Travel

There’s a very good reason why Swiss wines are so difficult to track down in comparison with tipple from almost every other nation in the grape-pressing world. As our expert is quick to point out.

International eXcellence interviews Alexandra Robson, the designer and managing director of Augustine Jewels. 
- Where did you study and what is your background?
I studied fashion and jewellery design at Esmod School of Fashion in Paris before going to Cambridge University for undergraduate and Stanford University for graduate school. Later I studied diamond grading and gemology at the Gemological Institute of America
 - How did you get your business started?
I started by designing bespoke pieces for friends. 

International eXcellence Magazine reviews Antigua in the Caribbean and comes back with a great tan, some fabulous memories and a new found love for this tropical island paradise.

At Llangoed Hall I slept like a Queen. And ended up scented and shod like one too.
The definite luxury British country house hotel in the Wye River valley amongst the Black Mountains in the mid-Wales countryside near Brecon, has hosted the Clintons and the Clooneys, And less important people like Prince Charles. There is a thank you letter from him hanging in the Grand Hall. Alongside one from John Major.

The famous Austrian ski region of the Arlberg includes the resort of Lech which has a charm and tranquillity that attracts rather discerning guests.  It could be described as serving ‘old money’ compared to the more brand aware high profile resorts of Gstaad and Courchevel 1850 where guests like to show their newfound wealth.  Lech was the first resort to limit the number of ski passes on the basis of ‘when is a beautiful mountain not beautiful - when there are too many skiers’.  The skiing is as extensive as you wish to make it as the ski pass can include the nearby world class resort of S

Meldrum House Hotel and Golf is truly an idyllic spot about 20 minutes from Aberdeen and without doubt my favourite place to stay in the area for its stunningly beautiful golf course and its warm hospitality.

This glorious stately home has hosted parties on a lavish scale with high society guests such as Churchill and Chaplin, while also being involved in that most scandalous affair of the time, the Profumo Affair, and so the thought of a stay here conjures up wonderful feelings of being a part of the glamour, intrigue and history.
The full background, though too long to go over in full detail here, is really something we would advise you to look into before, or indeed during, your stay as it is quite magnificent and adds to the whole experience.

Today sees the beginning of England's largest film festival outside London, and a prized asset of the north. LIFF28, to use the acronym, will see well over 200 screenings take place in and around the biggest city in Yorkshire over a 15-day period of time, with an abundance of UK premieres, exclusive lectures, director Q&As, live events and cultist celebrations.

There are 15 Hotels Du Vin across the UK so one might be tempted to think of them as merely another chain, but they run the whole business with care and passion, concentrating, despite the name, on the British character of their locations.
The Hotel du Vin in Winchester came recommended to us by friends who are chefs and it made an ideal stop on our Aston Martin British Luxury Tour, as we had wanted to visit the Cathedral and the surrounding countryside for a while.

Hand & Flowers, Marlow. Review
So we decided to take the Aston Martin DB9 over to the Hand and Flowers in Marlow. The chef is Tom Kerridge and in 2011 he had the distinction of being the first pub to receive two Michelin Stars, putting him up there with chefs like Michel Roux at Le Gavroche and Raymond Blanc at Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons. As we were on a British Luxury Tour, this pub seemed like the perfect stop for lunch on our way to Cliveden Hotel and Spa, where we were staying the night.