Five-star houses and the rare exceptions that outperform them — properties we have used, would use again, and in a few cases would build a whole trip around. Judged on whether they work for the way our clients travel, not on the lobby.
Cap RocatMallorca, Spain
A nineteenth-century coastal fortress cut into the cliffs above Cala Blava, and one of the few genuinely dramatic hotels in the Mediterranean that isn't loud about it. Rooms are carved into the rock. It sits close enough to Palma and the coastal gravel to be practical, and far enough out to feel removed. Ask for a suite on the seaward side.
SeaRiding baseGolf nearby
Gran Hotel Son NetMallorca, Spain
Inland among hills and gardens — warmer and more intimate than the coast, with unhurried off-road riding from the door and long lunches after. The island's quieter answer.
MallorcaInlandGardens
Castello di ReschioUmbria, Italy
A thousand-year-old castle on a 1,500-hectare estate near the Tuscan border, restored over decades by the family that owns it. Vaulted ceilings, reclaimed materials, Andalusian horses, and a bathhouse built into the old cellars around a saltwater pool. The estate itself is the riding — farm tracks and woodland paths straight from the door.
EstateRiding from the doorSpa
Mandarin Oriental, Lago di ComoBlevio, Italy
On the quieter eastern shore, which matters more than it sounds — you are away from the Cernobbio traffic and can walk uphill into the mountains directly from the property. Suites with private decks that are worth eating on. Boat access to everywhere is the real amenity.
LakeWalk-out hikingGolf nearby
AmaneraPlaya Grande, Dominican Republic
Built into the jungle on a cliff above a crescent beach, with the ocean in view from essentially everywhere. Bay-view casitas have their own pools and terraces built for spending a whole afternoon on. The golf course below it has ten holes on the Atlantic.
CaribbeanGolf on siteWinter
The Fife ArmsBraemar, Scotland
A Victorian hunting lodge in the Cairngorms, reimagined by art dealers, and the result is far stranger and better than that sounds. Real art on the walls, real Highland hospitality, and the Cairngorms outside for riding. A top-100 links is within reach.
HighlandsArtSporting
GleneaglesPerthshire, Scotland
The sporting estate at full scale — and countryside gravel that pairs with the golf instead of competing with it. Movement added to the week without becoming the focus of it.
ScotlandGolfEstate
Aman Rosa Alpina / FORESTISDolomites, Italy
Two very different readings of alpine luxury, both understated and both tied closely to what's outside the window. Rosa Alpina sits in the middle of Alta Badia and the riding; FORESTIS is higher, quieter, and more austere. Choose on how much you want to leave the property.
AlpineSeptemberWellness
Lefay Resort & Spa DolomitiMadonna di Campiglio, Italy
Contemporary alpine with Brenta Dolomite views and Michelin dining on site. Ask for the penthouse.
AlpineSpaMichelin
Hotel IcaroAlpe di Siusi, Italy
On the meadow itself, which is the entire point — the plateau is out the door at first light, before anyone else is on it. Family-run across three generations.
AlpineWalk-outFamily-run
Hotel SassongherCorvara, Italy
Traditional Alta Badia at the foot of its namesake peak — in the village, walkable to everything, carved wood and old stube rooms.
Alta BadiaVillageTraditional
Ritz-Carlton, Dove MountainTucson, Arizona
Not boutique, and that's fine — it does the two things a Sonoran trip needs extremely well. Private casitas that feel separate from the resort, and a Tom Fazio course on site. Desert singletrack is a short transfer in three directions.
DesertGolf on siteWinter
The Belden HouseLitchfield, Connecticut
An early nineteenth-century Federal house steps from the town green, with wide-plank floors and original fireplaces. The closest thing to a proper hotel in our own hills, and the base for a weekend that needs no flights at all.
NortheastWeekendClose to home
Winvian FarmMorris, Connecticut
Relais & Châteaux in the Litchfield Hills, and the place we send people who want the countryside without a plane. Riding at White Memorial is fifteen minutes away — long gravel roads and mellow doubletrack through protected land.
NortheastMicro-adventureFood
La RoqqaPorto Ercole, Italy
Above the harbour on the Argentario coast, and a different Italy from the hill towns — 1960s glamour, mid-century furniture, sea on three sides. The penthouse takes the whole top floor with four terraces.
CoastSummerGolf nearby
Bulgari Hotel RomaRome, Italy
Minutes from the landmarks, with a rooftop over the Mausoleum of Augustus. The Roman base when the riding is out of town.
CityRooftopBase
SextantioSanto Stefano di Sessanio, Italy
An albergo diffuso spread through a preserved medieval village — stone-walled rooms, candlelight, and standout regional cooking.
AbruzzoHistoricSingular
Casadonna RealeAbruzzo, Italy
Niko Romito's minimalist mountain retreat, with rooms above the kitchen that made it famous. A destination in its own right.
AbruzzoMichelinDestination
Airelles Château de la MessardièreSaint-Tropez, France
Above the town with space and privacy, in easy reach of the Riviera before the season lands.
RivieraApr–JunPrivacy
Inara CampAgafay Desert, Morocco
A luxury camp in the stone desert an hour from Marrakech — the natural lunch stop on an e-bike day out, or a night under more stars than seems reasonable.
DesertCampMarrakech
Edson HillStowe, Vermont
Rooms held purely for changing and cleaning up at either end of a riding day — the trick that makes a one-day Vermont trip feel unhurried.
VermontDay-trip baseNortheast
The Burklyn InnNortheast Kingdom, Vermont
The base for Kingdom Trails — a grand house minutes from the network that made the Northeast a destination.
VermontKingdom TrailsOvernight
Mayflower Inn & SpaWashington, Connecticut
The Auberge property twenty minutes from our own hills — the spa-and-lunch half of a Litchfield weekend.
NortheastAubergeSpa
Explora AtacamaSan Pedro de Atacama, Chile
Guided desert exploration done properly — routes, guides, and horses in-house, built for people who want the desert itself rather than a pool with a view of it.
AtacamaGuidedExpedition
Nayara Alto AtacamaSan Pedro de Atacama, Chile
Blends into the red rock outside town — quieter than Explora, with the same access to the salt flats and canyons.
AtacamaDesignQuiet
Rosewood Kauri CliffsNorthland, New Zealand
Six thousand coastal acres above the Pacific, a world top-40 course, and native forest walks down to pink sand.
New ZealandTop-40 golfCoastal
Banyan Tree AlUlaAlUla, Saudi Arabia
Tented villas set directly inside the canyon terrain — sandstone walls out the window, exploration-led days.
DesertCanyonTented
Desert Rock ResortSaudi Arabia
Rooms carved into the rock massif itself. The most dramatic address in the region, and it isn't close.
DesertCarvedSingular
EsperanzaLos Cabos, Mexico
Baja cliffs and private coves on the corridor, with Chileno Bay golf access and January weather that answers a Northeast winter.
BajaWinterGolf access
Las Ventanas al ParaísoLos Cabos, Mexico
Old-school Baja service at its most polished — butlers, fire pits on the sand, and the corridor's best tables.
BajaServiceWinter
