Luxury Travel Newsletter
March 2024
Contents
- Plan Now for Summer
- Just Back: A Private Luxury Tour of Bhutan
- Top Travel Specialist Awards: Conde Nast Traveler & Robb Report
- Insider Venice: History, Art, Interiors, Wine & the Lagoon
- Postcards from Egypt: Rave Reviews from Our Travelers
- Japan: Old & New
- Just Back: Safari, Cape Town & Cape Winelands in South Africa
- London: New Hotels, Restaurants, Exhibitions & More
- Southern Ocean Lodge Reopens on Kangaroo Island, Australia
- Top 10 Favorite Highlights in Lisbon, Portugal
- On Our Blog: Seville, the Swiss Alps, Tulips in Amsterdam & More
- Classic Luxury in Europe: Our Favorite Grand-Dame Hotels
Plan Now for Summer
Summertime luxury and relaxation at Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc, Cote d’Azur, France
We’re busy planning luxurious, one-of-a-kind summer trips for couples, families, groups of friends and individuals. Some of our most popular tour destinations for this summer include:
Contact us to start planning an incredible summer trip based on your interests.
Just Back: A Private Luxury Tour of Bhutan
Luxury meets traditional style at the top resorts in Bhutan
The Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan attracts travelers with its deeply traditional culture, beautiful landscapes and luxury lodges infused with Bhutanese style.
We recently returned to Bhutan to experience the best of the new luxury resorts and specialized cultural touring.
See photos from our recent Bhutan trip
View our private Bhutan tours and contact one of our Asia travel experts to start planning.
Top Travel Specialist Awards: Conde Nast Traveler & Robb Report
An iconic view in Santorini, Greece
We’re honored to be named Conde Nast Traveler Top Travel Specialists for 2024 and Robb Report Masters of Luxury for 2024!
These awards reflect our ongoing dedication to providing our travelers with the best in luxury travel.
Read more about Artisans of Leisure in the press.
Insider Venice: History, Art, Interiors, Wine & the Lagoon
Beautiful interiors can be seen throughout Venice, including in palaces and historic cafes
Venice, Italy, has been enchanting visitors for centuries with its legendary beauty and unique history.
Artisans of Leisure arranges private insider tours of Venice that feature the highlights of the city's romantic canals, iconic landmarks, sumptuous palaces, traditional crafts workshops and tranquil islands in the Venetian Lagoon.
Favorite experiences we arrange in Venice include:
- After-hours visits to top museums and cultural sites
- Art tours focusing on historical treasures, modern art and the Venice Biennale
- A private visit to a renowned glassblowing studio on Murano
- Private boat tours through the Grand Canal and the Venetian Lagoon
- Jewish touring
- Culinary tours, including market visits, tasting tours and cooking lessons
- Visits to leading silk, glass, paper and fashion ateliers
- Winery visits
- Excursions in the Veneto region to see Palladian villas, vineyards, and towns such as Verona, Vicenza and Padua
- Hands-on family activities, such as gondola rides and making Venetian masks
- Attending an opera at the legendary Teatro La Fenice
- Staying at top luxury hotels, such as the Aman Venice, The Gritti Palace and Hotel Cipriani
See photos of the very best of Venice.
View our luxury Italy tours and contact one of our Italy travel experts to start planning.
Postcards from Egypt: Rave Reviews from Our Travelers
The Pyramids near Cairo, Egypt
Iconic Egypt is a perennial favorite for our travelers. We love this feedback from travelers have who recently returned from Artisans of Leisure private Egypt tours!
View our private Egypt tours and contact us for more information.
"Great hotel and cruise choices. Superior guides.
We never felt anything but hospitality and normalcy everywhere."
~ T.K., New York, NY
"Our trip was perfect! Wonderful! Our guide was not only an extremely knowledgeable Egyptologist, he was thoughtful and entertaining. The hotels surpassed our expectations in every way. Everything was fascinating. Artisans of Leisure is above and beyond any other tour operator we’ve ever used."
~ S.A., Ottawa, Canada
"Our wonderful trip to Egypt was so extraordinary."
~ K.C., West Palm Beach, FL
Japan: Old & New
Delicious meals are a highlight of traveling in Japan
Japan is more popular than ever, with many travelers planning tours well over a year in advance, especially if they want to visit during peak seasons such as cherry blossoms and fall foliage.
We visit Japan regularly to stay on top of the constantly evolving luxury hotel and private touring options, including recent additions such as the Azabudai Hills neighborhood in Tokyo and the Janu Tokyo hotel, a sister property of the Aman Tokyo.
Our private Japan tours include activities such as:
- Private access to traditional crafts studios dedicated to ceramics, indigo, incense, woodwork, lacquer and knives
- Attending sporting events such as sumo tournaments and baseball games
- Visiting off-the-beaten-path destinations, such as Tohoku and Yakushima
- In-depth contemporary art and architecture touring at Benesse Art Site Naoshima
- Exploring fascinating Buddhist sites in Nara, Kamakura and Koyasan (Mount Koya)
- Staying at traditional onsen (hot spring) ryokan and luxury hotels
View our private Japan tours and contact one of our Japan experts to start planning!
Just Back: Safari, Cape Town & Cape Winelands in South Africa
On safari in Sabi Sand Reserve, South Africa
South Africa is a dream destination for lovers of wildlife, beautiful landscapes, sophisticated cities, and great food and wine.
