“It was always a great affair, the Misses Morkan’s annual dance.”
And today, on the Epiphany, I’m standing outside the four-storey Georgian townhouse in Dublin where the party took place – 15 Usher’s Island.
Is this the best hotel in the UK and Ireland?
It was considered Ireland’s finest Regency mansion in its heyday, described by Lady Kildare of neighbouring Carton House as ‘much beyond any place I have seen in Ireland’ (apparently, she was wildly envious of the 28-acre man-made lake on the grounds, the largest in Ireland, the cost of which almost bankrupted the estate). It became a hotel in 2011, and this year Ballyfin in Co Laois was voted the Best Resort Hotel in the UK and Ireland by Travel+Leisure magazine … Read More
Sun, Sahara and souks in Morocco
The sun is rising over the Sahara and I’m wrapped in a blanket to watch it. It’s spring in Morocco so night time and early mornings are chilly but by afternoon temperatures reach the high 20s and the sand is almost too hot to walk on. I’m rocking in a hammock outside my tent at the Nubia Luxury Camp – just eight tents at the foot of the immense drifting sand dunes of Erg Chebbi, the romantic views of every … Read More
Ducks, Vietnamese pigs and Michelin-starred dinners in northern France
Sunlight glints off the water as we sail leisurely past green banks, navigating low hanging branches and making way for the occasional duck. It’s a beautiful way to admire the wetlands of the Audomarois Marshes, France’s last cultivated wetland and a UNESCO-designated biosphere reserve. And a very tranquil spot for a boat trip. The marshes cover 37 square hectares, close to the city of Saint-Omer in the north of France. They feature 700km of waterways, 170km of which are navigable … Read More
Why Zurich is not just for accountants
Zurich may be the financial capital of Switzerland but here’s a thing – more people work in the arts in the city than banking. And it’s a pretty cool spot, a hotbed of culture and revolutionary zeal during both world wars, when exiled artists, writers and avant-garde intellectuals took refuge here, among them Irish writer James Joyce, who wrote the world’s most famous novel, Ulysses, in the city. For his last night out in Zurich, Joyce went to the Kronenhalle … Read More
Eating ice cream in Tuscany
If you’re looking for sun out of season but don’t want to travel too far, want to be wined and dined with local ingredients and tasty food, enjoy stunning scenery and world-class culture, the answer is easy. If you want to go to a non-native English-speaking country where everyone speaks English, meet friendly, welcoming people and eat ice-cream so good I would consider moving there for the luxury of eating it every day, it’s simple. Go to Tuscany. Hot sun, … Read More
