As Hong Kong continues to ease down travel and quarantine restrictions for vaccinated people, the first wave of intrepid travellers are desperate to get on a plane and make up for the lost time. We totally relate to the wanderlust!
Hotel staycations in the city can only satiate our travel bug to an extent; absolutely nothing compares to the luxury of a long-haul vacation with loved ones in tow. If you can jet off to a luxurious retreat this summer, our selection of gorgeous hotels will tick all the right boxes for your travel bucket list. But if you can’t holiday just yet… dream now, lock it later?
1. The Brando, French Polynesia
More details here.
2. Sensei Lanai, A Four Seasons Resort, Hawaii
Aloha, Hawaii!
The ultra luxe resort is the brainchild of tech billionaire and Oracle’s co-founder, Larry Ellison. He doesn’t just own a home in Lanai, he owns 98% of the island!
The tech titan fell in love with the island in 2012, splurged US$ 300 to buy it off, flipped the town and this resort into a sustainability experiment giving the world an eco-friendly, upscale, luxury wellness retreat. And he spent just over half a billion dollars in doing so. Ellison moved full-time to the island during the COVID-19 pandemic and runs his billion-dollar behemoth from the Hawaiian paradise via “the power of Zoom”. Talk about work-life balance!
The resort is one of the most expensive locations in all of Hawaii. Stay here and dip into the whimsical five-star slice of paradise, immerse in the local culture and enjoy all the fun activities you can dream of. The aim of the retreat is to help people “live longer, healthier lives” by improving their sleep quality, increasing activity, elevating nutrition and making each guest feel like the only one at the resort.
Price: Upwards of HK$ 30,000 per night
More details here.
The Indian Ocean paradise is re-opening its borders to tourists once again and we cannot wait to drown our post COVID-blues in their crystal-clear, turquoise waters. No one does water villas better than Maldives and the Kudadoo Island resort (couples-only) is touted as one of the few all-inclusive, eco-friendly spa destination’s in the world.
More details here.
A holiday here is guaranteed to be one of the most unusual resort experiences of your life!
Segera Retreat is an opulent wildlife lodge in the shape of a ‘Bird’s Nest’ just north of the Equator in Kenya. Dedicated to conservation, decorated with a range of contemporary African art, the retreat houses eight luxury villas in a private game reserve of 50,000-acres of arid and savannah landscapes. Each villa, an epitome of sophistication, captures the charms of Africa. The whole project is fully sustainable, runs on solar energy and is 100% vegan – meaning, there’s no shred of leather or any animal by-product used in the construction or interiors.
The idea behind the unique bird’s nest design was to create an immersive sleep-in-the-bushes kind of an experience for the traveller. They put the ‘nest’ at a height to avoid the threat of wildlife. Sunsets here are otherworldly – the glorious nights spent under the stars, the silence interrupted only by the fluttering of birds, hooting owls, grunting lions and trumpeting elephants – makes for an unparalleled, ethereal stay.
Price: Upwards of HK$ 18,000 per night
More details here.
5. Zaya Nurai Island, UAE
