Vanity Fair’s Best Private Paradises
While getting to many enchanted hideaways requires an invitation, some equally beguiling ones are available for rent. Certain secluded spots can be entirely yours for a short time. Here are the top 10 most Vanity Fair private paradises on the planet—and for even more luxury rentals, with additional photos and details, buy Vanity Fair’s special edition Private Paradises, on newsstands now.
CUIXMALA, MEXICO
Still owned and run by the Goldsmith family, the 25,000-acre estate on Mexico’s Pacific Coast is available to rent, including the towering palace of La Loma, with zigzag steps leading to the vast swimming pool on the beach, where mariachi singers serenade guests in the evenings. (cuixmala.com. Tel: 866 516 2611. Price: from $29,860 to rent per night.)
BELUGA
Until last summer, a trip on Anouska Hempel’s revamped Turkish gulet (pronounced “goo-let”) was by invitation only—but now the boat, based in the Adriatic, is available for charter in Croatia and Montenegro. The experience is said to be close to that of staying in a luxury boutique hotel—like Hempel’s Blakes Hotel in London—that just happens to be on water. (dalmatiandestinations.com. Tel: 44 333 700 8007. Price: from $53,000 per week.)
LISMORE CASTLE, IRELAND
Owned by the Cavendish family since 1753, the fairy-tale castle of Lismore has had many illustrious guests. Fred Astaire visited when his sister Adele and her husband, Lord Charles Cavendish, lived at the castle. In August 1947, John F. Kennedy stayed in the Queen’s Room (his sister Kathleen “Kick” Kennedy had married the heir apparent, William Cavendish, who died during W.W. II). (lismorecastle.com. Tel: 353 58 54288. Price: on request.)
TALITHA
Launched in 1930, Talitha has Art Deco lines that make her stand out from the crowded sea of blingy white tubs. In her more than 80-year tenure, she frequently changed hands—and names—until 1988, when philanthropist and Anglophile Sir John Paul Getty II found her lying in the port in Lisbon with a broken engine crankshaft.
In 1993—ta-da!—she emerged as Talitha G, named after Getty’s second wife, the model Talitha Pol. (edmistoncompany.com. Tel: 377 93 30 54 44. Price: from $361,780 per week.)
LI GALLI, POSITANO, ITALY
Curiously, the island of Li Galli was owned in succession by Russian dance icons Leonide Massine and Rudolf Nureyev, the latter redecorating the island’s cottages in Moorish style with 19th-century tiles from Seville. Now available to rent, the island is private, but just a quick trip away from Positano, for a plate of sea urchins and a Negroni at Le Sirenuse, or a trip to Capri for some serious shopping. (bellinitravel.com. Tel: 44 20 7602 7602. Price: on request.)
POINT LOOKOUT, MUSTIQUE
Mustique, the private-island hideaway in the Grenadines dreamed up by Lord Glenconner more than 50 years ago, now has 74 villas of all shapes and sizes—but for ultimate peace and privacy, stay at Point Lookout. Built on the island’s northeastern tip, the house is surrounded by beaches, with a gentle breeze constantly blowing through the property—and not a paparazzo’s lens in sight. (mustique-island.com. Tel: 855 261 1316. Price: from $16,000 per week.)
TAGOMAGO, IBIZA
There’s a slick five-bedroom villa, a separate house for staff, and a Bang & Olufsen sound system ready and waiting for visitors to re-create the hedonism of those 80s Ibiza-club shindigs.
The villa’s pool at night. (deliciouslysortedibiza.com. Tel: 34 971 197 867. Price: from $265,000 per week.)
DUNTON HOT SPRINGS, COLORADO
With 13 cozy cabins that can accommodate up to 44 people, a library groaning with books, and spa and yoga cabins, this property is available to rent. Look out for Butch Cassidy’s name carved into the saloon’s original wooden bar, and don’t be alarmed if, while you’re doing downward dog in the yoga cabin, a bobcat slinks by. (duntonhotsprings.com. Tel: 970 882 4800. Price: from $19,000 per night.)
ZALÁNPATAK, TRANSYLVANIA, ROMANIA
With the help of his friend Count Kálnoky, Prince Charles has spent years restoring this property and furnishing it with local antiques. The gently rolling landscape is ideal for outdoor adventures. (transylvaniancastle.com. Tel: 40 742 202 586. Price: from $4,550 per week.)
LE GRAND BANC, FRANCE
What to do if you happen upon a tumbledown hamlet in the Luberon, abandoned since World War I? Well, if it’s the 1960s and you’re inventor Jeremy Fry, you decide to restore all 13 higgledy-piggledy houses and create a haven for artists, from Henri Cartier-Bresson to David Hockney.
The boho vibe continues to thrive under current owners Cosmo and Francis Fry; pets and smoking are actively encouraged. (petershamproperties.com. Tel: 44 1608 658627. Price: from $14,820 per week.)
Source: vanityfair.com