Our favourites, recommended from experience.

Seychelles luxury for travellers in search of wildness, villa privacy and a great deal of nature.

Best season April, May, October and November

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Two islands, one ethos — the most coherent Maldives resort for guests who want play, retreat, and culinary discovery in a single stay.

Best season November to April — the northeast monsoon brings the calmest sea and visibility conditions. Surf season begins in May with the southwest monsoon.

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Nine private residences are spread across two small islands in Baa Atoll.

Best season November to April, for calm seas and dry days.

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Two kilometres of white sand across four islands: Finolhu pairs the openness of Baa Atoll with a deliberately social side of island life.

Best season Warm throughout the year; excursions to Hanifaru Bay for manta rays and whale sharks depend on season, weather and sightings.

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Amilla sits on Finolhas in Baa Atoll. Its 59 pool villas stand over the lagoon, directly on the beach or among the treetops, alongside eight residences.

Best season Hanifaru Bay outings operate only when the season and conditions align. We check this for the specific travel dates.

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A Riviera place for a few days in which view, village and dinner matter more than beach.

Best season April to June and September to October

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Mediterranean luxury with its own bay: deliberately not ultra-luxury, but very well done — and relaxed precisely because of it.

Best season May to June, September to October

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The iconic Santorini image as a hotel: built into the cliffs of Oia, with caldera views, pools and fine dining.

Best season May to June, September to October

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Design luxury on the hill above Elia Beach — Mykonos, when the glamour grows quieter.

Best season May to June, September to October

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Botania is the most coherent relais on Ischia — a hotel that weaves its thermal baths into the garden. The best way to know the island beyond the coastal strip.

Best season May to June and September to October. Summer is hot and fully booked; spring and autumn offer mild weather, full garden bloom and more relaxed pricing.

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A working wine estate in the heart of the Luberon — the most coherent way to experience Provence, vineyard culture, and genuine quiet in a single stay.

Best season May to October — lavender blooms in June and July; the September harvest gives the stay an unexpected rhythm.

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Ten private villas above a hidden sea cove — the most considered way to experience Ischia away from the crowds.

Best season May to June and September to October: warmth and light without high-season pressure. Sant'Angelo fills up in August — the property stays calm, but the journey in becomes harder.

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Craveiral Farmhouse — the most coherent way to experience the Alentejo between its own kitchen garden and the Atlantic silence.

Best season April to June for flowering season and mild temperatures; September and October for harvest time and early autumn light.

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A genuine peninsula setting: harbour, yachts and the medieval silhouette of Šibenik right off the terrace — without the peak-season pressure of the better-known Dalmatian islands.

Best season May to June and September to October — comfortable temperatures, quieter atmosphere, clear water.

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Eagles Resort brings together two complementary properties — the service-led Eagles Palace and the more private Eagles Villas — on a peninsula framed by sea on three sides. We know this property personally and value it for combining genuine resort infrastructure with the privacy of a pool villa.

Best season May to June and September to October: comfortable temperatures, calmer sea, quieter than the peak summer weeks.

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Three distinct hotels, one bay — the most coherent way to experience the Cretan sea at its finest.

Best season May to June and September to October — pleasant temperatures, no peak-season crowds, the bay almost to yourself.

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Finca Cortesin does not explain itself. This historic manor house between Casares and the coast combines one of Europe's finest golf courses with a Mediterranean beach club — without ever becoming a resort in the conventional sense. We know this property personally and recommend it without reservation.

Best season March to May and October to November: mild, green, free of high-summer pressure. Golf is playable year-round; the beach club runs May to October.

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Four distinct hotels within one collection — the most considered way to experience Corfu as a family or couple.

Best season May to October — Corfu has an unusually long season. June and September offer the best balance of warmth without peak-summer crowds.

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An address that explains Ischia: 19th-century palazzo architecture, the Gurgitiello thermal spring rising directly beneath it, and a 1,600 m² spa that transforms that water into something singular.

Best season April to June and September to October — thermal facilities operate year-round; the island is quieter outside the summer months.

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The Residence Tunisia is one idea in two climates: a coastal resort in Gammarth north of Tunis with its own thalassotherapy centre, and a desert resort in Douz at the edge of the Sahara. Both belong to the Cenizaro group and share the same commitment to architecture and stillness. We recommend combining both — this makes for one of the most unusual itineraries in the region.

Best season October to April for Douz: comfortable Sahara temperatures, no summer heat. Tunis is accessible year-round; spring and autumn are the quietest and most pleasant months.

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Built on a lava cliff above the Tyrrhenian Sea — the most concentrated sea-view experience the Aeolian Islands have to offer.

Best season May to June and September to October — midsummer heat on Vulcano can be intense; early autumn offers the finest light.

