As much as I love reading editor-compiled guides, I realised on a recent bout of travels – that included old favourites, along with some new finds – that you can never really 100% trust them. In Rome, something described as ‘off tourists’ radar’ was filled with loud groups with backpacks and had a queue out the door. On the Greek island of Hydra, I re-arranged all my well-researched evening plans after hearing a glamorous local shop assistant divulge her favourite island spots to a customer. And luckily so, as we had the best night of our trip. It’s this summer I realised if you want something great, you have to ask a local, people who really know a destination (top tip: photographers, bartenders and wait staff usually give the best recommendations).
At NEAR+FAR, we work with locals and destination experts across the world to bring you the very best and more honest and authentic advice. This is why we bring you a collection of personal stories from the Middle East, where top photographers and travel figures share somewhere that means a lot to them, from an African safari lodge in the UAE to a Baghdad native’s re-discovering of his city’s through a cultural lens.
We’ve focused on personal storytelling a lot in this issue. Somewhere I’ve grown to know fondly in the past few years is Courchevel 1850, an absolute showstopper of a ski resort and the place to get maximum winter wonderland vibes, whether you partake in slope action or not. Dining, shopping, non-ski-themed wintery pursuits are impeccable if you don’t.
What to wear is a huge part of travel, so we’ve injected a lot more fashion and frivolity into Volume II. There are also some new explorations, like a first-time trip to Sri Lanka’s south coast (and how to do it properly) and checking into what is (perhaps) central London’s most exclusive and smallest luxury hotel – The Arts Club (would-be members will delight in having an honorary membership during their stay). We couldn’t print a regional publication without mentioning the humanitarian crisis and tragedy hitting our region, so Lebanon had to be on our cover – a nostalgic moment in time immortalised at Beirut’s Sporting Club Beach. Our other cover star is the 25hours Hotel One Central, still Dubai’s coolest hotel. Enjoy the issue.
On the cover
Sporting Club Beach: built in the ‘60s in the heart of Beirut. ‘Its worn concrete platforms, plastic chairs and faded umbrellas bring together a mix of people, all soaking up the unpretentious charm that contrasts with Lebanon’s newer beach resorts: a nostalgic reminder of old Beirut,’ says photographer, Yasmina Boustani. To help the people of Lebanon, visit beitelbaraka.net
25hours Hotel One Central: Dubai’s coolest hotel and an authentic and soulful hideaway in high-gloss Dubai. The hotel brings a dose of Euro-cool, with cheeky slogans, co-working spaces, killer cocktail bars, fashion pop ups, art installations and more, creating a thriving community in the heart of the city.
Experience NEAR+FAR in print
Dubai-based Isabella Craddock is the founder of Near+Far, a founding Academy Chair for The World’s 50 Best Hotels, former Condé Nast Traveller editor and a hotel-obsessed, design-devoted travel planner—for friends, loved ones, and readers alike.
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