luxe life
Paradise found
For jetset glamour, eco-excursions, seaside seclusion or colonial charm, the Caribbean has something for everyone. FASHION's feature editor explores.
HOT SPOT: NEVIS
The Plantation Vacation...for quirky chic and historic hotels.
Sidestepping formulaic notions of “island paradise,” little Nevis (“Nee-vis”), with its funky beach bars, gracious locals and picturesque 18th-century Charlestown harbour, is flush with Old World charm. You won’t encounter fast food outlets, crowds or traffic lights while braking for cows on your way to lunch at the luxe Four Seasons, the only international brand among the homespun yet high-end island’s smattering of small hotels (swish interlopers like Aman and W are rumoured to be next).
It’s the island’s restored manor houses, each with a distinct ambience, that accentuate the island’s quaint atmosphere. Converted into plantation inns, these relics of the wealthy 18th-century sugar gentry, once frequented by Euro royals, draw today’s refined traveller with a mix of privacy and unconventional style. Whipped into elegant shape by a world-travelled American ex-banker and his family, the Montpelier Plantation Inn is where Lady Di hid out after her ’93 separation announcement. Here, at the only Relais & Châteaux property on Nevis (and one of just seven in the entire Caribbean), guests sip Laurent-Perrier in the 1700s great house to the cool strains of “Let’s Get Lost.”
Shown: Montpellier's private beach.
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