InsideLux – The Daily Luxury News & Lifestyle News Source

Harley-Davidson Motors just introduced this limited edition 2010 FLHTCUTG Tri-Glide Ultra Classic motorcycle to its Shrine model.  The 2010 FLHTCUTG Tri-Glide Ultra Classic is being made available first to the company’s’ members in Arctic White with Red & Gold pinstripes or for Jester members in Concord Purple with Violet & Burgundy pinstripes.

This Tri-Glide Ultra Classic has been available to order since 27^th January 2010 but due to it’s limited quantity the order window will be closed on Friday, March 5, 2010. This offer is valid for the model year 2010 only and may not be offered again in the 2011 model year.

For more information, visit www.harley-davidson.com or see your Harley-Davidson dealer to order one.

African Homesteads offers luxury villas in a private game reserve on the fringe of KwaZulu Natal’s

Savour the luxury of Africa’s wide open spaces with the sky and savanna theme of The Homestead at &Beyond Phinda. Breathtakingly stylish and sophisticated yet refreshingly simple, The Homestead provides the ideal venue to reconnect with friends and family.

With the warm, friendly faces and helping hands of a full complement of staff ready to welcome you on arrival, you will instantly feel as though this is your second home.

Inviting rooms designed around retro trinkets, Zulu crafts and sleek, contemporary touches reinforce the impression that this private safari villa is designed for comfort and ease.

Galactic Suite Limited has announced that the world’s first space hotel will be ready to accept guests from 2012.   At €1m per night for a minimum of 3 nights, this hotel is reserved for the world’s richest.

The zero gravity resort will orbit the planet 15 times a day, offering a sunset and sunrise more than once an hour.  A spaceport from a Caribbean island will transport guests on Russian rockets to the resort and an introductory 8 week course prior to departure is compulsory.

The project, still in its design phase may be yet another pipe dream, but lets hope this one turns out to be a reality.

Hotel experts Mr & Mrs Smith are due to launch their new hotel guide for Australia and New Zealand this November and as always, it promises to be packed full of bijou boutique hotels and luxury getaway destinations.

The guide will be entitled ‘Mr & Mrs Smith Hotel Collection: Australia/ New Zealand’ and it’s the very first guide to Australia and New Zealand they’ve ever published.

Top hotel destinations to look out for include the iconic luxury resort of Qualia and the ever stylish boutique hotel Sal Salis.

Simon Westcott, co founder of Mr & Mrs Smith Asia Pacific has said “Our books take the guesswork out of booking somewhere best in class. We think what Mr & Mrs Smith does better than any other travel guide in the world is identify the wow-factor – that boutique-travel something special – a take-your-breath away location, incredible food and wine, unique spa treatments or simply the old-word charm of a remote and beautifully restored homestead.”

The Mr & Mrs Smith Hotel Collection: Australia & New Zealand is officialy available to buy from November 25th.

Some of the biggest luxury hotel operators in the world are putting pressure on the government of Hong Kong to release more land for development.

The move by Starwood Hotels and Resorts and other luxury hotel chains has been prompted by the fact that over the last few years high-end luxury hotels in Hong Kong have been demolished rather than built.

Stephen Ho, Vice president of aquisitions in Asia for Starwood Hotels, told the South China Morning Post “We obviously want to get into Hong Kong island but unfortunately it has limited land supply. Hopefully with reclamation there we could bring the Westin and St Regis brands to Hong Kong.”

In the heart of Hong Kong’s business district, a host of big luxury hotels have stopped operating as developers and real estate agents realise that turning these plush buildings into luxury office space will earn them much more money in rents.

Considering Hong Kong is one of the business capitals of the world there are actually very few hotel rooms available. In the whole of Hong Kong island there are 60,000 hotel rooms and 14,700 of them are luxury hotel rooms in hotels like Hong Kong’s CDB.