View photos from our recent visit to South Africa, where we enjoyed thrilling safaris in Sabi Sand Reserve, stayed at top luxury hotels in Cape Town and the Cape Winelands, and toured Table Mountain, the Cape Peninsula, Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden and other highlights.
View our private South Africa tours & luxury safaris.
London: New Hotels, Restaurants, Exhibitions & More
Claridge’s Hotel, one of our favorite hotels in London, England
We love London and return often throughout the year to experience all that the sophisticated, dynamic city has to offer. With new hotels and restaurants, great exhibitions, and exciting annual events and festivals, there’s more reason than ever to visit London.
A few of the things we’re most excited about for upcoming London tours include:
- New hotel openings, such as Maybourne’s all-suite hotel The Emory, Raffles London at The Old War Office, The Peninsula London and At Sloane, a boutique hotel on Sloane Square in fashionable Chelsea
- Buzzworthy new restaurants, such as Claridge’s Restaurant and The Arlington
- Luxurious countryside getaways, such as Heckfield Place in Hampshire, Estelle Manor in Oxfordshire and Grantley Hall in Yorkshire
- Major events, such as the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, Royal Ascot, the Formula 1 British Grand Prix and Wimbledon
- Top museum exhibitions, such as Sargent and Fashion at Tate Britain
- Exclusive after-hours tours, such as attending the Ceremony of the Keys at the Tower of London and VIP tours of the Churchill War Rooms
We love combining London with Paris, Amsterdam, Scotland and other locations farther afield including Marrakesh, Dubai and India.
Southern Ocean Lodge Reopens on Kangaroo Island, Australia
Beautiful views from Southern Ocean Lodge, Kangaroo Island, Australia
We’re incredibly excited that Southern Ocean Lodge on Kangaroo Island in Australia has reopened after being closed for several years. The lodge—a favorite for our travelers visiting Australia—is a great base for touring Kangaroo Island’s spectacular scenery, seeing koalas and other wildlife in their natural habitats, and enjoying the native bush and Australian hospitality.
We customize private Australia tours that feature the country’s top luxury lodges and most interesting destinations, including Sydney, the Great Barrier Reef, the Daintree Rainforest, Uluru, Melbourne, wine regions, Tasmania and the Daintree Rainforest.
We highly recommend combining Australia with New Zealand. Contact us to start planning the ultimate private journey through Australia.
Top 10 Favorite Highlights in Lisbon, Portugal
Lisbon is filled with incredible history and architecture
Lisbon, Portugal, is one of our favorite cities in Europe, with a rich history, vibrant neighborhoods, beautiful architecture and interiors, great luxury hotels, an impressive food scene, and easy access to regional palaces, gardens and beaches.
Read more about the highlights of Lisbon on our blog, including:
- Touring interiors of palaces, museums and private homes
- Visiting historic cafes, such as A Brasileira, Versailles, Confeitaria Nacional and Pasteis de Belem
- Exclusive visits to renowned studios specializing in Portuguese azulejo tiles
- Art museums such as the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum, the National Tile Museum, the Museum of Portuguese Decorative Arts and MAAT (Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology)
- Excursions to the palaces and gardens of Sintra
- Visiting Lisbon’s fascinating historic districts, including Alfama and Belem
- Culinary touring
- Shopping for ceramics, linens, gloves and embroidery at historic shops
- Visiting nearby beach towns such as Cascais and Comporta
View our Lisbon tours.
Contact one of our travel specialists to start planning a custom tour that includes Lisbon and other favorite locations in Portugal.
On Our Blog: Seville, the Swiss Alps, Tulips in Amsterdam & More
Our private Spain tours feature the best of contemporary and historic sites and culture
We update our blog regularly with the latest in exclusive experiences, insider touring and local culture. Recent articles include:
Classic Luxury in Europe: Our Favorite Grand-Dame Hotels
Classic, elegant style and luxury at Beau-Rivage Palace in Lausanne, Switzerland
Europe’s grand-dame hotels are true destinations in themselves, offering history, style and a sense of place. A few of our favorite luxury hotels in Europe that we feature in our private tours include:
- Villa d’Este, Lake Como, Italy
- Claridge’s, London, England
- Ritz Paris, France
- Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc, Cote d’Azur, France
- Caruso, a Belmond Hotel, Amalfi Coast, Italy
- Le Sirenuse, Amalfi Coast, Italy
- Marbella Club, Andalusia, Spain
- Grand Hotel, Stockholm, Sweden
- The Ritz London, England
- Grand Hotel Tremezzo, Lake Como, Italy
- Ashford Castle, Ireland
- The Balmoral, Edinburgh, Scotland
- Gleneagles, Scotland
- Hotel du Palais, Biarritz, France
- Hotel Cipriani, a Belmond Hotel, Venice, Italy
- Villa Igiea, Palermo, Sicily
- Four Seasons Taormina at San Domenico Palace, Sicily
- Grand Hotel Timeo, a Belmond Hotel, Taormina, Sicily
- Brenners Park-Hotel & Spa, Baden-Baden, Germany
- Beau-Rivage Palace, Lausanne, Switzerland
- Grand-Hotel du Cap-Ferrat, a Four Seasons Hotel, Cote d’Azur, France
Contact us to start planning an incredible, customized tour that includes Europe’s most legendary luxury hotels.
Private touring. Only the best hotels. Our world of expertise.
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