Get the low-down from the original style-seekers' latest good-time hunting expeditions, find destination inspiration and insider tips from around the world. Welcome to the official Smith blog: we hope you enjoy your stay
We’re satisfying our craving for fine food and stylish stays by taking a peek at Spicers Clovelly Estate, a boutique retreat in Australia’s Sunshine Coast Hinterland, home to the award-winning Long Apron restaurant.
This week, we’re lusting after all things green, fresh and springy. We want to eat butter-dipped asparagus, plump peas, tender lamb and citrus puddings. We also want the sun to shine. Though today’s hotel of the week can’t guarantee the latter, it can provide all of the former, thanks to its tempting new spring menu. [...]
Looking for relaxation, refined dining and perhaps even some springtime sunshine? Escape to L’Andana Hotel in Tuscany, where the spa staff stand ready to soothe and the menu’s overseen by world-renowned chef Alain Ducasse (we can’t guarantee endless days of Tuscan sun, but we’re pretty sure it’ll be warmer than rainy old England). Style Tuscan [...]
With autumn kicking in down under, our top tip for a warm-weather staycation is Australia’s aptly named Sunshine State. Here, we bring you our pick of the best Queensland holiday houses… BEST FOR COASTAL COOL Alinghi, Great Barrier Reef Stay A contemporary cedar, glass and steel eco-eyrie set in 14 acres of bushland, this architect’s [...]
We’re stretched out on a sunlounger, soaking up some rays. We’ve got ice-cold cocktails to our right and the whispering sea to our left. We’re happy, we’re relaxed, we’re dreaming about Cypriot feasts and big round beds, and we wake up… in Smith HQ, at our computers. Never mind eh? Our hotel of the week, [...]
There’s nothing cookie-cutter about travel in Australia, with city breaks, coastal escapes and outback adventures all jostling for a place on your holiday itinerary. To help separate the wheat from the chaff, the Gourmet Traveller Awards seeks out and celebrates the best hotels and destinations down under, from soothing spa retreats to life-changing Outback adventures – such as [...]
Spring’s a superb time to head for the hills. The changeable British weather won’t be a problem at Cowley Manor hotel in the Cotswolds: if the sun shines, there are acres of undulating English countryside in which to frolic… and if it rains, this boutique bolthole’s billiard room is the perfect place to hide out. [...]
Today we’re feeling thirsty. And not just for any old water. We want seawater. Whole horizons of it. With craggy calderas and bright white bedrooms (to contrast with the blue skies and even bluer seas outside). In this parched, H2O-hungry state, we’re turning to our favourite Greek island, and a handsome hotel by the name [...]
How far are you willing to travel for a good feed? The Smith team has planned holidays to Shanghai in search of xiao long bao soup dumplings and lost countless hours in Ho Chi Minh alleyways hunting bánh xèo pancakes. We also think nothing of making a six-hour round-trip for dinner, recently setting out for [...]
Less hotel of the week, more ‘Bush & Breakfast’ of the week – if struggling with a tent holds no appeal but you still fancy the idea of communing with nature, pitch up at Luxury Swag Camp, an open-air boutique hotel in the Blue Mountains, just two hours’ drive west of Sydney. Style Intimate upscale bush [...]
