It’s in the diary. You may have bought lingerie, or just a good book, but you
have finally acted on all those promises and carved out a long weekend for
the two of you to enjoy an uninterrupted, hopefully romantic escape.
Now you want a hotel. Not just any hotel — screaming kids, indifferent service
and stark decor are rarely ingredients for successful amour — but a place
with a certain ambience, discreetly attentive staff and a location that
inspires passion, if not poetry.
Step forward Mr and Mrs Smith. That’s both the title of the chic hotel-guide
series and the pseudonym of its anonymous, luxury-loving reviewers. For
their latest book, they’ve checked in to check out Europe’s most stylish
love nests, from clifftop Greek-island retreats to renovated Provençal town
houses to coolly contemporary Icelandic pads — and they’ve given us an
exclusive peek at their top 10.
CHATEAU LES MERLES
Dordogne, France
Our suite in this 17th-century chateau was decorated with dark wood, antiques,
lots of white upholstery, crisp, snowy linens and huge windows. Black satin
slippers lay in boxes next to our bed, and a silver bowl of berries from the
chateau’s organic garden was waiting for us. In the little sitting room were
two parallel white sofas and a dark-velvet chaise longue. In the gleaming
black-and-white bathroom, we found a similar blend of monochrome luxury and
simplicity. The hotel has a swimming pool, a tennis court and a nine-hole
golf course, and don’t miss dinner: the restaurant serves excellent new
Périgordine cuisine, with an emphasis on fresh local ingredients.
Details: 00 33 5 53 63 13 42, www.lesmerles.com; doubles from
£74, room-only. Fly to Bergerac with Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) or Flybe
(0871 700 0535, www.flybe.com).
LE MANOIR DE RAYNAUDES
Tarn, France
An hour’s drive from Toulouse, Le Manoir is a 19th-century property built
around a traditional courtyard, with an outdoor pool, set in 13 acres of
Tarn meadows. Each of the four rooms is named after a past female owner of
the house; Mauricette is spectacularly huge, with lots of natural light, and
furnished tastefully and simply, with cream walls, wood floors, classic
French bed linen and views of the wild peaks of the Pyrenees. Much of the
restaurant’s produce is sourced from Le Manoir’s gardens, and seemed to have
been picked just hours before: taste the freshness and vitality. Le Manoir’s
style and pace make it the perfect rural retreat, soothing busy minds and
calming tense shoulders.
Details: 00 33 5 63 36 91 90, www.raynaudes.com; doubles from
£64, B&B. Fly to Toulouse with EasyJet (www.easyjet.com), British
Airways(0870 850 9850, www.ba.com) or Flybe (0871 700 0535, www.flybe.com).
JARDINS SECRETS
Provence, France
Situated on a nondescript side street in a nondescript part of town, Jardins
Secrets is not so much a hotel as a beautiful private house (no check-in or
reception) that, since 2005, has allowed members of the public to pay for
the privilege of staying there. On the edge of the ancient town centre of
Nîmes, this pink-hued 17th-century city villa has just four guest rooms.
Breakfast is taken in the lush, colourful garden, full of olive trees, giant
palms and bougainvillea. There is also a small but beautifully formed stone
swimming pool.
The rooms are large, luxurious and decorated with impeccably chic French
taste. Elegantly shabby antiques sit alongside polished modern pieces, and
the communal areas of the house are littered with books, photographs,
musical paraphernalia and aviaries full of tiny singing birds. It’s a
hush-hush hideaway where you are made to feel welcome, but are left
undisturbed.
Details: 00 33 4 66 84 82 64, www.jardinssecrets.net; doubles
from £128, room-only. Fly to Nîmes with Ryanair (www.ryanair.com).
Page 2: Ibiza, Seville and South Tyrol
Page 3: Panarea, Puglia, Santorini and Reykjavik
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ATZARO
Ibiza, Spain
Atzaro is a converted century-old farmhouse with 10 rooms in typical Ibizan
finca style — white walls and plenty of throw cushions. There’s a large
pool, surrounded by plush loungers, massage tables and reclining day beds.
Downstairs is the luxury spa, where Kate Moss is said to have spent £30,000
in one week. The rooms are seductive, too: ours came with a sitting area, a
fireplace, a cavernous bedchamber with a Japanese platform-style bed, and a
fabulous terracotta bathroom. The restaurant’s modern Catalan cuisine is
delicious. Two days here felt more like two weeks: it was a giant power nap.
Details: 00 34 971 338838, www.atzaro.com; doubles from £101,
B&B. Fly to Ibiza with EasyJet (www.easyjet.com).
