Nothing says ‘luxury travel’ like a private helicopter (except possibly a Lear jet but we’ll get to that another time). For the super rich and time poor, helicopters are the new taxis. So hop a chopper and descend in style onto the roof of your favourite five star city bolt-hole. Or land on the private polo field of your stately home of choice – just don’t scare the ponies. Here are some of my favourite ‘pads (as in heli).
There are plenty of aristocratic piles in Britain and Ireland where you can land your helicopter on manicured lawns; since (now-divorced) Madonna and Guy Richie got married at luxury Skibo Castle, celebrities aplenty have done just that on Skibo’s grounds. However, for an aristocratic landing you can’t beat Ashford Castle in Ireland. The castle dates from 1228, long before machines had wings, but from the air the helipad and the castle’s round lake create a pattern of perfect symmetry.
For some reason Sao Paulo is helipad central – maybe the traffic really is worse than Los Angeles. There is a danger of a jam in the air too as rich South Americans take to the sky like so many mosquitoes. In the centre of the upmarket Jardins district (think stores such as Versace, Armani, Mont Blanc, Louis Vuitton, Hermes), is The Emiliano hotel. This tall glass tower is as slim as a rose vase and above the rooftop gym you’ll find one of the city’s highest helipads.
The helipad of the Burj Al Arab juts out dramatically from near the top of the hotel as if someone has thrown a giant Frisbee into the side of the building. Roger Federer and Andre Agassi played tennis on this pad and Tiger Woods tee’d off there (though nobody reported whose skull 321 metres below his ball may have become embedded in). So the tamest thing you can probably do is hop a helicopter from Dubai’s international airport and fly here. It is worth doing though because the views of Dubai’s ever changing skyline are spectacular. And most spectacular of all is the view of the sail-like Burj itself floating in the haze as you fly towards it.
The tallest hotel in the world currently may be in Hong Kong (The Ritz Carlton) and I admit the views are spectacular but it doesn’t have a helipad. Word is its too high – go figure. The helipad honour in HK goes to (drum roll please) The Peninsula. Just under the helipad, the China Clipper departure lounge oozes old time glamour. The name dates from the time the clipper flying boats used to depart from HK Harbour but now the luxurious hotel runs an aerial-limo service in conjunction with Heliservices Hong Kong.
Other helipads of note include the one atop the W Hotel in downtown Atlanta for use by the owners of the 74 private residences housed in the building. There is also talk of introducing a ‘W’ branded helicopter. We always knew “W” stood for “whirlybird’. Another favourite is the Ciragan Palace Kempinski, Istanbul which has a helipad on its roof in marked contrast to its traditional façade. Transfers are available for guest staying in its prestigious Palace Suites.
Last but certainly not least I’m also looking forward to Shangri-La’s new hotel in Doha, scheduled for 2012, which will have a helipad balancing at the top of its awesomely space-age silver-pronged design, rising like the Jetsons’ mansion out of the middle of the shopping and entertainment district.
www.ashford.ie
www.emiliano.com.br