Monthly Archives: December 2010

 A hotel in the United Arab Emirates has unveiled what it says is the world’s most expensive Christmas tree.

The 13-meter artificial tree at Abu Dhabi’s Emirates Palace hotel includes diamonds, pearls and sapphires — 181 precious stones in all. Most of the stones are in necklaces and earrings provided by a local jeweler.

Standing 43 feet high, the tree – itself worth $10,000 – has necklaces, bracelets and watches draped over its branches among traditional baubles and lights. The total value of the tree is $11m.

Hotel managers unveiled the pricey tree this week, saying they hope to get it recognized in the Guinness Book of World Records.

The large tree in the hotel’s lobby also includes bows, ball-shaped ornaments, lights and other traditional Christmas tree decorations.

  

by Pure

One of the world’s premier jewelers, Tiffany & Co bring us a spectacular new ad campaign just in time for the holiday season. They’ve brought together socialites, actors and models like Inés Sastre, Doutzen Kroes, Neal Bledsoe and Patrick Wilson to create a Christmas classic directed by Peter Lindbergh who captures them in a celebration mood…

Tiffany & Co creates the traditional idea of giving jewelry for Christmas, with a family values theme and New York in the background. Nothing says Christmas like a Tiffany’s egg blue bag and box! Have a wonderful holiday season…

  video bonus: Tiffany & co – Holiday 2010

  Pictures of the Tiffany & Co Holiday 2010 ad campaign courtesy of Tiffany & Co

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by Relaxnews in Hotels & Resorts at LUXUO

  

Welcome to Bella Coola Heli Sports. Our mandate has always been, and still is, to create a product designed by skiers and snowboarders for fellow skiers and snowboarders. Its all about enjoying powder snow with your best friends in the most stunning terrain imaginable.

We operate in a transition zone from a wetter pacific climate to a drier interior climate. This results in ample and reliable snow falls and creates the ideal conditions in which to ski varied and interesting terrain. Combined with our strict limits on group sizes and our small and private helicopter formats (the ultimate high speed lifts), we have a level of operational flexibility that guarantees the most rewarding ski experience possible.

In addition, Bella Coola Heli Sports is arguably the easiest destination heli skiing operation to fly to. Less travel of course equals more time to play, and with over 10,700 sq/km (4,300 sq/m) of jaw-dropping terrain, there is a vast area to explore. From scenic fjords, all the way to the highest peak in British Columbia, the permit area is as big as the entire Swiss Alps. The difference? there are no people, no lift lines, and no tracks.

The easy part is choosing Bella Coola Heli Sports, the hard part is deciding which one of our three operation you will want to visit first. You could spoil yourself with our most exclusive helicopter skiing holiday at Tweedsmuir Park Lodge, explore unchartered terrain and claim first descents in the Pantheon Heli Ski Zone, or max your vert and fun with our Big Mountain Heli Skiing option. Then visit us again when the snow melts for genuine West-Coast wilderness Summer Adventures.

Leave your cell phones and busy life at home. Join us for the best holiday experience on the planet, heli skiing and boarding in beautiful Bella Coola, British Columbia, Canada!  

  

By Peter Finocchiaro at LuxuryDaily

The New York-based lifestyle brand beat out runner-up Louis Vuitton and third-place finisher Burberry for the top honor. The apparel-to-furnishings group earned the accolade on the strength of an unparalleled multichannel strategy that blazed new trails in the world of interactive marketing while continuing its rich and distinct brand story in print and beyond – all leading to double-digit growth in 2010.

 “Creating a luxury brand is one thing, but maintaining its marketing aura across good times and bad, traditional media and new, takes genius and Ralph Lauren,” said Mickey Alam Khan, editor in chief of Luxury Daily, New York. “Ralph Lauren’s marketing has become a byword for excellence with consistent creative messaging and effective call to action in an era where luxury brands struggle to retain their mystique,” he said. “Marketing well done is all about stoking desire from turn of page, click of mouse, tap of phone or opening of mail. “The pony gets it in a gallop.”Ralph Lauren was named 2009 Mobile Marketer of the Year, itself the most prestigious honor in mobile marketing (see story).

a must see video : The Official Ralph Lauren 4D Experience – New York

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by Steven Shaw at AskMen.UK

Once again, the calendar has moved inexorably around to New Year, a celebration renowned throughout the world as an excuse for a great big party. At least, that’s what tradition dictates. However, for many, New Year’s Eve turns into a bit of a non-event, as people are too tired from partying in the buildup to Christmas. As such, people often find themselves stuck watching rubbish TV and contemplating the fact that, once again, New Year’s Eve has been a bit of a let-down.

Help is at hand; AskMen has scoured the globe to find 10 of the biggest and best New Year’s parties from around the world. These are the places that really know how to throw a party, where big events attract multitudes seeking a truly memorable way to see in the new year. If you want to experience a New Year’s Eve unlike any of those you have before, get yourself on a plane, train, boat, car, bicycle, unicycle, camel — heck, whatever it takes to get to one of these shindigs. Trust us; it will be well worth it. 

No.1 Copacabana Beach, Rio de Janeiro

As something memorable, a New Year’s Eve beach party in Brazil is hard to beat. Beautiful women, fireworks, a carnival atmosphere, an incredible setting on the most famous beach in the world, and you have all the ingredients you need to have the most incredible New Year’s experience of your life. Known locally as “Reveillon,” the entire beach turns into an all-day party, with several musical stages, dancing, and everyone dressed in white (it’s tradition). Over two million people turn up along the four kilometres of sand, making this the ultimate New Year’s party, which you simply mustn’t miss.

bonus video : New Years Eve 2009-2010 Fireworks, Copacabana Beach, Rio de Janeiro

No.2 Times Square, New York City

Of course, this is the most famous New Year’s Eve event in the world. The big ball descending in Times Square is watched by a million people in the flesh, and a billion more around the world. Star-studded musical performances, pyrotechnics and myriad bars and clubs in close proximity make this as big a party as they come. It is so firmly etched into popular culture that many people feel it is something which has to be experienced at least once in your life. Times Square is always throbbing with energy, and on New Year’s Eve it could power the entire Eastern seaboard.

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by Lawrence Ulrich at TheNewYorkTimes

I was flying down a steep hillside when I glanced at the instruments and realized what I had achieved: a new personal best in a Porsche. But this wasn’t the usual Porsche milestone, of some heroic track speed. Instead, I’d reached a more nerdy goal, recording a 30 miles per gallon highway average. What’s more, that notable mileage was reached by a charging-rhino S.U.V., the Cayenne, that usually ranks among the most greedily consumptive Porsches. Not so, however, with the new Cayenne S Hybrid.

Click here to view TheNewYorkTimes Slide Show

In redesigning its Cayenne lineup for 2011, Porsche has tackled seemingly every shortcoming of an S.U.V. that mortified many of the company’s loyalists when it arrived in 2001. As with many S.U.V.’s born in that era of hyper-masculine S.U.V.’s, the Porsche was burdened with macho off-road hardware that few owners used. With pavement-focused crossovers in their infancy, Porsche was also among companies that seemed unsure of what one was supposed to look like, and seemed unable to abandon truckish design tropes. The first Cayenne was also stingy on luxury, with a flat buckboard of a back seat that seemed at odds with prices that could top $100,000.

Yet between its class-busting performance, and the Porsche crest on the hood, the Cayenne became Porsche’s best-selling model around the world and a profit generator that helped to sustain the company.

bonus video :

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