The big travel trend for 2023? There’s more to life than Mykonos. This year, we’re ditching the rule book on Europe. No more well-trodden paths. No more same-old resorts. Instead, it’s all about the new. New destinations. Radical approaches. Patently uncommon experiences.
It's time to spread your wings, which is why we've found some of the most surprising, alternative or hidden-gem-status destinations for your 2023 travels. Whether it’s an under-the-radar yacht spot on the Aegean Sea, the wavy music festival that you’ve never heard of, or some underappreciated beauty right on your doorstep, this is an itinerary with new stories to tell.
Il Sereno: The buzzy hotel making Lake Como cool again
The glamour was fading from this A-lister enclave – until a sleek new 5-star hotel transformed the shoreline and started winning every luxury gong going. By Sam Parker
You can see why George likes it. Clooney, that is, who bought a mansion on the cusp of Lake Como twenty years ago and has been linked to the Italian beauty spot ever since, the mere name enough to conjure the image of Gorgeous himself straddling a speedboat as it knives elegantly through the still water, mountains rising softly in the reflection of his Persol 3246s.
Not that it needs any stardust, this place. The views are pure Hollywood anyway, in the older sense of the word. I read somewhere once that the perfect feng shui for a home is a solid mountain at the back and a vast body of tranquil water at the front: throw in a supply of high-grade fettuccine, and it feels pretty close to a blueprint for inner peace. So here’s the first thing to say about Il Sereno, the 5-star hotel poised on the lip of Torno, a sleepy town on the south of the lake: you will gasp. Ignore the peaceful gardens, ignore the chic and thoughtful decor, ignore the smiling concierge and walk straight to the balcony and gasp.
Once that’s done with, you can turn around and take in the rest of it. The thing about these ancient strongholds of European glamour, where every hour of the day somehow feels like dusk, is that they are cool and sexy – not unlike a finely preserved movie star – but you do sometimes feel a certain yearning for some clean, sharp lines and a little freshly fitted glass. One of the reasons Il Sereno has been met with ripples of approval since it opened – it's been named the number one hotel in Italy, number one in Europe and fourth in the world – is the way designer Patricia Urquiola has deployed stone, bronze and walnut wood to transform the waterfront. One of the coolest things you can do at Il Sereno – one of the coolest things you can do anywhere, full stop – is take a little speedboat out from the hotel’s private jetty and skim off to the centre of the lake, where you can see the hotel in context along the shoreline. It's incongruent, in the best possible way, like a child laughing in a circle of snoozing pensioners.
It’s a vibe that extends to the lakefront pool and terrace and into the 30 suites, which are spacious but cozy, finished in warm-wood and minimalist, natural materials – not that you’ll notice, much, given they also have floor-to-ceiling windows to lake-gawp out of. Breakfast and dinner are served closer to the water beside a series of stone arches; food at Il Sereno is presided over by Naples-born Michelin-starred chef Raffaele Lenzi, who makes the most of the fish swimming outside and draws on local and seasonal Italian ingredients (don't miss the home-made olive oil, for one). Like the building itself, everything from the service to the cocktail menu is relaxed and modern in the best way.
Como doesn’t need George and in fact, you could argue it’d be better off without him. The tinge of A-lister exclusivity that put the region on the map twenty years ago can feel like a bit of a burden today when so many of our ideas around travel are being rewritten. Il Sereno, then, feels like the burst of fresh air: a hotel that is the best of new luxury down to its smallest details, with the splendor of the grand old lake as its centrepiece.
Il Sereno, doubles £643 per night, serenohotels.com
Montreux Jazz: Why 2023’s big ticket is a Swiss jazz festival
It’s decades old and it takes place in a sleepy town in Europe’s most bourgeois country, but Montreux Jazz might just be your new favourite festival. By Ben Allen
Would you be surprised to hear that Stormzy is a stalwart of the Montreux Jazz Festival? Or that at last year’s event, Olly Alexander drove a leather-clad man around onstage like a motorcycle? Gone are the days of stuffy fedora-wearing snobs populating the shores of Lake Geneva. The “Jazz” in the festival’s title is now mostly a nod to its history, when the towering likes of Miles Davis and Ella Fitzgerald filled the headline slots, but since the 1980s, the festival has opened up to all sorts of genres. Last year, for example, Nick Cave was there, and so was Björk. Phoebe Bridgers closed it. Shania Twain, who lives up the road, popped in for an impromptu set at one of the bars notorious for starry jam sessions.
