Welcome to the CountryClubuk travel desk, where hotels, private villas, cruises, honeymoon and sporting destinations are specially selected for Club Members by our team of travel journalists and specialist negotiators. We are constantly appraising the world's leading destinations, arranging preferential Club rates and VIP benefits, and publishing feature articles on our hand-picked destinations. These inspire and inform our Members, giving unique insight into the world of travel, whether luxurious five-star resorts, hidden gems or specialist sporting trips. For a taste of what is available to you as a Member, please read on . . . then call the Member Services team on 020 7399 2960 . . . and prepare to be transported!

The romance of Marrakech—and the five-star Les Deux Tours

Three hours’ travel by car from London will take you to Wigan, Wincanton or Skegness; worthy towns no doubt, full of blameless citizenry, but hardly the stuff of dreams. Three hours by air from London will transport you to magical Morocco . . . to the sights, sounds and scents of North Africa, to the romance of Marrakech—and the serenity of the five-star retreat that is Les Deux Tours.

This is no upmarket chain hotel, but something special: an oasis in the lush Palmeraie outside teeming Marrakech, surrounded by pools and palm groves. With its vaulted ceilings, beimat tiles, tinkling fountains, a Turkish bath and spa, this is the ideal contrast to the bustling city. Serene, sedate, spacious, it is a stylish collection of traditional, tartari-ceilinged villas set in lovely gardens filled with the song of birds and crickets. From here you can visit the souk or explore the desert. Play golf. Or relax with a book and a glass of mint tea, or something stronger—the Moroccans are reassuringly unfundamentalist about that sort of thing. The food is fresh and delicious, whether French or the local tagine, cooked by a Michelin-starred chef. The scene at Les Deux Tours is Moroccan in concept, with superb five-star comfort and service, and we recommend it highly.

As for Marrakech, it is a ‘must’ for any visitor to this warm and welcoming land, famed for its mosques and minarets but perhaps above all for its market, the souk, which covers several acres of the old city. There you can buy silks and satins, baubles, bangles and beads, carpets, ‘sandalwood, cedarwood and sweet white wine’. You can also, if you wish, buy repro Rolexes, fearsome medicinal potions that would have Macbeth’s witches green with envy, or an instantly fitted set of false teeth, with which you may feast on couscous while you watch whirling dervishes dance in the dark night dust.

Les Deux Tours makes the perfect break from a cold, dark England, and your exclusive Club rates beat all others: for you, as a Member, these start at £95 per night for two including breakfast, which you can enjoy out of doors in a warm and leisurely way. As the rains roll over England, in Morocco the magnolia blooms. For availability and to book, call Member Services on 020 7399 2960 or click here.

la sultana OUALIDIA
Parc à huitres N°3, Bled Gaïlla, Oualidia.
Five-star Deluxe.

Blissful days in a private villa in Tobago

Columbus named it ‘Bellaforma’ in 1498. Ian Fleming wrote his James Bond novels there in the 1950s, a bottle of Bollinger on ice nearby. Close your eyes and imagine what they saw, and felt: a near-perfect tropical isle, warm starlit nights and sun-bleached days, a glistening white curve of sand, intense blues of sea and sky, swaying palm trees and virgin forests, tropical flowers and fruits filling the air with perfume, bright-coloured birds and butterflies, and a welcome from a friendly rural people. The island is Tobago.

These days, as in the past, people come here to experience the real Caribbean. For centuries it has been one of the world’s most natural, beautiful, peaceful places. It is the last of the Caribbean’s unspoilt islands —similar in size to Barbados yet with 20% of its population and 5% of its visitors. At 26 miles long, seven miles wide, it is a paradise in miniature, a feast for the eyes and senses: picturesque, bumpy roads wind around the coast past beautiful bays, then climb across the mountains through creaking bamboo and dense rainforest before plunging into panoramic vistas on the other side. On one side, the wave-lashing Atlantic Ocean; on the other, the calm Caribbean Sea. Our Members stay here in a private villa for a mere £500 plus VAT per week for four: a grand total of £21 per night. Click here for details, availability, and to book, or call Member Services on 020 7399 2960.

Saint James Paris: an historic and exclusive club

The Saint James Club in Paris extends to our Members the benefits of private membership at its historically important château in the heart of Paris. The owners are a venerable old Bordeaux family; accordingly, you will find a venue and ambience which could hardly be more impressive. This superb chateau behind an almost regal gated entrance, surrounding its guests in French antiquities, flamboyant yet tasteful style, and silk furnishings, leaves you in no doubt that you are in one of the world’s most culturally stimulating cities. Far better, we think, to be ensconced in one of France’s historic monuments as a VIP guest with special privileges, than to be on the outside, looking in.

The St James is part of French history. It was built in 1892 as the Nation's memorial to Adolphe Thiers, President of the French Republic, which accounts for the opulence of its design, its large, secluded walled gardens, and its prime location near the Arc de Triomphe, between Avenue Foch and Avenue Victor Hugo. Thiers was a politician and historian of the first order. He played a decisive part in the July Revolution, and in 1871 succeeded in effecting peace for France with Germany, after which he was elected President. Thiers never lived in the chateau, but France’s finest students of politics and history were here in luxurious splendour as part of the Thiers Foundation. Later, as befitted its atmosphere of a large chateau within a private estate, it became a private club and hotel.

Membership to the Saint James is by invitation. Our Members enjoy the benefits of reciprocal membership, which includes the best available rate for rooms and suites, complimentary breakfast, a VIP welcome, early check-in, late check-out, and a complimentary room upgrade. As a CountryClubuk Member, with prior appointment you can also dine in the restaurant and use the library bar without being a resident. For availability and to book, call Member Services on 020 7399 2960 or click here.