Back in 1995 the Hilton was the first major luxury hotel to bow out of the market, leaving Hong Kong with 750 less hotel rooms. In 2001 the Furama Hotel which was bang smack in the middle of Hong Kong closed too, along with it’s 517 rooms. Just last year the Ritz-Carlton hotel also closed and that lost Hong Kong another 216 rooms.

With the Hong Kong tourism board keen to lure more business to the island it’s likely that the government will be pleased to hear of the big luxury hotel chains’ interest in building in the city. According to the tourism board business travelers stay longer in Hong Kong and their luxury lifestyles mean they spend more than leisure tourists.

British Airways yesterday launched a luxury, all-business class transatlantic service to fly twice daily from London City Airport to New York. It features 32 seats in specially configured Airbus A318 aircraft offering extensive comfort in flat beds. The latest communications technology also means that passengers will be able to send emails and texts and use the internet while aboard. Return fares will start at ($3056.60) £1,901 and marks an upward turn in the market for luxury travel with transatlantic all-business class flights from Stansted by Eos and MAXjet both ceasing after just a few months, while the Silverjet services from Luton to Newark in New Jersey and to Dubai stopped when the company went into administration last year. Hopefully BA will find the market to continue with their glamorous venture.

The 269ft Oceanco superyacht has been listed for sale via brokerage firm Edminston & Co for ($190 million) €129,750,000. Bearing a resemblance to its namesake, the Roman emperor Nero, it is a fitting purchase for a Lord of the seas. Designed by Nuvolari & Lenard and launched in 2007, Alfa Nero was ranked 43rd in Boat International’s list of the world’s 100 largest yachts in February 2009 and is Lloyds classed and MCA compliant. It has a range of 6,630 miles at 16mph and reaches a top speed of 23mph.

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If you want to ensure the finest from your city break, look no further than the Louis Vuitton 2010 City Guides. Now in its 11th year of publication, the guides are packed with essential locations and addresses for both the business and leisure traveller. With expected impeccable taste, the 2010 guide visits the major capitals London, Paris, Athens, Berlin, Istanbul and Moscow with new additions of Basel, Deauville, Knokke-le-Zoute, Mykonos, Malaga and Tel Aviv. London, Rome and Los Angeles for the first time feature in individual box set collections. The Louis Vuitton guides feature a more subjective approach than many of their competitors, teamed with the elegant design of the boxed set. In homage to the world-renowned heritage of Louis Vuitton the set draws inspiration from a vintage luggage label that bellboys would affix to the trunks of luxury travellers. The perfect Christmas gift for the jetsetter, the guides go on sale October 15th 2009.

Frequented by the jet-set, Russian oligarchs and royalty – where Prince William and Kate Middleton vacationed last winter – Courcheval in the French Alps has become not only the place to be seen on some of the world’s best ski slopes, but also home to some of the most expensive real estate. Not everyone can afford a chalet in this exclusive ski destination, but for those who don’t have private villas, it’s still worth the splurge to stay at the newly renovated five-star Hotel de Charme Les Airelles. Read the rest of this entry »

After the economic downturn in air travel, what better way to take advantage of once-again rising figures than to increase the luxury and comfort on offer during your travel? US Airways has certainly achieved this with their innovative Envoy Suite. The latest seating option for Business-class travellers on trans-Atlantic flights is designed in 1-2-1 herringbone with everything you need right at your fingertips, like the 12.1” adjustable touch-screen entertainment system, 110-volt universal power outlet, satellite phone and USB port to charge your laptop and a real-time world map to track your flight. Increased personal space features fully-adjustable seats that recline into a horizontal bed ranging from 6’4’’ to 6’8’’ depending on the Suite’s position in the cabin.  The Envoy Suite will make its debut on one of US Airways` Airbus A330-200 aircraft in December 2009 with the remainder of the A330-200 fleet installation completed by summer 2011 for a total of 15 aircraft. Each A330-200 will offer 20 Envoy Suites.