Top 5 spas for après-ski luxury

After a hard day on the slopes, nothing beats an après-ski spa treatment. Here are a few of the world’s best luxury hotels and spas that will surely hit the spot.

Bagni di Bormio Spa Resort, Bormio – Italy

A spa town since Roman times, Bormio is home to the five-star Grand Bagni Nuovi, which first opened as a spa resort in 1836. Along with Murano glass chandeliers and art nouveau flourishes, the hotel features a gorgeous 5,500-square-meter spa, where a hydro-massage bath is fed with thermal water.

Facilities include open-air baths, Jacuzzis, saunas, and a Turkish bath, and a full menu of treatments from detox facials to enzymatic gommage.

bagnidibormio.it

Victoria-Jungrau Grand Hotel & Spa Interlaken – Switzerland

This five-star alpine hotel, featuring two spas, opened in 1856 and is in the heart of the Bernese Oberland, gateway to the Wengen (birthplace of downhill skiing), Grindelwald, and Mürren.

One spa features more than 30 Espa treatments, involving Eastern-inspired techniques, while the Sensai Select spa offers treatments designed by the Japanese company Kaneba. The spas are connected by a huge pool with hot tubs and a spa café for juices and teas.

victoria-jungfrau.ch

Le Chabichou Courchevel 1850 – France

This 42-room alpine retreat in Courchevel 1850 is nestled right on the piste and easily connects visitors to the entire Trois Vallées ski area. The spa, Cha’Banya, a subterranean wellness center built under the ski slope features a huge pool, a hammam, Polar bath, ice fountain, and salt grotto.

chabichou-courchevel.com

The Green Leaf Niseko - Village Hirafu - Japan

Nestled at the base of Mount An’nupuri in Japan, the 200-room Green Leaf Niseko Village features ski-in/ ski-out access to powder slopes as well as a gorgeous spa. Included is an open-air bath fed by a clear mineral spring that is cooled to about 104F (40C). Spa treatments include everything from acupressure to Ayurveda and specialty treatments such as the Rubber Neck bamboo tapping massage.

thegreenleafhotel.com

Fairmont Mont Tremblant Resort in Mont Tremblant – Quebec, Canada

This ski-in/ski-out resort features 314 rooms and a lush spa features two outdoor Jacuzzis and a therapeutic hot tub, a dry sauna, steam bath, and a heated indoor pool. The spa menu includes an 80-minute remineralizing clay massage and a glass of champagne.

Bugatti Legend “Meo Costantini” Unveiled at Dubai International Motor Show

The Dubai International Motor Show 2013 has marked the world premiere of the Bugatti Legend “Meo Costantini”. This is the third model in the six-part edition “Les Légendes de Bugatti”, and is dedicated to Meo Costantini, a close friend of company founder Ettore Bugatti and two-time winner of the Targa Florio.

This Legend car, like all cars in the series, is based on the Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse. It pays homage to Meo Costantini, head of Bugatti’s factory race team for many years and also a driver, winning the Targa Florio two times in the Bugatti Type 35, one of the most successful racing cars of all time.

The Legend Edition “Meo Costantini” is priced at $2.7 million. As with all Bugatti Legend cars, the production run is limited to only three vehicles.

“Meo Costantini embodies the most successful era in Bugatti’s racing history,” says Dr Wolfgang Schreiber, President of Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S. “Ettore Bugatti’s vehicles from the 1920s stand for light-weight construction and technical aesthetics. When Bugatti created the Type 35, he inspired one of the most successful racing cars of all time. The Vitesse ‘Meo Costantini’ is reminiscent of the Type 35.”

The series of Bugatti Legend cars, “Les Légendes de Bugatti”, was launched in August at California’s Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance with the Vitesse “Jean-Pierre Wimille”. This was followed by the Legend car, “Jean Bugatti”, which was presented at the International Motor Show in Frankfurt.

The Legend Edition “Meo Costantini” is based on the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse. Its 8-liter W16 engine can accelerate from 0 to 62 MPH in 2.6 seconds. The Vitesse was driven to a top speed of 253 MPH with the roof down in April 2013, making it the fastest production roadster ever built.

The body of the Vitesse Legend “Meo Costantini” is primarily constructed of carbon fiber. The wings, doors, the parts behind the doors, the “medaillons” (French) and corners of the front bumper are rendered in aluminum. The blue paintwork on the carbon fiber parts references France’s classic motor sport color, as well as the Type 35. The new paint color “Bugatti Dark Blue Sport” has been specially developed for the vehicle. The aluminum parts are hand-polished and coated with clear lacquer. Bugatti is the only production manufacturer to offer polished clear-coated aluminum bodywork.

