Robyn Foyster reviews three days in an overwater villa at Taj Exotica Resort & Spa, Maldives – from reef sharks and eagle rays beneath the walkway to a sunset dolphin cruise, swimming with nurse sharks and the Sushupti ritual at J Wellness Circle.
A rare kid-free weekend away is always something to look forward to, but I was particularly keen to head to the Hunter Valley to check out its brand-new dining destination.
My husband and I made the two-hour road trip to Roche Estate. We left mid-morning and arrived with plenty of time before lunch.
Walking into…
At Kalari Rasayana, in southern Kerala, Ayurveda is practised as medicine rather than spa indulgence, with a doctor guiding every step of your stay.
Part one: Kalari Rasayana
The sign above the entrance says it plainly: leave your world behind. So I took it at its word.
Kalari Rasayana sits in a coconut grove overlooking…
I struggle with the same dilemma every single time I book a hotel. It's a throwback to a stint in my twenties spent surviving on smuggled hostel breakfasts stretched to cover lunch, and FlixBuses timed to cross entire European borders overnight so I wouldn't have to pay for a bed.
So even now - older,…
Some hotels impress you. Faena? Faena messes with your whole nervous system - in the best way.
There are luxury hotels that wow you the second you walk in. And then there are the rare ones that actually make you feel something. Faena New York is firmly, unmistakably the second kind.
Faena New York
The…
by Brooke Hill.
When did you last have a chance to really wonder?
Not wonder what’s for dinner. Or whether you replied to that email. I mean the kind of wondering that happens when you have enough space to let your mind wander somewhere unexpected.
I’ve been thinking about wonder for years.
As…
Water buffalo loll in the middle of the road and humped cattle stand about as though they own it – which, in rural Rajasthan, they largely do – while monkeys watch from the roadside trees. Somewhere on the drive from Udaipur, my husband Jo and I feel the city's clamour fall away. A few hours…
Footprints in the sand share the secrets of this untamed world in Kwazulu Natal’s best private game reserve. This is the first lesson I learn on safari as we head off at dawn in a 12-seater open vehicle in search of recent paw print sightings of the world’s biggest and fastest cat.
Less than 20…
If the idea of waking up to ocean views one day and mountain peaks the next sounds like a dream, then van life might be calling your name. More and more women are embracing the freedom and self-reliance of traveling by van whether it’s for a weekend escape or a months-long road trip. And with…