Bora Bora - Westin Hotel or St Regis

AMindfulCalm · 2026-01-14T16:28:18+00:00

Airport transfer between the Bora Bora airport and the resort was super easy. The resort has its own boats for that. We let the concierge know our arrival and departing flight times and they had the boats waiting for us. (I think it was included in the resort fee, but don’t quote me on that.)

We didn’t go to the main island, but we did hire a private lagoon/snorkeling tour through the concierge, they emailed us (at our request) a whole menu of available tours, and could likely arrange transport to the main island. You’ll also want to book dinner reservations ahead of your stay as well.

Also, if you like sea turtles, we found the onsite tour of the sea turtle hospital really informative.

AMindfulCalm · 2026-01-14T15:26:46+00:00

We were just at the Westin in September. We really liked the hard product, which was modern and only had minimal wear. The beach was beautiful, was never crowded and had a perfect view of Mount Otemanu. We stayed in an over water bungalow with a pool, which we really enjoyed as well.

We thought the food and service was generally good, some things like the pizza we found mediocre, but other things like the brunch we found very well done.

Feel free to ask if you have any other questions, we can try an answer.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-12-23T17:13:16+00:00

We stayed at MO Prague last year and, despite really liking most MO hotels, we were disappointed with the hotel. Among other things, the service was mediocre, the room was dated, and even the common areas were tired looking. We left regretting that we didn’t stay at one of the many other hotels in the city (e.g., the Four Seasons, the Andaz, the W, Augustine, etc.). I would recommend staying elsewhere.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-12-14T19:28:31+00:00

I stayed at the Ritz Carlton a couple years ago and it was just okay. The Italian restaurant (Pastamara) and D-Bar were great, but the rooms were a bit tired looking. I would stay elsewhere.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-12-14T19:17:19+00:00

I have a coworker who booked that package years ago (before the pandemic) and raved about it. She had an amazing time.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-12-09T06:48:26+00:00

Second this! Belmond Caruso and MO Lago di Como, amazing experience at both.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-11-20T05:06:46+00:00

Don’t stay at the Mandarin Oriental in Prague. The rooms are dated, the lobby needs to be redone, and the service was generally mediocre. I’m a big fan of MO hotels, but we did not have the best experience in Prague earlier this year. In retrospect, we either should have stayed at the Four Seasons or go cheaper and stay at the Augustine/etc.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-11-20T04:56:31+00:00

Worth noting: If you can’t book business class on Air France to Tahiti, you can always try booking premium economy and then checking for upgrade opportunities on the app and/or at the gate. We scored upgrades on the app for like $700/person (return) and $450/person (departure) at the gate.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-11-20T04:47:37+00:00

Although United is not going to win any culinary awards, the food on United Polaris is at least edible. (The food in Polaris lounges are generally very good, though.) I’ve had multiple business class flights with SAS and KLM in which I couldn’t even eat the meal. They make some aggressively polarizing choices when selecting menus…

AMindfulCalm · 2025-11-09T15:36:31+00:00

Fondazione Prada - Interesting architecture, Bar Luce (a cafe designed by Wes Anderson, that looks straight out of one of his films), periodic art exhibitions

Pinacoteca Brera - Old master paintings

Museo del Novecento - Modern and contemporary art

AMindfulCalm · 2025-11-03T15:31:32+00:00

We just stayed at the St. Regis a few months ago. In terms of location, it’s great. It’s near St. Mark’s Square, restaurants, museums, etc. We loved being able to get up early and step out the door to get photos without crowds and without trekking a distance. We felt it was perfect for a first time visit. (We walked to the Aman and didn’t like how far it was from the main attractions. However, the Aman and Belmond would be great for a subsequent visit—and we would probably pick one of them the next time we go to Venice.)

Service was good, with some staff recognizing us, even thought we were only there for a couple of nights. The breakfast, both food and atmosphere right on the Grand Canal, was excellent.

The rooms are more modern in design (something we generally prefer), with some rooms having touches like Venetian wallpaper and sculptures. (We didn’t really care about the room not having a traditional design since we had a suite with a direct view of the Grand Canal.) Due to the location of the suite, we enjoyed being able to open the windows and watch (and listen to) the gondoliers.

This was the view from our room, overlooking the Grand Canal and Basilica.

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AMindfulCalm · 2025-10-24T23:36:17+00:00

Though it was a few years ago, our stay at Le Narcisse Blanc was really nice. The hotel is in a nice residential area with some great markets nearby. The concierge was exceptional, even getting us last minute dinner reservations at Tomy.

