Belmond has just announced a limited-time offer that we had to share. We first stayed at Belmond properties in Bali and, since then, they’ve been a top pick for any exotic retreats where service, style, and cuisine are top of mind.
Perfect for those who resolved to travel more in 2018, the Our Wonderful World for Less promotion includes up to a 30% savings across the collection of 47 hotels, trains, safaris, and cruises.
Booking terms vary by location, with highlights including:
A 25% discount on stays four nights or more at Belmond Maroma Resort & Spa, a dreamy retreat on the sunny, Caribbean shores of Riviera Maya
A 30% discount on two-night stays or longer at Belmond El Encanto, the historic property in the hills of Santa Barbara that will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2018
A 25% discount on visits of three nights or longer at Belmond Charleston Place, an easy two-hour flight from NYC
A 25% discount on stays of three or more nights at Belmond Copacabana Palace, the iconic Rio resort with a newly reopened restaurant, Pergula
I don’t know about you, but I’d sure like to experience a surf ‘n’ sail season Memmo Baleeira style in Portugal’s southernmost tip. You too? Following in the wake of hotelier Rodrigo Machaz, himself a surfer who knows the best spots in the shimmering Algarve waters, Design Hotels™™ is offering some Summer Specials not to be missed.
The Mira Spa - Hong Kong
Or, if you feel like taking in the shimmering nightscape of Hong Kong from your room at the The Mira Hong Kong, you can do that too. For an eclectically British feel, try the Firmdale hotels in London. Choose the funky neighbourhood of Soho with Charlotte Street Hotel or the exclusive upmarket locale of West End with Haymarket Hotel.
Apparently, Summer is just a click away…
The three different options include:
– 3 for 2: one complimentary overnight stay (minimum length of stay 3 nights)
– Upgrade: free upgrade to the next available room category (minimum length of stay 2 nights)
– Value: save a minimum of 10% off the best available rate (minimum length of stay 2 nights)
The Art Deco-style Christ Redeemer statue towers atop the Corcovado mountain overlooking Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
As HRH Prince Harry embarks on his Royal Tour of South America, on behalf of the Queen and her Diamond Jubilee celebrations on March 2nd, the world’s eyes are firmly on this bachelor prince and his exotic gallivants. Starting in Belize and ending in Rio de Janeiro, followed by a couple of days staying on in the city for a private holiday, Jacada Travel, Specialists in Inspired Luxury Travel to Africa and Latin America, have thought about how best they’d entertain a Prince with his time in the magnificent and heady Marvelous City. Because of all cities, Rio is possibly the most fitting choice for a fun-loving Prince.Check out their suggested Royal Itinerary below for some inspiring ideas and leads.
Day ONE Fly into Rio de Janeiro. In light of Prince Harry’s career as a military helicopter pilot, he’ll appreciate this particularly poignant introduction to Rio; a panoramic and phenomenally-scenic flight by a state-of-the-art helicopter into the striking setting of this city named one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. He’ll fly over the bays of Guanabara, Leblon and Botafogo, the beaches of Ipanema and Copacabana, swinging around the Sugar Loaf and hills of Dois Irmaos before coming to land. Lunch will be then be organised in one of the quaint restaurants of the bohemian hillside quarter (and the city’s oldest neighborhood) of Santa Teresa. Then, spend the afternoon with a trained kitesurfing instructor in the one the bays of Rio’s natural harbour, followed by some jetskiing to explore nearby beaches such as the exclusive Joatinga.
Joatinga
That evening, begin the night with dinner at Sobrenatural, for traditional seafood dishes such as Moqueca followed by cocktails at the Fasano Hotel’s understated yet glamourous Londra Bar. Frommer’s also recommends Espirito Santo for dinner, while for cheap and cheerful Brazilian cuisine, there’s Bar do Mineiro – recommended by the NY Times.
Day TWO
Start the second day with some surf lessons at Prainha beach. A personal guide and instructor will collect you from your hotel and drive you to this, one of the best beaches just outside the city for catching the best waves. Lunch at Sushi Leblon for some of the best sushi outside of Japan. That afternoon you could hang glide over Leblon, or perhaps opt for a private city and historical tour to Rio’s museums, botanical gardens, the striking district of Lapa, the Corcovado and Sugar Loaf, and all led by one of excellent English-speaking guides. A superb way to finish your day is with a hike up Pedra Bonita rock for spectacular views of the sun setting over the city’s skyline. That evening, dine at one of Brazil’s best churrascarias and one of the country’s favorite ways of cooking their world-famous meats on the barbecue. They can then organise for one of our local guides to take you around the lively bars of glitzy Leblon and the glamorousBarra de Tijuca – also referred to as Little Miami. Always playing live music from Bossa Nova to Samba and a vibrant atmosphere, sometimes all you need is a local with the same interests to show you the best spots, especially with a city like Rio that lives for the night.
