24 Hours at the Villa Arcadio - Lake Garda

Nestled on the real bottom of Lake Garda, in the town of Salò, the Villa Arcadio is located in one of my favorite regions of Italy - Lombardy! Not only famous for its excellent scenery, lakes, cities, no - also because of its excellent food, especially Pasta and Risotto (That's something I learned in Milan.). Although we were driving towards Brescia, away from the lakeside, we never missed the Lago di Garda - you are looking towards the lake from everywhere in the villa. After driving up the driveway, we immediately arrived at the Villa Arcadio. This means the hotel is near the main street, which can cause some noise on the pool. We were greeted by the two very quiet and well-behaved house dogs and one nice front desk lady. 

Check-in went really smooth, without even asking to do the paperwork (she just collected our passports) and within 5 minutes we were standing in our Junior Suite, flashed by the amazing 90 degree views of the lake, the town and the hills surrounding Lago di Garda. The rooms are mostly on the cozy side - that's the reason why there is no real open living room nor a sofa inside our Junior Suite. There is also a higher category in the house, the Suite with separate living- and bedroom - honestly we haven't spent much time inside our room as the lake is one of the most wonderful in Europe and Lombardy has got a lot to see, eg. Lago di Iseo, Brescia and Bergamo or you change regions and head to Verona and the other side of the lake - being in Veneto. So, get out of bed and discover Bella Italia!

As already mentioned, our Junior Suite had lake view, but otherwise the room was designed in a minimalistic style, offering two lounge chairs, one writing desk with television (many TV channels in german and some english ones), a minibar with affordable prices and a comfy King bed. The bathroom was generous, although it only had a walk-in shower and no tub. Toiletries were not branded ones, although not bad ones - with olive oil of Tuscany. A personal wish of mine would have been a working air condition - I guess they turned it off due to low season (normally it is not that hot in April, but the room was under the roof and pretty hot during the sunshine all day).

The pool looks really nice on the pictures, so I did expect a slightly differently prepared garden: Unfortunately the lawn wasn't mowed, which is not a problem at all - it would have looked lovelier while enjoying the amazing lake views from the infinity pool. Another issue was that we couldn't find a towel at the pool - which was because the hotel was still in low season and not yet operating full. The pool is opened from April to October but is not heated, so you need to be really tough when you want to swim in April or early May! We weren't as tough as we were at the Arts Barcelona - maybe because it was already 5 pm, although it still had 23 degrees celsius. 

Dinner and breakfast are served in the wonderful dining rooms just next to the pool and the bar and the lake view terrace. We had a wonderful evening with excellent dishes, from a wonderful amuse bouche to classical italian "Battuta" (kind of steak tartare), scallops carpaccio and risotto of broccoli and parmesan cheese. Furthermore we had sole with spinach (I'm not into spinach) and excellent sorbet of grapefruit.For wine pairing we had an excellent wine from the nearby Valpolicella. Throughout the evening we had two servers who where very kind and attentive, always willing to offer everything we desired. Breakfast was taken on the terrace and we could choose from a selection on the buffet (typical italian with homemade bread) and a menu with egg meals. We took scrambled eggs and omelette, which was both very good. It's hard to beat an italian cappuccino!

Although the dinner was truly excellent, everyone is so welcoming and personal and the Villa represents completely my taste of Interior Style with CasaMilano furniture, the true highlight simply was the hotel's own "Riva Aquarama Special". Having had an appointment at 11 am, we left the hotel 10 minutes before to arrive on time in the center of Salò. As soon as our driver arrived, he began driving the very elegant wooden motor yacht. Our tour started with a view of the pedestrian area of Salo then we drove along the western side of Lake Garda until we arrived in Gardone Riviera. From there we could spot the Grand hotels of this famous tourist town. Soon after we were driving further up north to Gargnano where our skipper showed us the world famous Grand Hotel e Villa Feltrinelli - home to superstars and upscale celebrities such as George Clooney. From there we crossed the whole lake and after 20 minutes we reached the east side of the lake. There was a old villa and another ancient hotel with a wonderful café. Before our tour came to an end, we passed by a private owned island with an impressive and totally chic luxury villa. It was a really special experience and I would say THE top reason to choose Villa Arcadio for your next trip to Lago di Garda.

Personally, we would like to recommend the Villa Arcadio to everyone seeking for a perfect luxury hideaway with a truly personal touch and real costumer care. While it is just that perfect for couples and single travelers, we can imagine that children can be bored easily(According to one of our readers Villa Arcadio is truly child-friendly and perfect for families as well).

