https://blog.mrandmrssmith.com/feed
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In quotes: Angela Hartnett
Angela Hartnett is one of Britain’s best-loved chefs. Her fine-dining Italian restaurant in Mayfair, Murano, has held a Michelin star since...
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Where to stay: the autumn/winter edit
We’re writing this from a heatwave so the idea of chunky knits and pumpkin spice seems quite absurd right now but the nights are drawing in...
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Wildflower Farms: this must be the place
I didn’t exactly mean to keep the trip a secret from Mr Smith, but it was only a couple hours drive from our place in Brooklyn, and we were only...
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The ultimate guide to the lesser-known Greek islands
So no one believes you liked baklava before it was cool. And will they listen when you say you’ve loved Yorgos Lanthimos since way before The...
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Shore thing: The best beach hotels in Europe
Set your out-of-office message to ‘gone surfing’ and step away from the laptop. It’s still – just about – the summer of Barbie and your job, for...
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Wed and wild: honeymoon hotels for thrill-seeking couples
If action-packed excursions are what bring you wedded bliss, we’ve got a (white-water) raft of intrepid adventure honeymoon destinations with...
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Putting the wine in unwinding: the rise of vinotherapy
Mid-afternoon among the vineyards of Portugal’s Douro Valley and I’m in a drowsy, supine state. There’s the sweet, heady aroma of wine in the air,...
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How Venice is crafting a future from its past arts
‘One who works with his hands is a worker, one who works with their head and hands is an artisan, and one who works with their head, heart and...
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Sikelia Luxury Retreat: an off-world wonderland
Is your home planet stressing you out? Are water supplies dwindling? Are trans aliens being denied healthcare? For two aliens in the distant galaxy...
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Costa living: Spain’s best beachfront hotels
From the Costa del Sol to the seaswept cliffs of Galicia, Spain is awash with big-hitting beaches – and boutique stays to match. Here, we’ve...
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The ultimate Marylebone neighbourhood guide
There was a point in the Nineties where your pick of things to do in Marylebone was limited to loitering in the seemingly Sisyphean queue around...
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Rhinoceros Roma: a rare and beautiful beast
I’ll briefly skip to the would-be addendum of this tale and get it out of the way – and I will stress it was no fault of the hotel whatsoever. We...
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Searching for stillness in the Loire Valley
A beguiling black and orange butterfly lands silently on my skin. For a moment, I still, for fear of disturbing that brief second of cosmic...
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Edinburgh: what’s new on Auld Reekie’s food scene
Is it the twists and turns of the medieval streets? The weathered patina of sandstone? Or just the slippery stretches of cobblestones, worn to a...
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Abstracting the traditional in Tuscany
Laidback sanctuary Villa Lena, embedded deep as a core memory in the Tuscan countryside, isn’t the first verdant estate or crumbling village in the...
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Home surf: The best luxury beach villas in Europe
Sun, sand and not an A-road in sight – who hasn’t dreamed of upping sticks and starting over on the coast? A Puglian villa, perhaps, or maybe...
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Keep it to yourself: Europe’s best hotels with private beaches
Sharing is caring – sage words they may be, but who wants to be sage when you could snag a prime sunbathing spot instead? We’ve played private...
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The Bradley Hare: country pub perfection
It was on our second day that everything clicked into place. Mr Smith and I had just returned from a bracing tramp around rolling Wiltshire fields...
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Artist-not-in-residence: Francesca Grima
It was something grandiose like ‘Turning hotel stays into more than just memories’ that got scribbled in a notebook somewhere during...
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Shamans, solitude, and the enigmatic allure of Sumba
There they were, at the heart of the village: blackened slabs of stone, pocked and marked and furred with moss. Atop one stood a little boy, eyeing...
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In quotes: Zoë Zimmer
Zoë Zimmer is a London-based photographer, artist, model, and designer (an occasional hotel reviewer, too) who recently launched her own resortwear...
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The hotel lover’s guide to literary Paris
Universally adored for its unparalleled beauty, Paris’ elegant lamp-lit boulevards have enticed wandering writers for centuries. Its ‘flâneurs’ (as...
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Six couples on choosing the perfect honeymoon
Overwater villas, petal-strewn bathtubs, candlelit dinners – all popular for a reason, but you don’t need us to tell you there’s much...
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The quiet charm of Kefalonia
Dennis is a man so immediately warm and welcoming I almost go in for a hug as he greets me at the airport. But he’s concerned. I appear to have...
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Heart to heart with Love Brand & Co
Founded in 2010 by Oliver Tomalin and his wife Rose, Love Brand & Co has always worn its heart on its sleeve. Well, on its waistband at least –...