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A historic castle estate near Es Capdellà, surrounded by gardens, olive groves and the Tramuntana.

Best season April to June and September to October, when the gardens are in bloom and the heat stays gentle.

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A small adults-only hotel where pines, sea and a serious kitchen sit closer together than they do elsewhere.

Best season May to October, for a warm sea and long evenings on the terrace.

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An understated clifftop address that leaves the stage to the sea — intimate, grown-up and quietly composed.

Best season May to October, when swimming off the rocks is at its best.

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On Rua do Ouro, the hotel occupies an adapted 18th-century Pombaline building with 48 rooms and suites.

Best season March to May and September to November for longer walks through the city.

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124 rooms and suites on West 76th Street between Broadway and West End Avenue.

Best season April to June, September and October for milder city days than high summer or winter.

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Engadin clarity for travellers who like their mountain days sporty, quiet and uncomplicated.

Best season December to March, June to September

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A nature hideaway on the Baltic Sea for adults in search of rest — spa, cooking and quiet rather than a grand-hotel stage.

Best season May to September, autumn for quiet

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A design hotel in the Rheingau for epicures and active guests — forest, wine culture and Rhine valley views, very close at hand.

Best season May to October, autumn for the grape harvest

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A car-free chalet resort in Tyrol's Zugspitze region — private chalets with sauna and fireplace instead of a hotel corridor.

Best season December to March, June to September

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Hofgut Wißberg — the most coherent way to experience Rhenish Hesse through every sense.

Best season May through October for vine flowering, harvest season and long terrace evenings; December for quiet Advent days in the cellar.

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Sir Bani Yas is the most coherent way to experience wildlife in the Arabian Peninsula — an island established as a nature reserve in the 1970s, home to giraffes, gazelles and Arabian oryx, minutes from the water.

Best season October to April. The Arabian summer (May to September) is climatically demanding; the cooler months offer comfortable temperatures for outdoor activities and beach time.

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Bateleur Camp sits at the foot of the Oloololo Escarpment on the western edge of the Maasai Mara — where andBeyond's private concession gives guests access to terrain that vehicles from the central reserve cannot reach. The camp has been substantially refurbished and carries a nostalgic safari aesthetic that is neither museum nor caricature.

Best season July to October: the Great Migration with wildebeest river crossings at the Mara. January to March: calving season, quieter, lower rates. Avoid April/May (long rains).

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The andBeyond Galápagos Explorer is the most coherent way to experience the Galápagos — twenty guests, National Park-certified naturalist guides and anchorage in zones that larger vessels cannot reach. An expedition format that follows the rhythm of the islands, not the preferences of its passengers.

Best season Year-round. July to November: rougher sea, better diving visibility, Galápagos sharks more frequently sighted. December to May: warmer water, turtle nesting season, waved albatross on Española (April to December).

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A 1920s homestead on private land in the Sabi Sand — the most coherent camp when historic character and reliable leopard sightings carry equal weight.

Best season May to September — the dry season reduces vegetation cover and significantly improves sightings. Leopards are active year-round.

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andBeyond Nxabega — the most coherent way to truly understand the Okavango Delta between a mokoro and a star-filled sky.

Best season June to August for peak water levels and mokoro activities; September to November for classic game drives on dry ground with concentrated wildlife.

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andBeyond Phinda — the most coherent way to experience seven ecosystems and the Big Five within a single reserve.

Best season May to September for cool, dry conditions and best sightings; October to February for birding and newborn animals.

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Twelve suites on the Mo Chhu — the most immersive way to experience Bhutan beyond the standard dzong circuit.

Best season October to December for clear mountain views and black-necked cranes in the valley; March to May for rhododendron blooms and mild trekking weather.

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Ten suites under one of Africa's darkest skies — the most honest way to experience the Namib desert without turning your back on it.

Best season May to October: dry winter months with cool nights, stable conditions for wildlife sightings, and optimal stargazing. The brief rains from January to March bring green to the desert and different, rarer fauna — a legitimate travel window for those who know it.

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A working hacienda at the foot of an active volcano — the most considered way to experience Patagonia without sacrificing comfort.

Best season December to March for summer experiences (fly-fishing, rafting, volcano treks). June to August for snowshoeing and skiing on Villarrica glacier — an entirely different property in winter.

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A fortress resort at the edge of the world's largest sand sea — the most considered way to experience the silence of the Empty Quarter without losing your bearings.

Best season October to March: daytime temperatures between 20 and 30 degrees, cool nights, optimal stargazing. From May to September the Empty Quarter is too hot for most guests to engage with activities outside air-conditioned spaces.

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Four properties under one family — the most coherent way to experience Rajasthan without losing the thread between places.

Best season October to February: dry heat, clear light, comfortable daytime temperatures. For tiger sightings in Ranthambore, October to April — late season brings the best chances.

