In 2025, luxury could be as much about what you forgo as what you have. Our new regular travel column appears in the upcoming February issue out on January 31.
Last November, I had a first look at the new Cheval Blanc resort in the Seychelles. Cheval Blanc is owned by LVMH – home of Dior and Celine, Hublot and Tiffany. Like those brands, this one aims to be category-leading, starting with the designation: they are maisons, not hotels, if you please.
The white-on-white villas are enormous, replete with low-slung furniture and touch-me textiles; each has a 12-metre private pool. The five restaurants – among them a Japanese, an Italian and a temple of haute gastronomie – outdo each other in bids to impress. The spa (branded Guerlain, another LVMH stablemate) is cleverly tucked in among the 65-million-year-old granite of Anse Intendance bay.
