You may recall us telling you in digital issue five of get lost about Private Jet Villa, the plane which has been shifted onto a cliff in Uluwatu and made into a villa.
Well, it’s almost ready for take off. Private Jet Villa opens to the public in late-April however you might have to wait a while to stay there. According to the owner, there are unpaid requests to stay at the extraordinary $7,000 a night villa for the next 11 years.
Workers had to remove an estimated 50,000 bolts, and build an entire new road to get the thirty-tonne Boeing 737 aeroplane disassembled and reassembled in its position on the edge of a 150 metre cliff.
Its right wing serves as one of the most epic decks we’ve ever seen, and the newly released designs of the inside suggest a luxurious stay, with two bedrooms and stunning bathrooms, and wall to floor window views of the Indian Ocean.
The word unique gets thrown around a lot these days, but this really is it: there isn’t another place like this on earth. Pretty cool.
“There’s nothing to do in Thailand,” said no-one ever, a rhetoric which continues with Yona Beach Club, the brand-new tropical party paradise floating aimlessly just off the coast of Patong Beach, Phuket.
We saw another article describe this place as a floating oasis, which doesn’t make any sense. How can an oasis, as a body of water, be floating? Yona too, is not a body of water, but a tiny, stunning man-made island. But we know what they mean.
The club’s two palm-tree lined levels offer a restaurant, several bars, a DJ booth, a bunch of cabanas to lounge about and two swimming pools to do the same. There’s kayaking and paddle boarding you can do if you feel like it, and it’s open late – from 11am until 2am every single day. This is probably the ultimate place to have a pool party….got a birthday coming up?
This is one of the most Insta-worthy bars/clubs we’ve seen in a while, and we can see it absolutely exploding as a result.
If chomping mushrooms at full-moon with a bunch of raving youngsters isn’t you, or you’re looking for something a little more upmarket, in the words of Talking Heads, this might be the place.
Built among rice field terraces, waterfalls and jungled mountainside, the brand-new, super-lux Avana Retreat in Mai Chau Vietnam is symbolic of iconic south-east Asian beauty.
Avana Retreat was inspired by the discovery of a local waterfall, just ten years ago.
That very waterfall is now privately accessible to guests of the retreat (of which there aren’t many – there’s only 36 rooms here) making it a truly ethereal breakaway – the kind you dream about from your desk every day at work.
There are more private surprises throughout: one villa perches on top of a terrace of rice fields; and three more boast private pools, including an 89-square-metre heated beauty that climbs in tiers, echoing the nearby rice terraces.
The Metung Hot Springs is a $12 million complex open now in Victoria’s far-east, comprising of natural thermal springs and luxurious safari-style glamping tents.
There are ten opulent lagoon-side tents, each with a king-size bed and private ensuite. These tents also contain private bathing barrels, meaning you’ll be able to soak in solitude around the clock.
Several of the tents back onto a lagoon, and will provide a view of the terraced amphitheatre that is set to sit near the front of the site and is slated to host live music, movies and other entertainment.
During the day, treat yourself at the geothermal pools (of varied depths) or bathing barrels, elevated massage tents, and for the brave, fire and ice therapy: an icy cold-plunge tub located right next to a steaming hot Scandinavian sauna.
There are also plans for a floating sauna on the lagoon, and while the complex is open, some of the build is yet to be completed.
Cornwall has been a favourite holiday destination for Brits since before King Henry VIII was chopping off heads, but there’s a brand-new stay in the southern seaside town that would surely satisfy even the big man himself.
‘The Island’ is the unimaginative name for what is actually a pretty imaginative place to stay – a nautical bolthole perched dramatically above a beach on its own little island, only accessible from the mainland by a private suspension footbridge (vehicle access is impossible).
The place is perfect for small groups, for romance, for artists seeking inspiration or anyone who enjoys being up close and personal to the roaring symphony of the ocean crashing into the rocks below. Spectacular storms is one of a number of things Cornwall is famous for, and we can’t think of anywhere we’d rather be than the deck of The Island as Mother Nature gets to work.
