For the last word in seclusion, nothing beats a stay in a private villa. But frequently missing - even at some of the toniest properties - is the same level of serice one finds at a luxury hotel. Until now, that is. Overseas Connection has just inaugurated its Gold Line, a collection of lavish homes all over the world that are run like private resorts - with on-site concierges, fabulous chefs (as opposed to a housekeeper who also takes care of the baby and cooks on the side), and a professional household staff that‰s been trained to five-star standards. Among the top-line properties are beauties such as the early-nineteenth-century Villa Michaela manor house near Lucca, in Tuscany, and actress Jane Seymour‰s fourteenth-century castle near Bath. And then, of course, there are brand new villas, such as the Deborah Berke - designed Cerulean on the Caribbean island of Anguilla. Rates are expectedlty steep - averaging around $25,000 a week in high season for a seven-bedroom house - but then if you have a full house, that‰s about $1,800 per person per week, considerably less than you‰d spend at the Hotel du Cap. Call (888) 72-Villa or fax (516) 725-5825.
-Richard Alleman- |