The appeal for such generational artists is manifold: Montreux’s festival has a rich history, and has played host to basically every great musician you can think of – the walls in the main venue, the 2m2c Montreux Music and Convention Centre, are adorned with pictures of Amy Winehouse, Lady Gaga and other legends doing their thing on stage. And then there’s the setting: the gorgeous mountainside shores of the lake are spitting-distance away, ensuring ludicrously beautiful views. Glastonbury could never.
Montreux itself is a tiny, sleepy town, pretty much entirely overtaken by the festival and its sprawling grounds. We stayed in nearby Vevey, at the Hôtel des Trois Couronnes, one of those classically grand European hotels so married to its history that you’d expect to see a bellboy in one of those funny little hats. It’s far enough away (about 15 minutes by car) to feel entirely removed from the festival bustle. The hotel has a pool, but you’d be mad not to walk the extra 30 metres to the lake, the water of which both looks and tastes like Evian (though it’s recommended that you don’t drink it). As the festival typically kicks off late, there’s plenty of time to bake in the sun on the bankside, hit up a vineyard for a glass of Chasselas blanc, or stroll around one of the local hilltop towns, which are so pretty they’re UNESCO-protected. The best bit? There are next to no tourists, even at the height of summer – leaving you to soak up the good vibes in peace.
Hôtel des Trois Couronnes, doubles from £328 per night. hoteltroiscouronnes.ch
Menorca: the island city break that does it all
Beachside retreat? Boring. Not to mention antisocial. In Menorca, you can enjoy the best of city life with all the luxury of island living. By David Annand
Recently, I realised I’ve been getting the island holiday all wrong. The way I’d always done it was to hole up in some tranquil, out-of-the-way spot: the north coast of Ibiza. The far end of Formentera. Places like Menorca’s Meliá Cala Galdana, which sits in a gorgeous little cove, well-placed for the west of the island, with its whitewashed walls and incredible sea views.
During the day I’d happily play designated driver, buckling the gang into some little Fiat 500 and buzzing about the island, hunting for unspoilt beaches and seeking out chic lunch spots. At night, though, I want nightlife. Cocktails (plural). This can be problematic when your other half doesn’t drive and you’re staying in some pretty-but-isolated beachside bolthole.
And then I went to Menorca, specifically its super-cool capital Mahon, and I rediscovered the pleasures of city life. Food! Culture! Cocktails that you actually want to drink! From the city, you can drive out in search of wild and undeveloped beaches (in Menorca, this means the glorious calm-water cove at Cala Mitjana, or the fabled Cala Pregonda, with its intense blue waters and atmospheric rock formations) when you feel like it, and walk to a different restaurant every night. And that means that after 5pm, no one is designated to do anything they don’t want to – which, when you’re on holiday, is just as it should be.
How to design a day of vibe in Menorca’s compact capital
11am
Hauser & Wirth
Take the five-minute ferry to the latest European outpost of the fine art empire, situated on a tiny island in the city’s harbour, and explore the garden sculpture trail with works by Martin Creed, Louise Bourgeois and Joan Miró.
1pm
El Rais
Head to the harbour to this smart waterside restaurant for their arroz negro, an outlandish sharing plate of black rice in rockfish broth.
3pm
Hit the water
Call the Marco Polo yacht company and set sail on their locally built Menorquin boat, hugging the shoreline up to Es Grau on the wild and untouched north coast.
7pm
Bar Augustin
Start the evening with a glass of Mallorcan Son Llebre Blanc at this chilled natural wine spot in a pretty square right in the heart of the city.
8pm
Ses Culleres
Grab a spot on the terrace, with its vertiginous views of the harbour, and order for the table: deep-fried wild asparagus, white Menorcan prawns and the life-changing cheesecake.
10pm
Vida Una Vermut
Finish up at this buzzy bar in the heart of the restaurant-lined port, where the tables spill onto the road and the barmen make Spanish-sized (read: massive) negronis into the small hours.
There’s a dash of the Wes Anderson to this glorious guesthouse. Not the mannered whimsy of the place – more the colour palette of bold-but-faded shades that give the place a lightly worn, lived-in style. It somehow manages to be homely and worldly at the same time. The interiors are the work of host Cristine Bedfor and celebrated Spanish designer Lorenzo Castillo, and the look is English indulgent: all deep sofas, expressive fabrics and eccentric ceramics. There are 21 rooms, all different; if it’s free, stay in the biggest of the lot, 113, with its freestanding bath and tennis-court-sized terrace. Breakfast is served on the charming patio, and out the back, in the otherwise lush and shaded garden, there’s a chic little pool for cooling off on hot days. The central Mahon location could barely be improved, with almost everything of note a five-minute walk from your front door, making this the perfect base for an urban island getaway.
