This hotel is chic, stylish and oozes the kind of Hollywood glamour I always imagined as a girl growing up in the West Country. The decor is beautiful inside and the roof terrace has views across LA. The restaurants are Gordon Ramsey restaurants and we had dinner there one night, and breakfast both days we were in LA. The image below is of the Lemon Griddle Cakes with Honeycomb Butter. It sounds crazy, but my absolute favourite thing about this hotel was actually the bathroom: so much so I had to film it! The video is below, but each bathroom has a bath and two showers: a rain shower and a power shower!
My lasting memory of this hotel will always be waiting outside for people and a steady stream of Ferraris and other supercars arriving, that and the beautiful bathrooms (there is an unintentional theme here). The PuLi was my very first experience of loos with “choices” (shall we say?!)…and music. Toto-esque, but not. The staff here are incredible: so helpful, and so polite. I cannot find my photographs of the hotel, unfortunately (if I do, I’ll post) but below is the shot from the PuLi website showing the beautiful garden terrace where we sat in the Shanghai humidity cooling off with exquisite cocktails and tasty bar snacks.
An unusual location- Arkansas- for an unusual hotel. Part hotel, part art museum, this hotel is all about the experience. Thought provoking and surprising, this hotel believes that it is possible for art to drive economy. The decor is understated and demure, peppered with bold art and an ever-moving selection of green penguins. Check out their Pinterest page to get a sense of what this place is all about! The restaurant, The Hive, has a great dinner menu but I really enjoyed breakfast every time I stayed here. I don’t eat eggs, but their yogurt and granola is a great start to the day! Keeping with the theme- beautiful bathrooms, complete with rubber ducks!
On the island of Langkawi (about a 45 minute flight from KL) this hotel is nestled in the rainforest, high above a private beach. This place is a relaxing sanctuary and the location of our best ever vacation. The bar surrounds a pond with lily pads and lotus flowers and overlooks the rainforest. They serve deliciously sour Mojitos and it is the perfect place to start an evening prior to deciding where to eat: The Gulai is set in the forest and the hotel staff actually have to drive you to the restaurant. When you’re there you can hear the crickets and frogs whilst you eat. The service here is exceptional. The Pavilion serves gourmet Thai food and the main dining room hosts the best breakfast I have ever had anywhere in the world. With energy smoothie shots that change daily, a Mimosa counter, traditional Asian breakfast, continental, English breakfast, muffins, fresh bread…just everything you could ever want!
This one is pretty close to home: about 10 minutes to be exact! I have been lucky enough to stay here (once) and have visited many times for dinner, lunch, coffee and breakfast. It’s simply beautiful, both in location and decor. There are two restaurants to choose from: the Gumstool (more relaxed and pub like) and the Conservatory, which is more formal. I don’t profess to know very much about wine at all, but all the wine I have had here has been exceptional. As it’s so close to home, I rarely take any photographs- but one from Pinterest is posted below of the Conservatory.
