Thursday, February 16, 2017

Singita - Luxury Safari, my insights for you!

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You wanna take a walk on the wild side with high end luxury and nature combined? This is the place to be, Singita Lebombo Lodge, my insights!


Pool, Infinity Pool, Bush, Wilderness



Hey guys,


I have been around the world and saw many places but I think this is really one of the most magnificent experiences I have ever made in my life. Im really thankful for it and it will always be a special timeless memory. 

Singita evaluated from a single-lodge company to operating 12 lodges and camps in five wilderness regions across three African countries. The focus of Singita is to preserve wilderness areas for future generations. That means fewer guests paying a premium for the privilege of experiencing vast open spaces - exist to sustain these wilderness areas and their resident wildlife, while providing an exclusive safari experience. 

We decided for the Singita Lebombo Lodge, located in the Kruger National Park. They have an exclusive concession, which means no tourism from Kruger Park can enter this land. 


Suite Singita Lebombo Lodge, Exclusive Suites, Luxus, Safari


I don't even know where to start, because it is so extraordinary amazing. Speaking about the suites (only 13 offered!), they are all located above the N'Wanetsi River. They are all modern, minimalistic (as you know I just LOVE that) and open designed (glass-walled suites!) which make you're feeling being in an eagles nest while watching the wild life from your own private suite / roof terrace. You may take the opportunity to sleep out with nothing more than mosquito netting between you and the stars. 


view from the suite of Singita Lebombo

outdoor, balcony, suite lebombo singita, a room with a view

dinner, singita, lebombo lodge, suite, indoors


The service is simply amazing, you have an own butler which is 24hours available for you. 

The adventure for us started when we flew from Johannesburg with a private airplane to the Lodge. Only 6 persons and we were flying 1 hour to land in a field in pure nature with a bar of fresh juices and some bubbly waiting for us. We got picked up by our lovely host, which drove us 30 minutes threw the wilderness to our Lodge. 


private airplane, exclusive flight, Kruger Park, into the wilderness

Singita welcoming sign, drive in Singita Kruger Nationalpark

stairways to our suite, way to our suite, in the middle of the bush, wildlife, sinigita, lebombo lodge

singita lebombo lodge, kruger park, main lodge, outdoor

singita main lodge, sitting area, outdoor

singita lebombo lodge, sitting area, playing area

singita, game drive, getting ready, lebombo lodge main lodge area

singita viewing area, outdoor, pure nature, room with a view

singita lebombo lodge wine cellar


Arriving there and seeing the lodge was an amazing impression. The main lodge is offering a roof terrace viewing area and breakfast/lunch and dining area (if you don't want to choose eating in your own suite), and they have an own luxury wine cellar (in the middle of the wilderness!) and - my personal highlight - 25-metre lap pool.



pool area, infinity pool, singita lebombo lodge


pool area singita lebombo lodge, dinner, lunch, area, breakfast, main lodge, monkey, wildlife

breakfast, lunch, dinner, area, main lodge singita lebombo



The food they present and the wine choices are simply amazing and are matching the high level tourism expectations anytime. I would even say, they overmatching the high expectations from everybody, because your in the bush with his service. 

And of course you can also go for some daily game drives with your own personal driver, which will be introduced to you when entering the lodge. They did a great job with us, we saw all the big 5 and explained the wild life perfectly. Every question you have about nature, they will give you an answer to it. I learned a lot while being there. 


safe safari, singita lebombo lodge, game drive, driver, service personal, safety first

game drive singita, wildness, bush, elephant

singita lebombo lodge, game drive, exclusive safari, bush, wilderness, giraffe

game drive, singita lebombo lodge, safari, exclusive, giraffe crossing



singita lebombo, game drive, exclusive, safari, lake, elephants crossing, wild life


Another highlight to mention was our evening game drive. They do an apero in front of a lake in totally wilderness. We watched elephants passing the lake with their little ones, while holding a good glass of South African red wine in our hands. An experience you won't forget in your lifetime. 

Speaking about the best time coming to the lodge - traditionally the dry winter months (April - October) are best for game viewing. We have been in December, so you see that it is a year-round destination.

As I think a video says more then thousand words and to give you an even better impression, besides my photos, please take a look at the video underneath.



