Greece is probably my favorite place in the world to visit in summer. There’s something about the climate, the views, and the food, which make it one-of-a-kind. Of course I’m not alone in feeling that way, as tourism to Greece has exploded in recent years. At this point I have almost no interest in traveling…
Continue reading: Now Open: One&Only Kea Island, Greece
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
Unrealized Aman, just like the O&O resort on the Desaru coast, now completed by the Apartheid-profiteering Kerzner family.
Those great bones and design come from Aman’s architect, John Heah, who also designed Amanera.
Two thousand Euros a night?!? Really? Maybe I looked at the wrong blog but the one I've been reading for the last 15 years was all about affordable luxury, attainable through points and miles because normal humans can't remotely afford anything like this. I'm trying to figure if your target has changed so vastly that two grand a night is just fine or I'm going nuts. I understand that you're now (with some justification) rich but I really think you're forgetting your origins here, and your base.
The thing is that a lot of Americans (who make up the majority of readers on this blog) can only take a few days off work every year.
With US salaries being a bit higher and taxes being a bit lower than most of other developed countries, it's not hard to guess that quite a few people in management/tech/finance jobs there can afford e.g. €20k per annum on travel.
If one works in a high pressure job, wants to take a week to switch off, and will not be doing any other holidays in the year, you can see how they might view these objectively ridiculous rates (this isn't Santorini - land on Kea isn't worth much at all) as acceptable/'justifiable'.
These prohibitively expensive hotels have been featured more frequently in the past 5 years or so, but Ben has reviewed many Aman properties––dating back to 2012. I’d imagine with the saturation of miles & points on TikTok and IG, that base has moved on and replaced with the “wealthy” luxury traveler.
The creep toward unattainable properties has been gradual and you're right that it has become increasingly pronounced over the last few years. That repositioning might annoy me but so what, except for one thing: Ben keeps selling credit cards. If someone can afford to visit a cheap country like Greece and fork out two grand a night for a room, chances are that they don't give a s#!t whether they got 10 Chase points per dollar by booking through a certain channel. Ben sells plastic predicated on the value of points and miles and has always defended himself against people who ask why he never reviews coach class when that's what most people fly all the time by saying that he shows how normal people can use miles and points on premium products. Now he's pushing things that his own self-claimed constituency just can't afford. If he wants to change from miles & points to rich adventure blogging, that's fine. Just pick one of the contradictory stances.