Life is a journey

I’ve had the pleasure of checking in to more beautiful hotels than I can count over the last 7 years as a luxury travel writer. But just when you think you have seen it all, you discover a place like De Witte Lelie. This beautiful design hotel in Antwerp is a true gem. We checked in for a two night stay and based ourselves in Antwerp to explore more of Belgium. Checking in to De Witte Lelie I had never even heard of De Witte Lelie when we began researching our trip to Antwerp. We had only a few days to stay and explore Belgium so we wanted to be based in a central location and Antwerp seemed like an obvious choice. I had already visited Brussels a few years before so I was eager to explore a new city. There are a handful of rooms each individually decorated, so much so that you won’t recognise one room from the next. Read more: 8 Places in Belgium you must visit What we loved about the hotel is that it is a short five minute walk f...

After dreaming of New Zealand’s surreal landscapes for years, I finally traveled to the country on my honeymoon this year. Queenstown was a favorite stop on our ten-day trip, where my husband and I checked into Eichardt’s Private Hotel , an 11-room gem overlooking Lake Wakatipu. Stays here feel like sleepovers at a friend’s apartment – a stately, historic, stunning one, that is, complete with turndown service and the best views of the city. Here are five things I loved about Queenstown’s grand dame. The Location. You couldn’t ask for a better home base for exploring Queenstown. The British colonial-style building is across the street from Lake Wakatipu, and serves as a beacon of luxury, easy to spot from almost anywhere in the compact city. Eichardt’s is a big part of Queenstown’s modern blueprint: The hotel’s building was originally constructed as a home in 1859, when William Gilbert Rees settled in the city after gold was discovered in the nearby Shotover River. A few years later, ...