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A Maldives place for guests who seek reef, quiet and substance rather than staging.

Best season January to April

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Three very different addresses, one signature: tea highlands, clifftop resort and tented lodge by Yala — the finest way to experience Sri Lanka in a single journey.

Best season December to April (south & highlands strongest).

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Three very different properties, one sensibility: a river resort in Hoi An, beach villas in Quy Nhon, and The Vietage luxury train connecting them — the most coherent way to experience central Vietnam in one journey.

Best season February to May — dry and warm across both regions; Hoi An and Quy Nhon have different rainy seasons, with a shared dry window in the transition period.

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A Banyan Tree-managed boutique resort on the calm west coast — the most coherent way to experience Mauritius without a resort atmosphere.

Best season May to November — southern hemisphere winter, dry breeze, ideal conditions for outdoor dining and beach walks.

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900 metres of private beach, dense rainforest, one island without backpackers — the most coherent way to enjoy the Andaman Sea undisturbed.

Best season November to April — dry season, calm seas, snorkelling visibility up to 20 metres. From May the monsoon arrives; the resort remains open, the jungle turns vivid green, and prices drop.

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Sixty freestanding villas on the northern tip of Praslin, set among granite boulders and tropical vegetation — no conventional hotel rooms, but a private pool and the Indian Ocean in front of every terrace.

Best season April to May and October to November — calm seas, less wind than peak season, sea turtles frequently visible.

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Reverie is the newest chapter from Resplendent Ceylon — two addresses on Sri Lanka's south coast that are deliberately less formal than the group's flagship properties. Ahu Bay sits on a headland between two bays; Kayaam House — now Kayaam Wellness — lies at the shore near Tangalle. Both share the same intention: less programme, more place.

Best season December to March for the south-west coast (Ahu Bay): dry season, calm sea. Kayaam near Tangalle follows a similar pattern and is accessible year-round.

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The quietest kilometre on the southern coast of Mauritius — the most considered way to combine Ayurveda and beach without compromise.

Best season May to November — the southern coast is more sheltered from the north-east trade winds and remains pleasant even in December–January when the north and east coast resorts face strong wind.

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The Residence Maldives — the most coherent way to experience the Maldives without the crowds and with genuine Cenizaro character.

Best season November to April — calm seas, maximum sun hours, best underwater visibility.

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The Residence is the most classically composed of the large east coast properties in Mauritius — no concept experiments, no trend positioning, instead a calm Belle Mare lagoon, a kitchen with substance and a service that works as well for families as for couples.

Best season May to November. The east coast can be affected by cyclones during the southern summer (December to March); the winter months offer stable, dry weather and more comfortable temperatures.

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A Cenizaro villa resort on the tranquil south-west coast — the most immersive way to inhabit Zanzibar without the tourist noise.

Best season June to October (Kaskazi dry season): clear water, comfortable temperatures, ideal snorkelling conditions. December to February also good, slightly warmer.

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Every villa opens directly onto the sea — the most considered way to experience Phuket without the crowds.

Best season November to April — Andaman Sea coast, meaning Phuket's dry northern season. Trisara's sheltered eastern bay position offers more flexibility than west-coast resorts.

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A hotel group that understands southern India is meant to be experienced, not merely visited — the most considered way to move through Kerala and its neighbouring regions.

Best season October to March — outside the monsoon. November to February is the quietest and most comfortable period for Kerala.

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Dharana at Shillim is not a wellness hotel that happens to be in the mountains — the Sahyadri landscape is the programme. An Ayurveda and yoga retreat anchored in a natural setting that is rare in India.

Best season October to March. The monsoon (June to September) brings intense rainfall and a dramatic landscape — compelling for nature-oriented guests but climatically demanding.

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Twelve cottages on 25 acres at the edge of Bangalore — an AYUSH-certified Ayurveda hospital that wraps five-star hospitality around genuine medical depth.

Best season October to March — comfortable temperatures in Karnataka, no monsoon rain, the quietest atmosphere on the estate.

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Thermal resort above Val d'Orcia, grown from a Medici portico of 1607, with spring water of 42 degrees.

Best season April to June and September to October for mild days; the warm springs carry the winter too.

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A 19th century villa above a natural thermal grotto with an underground lake.

Best season Year round; the grotto holds a constant 34 degrees, the park is at its best in spring and autumn.

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Former summer residence of the Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1743, today a thermal palazzo between Pisa and Lucca.

Best season April to June and September to October for city visits to Pisa and Lucca; the baths carry the whole year.

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Tented villa resort in the Ashar Valley, set between sandstone cliffs, with Rock Pool and Banyan Tree Spa.

Best season October to April for mild desert days and clear starry nights.

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