Luke Abrahams

London

Contributing Writer at Freelance

Newsletter Editor at Hotels Above Par

Words in: BAZAAR, ELLE, VOGUE, CN Traveller, The Times, T+L, Telegraph, Elite Traveler, C+T, SUITCASE, House & Garden, Time Out, T&C, ES, High Life, Departures

Articles

A French Fancy in the English Countryside? Oui, at Le Manoir

1 week ago | hotelsabovepar.com | Luke Abrahams

Rewind a few decades back, and the story goes that acclaimed Frenchie Raymond Blanc drove up to the front door of an old 15th-century Manor House in Great Milton (Oxfordshire) and made the then-owner an offer they obviously couldn't refuse. It opened its doors to the buzzing hotel glitterati in 1984 and has retained its two Michelin stars since then. And yes, the French chef and his team are very proud of it.
'This wild stretch of Chilean wasteland gives you what other National Parks cannot - a confounding sense of loneliness': One writer's odyssey to the end of the world | Country Life

2 weeks ago | countrylife.co.uk | Luke Abrahams

It’s some ungodly early hour on a Monday morning and I am in the foulest mood imaginable. Cooped up at the back of an overcrowded and chaotic Latam flight bound for Balmaceda airport, I am surrounded by screaming children, their twitching parents and hench South American studs who don’t fit in their seats. I have no window to look out, nothing with which to find my bearings and I am — like the screaming children’s parents — ready to check myself into the nearest nuthouse.
Why London's Elite Flock to This Chic Cotswolds Retreat

1 month ago | hotelsabovepar.com | Luke Abrahams

Another quintessentially fabulous, and very English, country house hotel. The major difference between this boutique bolthole is that she serves style, and effortlessly so. Hidden away off a busy road on a smidge of the vast Farncombe Estate, it is perhaps, one of the most remote inns the Cotswolds conjures up. There are a few chocolate-box villages around, and the closest big town Moreton-in-Marsh is a mere 12-minute drive south, but beyond that you are truly out in the sticks.
The Double Red Duke Is the Cotswolds' Most Dashing Hideaway

1 month ago | hotelsabovepar.com | Luke Abrahams

"Oh look, she's got umbrellas and is ready for her Instagram moment." That was my first thought the moment I laid my eyes on the Double Red Duke's cutesy photogenic facade. Plonked in the hinterland of Cotswolds chic, this handsome 17th-century manor house is all shades flamboyant and more. Aside from its Insta credentials and Gen Z cred, the hotel is well placed on the Cotswold fringes for easy access from Oxford and Lechlade-on-Thames via the dashing chocolate box village of Clanfield.
Need to Get Away? This Remote Patagonia Lodge Is Calling

2 months ago | hotelsabovepar.com | Luke Abrahams

How many of you can say that you jumped into a seven-hour road transfer from the airport to your lodge in the middle of nowhere? Not many, right? Well, that's the charm of Explora's Patagonia Nacional Parc Lodge. In fact, I can put my last dime on you not even knowing that Patagonia National Park even existed before you clicked on this review. That's a testament to this lodge's confounding remoteness.
Why Badrutt's Palace in St. Moritz Is High Society's Luxury Stay of Choice

2 months ago | hotelsabovepar.com | Luke Abrahams

What can you say about Badrutt's Palace? One of my Instagram followers described it as "home" and another, "a rare and unique gem." Both are true reflections of this palatial Sankt Moritz hotspot which, over the years, has become synonymous with the word "legend." The who's who of society have stayed here for yonks, and thanks to its strict "hotel guests only" policy a touch of mysticism only adds to its enduring allure.
Unplug and Unwind at Italy's Hidden Gem, Castello di Vicarello

2 months ago | hotelsabovepar.com | Luke Abrahams

Off grid? In Italy? Never! If, like me, you visit the boot of Europe often, you might have noticed that it is overrun by Americans, Brits, and virtually everyone else on earth come summer time. While the allure of that La Dolce Vita lifestyle is contagious, the truth is, things are getting a little too busy in hotspots from Rome to Venice and the Amalfi Coast. The solution is simple, go elsewhere and off grid.
Villa Treville-A Cinematic Escape on the Amalfi Coast Steeped in History and Mystery

2 months ago | hotelsabovepar.com | Luke Abrahams

It's hard to describe Villa Treville because there's nothing quite like it on The Amalfi Coast. Stubbornly unique, there's an air of poetic mystery to the place, and sometimes it's so evasive, it defies any concrete definition. Perhaps this is thanks to its previous owner, Franco Zeffirelli, the famed Italian stage and film director, producer, production designer and politician.
The Pig in the Cotswolds Is the English Countryside's New "It Girl" Stay

2 months ago | hotelsabovepar.com | Luke Abrahams

There are a few Pig Hotels now-ten to be exact-and you'd naturally think that with each litter you'd get a dose of "samey" each time. In the case of their new hog in the wolds, it defies expectation and as a result, is fast becoming the country's new Miss Piggy, AKA, "It Girl." While it's all still very much attracting the "Kensington in a field" glitterati kind of crowd, there's thankfully enough green around to escape them.
This Bucolic Boutique Hotel Is a Design-Savvy Escape in the British Countryside

2 months ago | hotelsabovepar.com | Luke Abrahams

The beauty of this bucolic cosseting cocoon of a country escape is that it's virtually plonked in the middle of nowhere. Wildhive Callow Hall is, in all respects, a slick and exciting wilderness retreat that redefines the very definition of what a quintessentially British country house hotel should be in this day and age. There's glam and spunk to the design, and on top of all the usual quirks, the estate trumps all the competition with its back-to-nature sensibility and philosophies.