Luxury Travel Advisor - April 2008 - (Page 12)

DUKE’S GUEST ROOMS have been completely renovated and refitted with crisp, classic furnishings (double room shown). ager, can provide more details or facilitate bookings through guest services. Although the Andaz doesn’t have a concierge, staff can arrange private limousines, shopping or East End art tours (it’s best to book for your clients in advance through the guestservice contact). Spitalfield’s Marketplace, a haven for new fashion, design and food, is a stone’s throw away, as is the East End’s famed Bangladeshi restaurant street, Brick Lane. The Andaz’s location, cheek-by-jowl to Liverpool Street Station (and the Stanstead Express), makes it a perfect choice for clients who love to walk and explore the city. In contrast to the Andaz’s anti-traditional take on service, Duke’s (www.dukeshotel.com), which celebrates 100 years in service this year, offers guests the opportunity to immerse themselves in the “bespoke” standards for which Britain is best known. The amazing thing about Duke’s (in its new incarnation as a Gordon Campbell Gray-managed hotel) is that you never see staff until you need them. They at- tend to your every need and then vanish, without the expectant palms-up attitude so prevalent in U.S. properties. Yet for all its attention to detail and guest comfort, the hotel is remarkably fresh and free of attitude, something Gordon Campbell Gray has always insisted on and a factor that made his One Aldwych the premier boutique hotel of London. Campbell Gray and his designer, Mary Fox Linton, redesigned and refurbished Duke’s in time for its anniversary in a way that will warm the cockles of a traditionalist’s heart. In contrast to nearby Brown’s, whose eccentric charms were a bit over-buffed in its new Rocco-Forte incarnation, Duke’s restoration has not changed the private-residence feeling that long-time guests will crave. Overstuffed chairs are still there, albeit reupholstered, and all the hotel’s original furniture and settings remain, something General Manger Michael Voigt (michaelvoight@dukeshotel.com; 44-207-318-6571), who joins Duke’s from a long-time position as general manager at One Aldwych, says was done to honor and uphold the hotel’s great tradition. One of the hotel’s crowning jewels, Duke’s Bar, also has been sensitively re-rendered, just in time for the 100th birthday of one of its famed denizens—Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond. It was at Duke’s Bar that Fleming came up with the concept of “shaken, not stirred” for his hero, and clients can still get the original martini that inspired him (only two per customer, as they are quite heady!). Duke’s will be celebrating Fleming’s birthday and the year-long James Bond/Fleming exhibit at the Imperial War Museum with a “Bond About Town” weekend getaway package that includes Bond-ed martinis and Miss Moneypenny manicures in the hotel treatment room (Duke’s has no spa, but does make available massages and other treatments); book in advance through Janelle Barlow (healthclub@ dukeshotel.com; 44-207-3186583). Insider tip: Duke’s is a destination bar and is intimate in size, so book ahead via Helen Murphy (helenmurphy@dukes hotel.com; 44-207-318-6580). The hotel’s restaurant is also a showpiece, recently restored with an understated Mary Fox Linton design. It features classic English cuisine and a wine cellar of exceptional Old World reds. Tip: Everything at Duke’s is exclusive, private and on the intimate scale, so book the restaurant well ahead for clients. Upstairs, Duke’s 90 suites and rooms (all bookable via the GDS) continue the theme of understated elegance and comfort. Since Duke’s is situated within a small Mayfair street close, no rooms get high outside street traffic noise and some have charming views of the hotel’s interior courtyard—a very exclusive feeling. The Penthouse or high-02series rooms have the best views of nearby leafy Green Park. Special services can be handled by Master Concierge Ian Steiger (iansteiger@dukeshotel.com; 44-207-491-4840), who can arrange private cars or viewings in local galleries. Steiger once even helped a group of Saudi guests redirect their private plane from a weekend in Iran for a jaunt to New York City instead. Nearby shopping also includes the bespoke services of Swaine Adeney Brigg, the St. James Street luggage and leathergoods makers who created James Bond’s first briefcase (still available today, sans knife and gold sovereigns). Again, the feeling of hushed elegance in Duke’s private world of luxury extends naturally out into the exclusive and historic shops of Mayfair. When asked what celebs have stayed at Duke’s, General Manager Michael Voight’s answer is a paradigm of the hotel’s unique history and style: “Elgar and Chopin, but more than that we can’t reveal.” 12 LUXURY TRAVEL ADVISOR | April 2008 http://www.dukeshotel.com

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Luxury Travel Advisor - April 2008 Contents Publisher's Letter Editor's Letter London DESTINATIONS India Greece HOTELS Golf Royal Hideaway Playacar Chateau Marmont SPAS Hawaiin Spas Southeast Asia CRUISES: Antarctica Cover Story: Rocket man The Pulse Traveling Gourmet Jetset Sightings Source List

Luxury Travel Advisor - April 2008

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