classe touriste

Classe Touriste is a contributor to the Travel Top 100 from the excellent Gourmet Traveller magazine in Australia. We selected Lyngen Lodge in Norway for skiing down pristine fjord mountains and with the Northern Lights as après-ski entertainment. Another winner at number 60 is the sparkly Diamond First Class from Etihad Airways, one of our ultimate favourites in the air. Flying First with Etihad Airways makes long haul flying fun and not only because of the excellent food and 10-year-old Bollinger champagne. If you go cruising to Antarctica, why not skip the feared Drake Passage and fly from Chile to Antarctica to expedition along the highlights, minus the rough seas. At number 11, find Antarctica XXI that makes this all possible. We also voted for First Luggage, the UK based luggage service, which makes light travel possible by delivering your suitcases to the hotel. You can read all about the best in travel for 2011 in Gourmet Traveller. Bonne voyage!

Why stay in a small hotel room when you can have a spacious, serviced apartment or loft for the same price? Stay is a brand new hotel concept located on the Island Brygge, a fast developing residential area, just a five minutes drive from the centre of Copenhagen. And one a stone’s throw from the buzzy meat packing district. Stay offers a total of 193 apartments with 15 different layouts, ranging from a one bedroom 90 m2 to an Atelier XL of almost 150 m2. The design is Scandinavian minimalism with furniture from quality Danish brands. (more…)

Close your eyes and imagine Empress Dowager Cixi roaming the century old dwellings of the Summer Palace in Beijing, Wurthering Hights style. If you don’t fancy Chinese concubines, then stay anyway at the magical Aman at Summer Palace, one of the most charismatic hotels in Beijing. This 51 rooms hotel occupies the former dwellings of the Summer Palace and offers a secrets door to access this famous World Heritage Site when “normal” (read: ten thousands of gymnastic, eating, singing and partying Chinese) visitors are not allowed to enter the park. (more…)

Mexico City has never been off the most stylish and interesting cities hotlist. With again more pollution hanging in the air, then H1N1, it’s time to put the spotlight on one of the newest additions to the hotel scène in vibrant MDF. Distrito Capital is owned by hotel entrepreneur Rafael Micha, a man who knows how to turn a hotel into a neighbourhood’s hotspot. White, white, white rooms with smart touches like the yellow Nat Geo binoculars and of course unlimited views over Mexico City. Distrito Capital might be located a bit away from the city centre, in the more businessy Santa Fe area, it still a good bet for those wanting to escape the smoggy city and lounge by the pool together with the beautiful in-crowed of MDF.

Sizzling hot during the day, freezing cold at night. Not to forget one of the dryest places on earth. Handy for people like me who are used to the rain almost 8 months a year. A new wave of hotels opened their doors here near or in San Pedro de Atacama. The old institude Explora is pretending the new ones are not there and continues their “this is not a hotel but an experience” philosophy. Let’s see how long they can hold on to it. Good options are Awasi for romance and privacy, Alto Atacama for unlimted views on the mountains and absolute silence at night and Tierra Atacama for good design, comfort and lot’s of space. And of course there’s still the desert waiting to be discovered… but at your own speed and only when you want it… don’t let them treat you like you are on bootcamp! Atacama is also about relaxing and enjoying the space and silence…