan, similarly, the three hundred miles between Tokyo and Osaka are perfectly suited for a fast train. The Kodama (”Swallow”) expresses that leave Tokyo’s Central Station every hour cover the distance in a cool three hours. The Japanese expresses, however, make no great attempt at luxury. Your seat is reserved; there is a dining car; and a girl will come through the train with hot tea and perhaps a few snacks. But there’s not really much point in putting on a lot of dog for a three-hour trip. As for the speed (which necessarily gets up to around 110 m.p.h.), the truth is that you’ll hardly notice it.

For the rest, luxury train travel these days is largely confined to specialty acts, like the modern version of the old Simplon Orient Express that carries nostalgiacs from Paris to Venice and back. I have never ridden one of these, but I’m only seventy and there’s still time ! Another exotic possibility was called to my attention recently by one of those university alumni associations that have developed a profitable sideline toting groups of alumni to various intriguing corners of the globe. I have never had the slightest interest in riding the Trans-Siberian Express; by all accounts it makes the troop train that carried me across India in 1944 seem positively sybaritic. But this particular brochure promises a rather different sort of experience. The rolling stock, apparently assembled for the occasion, is the last word in luxury–wood paneling, crystal goblets in the dining car: the whole bit. The passengers will pick it up this summer somewhere in the Far East– Peking, I think–and ride it to Moscow in a week or a bit more. As I recall, there will even be an opportunity to get out and look around Novosibirsk or wherever. Still… It would be okay, I guess, if you like tundra.

More to my taste is the Blue Train–the luxury special that travels from Pretoria to Cape Town and back. Lord knows whether it will survive what South Africa appears to be heading for, but at last report it was still making the round trip twice a week at a dignified average of about 40 m.p.h. If you’re in a hurry, you can cover the distance on a South African Airways 727 in two hours. But if you have the time, take the train.

The rolling stock is specially designed; there is a molecular layer of gold on each window to shield passengers from the African sun, and there are electrically controlled Venetian blinds as well. Several music channels are available. Even the smallest compartment has a private shower, and many of the rooms for two actually boast a bathroom with tub. You are assigned to a table in the dining car, which will be yours for all three meals–lunch, dinner, and breakfast. There will be fresh flowers on the table, and luscious South African wines with your food. Between meals, the car attendant (one in each car) is in telephonic communication with the kitchen and club car.

You can, by the way, set your watch by the Blue Train’s progress. I boarded it in Johannesburg, just south of Pretoria, and it glided out of the station on the dot of noon. Twenty-four hours later to the minute, it rolled into Cape Town and stopped. In between, on the first afternoon, we were six thousand feet up on the tawny highveld. When I awoke the next morning we were making our way through the lovely Hex River valley of Cape Province, green with vineyards and purple with jacarandas in South Africa’s September spring.

Ritz-Carlton Hotel Co is expanding to Beijing and Tokyo under a plan to almost double the number of hotels it manages in Asia.

The luxury chain owned by Marriott International, the largest US hotel company, will sign a contract before the end of July to manage a hotel that is due to be built in Tokyo, according to Mark Lettenbichler, the chain’s area general manager in Hong Kong.

It also expects to conclude a deal in September to manage a hotel that will open in Beijing by 2005.

The company’s plans suggest Asia’s tourism industry is resuming its growth track after the devastation caused by a three-month SARS epidemic that drove visitors away and slashed hotel occupancy to as little as a tenth.

Six Continents and Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide are among other hotel operators that plan to expand in the region.

Moving on

Robert Hecker, a director at Horwath Asia Pacific in Singapore, which advises hotel developers and owners on investment projects, says the industry is moving on. “Now that we’ve got SARS behind us, tourism will go back to the growth track it was on before,” he said.

Beijing is a top target for hotel companies because the city will host the 2008 Olympic Games. The World Tourism Organization predicts China will become the world’s top destination by 2020, passing the current top four–France, Spain, the US and Italy.

Ritz-Carlton, which Marriott bought in 1995, has 54 hotels worldwide and operates in seven Asian cities, including Osaka, Singapore and Hong Kong. It plans to raise that number to 12 by 2007, says Lettenbichler.

“We see some great potential throughout the region,” he says, adding that Asia is one of the top priorities for the chain as far as expansion is concerned.

Optimism

Other hotel groups are also optimistic about Asia.

Six Continents, owner of the Inter-Continental and Holiday Inn hotels, plans to add 25 hotels in Asia in two years. Starwood, the world’s biggest hotel operator, said in November it plans to triple its hotels in China to about 45 in the next three years. Business travellers, who normally comprise about 65 per cent of Ritz-Carlton’s Asian hotel guests, steered clear of cities such as Hong Kong and Singapore during the SARS outbreak, but this was now beginning to recover, Lettenbichler says.

Scores of companies worldwide offer offbeat cruise experiences–everything from a European river voyage to an Antarctic expedition, from backwater jungle explorations to luxury yacht sailing. As part of our annual Directory Issue, Cruise Travel has detailed these offerings in the following guide to cruises of special interest.

Company names, arranged alphabetically, are followed by addresses and types of cruises offered. For more information, write the company directly for brochures, schedules, and rates, or contact your travel agent.

1. Taking advantage of the surreal desert-island-castaway landscape of Anguilla (a Leeward island in the north-east Caribbean), award-winning New York architect Myron Goldfinger created his own inimitable vision of castles in the sand, in the shape of the Covecastles resort. These startling white, geometric beach houses on Anguilla’s north shore are as much Le Corbusier-esque sculpture as they are a place to stay. Every beach house opens on to the sea, the most luxurious of which are the two Grand Villas - vast airy structures with split-level, tree-filled atriums connected by curving staircases just begging for a sashaying descent.

