Why I go back to...

Home suite home

L

IKE our avian equivalents, when migrating to sunnier climes in pur- suit of a spot of R&R, what we really yearn for is a home away from home.

Birds, it' s widely accepted, return annually to specific haunts, often for lifeÐ revisiting hidden gems that are ideally placed to suit their individual wants and needs. We, it seems, rather like to follow suit.

Soneva Fushi, Maldives

Mary-Anne Danison-Pender, managing director, MAhout Ltd

` I return whenever I can because,

in my eyes, Soneva Fushi is not a hotel, but a ª homeº . I love the warm welcome of the smil- ing staff and the feeling of sinking into such incredible rustic luxury as soon as I arrive. Getting to know the island has transformed my life as far as holidays go, and gives me something to dream about on dark, English winter days. The joy of returning to the same place is that it takes away the uncertainty of finding one' s way around a new hotel. Soneva Fushi is genuinely my home away from home, so why would I want to go anywhere else?'

Elegant Resorts offers seven nights at Soneva Fushi from £2,275 per person, including flights and transfers (01244 897881; www.elegantresorts.co.uk)

The Peninsula Hotel, Beverly Hills, California

Julian Fellowes, screenwriter, actor and author

` For me, and for any Englishman, the great charm of The Peninsula is that you can walk in and out, and enjoy Beverly Hills on foot. This in a town where most hotels require a car to get to the dining room. It' s also comfortable, simultaneously grand and cosy, and the perfect place for those dreaded ª meetingsº that are an inevit- able part of a trip to LA. If it were left to me, I would never stay anywhere else.'

From $555 per night (0800 2828 3888; www.peninsula.com)

Bon Ton Resort, Langkawi, Malaysia

Rod Liddle, journalist

` Bon Ton is my favourite hotel in

the worldÐ it' s a collection of eight antique 74 Country Life International, Summer 2010

What is it that entices us to flock to a favourite place year after year? Alice Cooke talks to a veritable brood of movers and shakers about skylines, sunshine and swamp hens

Malay kampong houses, restored by the hotel owner Narelle MacMurtrie and decked out with colourful Chinese silks, huge beds, and wooden baths beneath the stars. Everything at Bon Ton is stylish and

understated: the service, the rooms, the prices. You open the shutters in the morn- ingÐ perhaps having been woken by the egrets and coucals and strange purple swamp hensÐ and look out upon a vast saltwater lagoon and the squid boats still bobbing on the bay beyond. It' s as perfect a view as you will ever see.'

From RM490 (about £100) per night (www.bontonresort.com.my)

The Sandy Lane Hotel, Barbados

Peter Jones, entrepeneur and ` dragon'

` Barbados is the perfect place to

go to recharge your batteries. My favourite resort hotel there is definitely Sandy Lane, as the service and setting are just fantastic.'

Elegant Resorts offers seven nights at Sandy Lane from £2,985 per person, including breakfast, flights and transfers (01244 897991; www.elegantresorts.co.uk)

The Al Falaj Hotel, Muscat, Oman

Sir Ranulph Fiennes, explorer and adventurer

` I once spent many months over

several years searching for a lost desert city in Oman, and the Al Falaj was our haven of civilisation on return from long, hot desert stints. With its own beach and every imaginable facility, the hotel is part old- world Oman, part 21st-century hi-tech. The staff are 100% helpful.'

From RO42 (about £70) per night (www. omanhotels.com/alfalaj)

Sydney, Australia

Sir Michael Parkinson, presenter

` I return to Sydney because it's my second home. I first visited Aus-

tralia in 1979, and have been back every year since. I now always stay in a friend' s house near the beachÐ bliss. Why do I love Sydney so much? Because it' s irresistible.'

Irresistible: the delights of Sydney draw their devotees back year after year

R. Wallace/Stock Photos/Corbis; Rune Hellestad/Corbis; John Lawrence/Rex Features; Richard Gardner/Rex Features Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84