We were guests of the Villa Arcadio. All our reviews expresses as always our own opinion. We would like to thank the owner Mrs. Jaana Nakari for the generous invitation and the wonderful stay.

48 Hours at the Urban Villa London

After being luxury travel bloggers since not even a full year of operating, we were really excited when we received the invitation to be part of one of the craziest and coolest hotel openings in 2015. This was one of our first hotel openings and therefore we were really excited to review such a new and not-yet-official-opened hotel. 

After a long journey with probably the worst taxi driver I have ever met - it took us nearly 2.5 hours since our landing at Stanstead Airport -  we finally went through the doors of Urban Villa. At least, the cabin crew at our EasyJet flight was alright.

So of course we came to the hotel in the middle of the opening party and therefore were not able to go to the room immediately. We were having cool cocktails, prosecco, white wine and finally one of the best burgers we have ever had - AND: the best french fries, with truffle and parmesan cheese - we just loved them.When we were queuing for the burger, Mr. Hussain (the Director of the hotel group) provided us with the keys. While we got a huge Master Villa (in fact a suite with a separate bedroom, living room, bathroom, and a winter garden), Mr. Beverage Executive received an airy Studio overlooking the main square of the newly built areal called GWQ (Great Western Quarter). It was nice to see the two different room types - so we also had a better overview of the main style and the layout.

The beds were extremely heavenly - we could have slept more than just the 10 hours. One small problem emerged when we were all looking for a minibar. Once we found the fridge we had to experience that it was completely empty. After the first night we found the water dispensers on the front desk. Nevertheless a filled minibar would have been a lovely touch. 

Inside our Suite, we had an issue with the telephone, which did not work yet. After that I would like to mention that the hotel represent the concept "affable luxury" and therefore is more casual with the amenities provided. There are no usual luxury hotel amenities yet, such as body lotion, bath robes, slippers, bath mats, nor a fully equipped kitchen. Some amenities will be changed and added this year, so keep updated. A great plus were the quality of the sheets, towels and toiletries by Malin+Goetz. 

At the next morning we were ready to discover London - naming itself "The biggest city in the world". The breakfast is catered by an outside company and therefore not included. The croissants were good, the juice too and the prices were moderate for a hotel bar, charging two Pounds for a croissant. So there is no bad surprise like in the big luxury hotels in Central London, e.g. at the Wellesley where a small San Pellegrino costs you nearly 17 Pounds. We believe that the Urban Villa will be a cool and chic business styled all-suite hotel once everything is in right oder.

Last but not least - we would like to express that we are glad that we have stayed at so many luxury hotels all around the world and therefore are really experienced in this sector. We came to the conclusion that the Urban Villa is a cool all-suite hotel at moderate prices and proximate distance to Heathrow airport. The design is casual and very stylish - spreading a really urban feeling, so that we sometimes felt transformed to a residence in New York City. 

All in all we had a pleasant weekend in London but we are definitely the sort of people who love to be in the center and might choose another hotel for that reason next time. 

Nevertheless, we think the Urban Villa is perfect for every business traveler needing to stay an overnight due to a connecting flight at Heathrow or young travelers like us, who want to experience London in one week and don't ming taking the tube every day!

A very special thanks to the Urban Villa and NoHo Hotels for the generous invitation for the whole weekend stay and transport to and from the airports.

Insider's Getaway - Villa Marie

If you ever wished to spend your holidays on the French Riviera or more precisely in the town of Saint Tropez, you might be impressed of this hidden gem.

Located on a wonderful hill, overlooking Saint Tropez and Ramatuelle, the Villa Marie is just the ideal place for all those seeking for peace, harmony and the pure charm of the Provence. With just 42 rooms and suites it offers an intimate feeling of a private country house. The complimentary shuttle service brings you to the center of Saint Tropez within 10 minutes. The famous beach of Pampelonne is just 4 km away from the Villa, but you will immediately feel of holidays when relaxing in the picturesque garden or on the cool shaped outdoor pool.

There is no room like the other, with different fabrics and little touches everywhere you look - this is a real boutique hotel like it can only be found in Southern France.

Beside the wonderful architecture you won’t miss the undoubtedly excellent service, too. Feel free to book your journey to one of Saint Tropez’s finest hotels. http://www.villamarie.fr

Travel Diary: My Summer holidays Part 7

Just arrived home now after a beautiful 3-week trip through the very South of Italy.