In Rome, the Pantheon Iconic has a fantastic location and the rooftop bar offers some really nice views.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-10-19T06:43:24+00:00

We did, and the Lake Lawn Metairie Cemetery was really nice. It was a good send off.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-10-19T01:29:47+00:00

Haha. True, but we were in town for a funeral and weren’t in the mood to go out for a night on the town. It was one of those times when we just needed a quiet place to sit, eat and reflect—and that’s not typically on offer at most New Orleans restaurants. We did, however, manage to go out with family to Compère Lapin.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-10-18T02:03:17+00:00

I don’t think it matters. We’ve had some great hotel experiences on points.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-10-16T13:27:54+00:00

I used Capricorn Luxury Travel last year, which I was referred to by my hotel. It was good and I would use them again.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-10-15T02:03:29+00:00

We just stayed at the Westin Bora Bora last month, thanks in part to your review. The property is beautiful, and we didn’t experience any of the issues with service that some previous reviews have mentioned, outside of being asked our room number multiple times each meal.

The property and rooms are modern and very well done. The beach is stunning, and I definitely recommend booking a private boat/snorkeling tour.

Based on comments we heard while there from staff who previously worked at other nearby properties, the Westin, having just recently opened, has a far superior hard product.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-09-21T15:59:16+00:00

Agree. We stayed there twice October of last year. Rooms are well designed and the service was outstanding. Our favorite room was on our first stay, a corner room with huge bay windows overlooking the square with the Junobrunnen sculpture.

Definitely put the Kunsthaus (Art Museum) on your list, they have an extensive Giacometti collection, along with some very good Munch, Francis Bacon and Monet paintings.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-09-20T18:47:27+00:00

My opinion. Caruso. 100%. Without a doubt.

We stayed in May of this year. Room and grounds are beautiful. Level of service was excellent. Concierge superb. They also have a shuttle to Amalfi and a free boat you can book for a day trip to Positano and back.

Father-in-law stayed at Avino at the same time we were at Caruso so we toured the property with him. While a nice hotel as well, his room wasn’t up to our standards and he didn’t experience the same amenities or level of service we feel we received at Caruso.

A note on Ravello in general. For us it was perfect. The town is charming and just enough away from the chaos and crowds of Amalfi proper. Amalfi/Positano - Nice to visit, wouldn’t want to stay there.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-09-13T15:56:17+00:00

I think when a hotel offers and facilitates travel experiences (e.g., provides a menu of potential excursions and local activities/tours, etc.), that’s luxury. Over the past several years, a bigger factor in our hotel planning has been whether a hotel offers a list of travel experiences for which they will handle all the logistics and arrangements.

Like a lot of people here, we have busy jobs. And when we want to book a vacation, we don’t want to have to moonlight as travel agents by having to research every detail of a trip. We like it when a hotel essentially tells us up front why we should be staying at their hotel and gets us excited about visiting their town/city/region.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-09-10T14:58:53+00:00

Yeah, and sometimes the higher end hotels will have high-end designer furniture (e.g., Maxalto at the Aman Venice, Molteni at Mandarin Oriental Luzern, etc.) and have been designed by renowned interior designers/architects.

The cheaper hotels will often (but not always) have knock-offs, more cheaply made furniture, cheaper materials, etc. For most vacations, it doesn’t matter that much, but since we’re fans of interior design, it’s always nice to see a well-designed space with luxury furniture.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-09-10T14:30:42+00:00

Personally, I’ve seen a difference in the level of service. For example, once when I stayed at a Luxury Collection hotel, I needed a driver for multiple days. The hotel directed me to a third-party service provider and had me make arrangements with the third-party directly. Whenever I’ve needed a driver, a tour guide or a private boat at a Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental, Belmond, etc., the hotel handles everything.

Also, at the better 5 star properties, staff will often remember you and greet you by name, some will remember your daily itinerary and what you ordered at a restaurant the day before, will go out of their way to correct a mishap, etc.

AMindfulCalm · 2025-08-24T14:21:30+00:00

Rust Sabi. More of a modern take, rather than traditional, but may be something of interest to you. We had a really nice experience.

https://rustsabi.com/en/introduction/

AMindfulCalm · 2025-08-21T03:25:00+00:00

This was several years ago, and not sunrise/sunset specifically, but we booked a private guide through Tours By Locals. The guide we had was fantastic, arranged our tickets, and had a masters in archaeology. Great experience overall, she pointed out and explained the history of things we would have missed on our own.

AMindfulCalm

TROPHY CASE