As a reference to Costantini’s victory at Targa Florio, the silhouette of the historic race course is painted on the underside of the rear wing (air-brake) in “Bugatti Dark Blue Sport.” Another feature that pays tribute to the illustrious racing driver is his signature, which is laser-engraved into the aluminum tank and oil caps and painted in silver.

The interior of the Legend Vitesse “Meo Costantini” is completely upholstered in leather. The roof, footwell, center sections of the seats and rear wall are all in the color “Gaucho”, a sophisticated cognac tone. The seat’s side cushions, arm rests, extended center console, door panels, dash panel, instrument panel and steering wheel are all trimmed in dark blue leather in the “Lake Blue” color.

The head restraints are embroidered with Meo Costantini’s signature in “Bugatti Light Blue Sport,” whilst the cover of the rear center box features the eye-catching silhouette of the Targa Florio race route. The silhouette is portrayed in a milled and polished aluminium relief that has been attached directly below the EB logo on the cover, itself crafted from dark blue clear-coated carbon fiber.

A special highlight of the interior is the racing scenes and vintage car motifs on the doors, which have been laser-engraved into the leather trim with the utmost precision and attention to detail. These images illustrate the most glorious moments of Meo Costantini’s racing career and the exciting world of motor racing in the 1920s. The interior trim of the door pockets and door handle recesses in “Bugatti Light Blue Sport” adds a dash of color.

The Vitesse Legend “Meo Costantini” also shares several features with the other Legend cars in the Edition, including the inlay in the extended section of the center console, crafted of clear-coated carbon fiber and sporting the Legend logo with the famous Bugatti elephant, and the door sill strips displaying the likeness and signature of Meo Costantini.

New Porsche Panamera Turbo S unveiled

The German manufacturer is expanding its Panamera line with a new version of the Turbo S grand touring sedan, which now has an additional 20hp under the hood for a total power of 570hp.

Powered by a 4.8L V8 biturbo engine, the new Porsche Panamera Turbo S accelerates from 0 to 100km/h in 3.8 seconds and can reach top speeds of around 310km/h. Porsche announces the car’s fuel consumption at 10.2L/100km, which is equivalent to CO2 emissions of 239g/km.

Among the standard features on the new Turbo S, Porsche provides a number of its latest driving aids and technologies, such as Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM), Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control (PDCC) and Porsche Ceramic Composite Brakes (PCCB). On the inside, drivers and passengers can stay cool thanks to ventilated seats and ride in style on two-tone leather upholstery.

In addition to the standard version of the new Porsche Panamera Turbo S, an Executive edition will also be available, with a wheelbase expanded by 15cm for enhanced comfort. The two new models will be available from early 2014 at $180,300 and $200,500 respectively in the US.

The Panamera line also includes Porsche’s first plug-in hybrid vehicle, the Panamera S E-Hybrid, which arrived at dealers over the summer of 2013.

This more eco-friendly Panamera consumes just 3.1L/100km over the European driving cycle, resulting in CO2 emissions of 71g/km. The model is available from $99,000 in the US, or €112,309 in Europe.

Cinema snacks go gourmet

Popcorn is getting truffled, sodas replaced with flutes of champagne and bags of M&M’s swapped for fairytale macarons in a trend that’s elevating the cinema-going experience into a gourmet treat.

Following the lead of New York and London, the menu at filmmaker Luc Besson’s newly opened multiplex cinema outside Paris includes munchies like caviar, smoked salmon, glasses of bubbly, and macarons by one of the country’s top pastry chefs, Pierre Hermé.

The EuropaCorp cinema, which opened this month, is the latest theater around Paris to give new meaning to the term dinner and a movie, placing renewed importance on film food.

Cinema social club Le Popcorn Project, which shows films at Le Club de L’Etoile near the Champs-Elysées, has tapped the city’s burgeoning food truck scene to cater its monthly screenings and offer gourmet sandwiches, dim sum, savory tarts, quiches and pies.

Indie movie theaters and boutiques in New York and London have likewise  been offering more sophisticated versions of cheese sauce-soaked nachos and popcorn for gourmand cinephiles.

Over at Edible Cinema in London, food is synchronized with the movie to add another dimension to the movie-watching experience. For instance, during a scene in “Pan’s Labyrinth” where characters run through a pine forest, patrons munch on pine-smoked popcorn to evoke the sensation of the trees and the sound of the needle-laden forest floor.

When Marilyn Monroe’s character in “Some Like it Hot,” covers Junior with “alcohol-soaked kisses,” movie watchers bite into lightly powdered, rose-tinted Turkish delight with a champagne-flavored liquid center. Popping candy also emulates the sensation of bubbles.

