“There’s no such thing as the best hotel, just the right one…” – Chic Locations
A More Candid Approach…
If the hotel offers great value, is in a super location and well managed, but the beach is small & rocky, that is how we describe it.
If the hotel is located in a lively area, with lots of dining options, it could also be noisy, we will mention that. We rarely wax lyrical about cuisine, other than restaurant location, as it could be very personal.
At CHIC we undersell (deliberately) and over deliver
We have professional observation qualities which are probably more influenced by Bill Bryson, rather than the more gushing prose of a Barbara Cartland. Some of our competitors do not understand why we mention a few negatives, but we think it adds credibility and accuracy.
We know that no two holidays are alike, and we will discuss the best way you can use our expertise to tailor something just for you.
We always say there is no such thing as the best hotel – it all depends on your own highly individual requirements, and these can vary from holiday to holiday. For example, the hotel you selected for a romantic escape a few years back is unlikely to be suitable now that you have two young children to consider.
We want the only surprises
to be pleasant ones!
The Chic Way
Use our Expertise
We will help you pick five priorities for your travels. Tell us where you have been before, what you liked and didn’t. Let us know what you expect and need when abroad.
After talking with us, we are confident that our candid and realistic approach will guide you to “the right one”.
“Paradise“ is equally subjective and personal
To some, it is a rustic, romantic beach hut – air-conditioned of course – where the luxury comes in the delightful simplicity. Others may prefer a Spa retreat, with plenty of water sports, multiple dining options and a kids club.
Or Luxury
For others, the requirement might be for something larger and more opulent. Luxury you can touch and see, rather than something more esoteric. Extensive facilities, restaurants and staffing from the world’s four corners, and all the indulgences your heart could desire.
Value
Our idea of value is when your purchase exceeds your expectations. We don’t equate value with buying cheap or targeting constantly distressed hotel inventory. Of course, we have numerous early booking offers with many properties available for 48 weeks of the year, and frequently short-term promotional enticements, but these tend to increase the holiday value (extra nights and/or meals free, room upgrades etc) rather than lower the price or ambiance of the hotel.
Keep Your Requirements Realistic. Here are a few Pointers:
Boutique
Choose a boutique hotel for the individual style and uniqueness, the personalised attention and flexibility. However, given their size, they are unlikely to offer a choice of restaurant locations or have extensive sporting activities. By contrast, a larger hotel will have more amenities, more restaurant choice and leisure activities, but probably not the same level of personalised attention. Most boutique hotels tend to tolerate well-behaved children, rather than setting out to attract, although there are several that are adult only.
Romance
If you have chosen a romantic hide and chic retreat, part of the appeal might be the remoteness – and the fact it is slightly more difficult to access actually forms some of the attraction. Any closer and that wonderful beach that is almost exclusively yours could be shared with hundreds of others! Just on this, it could be wise to make sure you and your travelling companion are compatible- these resorts are not usually suitable for those whose conversation for the previous 50 weeks has been limited to “Good morning & Good Night“!
Family
If you have selected a hotel with a particular attraction to families, be prepared to see children, especially during the main holiday periods. If you have travelled with one or two of your own children, it might be wise to anticipate others will have done the same. If you do not have children but rather like a particular hotel, you might want to consider travelling in a quieter time.
Golf and Conference Groups
If you have selected a hotel with a championship golf course adjacent, it would be wise to anticipate that at certain times, the focus might be golf groups. Equally, if your hotel has on-site conference facilities, at times it will accommodate larger groups so “badges“ might dominate some of the facilities for a few days.
Experiential Holidays
Each of the holidays can be personally tailored to your individual requirements, so if there is something about the region that you want to be incorporated into your arrangements – no problem. There is no limit to the horizon of unique experiences.
A few examples: Dune driving in Arabia, getting lost in the Gothic quarter of Barcelona (almost deliberately). Underwater spa followed by sandbank dining in the Maldives, swimming with turtles in Barbados.
Up close and personal with elephants in Thailand and Sri Lanka, helicopter tours over the Hong Kong skyline. And of course the immense culture of Asia, with multi-centre contrast combinations a real chic speciality.
All of our hotels are available on a worldwide basis
This means you will be mixing and enjoying the facilities with clients from around the globe who might have contrasting cultures.
In the Med, whilst the UK and Germany are still the most prominent, Russia and the Eastern European countries are growing fast.
In Asia, China is now the dominant tourism force, with Russia equally noticeable in some Thai Resorts and Southern Vietnam in the winter months.
India is also a significant supplier of arrivals, especially to Thailand and Maldives, and UAE / Saudi arrivals are growing fast. As some of the worlds economies flatline, others improve.
Tripadvisor can be a useful but it can also confuse…
Typically if you look at ten reports, seven are generally good whilst three might be considerably less so, which sort of emphasises the rather individual way we regard each place.
Generally, you might find the more recent reviews more informative and useful than some comment written 18 months when the hotel might have just opened.
Also try to read between the lines, as many of the criticism we see on TripAdvisor could have been avoided had the right questions been asked at the time of booking.
"There's no such thing as the best hotel, just the right one..."
Click for Booking Terms, Price Guides, Flight Information
CHIC Locations Terms and Booking Conditions PDF
All price guides are Per Person Sharing Double Room (Entry level), based on travel between May and/or June when prices are generally at their lowest and include promotional offers. Supplements will probably apply at other times, particularly mid-summer in the Med, and for rooms and/or transfers arranged for single travellers.
For example, the Caribbean and Indian Ocean prices for winter can be approximately double the May - June level and about 50% more in Asia. For the Mediterranean & Canary Islands, Caribbean, Arabia and the Indian Ocean (except Sri Lanka) price guides generally include airfare and transfers.
*For Sri Lanka and Far East we show a per-person, per-night hotel guide, excluding air fare, as arrangements tend to be individually tailored multi-centre itineraries.
Please refer to Travel Advice on our home page or look at www.fco.gov.uk as the Foreign Office may have issued specific destination information on safety and terrorism.
All the flights and flight-inclusive holidays on this website are financially protected by the ATOL scheme. When you pay you will be supplied with an ATOL Certificate. Please ask for it and check to ensure that everything you booked (flights, hotels and other services) is listed on it. This lists what is financially protected, where you can get information on what this means for you and who to contact if things go wrong.
Please see our booking conditions for further information or for more information about financial protection and the ATOL Certificate go to: www.caa.co.uk.
Some of the flights and flight-inclusive holidays on this website are financially protected by the ATOL scheme. But ATOL protection does not apply to all holiday and travel services listed on this website. This website will provide you with information on the protection that applies in the case of each holiday and travel service offered before you make your booking. If you do not receive an ATOL Certificate then the booking will not be ATOL protected. If you do receive an ATOL Certificate but all the parts of your trip are not listed on it, those parts will not be ATOL protected.