How a Lexus mid-life crisis led to a £3m yacht and a car that outshines Jaguar and Porsche October 30, 2019 A few years ago, at the prestigious Pebble Beach concours in California, the president of the Toyota Motor Company was holding court and pressing flesh. Akio Toyoda, 63, is the grandson of Toyota’s founder and so, you can imagine, he takes enormous pride in its products, and none more so than its luxury off-shoot, Lexus. [...]
Why did the US Navy sink its own vessel off the coast of the Cayman Islands? September 27, 2019 The sound of whirring rotor blades carries across the bay. I’m staring at a framed photo of Tom Selleck inside the office of Cayman Island Helicopters, while its proprietor, Jerome Begot, readies the chopper. Jerome is a Frenchman who, inexplicably, flew in the US Air Force decades ago, and Magnum PI is his hero. After [...]
Putting the new Audi R8 through its paces on some hair-raising roads from Calais to Paris to Provence September 25, 2019 The Audi R8 is a mid-engined supercar with multiple personalities. Ideal, therefore, for a blast through France to visit three characterful but very different hotels. The 2019 Audi R8 might have only received a mild facelift but it can still stop people in their tracks. From the front, I worry that the recent nip-tuck makes [...]
Trisara hotel review: Foraging needn’t be at the expense of luxury July 24, 2019 Foraging is all the rage but, despite its fashionable foodie status, it does rather bring to mind getting grubby at the bottom of the garden, thrashing around with a set of secateurs, or simply pretending to be a badger. Surely there’s a more glamorous way to liven up lunch? So, off to Trisara in Thailand [...]
Safari in Style: We take a tour of South Africa’s finest luxury nature reserves June 18, 2019 There’s nothing particularly unusual for those used to a life of luxury about a five-star pool villa, except when said pool has a warthog drinking from it. My villa fronts straight onto the wild South African bush. We’re instructed not to step outside after dark, not even for a second, in case we get eaten. [...]
Welcome aboard the Amore Mio, a 7,620 horsepower luxury sports yacht with more toys than Hamleys June 10, 2019 Luxury journalism: It won’t make me a billionaire, but I do get to act like one on occasion. The 45-metre Amore Mio is one of the largest and most powerful ‘sports’ yachts in the world, and it isn’t available for charter. Instead, its owner – who shall remain nameless but, predictably, he’s Russian and in [...]
How much of Route 66 can you see in one weekend? We head to Chicago to find out… October 29, 2018 Route 66, America’s most legendary highway, is a month-long mission for many who attempt to drive the whole thing. It starts in downtown Chicago and ends 2,448 miles later in front of the Santa Monica Pier in Los Angeles. But what if you only have a weekend to Get Your Kicks on Route 66? With [...]
The best way to explore the highlands is by plane – we visited the Carnegie Club in a Pilatus PC-12 NG September 14, 2018 The private plane I’m boarding at South London’s Biggin Hill would be ideal for anyone who owns a desert island or alpine ski lodge. It’s a multi-talented Pilatus PC-12 NG. My destination is closer to home but even more exclusive: The Carnegie Club at Scotland’s Skibo Castle. My pilot, Edwin Brenninkmeyer, who is also Pilatus’s [...]
The best way to explore the highlands is by plane – we visited the Carnegie Club in a Pilatus PC-12 NG September 14, 2018 The private plane I’m boarding at South London’s Biggin Hill would be ideal for anyone who owns a desert island or alpine ski lodge. It’s a multi-talented Pilatus PC-12 NG. My destination is closer to home but even more exclusive: The Carnegie Club at Scotland’s Skibo Castle. My pilot, Edwin Brenninkmeyer, who is also Pilatus’s [...]
Lewis Hamilton interview: How the most decorated British racing driver in history, may be about to swap the track for the runway July 5, 2018 I find Lewis Hamilton quietly thumbing through a sheaf of technical sketches. But he’s not in a pit garage or race car factory perusing the work of aerodynamicists – he’s in Tommy Hilfiger’s Knightsbridge studio, studying pictures of sneakers. Just as he gives his Mercedes crew feedback, demanding different damper settings or more wing, he’s [...]