Cristine Bedfor Hotel, doubles from £225 per night. cristinebedforhotel.com
Northumberland: Word’s out on England’s secret kingdom
Bored of battling your way to the south coast with everyone else? Do a 180 and try Northumberland, England’s lowest-key coastal paradise. By Sam Parker
If you’ve ever taken the train from London to Edinburgh, you’ve already seen it out of the window: the last corner of coastal England not yet ruined by Airbnb entrepreneurs or #vanlife TikTok. Tucked in just below the Scottish border, Northumberland is England’s most sparsely populated county and – not coincidentally – one of its most beautiful. There are vast, rolling hills, forests where you can hear a pine cone drop, and, best of all, 62 miles of unspoiled (and usually empty) coastline, punctuated not by ghostly Victorian piers but more castles per mile than anywhere else in the country.
If that all sounds like ancient history, well, it is – which is why Northumberland has upped its game. A food-and-drink-led reinvention is firmly underway, with aspiring chefs enticed by the county’s relatively low rents and bountiful North Sea.
The tiny fishing village of Alnmouth, accessible directly on the train from London, is a great launchpad to explore the true North – provided you can find a room. Local boutique hotel The Whittling House wouldn’t look out of place down a Bloomsbury side street, but only has 10 rooms. If you’re feeling brave, there’s a row of cosy glamping huts along the beach – fuel your brisk walk home with a fireside nightcap at The Red Lion.
Amble, a slightly forgotten port town just a few years ago, is now the epicentre of Northumberland’s foodie rejuvenation. The Old Boathouse, situated on the harbour, was the restaurant that launched it all, while Jaspers, a tiny 12-cover bistro, has had guests hooked since 2016 with its local take on bouillabaisse.
For any surfers still pining for the sands of Cornwall, Bamburgh Beach might be a degree or two colder, but on a good day, the North Sea will offer up decent waves before the mighty sight of Britain’s best-kept castle. Sally Cook of Surf Northumberland is a veteran of the Portugal and Brazil surfing scenes and can help beginners and old hands alike. Whether you want to watch the waves or conquer them, there’s never been a better time to swap being a DFL (Down From London) for a UFL.
The Whittling House, doubles from £180 per night. thewhittlinghouse.co.uk
The Palace Merano: Four days at Italy’s temple of detox
There are health retreats, and then there are health retreats. At the Palace Merano, GQ has a full MOT. Colon cleansing optional. By Oliver Franklin-Wallis
“Relax,” says the nurse, not long into my first colon hydrotherapy session. I am lying on a bed in a backless gown, beside a terrifying-looking irrigation machine; she is brandishing what can only be described as a lubed-up hosepipe. “Easy for you to say,” I joke, but she doesn’t laugh. The nurse is stern, Italian, and speaks little English – and besides, she has enough shit to deal with.
I should explain. The editor of GQ’s annual travel guide was hoping to assign a writer for a story about Healing Holidays, a company that has cornered the market in ultra-luxe health retreats. I have struggled with chronic pain for more than two years, due to an ongoing and poorly diagnosed nerve problem. So, sure, I said, half-joking, half-desperate – “Do you think they can heal me?” Which is why I’m here, on day four of my retreat at the Palace Merano, a luxury hotel in the Italian Alps and one of the most exclusive health retreats in the world, waiting to be flushed from the inside out.
In health circles, the Palace Merano’s reputation is approaching legendary. It has accrued numerous awards. Its clientele, from what I can tell, ranges from the wealthy to the ultra-rich: pro athletes hoping to recover quickly from injuries; burnt-out financiers; the chronically sick; the oligarch-adjacent. Founded in 1906, the hotel became famous under the watchful eye of detox pioneer Henri Chenot. At the core of the Palace’s approach is the Revital method – a blend of Western and Chinese medicine. In 2015, the Palace unveiled a fully licensed medical floor, able to deliver tests and prescriptions alongside cosmetic and full-body treatments – in short, the perfect destination for a midlife-crisis full-body MOT.
