Break the rules

Nikki here, with travel planning tips to get the most out of a topsy-turvy (and expensive!) year when all the typical rules are out the window [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( Hey there, it’s [Nikki Ekstein](, Pursuits travel editor, here to tell you that nearly eight weeks into 2024, I’ve finally settled on my New Year’s travel resolution. To be fair, I never intended to set a resolution in the first place. But I backed into one after realizing that the spring break flight to Costa Rica I’d been tracking (since August!) was never going to drop under $1,000 per person (in coach! From New York City!). By that point I was already way late for planning—but staying home with two rugrats for two weeks was not an option. (Spoiler alert: [We’re going to Mexico](.) It’s true: Everything is [as astronomically expensive as we’ve been saying](. But it’s different to know something in the abstract than it is to experience it first-hand, and the thought of four-figure airfare plus [four-figure nightly hotel rates]( for a simple beach trip (for a family of four!) started to make my eyes water. So to survive a year of school vacations without going bankrupt, I did something I’ve never done before: I planned 12 months of travel in one sitting. At least airport security may get easier with self-screening security lanes. Source: S&T Normally I’d spread out the joy of travel planning all year long. The travel industry loves to tell us that merely planning trips is good for our mental health—a sentiment corroborated by a handful of [well-cited psychology studies](—and that’s a type of wellness I can get behind. But this year I needed the certainty that comes with forward planning, for both my financial and mental health. Enter my very late resolution to consciously break all my own travel rules. I’d always maintained the world was too wide to go back to the same hotel twice—but these days I can’t argue with the ease and affordability of a return trip in August to [Tourists Welcome]( in the Berkshires. My foursome can hole up in a suite with outdoor space for roughly $500 a night, even in peak season. Plus, I already know the pool is kept warm like a bathtub and there are s’mores pits at night, plus access to world-class art at [Mass MoCa]( nearby. And frankly, the Berkshires—and the ice cream made with milk from these cows at High Lawn Farm—are amazing. Photographer: Gabriela Herman for Bloomberg Businessweek I hate bouncing around from hotel to hotel on vacation—but limited availability in the [British countryside]( next month means my husband and I are doing three hotels in four nights, all in the same rough area. And while figuring out the details of an itinerary usually gives me great pleasure—I’m recognizing that time is luxury. So for the first time, and despite this being a delayed 10-year anniversary trip, I’m outsourcing almost every single ounce of planning to a friend who’s deeply connected in the Somerset area where we’re going. Honestly? It’s been liberating. Doesn’t this oh-so-British sitting room look downright cozy for the start of spring? I’m picturing it with a fire and a glass of cider from the on-site apple orchard. Source: The Newt in Somerset There is one rule I’ll still follow—not paying for mobile data roaming on leisure trips, and turning off mobile service entirely. It’s not about the cost, which is minimal these days, but about mindfulness and enjoying vacation more by taking one from my news addiction, which is so dark these days anyway. I’ll download maps, and there’s still hotel Wi-Fi at night, and the babysitting grandparents always have direct access to my husband, should anything go awry. All that said: I don’t think I should be alone in checking my expectations at the (aircraft) door this year. Travel is upside-down, so walk on the ceiling with me, why don’t you? Here are some more travel truisms to reconsider. Thought airports were decrepit? Suddenly they’re going very high tech: If you love to hate on flying, you may [find yourself surprised by recent airport innovations](. In Las Vegas, TSA security lanes are getting automated to look more like a grocery store self-checkout. At more and more hubs your identity is being verified by face scans rather than passport checks. Personally, I’m now on the lookout for manicure robots that look like 3D printers and get you vacation-ready in 10 minutes flat. Hate connecting flights? You may need to embrace them: If you don’t live in a major aviation hub like New York or London, connecting flights may become your new normal, [as airlines consolidate service](. This piece shows how surprisingly large cities are affected—be it Detroit, Bangkok, Amsterdam or Washington, D.C. Whitewashed stone rooms at One&Only Kea Island. Source: One&Only It’s time to rewrite your bucket list: If you’re heading to Greece this summer, skip Mykonos and Santorini. Turns out most of the exciting hotel openings in this sybaritic sunshiny wonderland are now on [lesser-known islands like Tinos and Folegandros](. Loyalty has gone from a nice-to-have to a need-to-have: As costs keep climbing upwards, there’s never been more value in a loyalty program. Take American Airlines, which this week raised checked luggage fees to $40—up from $30—if you’re paying up at the airport counter. (The second bag is $45.) [AAdvantagemembers with status can skip those fees](, which can net you a couple hundred bucks per trip. Skip the carbon credits and eat more veggies: We’ve long said that [carbon credits are problematic]( when it comes to your travel footprint. But our colleagues at Bloomberg Green gave us extra food for thought this week with a piece that highlights the [climate benefits of swapping out beef for just a single meal each day](. Our new plan: Focus more deliberately on the local produce. It’s more distinctive than steak, anyway. Connect with Nikki on [Instagram]( Food systems are responsible for 30% of human-caused emissions, and nearly 60% of that comes from animal products. Illustrations: Graham Roumieu/Bloomberg How your wildest luxury dreams come true Every few months I send our [intrepid reporter Brandon Presser]( to embed with upscale hospitality brands to discover just what it takes to deliver on your weirdest and wildest luxury vacation dreams. In the seven (7!) years I’ve been editing these stories, we’ve learned so much about how people around the world splash their cash, and the quirky preferences they develop when money is no object. Brandon’s gone undercover as a [flight attendant](, a [ski instructor](, a [personal shopper]( and even did time [as a Disney cast member](. (We’ve just created a landing page for all these fantastic pieces, [so catch up here](.) Eight secrets of fancy hotels I learned after becoming a butler. Illustration: Tomi Um Now he’s fresh off a weeklong stint as a butler at the iconic [Raffles Hotel Singapore](, where he saw first-hand [what it’s like to cater to real-life crazy rich Asians]( who will just as eagerly drop six-figure sums on handbags, cars and… exotic crabs. From calling in zoo critters to stocking a room exclusively with pink toilet paper, there’s so much more to being a butler than you’d ever guess. And if that’s not how you’d throw around your millions, how about these ideas? [Jack Ma’s Wife Bought Three Prestige Properties in Singapore Worth Millions]( This takes “shopping sprees” to a whole new level. But in fairness, this is no kept woman: Zhang Ying was one of Alibaba’s first employees and played a key role in the company’s stratospheric growth. [Abu Dhabi in Talks to Develop $22 Billion Egypt Beach Strip]( While Saudi is pumping money into the Red Sea development, where [futuristic looking hotels]( are soon to command $2,000-a-night price tags, Abu Dhabi is looking for a similar flex on its own stretch of pearly sand… in Egypt. [The $292,000 Porsche 911 S/T Is Worth Every Penny]( The fact that I’m fixated on this pink paint color tells you just how much I know about why this car is worth $292,000. But when [Hannah Elliott]( says something is worth the money, I tend to believe her. [Prices of Contemporary Indigenous American Art Have Risen More Than 1,000%]( Inflation news I can get behind: Works by Indigenous American artists are finally having a moment in the spotlight, commanding previously-unseen sums as high as $850,000. [Elton John’s Boots Sell for $94,500 in Enthusiastic Auction at Christie’]( I’d like to think they paid $1 per bedazzled gemstone. So, you had some questions… We call for queries [weekly on our Instagram account]( and [via e-mail](mailto:askpursuits@bloomberg.net?subject=I have a question). Here’s what you were dying to know about this time around. I want to hike the Dolomites this summer! What are some of the best hotels? Good choice, @marioroa! The Dolomites are truly one of my favorite destinations anywhere, but I’ve gone in the winter—for skiing—and stayed at Cristallo, a Luxury Collection resort in the town of Cortina that has since closed. (It’s being converted to a Mandarin Oriental [ahead of the 2026 winter Olympics](.) I can’t wait to return; my husband and I dream of buying a little cabin there. With Cristallo out of the cards, I’d stay at [Rosa Alpina](—which recently joined Aman’s collection—or [Forestis](, where suites look like handcrafted boxes made half of blonde wood and half of glass. And the spa, with its indoor-outdoor mountain-facing pool, might be the best place in the region to rest tired legs. Rosa Alpina in winter. Photographer: Stefano Scatà Where should I go in Thailand? We’re all waiting to hear when the next season of The White Lotus will drop, because once it does, it’ll be game over for planning your next Thailand trip—and Pursuits had the scoop! You’ll have the biggest bragging rights [if you’ve already checked into these two resorts](—in Koh Samui and Phuket—before Parker Posey, Patrick Schwarzenegger and Blackpink’s Lalisa Manobal take their star turns there. (Shooting is underway and happening through at least May.) A pool with an ocean view at the Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui, where The White Lotus is filming. Photographer: Ken Seet/The Four Seasons If pop culture isn’t your speed, try the opposite corner of Thailand. In the northern Golden Triangle area, [Four Seasons]( and [Anantara]( run side-by-side hotels with access to an incredible elephant reserve. The mission is to rescue at-risk pachyderms and their caretakers from punishing careers in logging; since they’re habituated to working with humans, you can interact with the animals in all sorts of sensitively-developed activities. Since I [wrote this story in 2017](, Anantara has discontinued elephant riding from that list—but the most memorable things I experienced, like bathing an elephant and dining with elephants, remain. A mahout, or elephant caretaker, with his charge at Anantara Golden Triangle, a resort and conservation reserve in Thailand. Photographer: Wayne Lawrence for Bloomberg Bus What’s your favorite hotel bar? Is there anything more decadent, really, than rolling back to your hotel after a great dinner, having a fabulous nightcap in a lively space with loads of character, and then taking the elevator straight to bed? Typically I’d say no, @ariana.squillacciotti… unless we’re [talking about a swim-up bar]( with a view of the ocean and frosty concoctions that aren’t too sweet. So let me give you one option for each. There’s no city hotel bar better than [Bemelman’s at the Carlyle]( in New York, which is pure sensorial experience. There’s Earl Rose on the piano, the most addictive nut mix served in pretty silver dishes, historic murals on the walls, and trays of champagne flutes and martinis going to the most people-watchable crowd. I feel like I’ve been whisked to some decadent version of Narnia every time I walk through the door. Love it or hate it, the swim-up bar isn’t going anywhere. (Pictured: Sandals Montego Bay in the early 2000s). Source: Sandals And then there’s the literal drinking hole at the [Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos Pedregal](—which is the swim-up bar to beat all swim-up bars. In fairness I haven’t stayed at this resort since it was taken over by Waldorf Astoria, so I’ll reserve comment on what drinks they’re serving these days. But the way the waves crash into rocks right below this infinity-edge, sea-facing pool makes for epic entertainment—a visual spectacle and natural soundtrack that can be universally-understood as the embodiment of vacation. New for subscribers: Free article gifting. Bloomberg.com subscribers can now gift up to five free articles a month to anyone you want. Just look for the "Gift this article" button on stories. (Not a subscriber? Unlock limited access and [sign up here](.) Follow Us Like getting this newsletter? [Subscribe to Bloomberg.com]( for unlimited access to trusted, data-driven journalism and subscriber-only insights. Want to sponsor this newsletter? [Get in touch here](. You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Bloomberg Pursuits newsletter. 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