HACIENDA DE SAN RAFAEL
Seville, Spain
A gleaming white cortijo-style country house, with 1ft-thick walls and huge
shuttered windows, the Hacienda offers grandeur without a whiff of
ostentation. The hotel, near Jerez, has been in the Reid family for a
century and a half, and, until the 1960s, was a working olive farm. The
younger generation has given it a stylish makeover, blending the languorous
sensuality of Andalusian traditions with Continental sophistication. We
stayed in a casita, a meticulously converted farm building with a thatched
roof, away from the main house — one of three at the 14-room hotel. It was
expensive, but you get a private terrace and an infinity pool (the main
hotel has three other pools) in a lovingly tended cottage garden. The food
in the communal dining area was excellent, too, but it is attention to
detail, and attentive staff, that makes the Hacienda de San Rafael so
special.
Details: 00 34 955 872193, www.haciendadesanrafael.com;
doubles from £151, B&B. Fly to Seville or Jerez with Ryanair
(www.ryanair.com).
VIGILIUS MOUNTAIN RESORT
South Tyrol, Italy
The Vigilius Mountain Resort is reached by a cable car straight out of Where
Eagles Dare. This spa hotel has not been plonked onto the landscape; it
nestles there, beautifully functional and quietly inspiring. The 35 rooms
and six suites are open plan but cleverly divided with partitions and simple
furniture; it’s very design mag, without being cold or uninviting. There are
no pictures: the perfectly framed Alpine meadows on the other side of the
room’s glass wall provide all the imagery you need.
Details: 00 39 0473 556600, www.vigilius.it; doubles from
£209, B&B, including unlimited use of the cable car. Fly to Verona
with British Airways (0870 850 9850, www.ba.com) or Ryanair
(www.ryanair.com).
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HOTEL RAYA
Panarea, Aeolian islands, Italy
Just over two miles long, the magical island of Panarea is scattered with
whitewashed buildings carved into the hillside. Among them is the beautiful
Hotel Raya. It’s split into three levels: Raya Peppe Maria contains the
reception, bar, restaurant and sun deck; Raya Basso houses the island’s
hippest shopping boutique, along with a few small rooms; and Raya Alto, with
mesmerising views, is the level to choose your accommodation on. Rooms are a
good size for two, with ample balconies and simple, tasteful furnishings.
The rooftop restaurant is custom-designed for love, with lanterns and
candles. Glamorous guests mingle at the bar while jazz noodles in the
background. The food’s great, too.
Details: 00 39 090 983013, www.hotelraya.it; doubles from
£131 (annexe) or £215, B&B. Fly to Palermo with Ryanair
(www.ryanair.com).
LA SOMMITA
Puglia, Italy
This converted 16th-century palace has almost all the elements a modern
hideaway needs. There are just 10 rooms, along with a sleek lounge, an
extensive patio overlooking the town, sun loungers on private balconies and
a little spa. Dinner is made from simple, healthy, beautifully presented
organic ingredients that give a nod to traditional local cuisine. The only
thing missing? A pool. The local bureaucrats wouldn’t let them build one.
Still, when it comes to boutique bolt holes, La Sommita ticks every other
box.
Details: 00 39 0831 305925, www.lasommita.relaisculti.com;
doubles from £169, B&B. Fly to Brindisi or Bari with Ryanair
(www.ryanair.com).
ASTRA APARTMENTS AND SUITES
Santorini, Greece
Hugging the postcard-perfect cliffs of Santorini like a particularly pretty
limpet, the Astra’s apartments provide a level of satisfaction that would be
surprising in a five-star big-city hotel, let alone a hideaway perched on a
quiet corner of a Cycladic island. With high white ceilings, arty ornaments
and candles on every available surface, a giant his’n’hers whole-body
shower, a four-poster bed and an outrageously comfortable sofa in the
separate lounge, these are rooms to spend time in. Some suites have private
pools (there is a communal infinity pool, too), and all the terraces have
stunning views, so you can relish the beauty of the deep-blue caldera and,
at night, the twinkling lights of nearby villages. Bliss.
Details: 00 30 22860 23641, www.astra-apartments.com; doubles
from £135, B&B. Fly to Santorini with Olympic Airlines (0870 606
0460, www.olympicairlines.com).
101 HOTEL
Reykjavik, Iceland
Here’s proof that, when it’s done well, minimalism is anything but sterile.
Our black-and-white boudoir was as contemporary as could be, and attention
had been paid to every detail. A silver-clawed free-standing bath,
blanched-oak floors, a huge bed draped in white linen and a monogrammed rug
added cosiness to the thoroughly modern decor. After dining at 101’s
restaurant, we flopped by the fireplace in the bar, ordered nightcaps,
raided the magazine library and settled into leather banquettes, feeling
like extras in a Scandinavian art-house movie. Which, in case you’re
wondering, is a good thing.
Details: 00 354 580 0101, www.101hotel.is; doubles from £216,
room-only. Fly to Reykjavik with Icelandair (0870 787 4020,
www.icelandair.co.uk) or BA (0870 850 9850, www.ba.com).
From Mr & Mrs Smith Hotel Collection: European Coast and Country (Spy
£19.95; published on October 15). To buy it for £17.95, including p&p,
call The Sunday Times Books First on 0870 165 8585.
For more information, or to stay at any of these hotels, visit