Cheers,
Melaines-Insights




Saturday, February 11, 2017

High Tea at the Mandarin Oriental in Munich, my insights for you!

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Afternoon Tea in classy atmosphere? My insights for you!



Hey guys,


as a teenager I spend many weeks of the year in the UK, what I miss about the most is Londons tea time. I love how the people are obsessed with this wonderful tradition of celebrating tea and time. 

Glad that the Mandarin Oriental is now offering High Tea in Munich, feels like being back in good old England.

They offer High Tea from Friday - Sunday (2.00 - 5.00 p.m.) in their really cozy and modern designed Lounge. Make sure you haven't eaten anything before and you take at least 1,5 hours of your time, as they offer so many fantastic freshly baked products for you to try. Reservation is a must, please see link underneath I attached for contact information.

The Afternoon Tea menue is including beside the amazing range of fresh dishes a tea of your choice. You can ask the amazing service for help, as they have a own tea sommelier which can give you perfect recommendations if your getting lost between all the fantastic choices.  


champagner, tea time, fancy

strawberrie, gold

mandarin oriental logo, munich

interior mandarin oriental munich

mandarin oriental outside view, munich

mandarin oriental munich inside lobby

mandarin oriental cakes, dessert


For tea enthusiasts a special recommendation, ask the tea sommelier for the JING product range. As you can see in the picture they offer you to take a look into different sorts of tea before you order. If you don't know the JING tea, it is only natural - no artificial flavors. Make sure you check out the rose or smoked tea. 


tea, JING, products, mandarin oriental


What is fitting perfectly to the High Tea is a glass of bubbly, we decided to have Rose Champagner which I think is the perfect match for celebrating High Tea. 


Cheers,
Melaines-Insights
















Sunday, February 5, 2017

Casual luxury Hotel - NIDUM / Austria, my insights for you!

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Casual luxury hotel - NIDUM / Austria

Relaxing in the mountains? My insights for you!


Hey guys,


I just came back from a wonderful relaxing weekend in Austria. I checked out the newly opened (December 2016) NIDUM casual luxury hotel,it is located in Mösern/Austria. 

We decided to spend a wellness weekend there, but of course the area itself offers you a lot more like going skiing, snowboarding,hiking or just spending a day shopping in Seefeld (5 min drive) or Innsbruck (20 min drive). 


The hotel has about 57 rooms, all with sunny big windows and a breathtaking view on the Austrian mountains. The style is minimalism design and wood interior, which makes it extreme comfy and stylish at the same time. 


We stayed at a 52qm suite called "NICE-Suite" (room nr. 509, I can highly recommend to you), which made a really not only nice but an"AMAZING!!" impression to us. Pictures are telling more then thousands words so here we go:



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All rooms are offering a stylish Illy coffee maker, you can enjoy your first espresso or like I would call it the "typical Italian breakfast" with a breathtaking view facing the mountains.
The room has as you can tell from the pictures are surrounding balcony, of course south balcony which gives you always the sunny side of life.

Speaking about coffee, the breakfast they offer is amazing. You can choose three different restaurant areas all different decorated but totally charming to sit in, which makes it nice to change the location from time to time.

Around 4.00 p.m. they offer a nice apero for all the hotel guests with great antipasti and nice background music, it is already included in the price so is the breakfast and the dinner. You can take this aperitivo with you, as they offer a great sitting area in a hotel owned liberay, where you can choose from many books. 

Speaking about food in the hotel, it is absolutely high quality, they work only with regional products, which I think is a great way to be sustainable.

The dinner is normally starting with a salad buffet, followed by a soup or another apetizer, main course you can choose from a vegetarian dish, meat or fish dish and after that you have a wonderful dessert and can choose from different cheese. 

When your into wine they have a wide range of bottles, you may just contact the stuff that can help you out. 

Again, pictures are saying more then words: 

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After all the eating you can go for sport in the hotel, they offer a big gym area. Also you can book a massage afterwards in the spa or just relax in the indoor and outdoor pool with a wonderful view in the perfection of nature. They offer also saunas and another outdoor whirlpool on the roof top. If you are willing to do a little adventure, you must check out the unique sauna with a suspension bridge directly build in the mountain.

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Cheers,
Melaines-Insights