Holiday Hotspots 2008
2008’s Holiday Hotspots-Where you should be seen (and not seen) holidaying this year …
The Brits’ unhealthy obsession with the mass package holiday is finally drawing to a much needed close. Magaluf R.I.P! And take your free sambuca shots and Sex- On- The- Beaches with you, because in 2008 we’re all turning green. (No pun intended)
Joining the holiday ‘plague pits’ are also the overcrowded, bling-tastic resorts of the glitterati. Dear oh dear, what is OK! Magazine going to do with all that page space? The Maldives, Barbados, the Bahamas and St Tropez better put away their deckchairs and sun beds because 2008 is all about being discreet (and getting as far away from your neighbour’s beach- towel as humanly possible)
Eco- travel, in light of the fervent geo-political agenda, is on its way up and, more than ever before, holiday-makers will be making ethically conscious holiday plans. 2008’s emphasis is all on the reduction of the carbon footprint, which will leave the UK hotel industry rubbing its hands with glee as Blighty’s green-crusaders look towards somewhere off the M4 for their annual vacation.
A new breed of B&B
Boutique country retreats in the Shires can expect an influx of city-types, celebrities and readers of Harpers Bazaar and Vogue. No doubt patronized by über- celebrities such as Kate Moss, trendy micro-boutiques, cottages and revamped country manor houses peppered around no-longer so-sleepy villages of ‘it’ Shires (think Cotswolds and Wiltshire) will be polishing their silver and putting the champagne on ice this Summer. Whether Britons are flying less or can afford more short breaks, they are certainly fuelling a hotel-revolution in the British countryside. The knee-tremblingly beautiful Cotswolds 88 Hotel is just one example of a new breed and calibre of ‘lifestyle’ country retreat. Think a little less along the lines of muddy wellies, wet dogs and cagoules and a little more Aston Martin, lap-dog and Mulberry overnight bag.
Calcot Manor
www.cotswolds88hotel.com
www.strattons-hotel.co.uk
www.cowleymanor.com
www.calcotmanor.co.uk
Greener travel
Tourism, much like other industries, has withstood little immunity to the global eco- debate which has permeated socio-political discourse. Particularly targeting the wealthy classes, which are increasingly opting for ‘carbon offsetting schemes’, niche tour operators have begun to offer eco-friendly vacations in little- tread regions of the world.
In a bid to be as eco-friendly as possible many will, however, choose to holiday closer to home this year. But when considering just how much developing countries rely on international tourism, the argument for and against foreign travel becomes altogether more complicated. But fret not, there’s a new generation of holiday resorts cropping up that will get even those who have chained themselves to Heathrow’s runways packing their suitcases.
Lake Malawi, below
A happy medium
The ‘responsible travel’ revolution will see those who have decided to travel abroad, turning to niche tour operators who can offer adventure in remote corners of the worlds whilst ensuring ‘carbon footprints’ are as far from mammoth sized as possible. With the holiday industry feeding us chicken soup for our increasingly moral souls, 2008 shouldn’t leave us with too much of bad a taste in our mouths when sunning ourselves in resorts in Africa and Latin America.
And in a bid to appease their consciences of future holidaymakers, hoteliers have also been quick to step up the pace and cater for the new generation of Prada-wearing eco warriors. Nambia and Botswana, encouraged by tour operators who know the trends, have limited the building of 5* star hotel-resorts, opting for a handful of low-key (but ever so exclusive) eco lodges and nature reserves which offer privacy and as close to conscience cleanliness as possible www.pumulani.com www.wildandexotic.co.uk/Selindareserve
www.carteblanchetravel.com
Where we’ll be seeing you...
South-East Asia, a notorious punch bag for Westerns’ sybaritism, is on its way down with both gap-year casualties and intrepid long-haulers opting for the unscaled heights of Latin America. Tour operators, in a nod to those already bored and unchallenged by walks through Machu Picchu, are beginning to organise ‘off the beaten track’ tours. Patagonia, Torres Del Paine and remote Andean villages will see an influx of Western explorers, with ‘bespoke’ becoming the buzz word of 2008.
The breath-taking Patagonian landscape, below
The Middle-East is also a rising star on the tourism circuit. Tainted by war and political instability, countries such as Lebanon, Iran and Syria aren’t yet holiday brochure fodder but, as anyone who has travelled to the region knows, these countries offer unparalleled beauty, fascinating culture and magical hospitality. Lebanon, an Elysian masterpiece, has been blighted by bloody battle in recent years but, thankfully, there are still those intent on restoring the country to its former jet-set glory. Hotelier Gordon Campbell Gray is building the über trendy The Gray Hotel in the country’s capital Beirut (set to open in autumn 2008)
Oman will also creeping up the holiday destination charts in 2008. Notoriously elusive and private, Oman has seen a small number of exclusive resorts being built across its breathtaking desert landscape. However, low-impact tourism and zero ‘mess’ is at the forefront of its tourism agenda, so don’t expect to be doing to conga with a Mark Warner rep anytime soon. Zighy Bay resort and spa is one of Oman’s latest luxury ‘hideaways’ offering bespoke packages to suit the most discerning and discreet of visitors. www.sixsenses.com/hideaway-zighybay/index.php
On the other hand, Dubai, about as discreet as a Hollywood starlet after a drinking binge, will be seriously going against the grain this year. If 2008 is all about low-impact tourism, then
Dubai will be flicking its two gluttonous fingers at anyone dressed in hemp, carrying a foreign phrase book. This September will see the opening of The Atlantis, the first resort to open on the man-made island The Palm.
This monstrosity will, no doubt, attract those who still think Dubai is holiday-Nirvana and anyone who finds some kind of pleasure in parading across a giant sand dune built in the shape of a Palm Tree. Coconuts!
Authenticity is the way forward...
In a fervent attack on profit-orientated 5* hotel-chains (such as the ones found in Dubai) the enigmatic hotelier Gordon Campbell Gray stressed the need for more corporate responsibility within the hotel and tourism industry. Predicting a switch toward the environmentally friendly AND sustainable, chain hotels such as Hilton and Hyatt have already begun to develop ways in which they can satisfy growing consumer hunger for lower carbon emissions and, above all, authenticity. This will, inevitably, oversee the demise of the ubiquitous ‘holiday resort’ as holiday-makers strive to connect with the culture and environment in which they find themselves holidaying in- not very feasible if you’re packed in a top-floor hotel room in Torremolinos. In fact, let’s scrap the word holiday from our vocabulary altogether and, in 2008; call it an ‘ethical, carbon-neutral, journey of cultural and environmental discovery’.
Top destinations for your ethical, carbon-neutral journey of cultural and environmental discovery:
• Latin America- Argentina, Chile
• China- The World’s big polluter gives you an insight into how things should NOT be done. Pretty though.
• Middle East- Lebanon, Syria, Oman
• Africa- Madagascar, Mozambique, Zambia
• Central America- Panama
• India- Low cost airlines make it affordable
• The UK countryside
• Train journeys across Europe
www.vythiriresort.com (India)
For more information and ‘responsible’ holiday ideas:
Resources:
www.responsibletravel.com
www.ecoholidaying.co.uk
www.exodus.co.uk
www.eco-tropicalresorts.com
www.carteblanchetravel.com
www.imaginative-traveller.com 
China’s first carbon-neutral hotel, the hip 26-room URBN Hotel Shanghai, will officially open this spring. Conceived by owners Scott Barrack and Jules Kwan, URBN promises to be the start of a new boutique hotel empire.
