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Our Aim
We know we have a sophisticated audience. You are an extremely well-travelled, well-heeled bunch, you don't need us to tell you what five stars mean but the world is a big place and the web is unwieldy. Think of us as quality control. We make your choices simpler. We're the site for the time-poor, experience- hungry elite traveller. Let us inspire you.
Our Independence
The selections you will find here are based on merit. We are not a booking agency taking commissions from 100's of hotels on our lists. Hotels do not pay to be on this site. We are passionate about what we do and we are extremely discerning. We are not all encompassing and we don't pretend to be. If we were a hotel we'd be unique, designer and boutique not a multi-national chain. We only write about what we really like; what we'd recommend to our best friends.
Behind the Scenes
Our reach is global but our team base is Sydney, Australia. We also have an office in the UK and key correspondents in Asia, Europe and North America. Site-founder Hilary Doling is one of the country's most respected travel experts. She is known for her extensive network of travel contacts worldwide. The award-winning editor has been getting on and off planes for twenty years since her days on London's Fleet Street where she worked for newspapers such as The Sunday Express, The Times and The Guardian and for England's glossy magazines. In search of sun she moved to Australia as Travel Editor on The Sun Herald newspaper, running one of the countries most widely read travel sections for twelve years. Specializing in up-market destinations she became Editor-in-Chief of Luxury Travel & Style Magazine (2005 -2009). She has a regular guest spot on Qantas Up and Away in-flight radio talking about her travels. She also contributes to The Weekend Australian national newspaper and appears sporadically on Australian TV when they need someone to comment on the latest luxury cruise liner to arrive in Sydney Harbour...
Our Insiders
Much as we adore jetting off at any given opportunity it is not possible to be everywhere at once, which is where our Insiders come in - you will notice their comments under certain articles or in our blogs and news pages. Sometimes we simply incorporate their feedback into our articles. These are people who by the nature of their business, private income or sheer damn luck live the luxury lifestyle on a regular basis. They include CEOs, wives or husbands of CEOs, financiers, fashion stylists and theatre directors, interior designers, hoteliers, magazine editors, novelists, advertising moguls, barristers... the list goes on.
We love to include the opinions of people we trust - and these people really know. They give us their first hand insights for the love of it, there is no financial incentive. Hell, they don't need the money anyway. These names have been born out of our own personal contacts lists. Think of them as your private cocktail party circuit or the dinner party exchange that helps you plan your next luxury escape. Alternatively, if you are a carin' sharin' type and think you have the credentials to join our cyber-Rolodex let us know. |