Milos is a blissful hidden gem in the Greek islands, visited mostly by in-the-know Greeks themselves. They go there for its stunning beaches, of which there are more than 50, and to enjoy good authentic Greek restaurants and hotels with style and panache. The island is also a natural wonder of the world.

Along the north coast of Milos the sea has eroded long, narrow channels between intricately sculpted white rocks, producing the beaches of Sarakiniko, Kapros and, more dramatically, the extraordinary sea caves of Papafragas, where you can sunbathe on a tiny strip of beach and swim in a crystal clear fjord almost enclosed by sheer white cliffs. It is, frankly, amazing.

And the Greeks, though friendly and hospitable to strangers, keep it pretty much to themselves. A working island which profits from the mining of its extraordinary geology, Milos is perfect for sunshine, beautiful scenery, crystal clear sea bathing, good, authentic Greek restaurants and to get away from it all.

Our chosen resort is the stylish, world-class Melian Hotel and Spa, which in itself is a luxurious hidden gem. Built in 2008, set right on the edge of the coast in a small fishing area of the island within easy reach of beautiful beaches, the views are stunning. From the rooms and their private balconies you can watch sunset and moonrise at the same time, the moonlight on the sea turning the whole vista into a magical scene.

The Melian is privately owned, romantic and luxurious. It combines the traditional character and architecture of the Cyclades with modern amenities: spa, Jacuzzi, wifi etc. It closes each year from October 15 until May, yet October in Milos is still a lovely time of year: the current weather forecast is for sunny days and daytime temperatures of 25°C (77°F). So if you would like a last-minute, six-night break before then, it will cost a mere £47 a night for two (RR £111). Call us on 020 7399 2960 or click here.

Madeira is warm and beautiful all year round, with a sub-tropical climate and scenery akin to the Himalayan foothills. Four hundred miles off the coast of North Africa, this Portuguese island has a fabulous coastline, charming villages, a bustling capital city and a genuinely old-fashioned character. Many people consider that Madeira also has the perfect climate. In winter the temperature is a comfortable 15 to 20°C, perfect for relaxing, and Quinta das Vistas Palace Gardens is the place in which to do so.

Picture the scene: high on the slopes above Funchal, a colonial mansion standing in acres of tropical gardens bursting with flowers. This is what is meant by a Quinta, and in Madeira the Quintas are special—luxurious examples of a time gone by, when the well-heeled built grand dwellings in the hills and spent their days cultivating vast botanical landscapes.

Today the Quintas are special hotels, renowned for the quality of food, luxurious accommodation and tranquil, tropical settings. Quinta das Vistas Palace Gardens is one of our Members' favourites, with panoramic views over mountains, sea and Funchal only a 20-minute walk from the city. Our Members receive preferential rates and VIP treatment: please call Member Services on 020 7399 2960 or click here.

Lawrence's Hotel, Sintra: Lord Byron's retreat

The Portuguese and Moorish Royal families made Sintra their summer retreat with good reason. While the capital, Lisbon, lies languid in the summer sun, not far away in the hills of Sintra the royals were enjoying the shady cobbled lanes and cool woodlands, castles and palaces and breathtaking scenery—then taking a tram to the lovely sandy beach at Praia das Maçãs. And so did Lord Byron, the poet.

Sintra is a place for strolling: from the Pena Palace, above the Moorish Castle, take a walk through the woods to São Pedro, to see the crafts and local produce. At the National Palace, take the leafy lane to the Hotel Palácio de Seteais for afternoon tea or a sundowner. For a day by the sea, take a car, bus or the centenary trolley to the beach: Sintra is about six miles from one of the best beaches in Portugal, the Adraga.

Our Members' favourite place to stay is the five-star Lawrence's Hotel, the oldest hotel in the Iberian peninsula and the second oldest hotel in the world. This was where Lord Byron stayed and wrote, inspiring his travel epic Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage (‘Lo! Cintra’s glorious Eden intervenes, in variegated maze of mount and glen.’). Beautifully restored, Lawrence's is a country manor house with all the touches one expects, from its library to its airy bedrooms and the elegant restaurant with French windows overlooking the garden, where they serve delicious local and international favourites, superb seafood, and homemade bread and cakes. The bar is open until late and serves speciality wines and aperitifs—finest port being just one of the highlights. Our Members receive preferential rates and VIP treatment: for details and availability please call Member Services on 020 7399 2960 or click here.

Garonga Safari Camp, Limpopo, South Africa

You are relaxing, gin-and-tonic in hand, on the verandah of a tree-house, high above the South African bush. Above you is the velvety night sky, the glittering stars seemingly close enough to touch. Below lies a watering hole where the animals will, sooner or later, come to drink: a lion, perhaps, or a cheetah, and numberless small creatures of the night. Alone with Nature, but safe in your tree-home, your heightened senses pick up every sight, sound and smell—tree frogs croaking in the branches, warthogs foraging in the scrub, the cry of a jackal. This is Garonga, the stuff of adventure stories, and the most intimate safari experience you could wish for.

Meaning ‘Big Tusked One’, Garonga stands on the Makhutswi River in the Limpopo Province. It is the inspiration of the Hon Bernardo (Bernie) Smith, retired from the British Army and, as it happens, a CountryClubuk member. His aim at Garonga? A ‘safari for the soul’, restful, healing, and restorative. Think of reclining in a hammock while watching impala, or tip-toeing down sandy tracks in search of elephants, or enjoying a candlelit massage in the open-air sala, or taking a dip in the saltwater pool—it is as much about regeneration as about seeing the ‘Big Five’. Garonga, voted one of the 'Top 10 All-Inclusive Resorts In The World' by Trip Advisor, is our Safari Club. Members are VIP guests and enjoy preferential rates. For further details, please click here or call Member Services on 020 7399 2960.