Christmas party time

At times like this I realize how lucky I am. Select Collection going from good to even better thanks to my loyal clients and staff. And a chance to celebrate Christmas with my team from all five offices in the Nordic area and the UK.

Enjoying champagne at our new offices at Grev Turegatan 8 in Stockholm, I was given a wonderful Christmas present from all my staff - 12 bottles of different wines with a fantasy label Casa Romana (our villa in Marbella). And a light hearted description of the wine origins, all a creation of our product and marketing department. 

Casa Romana by Selected Collection - 2014 - Nordic Fusion Wine according to the fantasy label

Arrived from London, Jennifer and Collette, outside our offices in Grev Turegatan.

Then we moved on to Grossmanns restaurant for a degustation meal with 5 delicious courses and nice wines  - to match the quality of the company we enjoyed.

Here we see the happy faces of our Select Collection team at Grossmanns on Saturday...

Ada (Norway) and Lars (Sweden)

With Linda (Sweden)

With Ilse (Finland)

With Dag-Åge (Norway)

Tommy and Emma (Sweden)

Sara (Sweden) and Arja (Finland)

Taina (Finland) and Gillian (Sweden)

Louise (Sweden) and Dag-Åge (Norway)

From left Lisa (Sweden), Astrid (Norway), Ulrika (Sweden), Erland (Norway), Birgit (Finland) and Linda (Sweden)

A long table with (from left) Marita (Finland), Collette (UK), Fredrik (Sweden), Petra (Stavanger Norway), Tommy (Sweden), Emma (Sweden), Sara (Sweden), Arja (Finland), Louise (Sweden), Dag-Åge (Oslo Norway), Cilla (Sweden), and Mariana (Sweden). 

From left Ann (Sweden), Neil (Sweden), Therese (Norway), Jennifer (UK), Hanna (Sweden)

One of the round tables with staff from Sweden -  in the foreground Susanne and Pernilla, and in the background  Max catching the light, next to Tharinda and Dew 

With Dew - one of the wonderful spa therapists at our boutique Select Collection Spa adjoining our offices in Grev Turegatan

With Tharinda, another one of our wonderful spa therapists

Afterwards most of us went on to Coba, Stockholm's nicest Mexican bar and restaurant

Lively decor at Coba

My son Jonatan - manager of Coba

Tacos at Coba

And this was the menu at Grossmanns:
Scallops with cauliflower purée, hazelnuts and brown butter
Lobster soup
Garnished cod
Braised ox muzzle with truffle purée
Tarte Tatin with green cardamom icecream and Calvados

On a long white beach

I arrived by speedboat at St Regis Mauritius with my wonderful friends and Board members Lena and Christian. St Regis is an impressive resort with a beautiful setting near Le Morne Mountain. Long white beach, beautiful colonial style buildings and marvellous views throughout, all wrapped in serenity...  

St Regis - miles of beach for relaxation and activity

The tranquil view of the lagoon from my lovely accommodation

As a new resort St Regis has done well in building up service to run warmly and smoothly. A lot of the credit goes to the GM and the St Regis team.

My old friend Davina Seeboo - Director of Sales St Regis

Among all the luxurious accommodations, the resort includes one remarkable villa with four suites.

The villa pool and its amazing view

Perched right on the beach

One of the superb villa bedrooms

The villa lounge - lifestyle come true

And here is the Grand Suite...

The elegant Grand Suite bathroom

We enjoyed the dining at a choice of restaurants. Simply India is getting known for its authentic Indian cuisine by Michelin star Indian celebrity chef, Atul Kochhar.

The Boathouse Grill is an elegant gourmet experience by the beach. The Floating Market is surrounded by water and here you eat South East Asian.

The chef at The Floating Market

Service in the villa

More scenes of this lovely hotel...

Beautiful fountains

The Boathouse Restaurant

Lush setting

View from the villa at sunset

Private high tech gym at the villa

And of course the details count...

St. Regis water

Lovely company - Christian and Lena

Under the palms again

Back in Mauritius, which we have been promoting among our elite clients for 20 years. It is a wonderful destination, all about sandy beaches, turquoise water and palms waving in the breeze as well as delicious fusion food and a wide range of sporting activities.

My long time favourite Royal Palm is as distinguished as ever. Lying in the sheltered north west, this elegant resort usually has calm water wonderful for swimming and all sorts of watersports. 

The gorgeous beach at Royal Palm

And for me tennis!

I love tennis. There are good tennis courts next to the Spa, and  Royal Palm has two very skilled tennis coaches.

 

Tennis coach Tiga is very good

Rooms! I was impressed with the renovations. There are now fewer rooms and all have a seaview.  They feel lighter and more open – lovely!

New image from Beachcomber

View from my room

 

Lunch under the palms - food to remember

Breakfast with a radiant view

Nice to watch the morning activties from the breakfast restaurant

Morning view

Surprise - villa birthday dining for my new friend Rosanna

Excellent food...

Lovely lunch with the GM Jacques Silvant - excellent food at the Beach Restaurant  

 

Meeting up with friends - in the middle Stephane Sogliuzzo Deputy General Manager

Stephane

Healthy lunch

Haven't seen my friend Mika for a long time so I was thrilled to see her at Royal Palm.

Only 10 min walk along the beach you are in Grand Baie with shops and local restaurants.  

Here with Mika having a true local lunch of grilled fish at a shack

The Beach Shack

Back at Royal Palm...

Sophisticated atmosphere

Now my next mission - heading off to St Regis in the south….

 

1.5 hours by boat