Category: All posts

Contributed by Jens Hoffmann Shanghai is glamourous and mostly quiet. Cars, scooters and buses are mostly electric; hardly any honking, even the traffic lights don’t make a sound. I can even hear birds chirping. In former times -Shanghai was a huge hustle and bustle, traffic jams, a kind of chaotic mess, very loud, lots of people but there was always amazing food. Shanghai is the largest city in China – and one of the very few Chinese cities that I love very much. It is…Continue Reading “Cities we love: Shanghai” →

Contributed by feature reporter Jens Hoffmann There are rows of wooden barrels, some small enough to lift with both hands, others large and heavy with age. Inside them, grape must has been quietly changing for years — sometimes for decades. Lets say in Modena time moves differently. The room smells of wood, fruit and something deeper: a dense, almost mysterious sweetness. A drop of balsamic vinegar falls from a spoon. Like a love poem. On the tongue, sweetness arrives first, followed by acidity, then a…Continue Reading “The black gold of Modena” →

Lets say Glamour in Hellas, we checked in a Luxury Collection hotel. Wow, it was great. Contributed by feature reporter Jens Hoffmann The sun is shining, we are happy. Athens – the metropolis has developed a appetite for fine cooking, star cuisine, new wines -of course from Greece- and style. A new mix of modern buildings among the ancient monuments like the Acropolis that defines this city. My favourite district is Plaka, the old town. It possesses all the elements I need for inspiration and…Continue Reading “Cities we love: Athens – Hotel Grande Bretagne” →

Where New York Goes to Exhale Contributed by travel writer Jens Hoffmann Beyond the skyline, Long Island offers another version of New York—one of oysters and ocean air, vineyard rows and farm stands, caviar and country clubs. We’ve been to New York City plenty of times. We know the skyline, the noise, the energy, the restaurants that never seem to close. But this time, we wanted to know what happens when New York lets go. So we headed east. The change is almost imperceptible at…Continue Reading “Long Island – The Hamptons Effect” →

Hong Kong – a mix of East and West Hong Kong rules the culture that makes the city so special. Street food, luxury boutiques, wild nightlife and amazing architecture. We asked our correspondends to help us get to the heart of this dynamic city with so much to offer. An exciting blend of cultures. The city’s cultural celebrations include epic festivities like Lunar New Year when Victoria Harbour’s sky is lit up with fireworks, the Victoria Harbou is on fire. This Lunar New Year welcomes…Continue Reading →

Bom dia Porto Porto has always had its granite, its churches, its port wine and its river. What feels different now is the energy around them. There is a tangible air of purpose in the city. New restaurants appear in old buildings. Wine weeks and food festivals have joined the traditional calendar. Galleries and independent shops are finding new audiences. The city is not abandoning its past so much as finding new ways to inhabit it. That makes Porto particularly rewarding for a few days….Continue Reading “Cities we love: Porto” →

From the series “Traveling in Europe.” By feature reporter Jens Hoffmann Stylish, charming, and elegant—the perfect blend to meet discerning tastes. Wroclaw is well-designed for travel, hospitality and style. The citys nickname is “The city of bridges”. That’s a quite good description as there are 117 bridges. It is hard to sightsee them all but we explored several ones with the DoubleTree hotel bikes. Exploring the city by bike was great fun. The city has many charms, it is a cocktail of history, lifestyle, museums,…Continue Reading “Hotels we love: The DoubleTree in Wroclaw” →

From the series: “Traveling in Europe” Tips for Connoisseurs By feature reporter Jens Hoffmann Discover these amazing lakes by bicycle, train, and boat. Why not. I’ll say it right up front: the cross-border journey between these various lakes was truly enjoyable. Every time I hopped from the jetty onto the boat, a new captain and a sparkling lake awaited me. Lake Maggiore, Lake Orta, Lake Lugano, and Lake Como are lakes that captivate not merely through their beauty, but through a distinctive aura that defies…Continue Reading “Destinations we love: Lago Maggiore, Lago Lugano and Lago Como” →

Hainan my tropical experience in China Contributed by feature reporter Jens Hoffmann Hainan is a huge tropical island and the southernmost province of China, worldfamous for its beaches, climate and natural scenery. The island offers clear blue waters, luxury resorts and a nice atmosphere. The region is famous for tourism, water sports, mountains and its diverse wildlife. In recent years, Hainan has developed rapidly as a free trade port, helping to promote business, trade, and international cooperation. With its natural beauty and growing economy, Hainan…Continue Reading “Islands we love: Hainan the “Hawaii of China”” →

Contributed by feature reporter Jens Hoffmann Going on one means being away from everything familiar and allowing your brain to idle into a kind of cleaning bliss. Miami is becoming a green, ecological city and a weekend in South Beach is always fun. Do you long for the South Beach of vegan culture, frozen margaritas and electric neon? The South Beach of stylish new hotels like Gale, Lord Balfour, SLS South Beach and special restaurants like Yardbird, Southern Table & Bar, Khong River House, Tongue…Continue Reading “Cities we love: Miami” →

Relaxation in Bangkok @ the Lebua hotel By feature reporter Jens Hoffman Bangkok is big, bold, and glamorous, so choosing the right hotel makes all the difference. We got a bubble to retreat in this city that never sleeps. The Lebua is for us the perfect hotel, it offer the perfect balance, allowing you to tap out of the buzz when you need to recharge, and dive right into the noodle-slurping, temple-hopping action the moment you step outside. A world-class luxury hotel crowned by Bangkoks…Continue Reading “Hotels we love: The Lebua in Bangkok” →

Me gusta, Hotel Casa Sandra – Holbox Island! By Jens Hoffmann It is located at the north of Cancún, where the Caribbean Sea converges with the Gulf of Mexico. Ancestral voices keep whispering old tales with the winds that refresh Holbox. They tell the stories of the Spanish galleons that disappeared in these waters, they also tell the stories of the pirates who took their treasures, pirates like Francisco Molas. Nowadays people think that Molas found a crystalline source of water so beautiful that he…Continue Reading “Islands we love: Holbox” →