My last stop for this trip were the Marches, a region between Emilia Romagna and Abruzzo, famous for the shoe outlets. I stayed once again at the majestical Villa Lattanzi in Torre di Palme (within 20 minutes driving to Tod's and Prada outlet). The service was perfect again and the room clean, modern with a touch of luxury as well as excellent Etro Relent toiletries. Sea view and a very nice breakfast is always guaranteed! I had also a nice last evening with some italian friends at a very cool place, called Cobá Beach, directly on the beach of Porto San Giorgo, about 5 minutes by car from the Villa.

Before I went to the Marches, I have been in the modern region of Apulia/Puglia, where I checked out the new Borgo Egnazia Resort, famous for the Million-Dollar wedding of Jessica Biel and Justin Timberlake. 

The resort itself is beatiful and everyone is polite, helpful and friendly. I love the system to be a "Hotel-for-every-kind-of-guest": They have the La Corte area, where they only have double rooms and suites - perfect for couples and on the other hand they have the very nice Borgo area, where I stayed - with the optic of an old italian townhouse. I got a room on the first floor and it therefore had a rooftop terrace with views of the Adriatic sea and the sunrise!

The location is not really good, because the hotel's own golf course devides the hotel from the private rocky beach! That's why they have a shuttle every 20 minutes. They have also a beautiful sandy beach (my favourite place during my stay!), which is about 10 minutes by complimentary shuttle every 20 minutes, too.

If you do not want to eat inside the hotel and you are able to get out of the hotel, then you should book a table at either Osteria del Porto (Excellent dinner 4/5 points) or at Saporedisale, which serves also seafood and really good Pizza - for me 4/5 points, too!

When I left Puglia to go to the Marches, my last stop, I was sure to come back in the near future as the Borgo Egnazia is just the perfect resort for a summer holiday and the temperatures are not very high in Puglia.

Travel Diary: My Summer holidays Part 4

Finally after another day of travelling we arrived at our most Southern Place to stay, in Taormina on the island of Sicily! It is a wonderful island, with lots of palms and olive trees! 

I just checked in at the more-than-old San Domenico Palace Hotel in Taormina, which is beautifully situated in the Front row of this picturesque town!

The hotel itself is not a "Leading Hotel of the world" for me at first sight! Everything is really old and the pool, where I am just trying to relax is more than sad! There is one guy just sitting and waiting for guests. When someone arrives he is just giving a towel and that's it!

The room is old and does look like the part of the building where we are staying - unfriendly and dirty! This is not the place where I am relaxing. I cannot even await my departure, to leave this place!

Hopefully everything changes after the night, like at the Capo la Gala Hotel!

Best regards, Daniel

Where Romeo meets Julia in a hip way!

Welcome to the Byblos Art Hotel Villa Amista!

My travel advice for an extended summer holiday: Spend some hip days in Verona and find some bargains in North Italy's factory outlets. 

The Byblos Art Hotel Villa Amista is an old Villa with hip and modern furnitures and a lot of art and design, everywhere you look. To be sure in advance - this is not a place for children! The paintings of naked woman and men will not be everyone's taste, but if you do not mind for an extra portion of art, then the Villa Amista is the perfect place to keep your mind in peace with you.

The rooms are not that small, although we got uprgaded to a Deluxe Room. The Deluxe room was located in the Garden wing, and therefore we had a really nice ceiling with lots of paintings. The room itself was really tastefully designed, while the bathroom reminded me of a normal 5-star property in Italy - no design or anything modern! 

The bathroom toiletries were terrible, not only the fact that they were no-name ones, also the smell was more like chemical as relaxing. When you take a look, it says they were made in Spain, so not even an Italian Product. 

The Lobby is one of the most beautiful places in the house and is also the meeting point for everyone. From here you can go to the rooms, to the reception, to the outdoor pool, or you can have a drink at the bar.

The spa on the Basement was used to be managed by Henri Chenot a few years ago, and today it is a kind of city spa - nothing special and really small. They use Byblos Products and the jacuzzi looks very crowded if there are more than 4 people in it. The sauna and steam bath en-suite are also nice and the fitness center is situated in a private pavillon, which looks really cool, although it is not large, too.

The Byblos Art Hotel Villa Amista is a nice place to stay during a city trip in Verona or Touring the Outlets of Northern Italy! Rooms are available from 200 Euros per night and room including a lavish buffet breakfast!

http://www.byblosarthotel.com/