What makes a place of prominence prominent? Is it what people bring to the place or what a place brings to the people? In the vernacular of luxury travel we think it is a pitched perfect combination of the two: a place of exceptional distinction set on and within extraordinarily intriguing soil. To this end we have ‘dug out’ the following prominent places, all of which promise to impress the guest from the inside to the outside… in spectacular five star style.
Peter Matthews, our chairman and multi-tasking entrepreneur, goes undercover at the Taj Mahal in New Delhi; Oliver Ephgrave, architectural journalist, unravels the magical delights of Jodhpur’s golden icon, Umaid Bhawan Palace; I take on the role of Wilma Flintstone, with four sons in tow, in the outstanding new ‘Eaudesea Suite’ ‘caves’ beneath Casa Angelina on the ever sparkling Amalfi Coast; we soak up Bhutan’s capital comforts in Thimphu at the dazzling Taj Tashi; I together with five girlfriends stay for two sacred nights and three holy days in Lake Como’s most sensational Villa La Cassinella (the view from my boudoir to the left).

Sophie Marchant
Luxury Explorer’s Travel Editor
www.luxuryexplorer.com