Surf's up in Rio
Day THREE
Begin the day with a spot of kitesurfing in the morning or a private art tour of Rio’s best galleries and exhibitions followed by lunch at Antiquarius, one of the city’s finest and most famous restaurants for authentic Portuguese gourmet cuisine. Given the Prince’s love of Polo, that afternoon play a chukka or two at the exclusive Barra de Tijuca’s polo playing fields with a club professional. Pre-dinner cocktails at the fabulous Copa bar at the Copacabana Palace Hotel, followed by dinner at the world-class Gero restaurantowned by the Fasano family and serving fine Italian cuisine (a top Fodor’s pick).
Bar do Copa
Day FOUR – JOURNEYING ON…? Two or three hour drive south of Rio lies some of Brazil’s best and most soulful beachside towns such as Buzios (Brazil’s St Tropez) or the pretty colonial Costa Verde town of Paraty. Jacada Travel holds an exclusive portfolio of private villas available for hire from sleek, modernist beach houses to converted colonial mansions hidden on secluded shorelines so how about spending a few days relaxing on the beach, by the pool, entertaining family and friends and enjoying local life?
That’s what Harry might do.
Jacada Travel can plan an ultra-luxe Rio getaway like Prince Harry’s from $5,320 (per person, based on two sharing including, hotels, tours and flights from the USA)
Nestled in a rocky hillside in Buzios, Brazil, Jaunt Magazine is bringing our sassy friends some news about this swanky gem: The Insolito Boutique Hotel, a tranquil coastal boutique resort with a brand new restaurant, nine new guest rooms and a Parilla. That’s right… a barbeque straight from Rio Plata.
The property, as you can see to the left, encompasses 20 themed guest rooms based around Brazilian history and culture and include nine new spaces that reflect Brazilian Modernism.
A bit about… The Parilla
We hear that the new Parilla is fueled by a mixture of firewood and coal that gives ingredients it’s distinct flavor. The barbeque, situated in the popular beach lounge restaurant, is close to the sea to create an interactive dining experience for guests. The open barbeque ‘kitchen’ allows guests to get close to the action and learn tips from the parrilleiro (cook), including the origins and cuts of the meats and how best to cook them. Diners can choose from Argentinean, Uruguayan and Brazilian meats, seafood or vegetables, and enjoy them with a special dressing from the Plata River region. There is also a range of tapas and finger foods, and a choice of two menu options in which the cook prepares a range of starters and main courses that present the typical taste of a Parilla. Dishes include pork sausage with dried tomato and mint, roasted potatoes with roquefort cheese and baby beef medallions. Hungry yet?
The pool at dusk...
A bit about… The Restaurant
The new sophisticated restaurant area serves Franco-Brazilian cuisine and aims to delight the senses through a variety of Brazilian ingredients. The dishes, reflecting local traditions with a contemporary French touch, include delicacies like jabuticaba, a fruit similar to a cherry, used to complement meats in dishes such as ‘Beef filet in a jabuticaba sauce with a mandioquinha gratin’. The chef also grills crayfish and serves it with banana prata risotto. Other seafood dishes include Grilled Brazilian lobster with banana and Parma ham risotto and Provencal jumbo shrimp with Sicilian risotto. Buying my ticket just to eat that grub NOW.
Outside, guests can dine in a lounge area on the swimming pool deck and take in the sea views and fresh sea breeze, while inside there is a large room with a wall of blue tiles hand-painted by Laura Taves. Taves is founder and director of The Tile Workshop, a collective of artists and craftswomen in Rio de Janeiro. The kitchen area is framed by a unique vertical garden produced by São Paulo company Quadro Vivo and designed by architect Luis Fernando Grabowsky. The restaurant’s furnishings include items from the 1960s by designer Jorge Zalszupin, with lighting by Maneco Quinderé. And you know how much we love – and live for – swanky design elements.
A bit about… The Rooms
The nine new spaces include two superior rooms, four luxury rooms and three master suites. Located in a new house connected to the main building, the rooms show off interiors related to Brazilian Modernism. This is achieved through books, objects, furniture, paintings and photographs. For instance, there are items of Brazilian furniture from Jorge Zalzupin and, on the walls, photographs by Almir Reis who portrays modernist architecture and the human body.
Insolito's Rooms
A bit about… The Hotel
Converted from her beachfront home, owner Emmanuelle de Clermont Tonnerre’s has created a personal, relaxed hotel, with a variety of inviting spaces for guests and locals. The focus point of the hotel is the 3,000m² beach lounge between the beach and the garden with a bar carved out of a 1,000-year-old tree root. Guests can choose from three pools, one with fresh water, one with heated water, and another with sea water. There are also saunas and Turkish baths, a jacuzzi, a gym, bicycles and a lounge decorated with designer objects. The hotel also owns two speedboats for taking guests to nearby beaches and for water sports like wakeboarding and skiing.
And where is this hot Brazilian hotel?
Insólito Boutique Hotel is located in the Peninsula of Buzios. The hotel is approximately 2 hours by car from Rio de Janeiro-Galeão International Airport.
So be there or be square (and no one wants to be the square one in Brazil).
JAUNT MAGAZINE 