Beach house sleeping two, from pounds 439 per night, room-only. Contact Covecastles, 001 264 497 6801, www.covecastles.com

2.With the hordes of tourists visiting Venice each year, it’s not a destination you’d normally recommend as a place to get away from it all. But in the Cipriani, tucked away on the tiny island of Giudecca, the city has one of the most luxurious hideaways in the world. Far from the maddening crowds, this tranquil haven last year added the Casanova Spa to its already considerable charms - which include pretty gardens, an outdoor heated pool and tennis courts. If you really want to push the boat out, stay in a suite in one of the 15th century Palazzi buildings, which come with a personal butler attached. And should all that Garbo-style solitude get a bit much, you can always nip across the lagoon (incognito in designer shades obviously) on the free motor launch for a spot of sightseeing, designer label shopping or a Bellini at Harry’s Bar.

3. Parrot Cay has become a perennial favourite on the luxury island- hopping circuit. Located in a tiny corner of an uninhabited 1,000-acre island within the Turks and Caicos, in the British West Indies. Dreamt up by the duchess of design hotels, Christina Ong (owner of The Metropolitan and The Halkin hotels in London), Parrot Cay caters to those who like their holidays to come with a little healing. Possibly the poshest place to say your “oms”, Shambhala is known for its five-day yoga retreats. It also has Pilates studios, Japanese baths, open-air showers and a women- only Jacuzzi garden.

4. The Seychelles, swanky honeymoon spot of the 1970s, is now the choice for the sybarite who likes to relax everything but their gold card. The North Island resort is possibly the most expensive, ambitious and acclaimed of the recent Indian Ocean openings. Virtually uninhabited for the last 25 years, North Island was bought by Johannesburg-based Wilderness Safaris, which specialises in low- impact, high-luxury tourism. Green-minded architects Lesley Carstens and Silvio Rech (the latter behind Tanzania’s Ngorongoro Crater Lodge) worked with local craftsmen to design 11 “rustic” villas each with a thatched roof, private plunge pool, marble bathroom and beach views.

5. Pantelleria, off the coast of Sicily, is closer to Tunisia than it is to Italy. This volcanic island, favoured holiday spot of such luminaries as Madonna, Sting and Julia Roberts, has a high cost of living and little in the way of hotels. What accommodation there is here tends to be rather exclusive, the most coveted of which are the “dammusi” - stone-built cottages with Arabic-style cupola roofs. Walls are constructed from lava boulders, thick enough to withstand Pantelleria’s ferocious summer heat. Strictly speaking, these houses are self-catering, but come with hotel-style services such as a chef, maid and helicopter transfers, on request. E

Walking along the windswept bluffs of Torrey Pines State Reserve, you get an unmistakable sense of having arrived at a special place. The reserve, after all, is home to one of only two natural stands of its namesake trees, the rarest pines in North America.

A newly opened hotel located near the reserve, the Lodge at Torrey Pines, draws its inspiration from this setting and offers another reason to visit the area. Meticulously constructed in the Craftsman style popular in Southern California a century ago, the lodge manages the difficult task of building soul from scratch.

“There’s never been a more complex hotel,” says William Evans, the vice president of Evans Hotels and a driving force behind the lodge’s design. “We used construction techniques done for wealthy Americans 100 years ago. And built it to code.”

As soon as you see the lodge, you will understand what Evans is talking about. The porte cochere was based on Henry and Charles Greene’s design for Pasadena’s landmark Blacker House. The hotel’s stained-glass doors depict a Torrey pine on an oceanfront bluff; designed by the Judson Studios of Highland Park, fourth-generation glassmakers, they were inspired by the entrance of Pasadena’s Gamble House.

With the large, tastefully decorated rooms starting at $375, the lodge is a splurge. But day visitors can enjoy many facilities too, including the spa, which offers familiar treatments like hydrotherapy along with more exotic ones like the Indian-inspired foot and hand massages of the Ayoma Ritual. The lodge’s restaurant, A.R. Valentien (named for an early California impressionist painter, whose works decorate its walls), features contemporary California cuisine: the menu changes daily, but try the delicately prepared butterfish if it’s available.

A sense of natural integrity

The lodge sits just south of Torrey Pines reserve, which has an extensive network of trails. They lead into pine forests as well as impressive stands of coastal sage scrub and chaparral communities notable for Mojave yuccas, prickly pear, and agaves.

The interaction of the desert and sea lends the reserve a distinctly Southern California aura. It is that regional identity that the lodge strives for, an authentic sense of place.

“We all know when someone is lying,” says Evans. “But everything here is what it appears to be. It’s real. That’s what people are responding to.”

RELATED ARTICLE: Luxury amid the pines

Torrey Pines is located between La Jolla and Del Mar in San Diego County. From 1-5, take Carmel Valley Rd. west, then turn left on N. Torrey Pines Rd.

Online travel supplier and retailer Online Travel Corporation plc (OTC) has formed a partnership agreement with business web site FT.com.

Under the agreement OTC will supply its travel content and Build-Your-Own (BYO) self-packaging technology to FT.com. The BYO technology allows users to create their own holidays by combining flights and hotels.

OTC will also deliver a range of content tailored to FT.com users, including long-haul and luxury holidays, city breaks and discounted first and business class flights.