Rather than most seaside accommodations, where you are looking out over the water, at The Island it actually feels as if you’re a part of the ocean.
In 1616, a Dutch sailor by the name of Dirk Hartog stumbled across an uninhabited island off the western edge of Australia.
More than 400 years on and very little has changed on what is now called Dirk Hartog Island; a 620-square-kilometre patch of rugged paradise inhabited by only one family.
Dirk Hartog Island Eco Lodge is a chance to escape the madness of the mainland for a few days of magical seclusion.
Untouched marine ecosystems make it possible to swim or paddle alongside turtles, whales, dolphins and more. Enjoy the luxury of uninterrupted access to majestic sand dunes and extraordinary wildlife, and skirt the edge of the island’s spectacular cliffs, where you’ll stand at Australia’s western-most point, taking in the sheer size of the Indian Ocean. At this point you’ll feel tiny, but you also may never feel closer to the planet you live on.
A summertime beacon next to a pristine lake and green fields, the floor to roof glass windows of Hotel De Cielo shimmer beneath the sun.
But visit in winter and this hotel seemingly disappears into the frozen, snow-white landscape high in the Argentinian Andes. No matter the season, Hotel De Cielo is a cosy refuge from the outside world.
There are three ‘Sky Lofts’, each with a mirrored outside that make it feel as if you’re invisible. The Hotel describes the lofts as ‘microcosms of warmth’.
Wake up, put on the kettle, and enjoy the thrill of being in such a majestic location; surrounded by South America’s famous mountain giants.
Just when you think they couldn’t do anything cooler up at Uluru, they go and drop this on us.
Wintjiri Wiru is the name of the extraordinary, brand-new light and drone show above Uluru, coming in May.
It brings to life the ancient dreamtime story of Mala via 1,000 luminous drones taking flight each night to lift the ancient images above Uluru and into the sky. Exquisite choreography and visual artistry is accompanied by a narration in Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara languages, and a soundtrack with traditional inma recorded with members of the local Anangu community.
The number (1,000) of drones involved makes it the largest drone show of it’s kind on earth.
The result is a pretty cool marriage of technology and the world’s oldest continuous culture.
Two Wintjiri Wiru sound and light shows will run every night, from March until December (from 11 May in 2023), with one show a night operating in January and February.
A three-hour sunset dinner precedes the experience, which includes welcome cocktails and canapes while the sun sets over the bloody serene setting of Kata Tjuta and Uluru. Once darkness has settled the dramatic sound and light show will begin.
One of Sicily’s most famous aspects is its history as a mafia stronghold, which sells short the island’s beauty. Still, there’s no doubt a well-to-do Godfather would feel right at home in the grandeur of Zash Country Boutique Hotel, an 18th century Villa surrounded by vineyards and citrus groves.
With Mount Etna looming on one side and the Ionian Sea on the other, it doesn’t really matter which side of the sprawling country manor you stay.
There’s an underground spa, a restaurant that specialises in produce found locally (less than one kilometre away), gorgeous terraces, a stunning swimming pool to relax underneath the Sicilian sun in, and more.
Ever feel like you’re just floating along in life? Metaphorically drifting aimlessly, without direction while getting inebriated every weekend with your mates who are doing the same thing?
Well, now you can do that for real, and your mates can come too! Bóia is the Perth-based brand selling water-based products like the Harbour: a horseshoe-shaped floating chill area that is absolutely made for summer.
Imagine jumping on a Bóia with a few friends, and having either your own private island party or the ultimate place to relax, out on a lake or an ocean. Not bad.
Don’t have any friends? Say no more fam, just set your Bóia up at Cottesloe Beach or similar, and let the friends come to you (see below).
They’re perfect for bad bóis, good bóis and sk8r bóis alike.
There are a variety of different products available from $1,075 – get one here.
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