And at Nitehawk Cinema in Brooklyn, chefs create film and food pairings that involve tucking into meals like crispy pork belly, blood orange gastrique, and a ‘Bucket of Blood’ cocktail during a screening of the horror flick “Carrie.”

First Drive: 2014 Rolls-Royce Wraith

The crystal blue sky and light winds promised perfect conditions for the day ahead as my 737 touched down at Phoenix Sky Harbor airport. Upon passing through security, I was met by a concierge who guided me to the white 2013 Rolls-Royce Ghost and my driver who was waiting to take me to the Phoenician Resort to get my first in-person glimpse of the car that has many in the luxury world buzzing, the 2014 Rolls-Royce Wraith.

While I had read a great deal about the Wraith and seen many images and videos of it in action online, I was awe-struck by the bright blue and silver Wraith that was waiting for us on the lawn of a private terrace behind the resort’s condos. Photographs do not do this car justice.

It is long, low, powerful and imposing. From front to tail, the Wraith is every bit a Rolls. But it is also something more. The fastback design of this coupe is a clear departure from Rolls’ traditional three box styling. The coach, or as we in America call them, suicide doors attract immediate attention and elicit questions regarding both their visual appeal and functionality.

Let’s begin there.

The doors are both long and heavy – substantial might be a better term. However, they open effortlessly with just a pull on the handle and closing them requires only the touch of a button located right next to the A-pillar. Opening as they do, the Wraith is incredibly easy for the front seat occupants to get into the vehicle. They also open wide enough so as to make the rear seats as accessible as any other coupe. And while some consider this unique design to be a gimmick, at least it creates no compromises.

Once inside the Wraith is everything you’d expect from a car that stickers just north of $350,000 as equipped.

The leather and wood are impeccably chosen and flawlessly installed. The Canadel panelling presents an unvarnished, but smooth face to the interior. The open grain and angled cut create an expectation that the Wraith will present a more dynamic and spirited driving experience than the Ghost upon which it is based.

The leather surfaces are a study in consistency and comfort. According to our hosts, the leather is hand-selected from bulls raised in fenceless mountain pastures. Using only male cattle ensures there are no stretch marks in the grain and the open pasture means the hides are free from imperfections caused by barbed wire and other obstructions.

Multi-adjustable, heated and cooled, the seats provide more bolstering and support than those in a traditional Rolls-Royce, which tend to take their inspiration from a manor’s sitting room. Given that the Wraith is powered by a 624 hp Twin-Turbo V12 engine, the extra support is understandable and quite welcome when pushing the car through the twisty bits of the Arizona desert roads.

So how does it drive? Very well, thank you.

Make no mistake, though the Wraith is powerful, fast and built to be driven, it is no sports car. It is a GT in every sense of the term. Its power is effortless and suspension smooth without the floating you’d expect from a car this luxurious. It feels as though it could be driven for days at triple digit speeds without so much as spilling a drop of Earl Grey from your Royal Doulton.

The Wraith is heavy, nearly three tons when loaded with fuel, passengers and luggage. But it never feels sluggish. Part of that is the afore-mentioned engine. The other major contributing factor to its responsiveness is the satellite-aided transmission. Designed and engineered by a former BMW F1 engineer, it uses the car’s GPS system to read the road ahead and adjust the transmission predictively, based on your driving style and the road conditions. The result is a car that never seems to set a foot wrong, whether you’re entering a sweeping uphill left-hander at well over the posted speed limit or negotiating a lane change in rush hour traffic.

The Wraith is really a first. A Rolls-Royce designed more for the driver than the passengers. And after spending several hours behind the wheel, I’m convinced that if you want to get somewhere fast and comfortably, this is the best long-distance touring coupe ever built.

2014 Rolls-Royce Wraith
Base Price: $284,900
Price as Tested: $357,000
Major Options: Fixed glass roof, starlight headliner, Exterior Camera System, 1300W Audio System, 21-inch wheels, and much more.
Engine: 6.6L Twin-turbo V12 624 bhp, 590 lb. ft. of torque at 1500 RPM
Transmission: ZF 8-speed Satellite-Aided Transmission
Suspension: Double Wishbone Front, Multi-link Rear with four-cornered, air-suspension system and electronic variable damping

Louis Vuitton hires Nicolas Ghesquière as Artistic Director

Nicolas Ghesquière has hired Nicolas Ghesquière as the brand’s artistic director of women’s collections. Ghesquière will succeed Marc Jacobs, who helped bring LV to the forefront of the fashion industry during his 16-year reign. Ghesquière is expected to bring an edge to the brand’s collections, and raise the company’s upscale sales and reputation.

Ghesquière joins Louis Vuitton after an acclaimed 15-year run at Balenciaga. His first collection is due next March.

Ghesquière is from Loudun, France. He does not have any formal fashion training.