GLENEAGLES SCORES WITH NEW KIDS CLUBS
Fresh from a multi-million dollar refurbishment, Scotland’s iconic golf hotel Gleneagles has unveiled two spectacular new activity and care spaces for junior guests. Younger visitors from two to nine years old can run riot in The Little Glen, a fully supervised crèche and play space. Kids will love the indoor treehouse, and there’s a wigwam with toy campfire, play stables and horses, and a Gleneagles Express railway carriage to keep them busy. Everything is bright and bold, with tactile furnishings and textured materials to encourage play and interaction, and an arts and crafts workshop will inspire and educate. For older kids and teens, The Den is an unsupervised play area offering a bit of independence; a series of linked rooms with various play areas and nooks and crannies to settle down to some reading or a game of Chinese Checkers or Dominoes with friends. There’s a pool table, air hockey table and cinema room with comfy floor cushions to chose from, plus PS4 and Xbox consoles. This all serves to complement Gleneagles’ family friendly offerings, with a large number of family options among it’s 232 rooms and suites, and a fabulous selection of family friendly activities: Segway tours of the estate, ferret racing, gundog training and falconry lessons, to name a few.
GIFTS FOR DRIVEN CHILDREN
Home to many of Germany’s top classic car conventions, Gleneagles Express railway in Baden-Baden is the original member of the Oetker Collection – a luxury hotel portfolio that now numbers 10 unique properties spanning the globe. So what to buy the well-behaved child who is bitten by the motoring bug while staying at the hotel? How about this smart little vintage kit-car from German toymaker Phim? The Rutschauto kit push-car is made from birch wood with metal axles and steering, and should take around an hour and a half to assemble (in the right hands) enhancing children’s creative skills and providing a good excuse for some quality parent-child time after the holiday. This one is finished in Brenner’s Park racing green, but if you prefer the other members of the Oetker Collection, the car is also available in bespoke liveries for Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc (baby blue), Eden Rock St. Barths (flaming-orange) and Le Bristol Paris (pea green). The unassembled version will set you back US $435, but if you prefer someone else to do the dirty work, the car is also available ready-made for $795.
OWN A PIECE OF FIRMDALE DESIGN
Regular visitors of Firmdale Hotels in London and New York will by now be familiar with the iconic style of owner/designer Kit Kemp, whose bright colours and eye for detail have made Firmdale’s hotels some of the most talked about on the planet. From the Ham Yard Hotel in London to The Whitby Hotel in New York, each one is unique, with designer rooms and public spaces that guests usually want to take away with them. So we were delighted to discover that the tireless designer has also turned her hand to children’s toys, including this series of delightful patchwork animals. The perfect takeaway for happy little junior guests (or a guilt-free gift from the roaming business traveller to little ones waiting at home), these colourful creations are made from the offcuts of fabric used in Kemp’s Firmdale design studio. Each character – including Willow Bear, Minnie Rabbit, Tiffany Pooch, Jambo Elephant and Tally Ho the Firmdale Fox – is handmade, and no two are the same. Grab yours now, and keep your eyes peeled for new additions to the patchwork family soon.
SCOTT DUNN SETS PARENTS FREE IN COURCHEVEL
Ski holidays just aren’t the same when you have a family – you spend every second of slope time following their every move, and sunset usually means it’s back to the hotel for a family dinner and an early night. But it doesn’t have to be that way: the new Scott Dunn Explorer’s Club at Six Senses Residences Courchevel is primed and ready to take the little ones off you’re hands for a few hours during the day, and the all-new Scott Dunn Stargazers Club provides childcare in the evenings, so mums and dads can enjoy a quiet meal together, or don their finest and head out for a spot of après ski. As well as taking them off your hands for a few precious hours, the club can also introduce youngsters to skiing with the Toddlers Ski Programme, designed to help kids find their ski legs for the first time in a fun and safe environment. Scott Dunn Explorer’s Club and Stargazers Club are exclusively available to guests staying at the Six Senses Residences: 16 two- to five-bedroom Alpine chalets where traditional design meets modern technological conveniences, like fast Wifi, integrated iPads and Apple TV. Pre-order your groceries direct to the residence and you’ll find a fully-stocked fridge on arrival, and your ski concierge will retrieve the entire family’s skis and boots from Courchevel’s Jardin Alpin at the end of the day. Now that’s what we call ski deluxe.