Checking out of a hotel recently I saw a quote that read: “Only a cat has 9 lives, so make sure you live your best ONE”.
For me travel is an integral part of living my best life. Whether it’s to hike in pristine landscapes or to immerse myself in a different culture, to see a once in a lifetime iconic site or just to take some time out and switch off. I spend a lot of time travelling for myself, but also to be the best at creating amazing travels for my all my wonderful clients.
As we zoom full speed towards the end of 2024, you may well be looking for inspiration for your travels over the coming year, so I thought I would share some of my highlights from the last 12 months. And if anything piques your interest, please do get in touch so that I can make 2025 your best travel year yet!
The most beautiful beach I sat on
Pink Sands on Harbour Island in the Bahamas which, as the name suggests, has the most unimaginably perfect coral-pink sand. To get to this little blip of an island requires a journey by prop plane from Nassau to Eleuthera Island and then a short boat ride. Once there expect a wonderful slice of heaven with colonial architecture and a very relaxed atmosphere. Life revolves around that beach during the day and then heading out to one of the fabulous low-key restaurants in the evening.
My most iconic view
A true pinch me moment was seeing up close, Mount Fitz Roy, the 3,375m towering spire of rock and ice that symbolises Patagonia. Myself and my husband, Julian, had got up early to beat the crowds, hiking up to the mirror like turquoise Laguna de Los Tres. The smiles on our faces in the picture above says it all! Read more about our trip to Patagonia here.
The most stylish hotel I stayed in
Vermelho is the shoe designer Christian Louboutin’s first foray into the hotel world and sits in the sleepy town of Melides, around an hour’s drive south of Lisbon. Subtle and sophisticated, there are 13 rooms and suites. No two are the same but all are beautiful. The area’s heritage is woven throughout with of course, pops of red, Mr Louboutin’s signature colour. The staff are lovely and really ensure you enjoy everything the area has to offer. It’s a perfect place for a short break or, as I did, at the end of a longer Portugal road trip.
My adrenalin high
Doing a helicopter flip over an active volcano in the picturesque Araucanía region of Chile’s Lake District. Hovering over the bubbling crater of the snow-capped Villarica Volcano and watching the lava spit out left me gob smacked. On the way back to our hotel, our pilot took us on an exhilarating high speed flight along the Liucura River, flying so low we could wave to the kayakers below.
My most underrated Italian experience
Ruggedly beautiful Ischia is an island off the coast of Naples. It is less packed with tourists and less showy than its neighbour Capri and offers a more authentic Italian experience. There are tons of things to do from the island’s famous thermal pools, to hiking, wine tasting, touring round the different municipalities in an Ape (the traditional taxi) and discovering the coastline by boat with a visit to nearby Procida and its multi-coloured houses.
A place that surprised me
St Barth. I had always thought it would be full of showy, wealthy people dressed in designer labels, popping corks on expensive bottles of champagne. But I was pleasantly surprised to find that it actually has a really laid-back vibe. Read about the quiet and wild paradise I discovered here.
My favourite weekend break
Tangier is a mere 2½ hours flight from the UK and totally exotic and intoxicating. For me it is a gentler immersion into the madness of Morocco and a perfect place for a weekend adventure. Discover more about Tangier here.
Wonderful kind words from clients
As a small, owner run business, built on repeat or referred clients, the kind words people say are incredibly important. Here are just a handful of wonderful things clients said this year.
“Are you sure you want to go to India? That’s what Lesley-Ann said to me, after our discussion about India and holidays.
Now my wife and I are wondering how soon we can go back!
With Lesley-Ann’s superb coordination and organisational skills, we visited many places in 20 days with superb guides and drivers, everything was a life experience. We both thank you Lesley-Ann and look forward to our next trip.”
“Our trip to Argentina was amazing in every way. Thank you for all your hard work in making this happen for us both - we are eternally grateful. You care so much that we always know we will have a terrific experience.”
“Thank you so much for planning such an amazing trip to Colombia and Panama for us all!! It was organised to perfection and we had THE best time.”
“We just wanted to say a huge thanks for creating a very memorable trip for us to Chile. We were blown away the experiences you organised for us and the places we stayed.”
“Peru. Wow - what can we say, what an amazing trip we had!!! Thank you so much for the organisation and planning, all the activities we did we’re phenomenal and everything went perfectly.”
“We had an amazing trip. Thank you so much for being the catalyst to actually making our adventure to Japan actually happen. We crammed a lot into two weeks - all aided by flawless logistics. We loved the country, the people, the food, the cleanliness, the transport and the culture. We will have to go back one day and see the rest of the country. Thanks again for all the ideas, the planning and the organisation.”