On my first morning I am assigned a number of blood and urine tests to measure for blood markers and allergies, a scan of my fat and bone density, and a test in which I hold some electrodes while a machine tests my energy levels, which will affect my “healing energy treatment.” (I’m told I have a “white element” body type, apparently.) I’m quickly assigned to an osteopath, a dietitian and a cosmetic specialist, who suggests an ab treatment for a slowly expanding waistline.
The Merano’s mantra is detox. The menus contain no salt, sugar, caffeine, or alcohol – instead leaning heavily on braised vegetables and fish. To drink: water with lemon, or detox tea, which every evening my lovely waiter delivers with the same, adorably lame joke: “Wine?”
Most guests at the Palace choose the detox programme, which involves a day of fasting, as well as a chemically induced “cleanse.” (Cue a glass of white powder and an evening on the toilet.) Portions are small but deeply nourishing: crumbled soy and “vegan charcoal” on a bed of cauliflower and wild broccoli; polenta gnocchi with shiitake mushrooms; white fish, simply cooked. There is no dessert.
The therapy is intensive and restorative. I start daily with ozone therapy (in which blood is taken, mixed with gas, and re-inserted) and a vitamin infusion, which leaves me giddy but invigorated. The osteopath focuses on my gait and relieving tension in my lungs and ribcage. The dietitian produces a meal plan to cut down on sugar, fat and dairy. The rest of my schedule is a mix of mud wraps, massages, and yes – the colon cleanse, which is designed to detox and reset my dysbiosis, an imbalance in gut flora whose repercussions I will spare you here.
By the day I leave, I feel fantastic. My test results come back: I’m free of diabetes and cancer, and have healthy cholesterol – a massive relief. I have lost nearly 3.5kg in four days. My skin is glowing; my wife says I look five years younger. Is my pain gone? Unfortunately but inevitably, no. Even the most luxurious retreat can’t work miracles. But still, I leave feeling positive, healthy, and more empowered than I have in years. And that feeling alone is a luxury worth the trip.
The Palace Merano, seven nights from £5,549 per person. Alternative treatments available. palace.it; healingholidays.com
Fethiye, Turkey: A new wave in the Mediterranean
A foodie hideaway on Turkey’s Aegean coast might topple Mykonos from its perch. By David Annand
Is this the moment we reluctantly call time on Mykonos? The price-gouging. The elbow-to-elbow beaches. The terrible traffic. The undeniable Harry Maguire–ness of the place. For years we put up with the island’s downsides because it was out there on its own in the eastern Med. Best hotels. Best food. Best vibe. Nowhere else came close.
Not any more. The Aegean is now home to a whole host of places that can compete with Mykonos’s finest. The pick of the bunch? The Yazz Collective, a new beach-club-cum-hotel tucked away on Turkey’s southwest coast, which has upped the game and then some.
Here, traffic really isn’t a problem. The resort sits against a backdrop of densely wooded hills in a jaw-dropping bay and is accessible only by boat. You either moor up in your chartered schooner or make a suitably starry entrance on the hotel’s nippy little speedboat, which meets your transfer from Dalaman airport.
During the week, the Yazz is a tranquil haven, all birdsong and contented hush, where the suites are dotted about lushly planted gardens. Yoga classes take place on sun-dappled decks. Couples lounge on sofas by the water, dipping in and out of the glorious Aegean, with its warm, soft waters.
On Fridays, the atmosphere slowly cranks up as more and more boats arrive, until in the evening there’s a party in full swing, with a who’s who of Istanbul’s scenesters knocking back potent chilli margaritas and flexing on the waterside dancefloor.
There is one constant: the food, which is big, bold and uniformly brilliant. Rising star of Turkish cooking Mustafa Otar is the man in the kitchen, and he’s been equipped with a three-tier steel grill, so he can cook over an open fire, and a traditional Turkish oven, in which he makes pide and bread from heritage grains. He’s also blessed with one of the world’s great natural larders: he gets his soy sauce and miso from Asia, but everything else – meat, fish, vegetables – comes from Turkey. The result? Bowls of hummus come topped with smoked olives and fermented pomegranate molasses, seafood pasta is served with hulking great lobsters, and dry-aged tuna steaks are as rich and deeply flavoured as bavette.
The team behind the Yazz are in the process of acquiring a farm in northwest Turkey, and there are all manner of ambitious plans. At the moment, no one in the UK has heard of the place, but believe us: word is about to get out.
The Yazz Collective, doubles from £750 per night. yazzcollective.com
