June by Caroline Cox

As the summer season approaches and we dream about our forthcoming hols, my newsletter this month tackles the subject of vacations in foreign climes. As Marlene Dietrich put it, ‘To lose your prejudices, you must travel’ and movie stars knew how to travel in style. Ava Gardner used to run off to Madrid at the drop of a matador’s hat; Brigitte Bardot was never out of her gingham bikini in St Tropez and Liz Taylor had to be prized from Portofino to get on set. OK, so they had oodles of cash to make their travel plans come true but you can give the impression that you too are a glamorous gal to be reckoned with!

1. You may not have the money to rent a room in the most sumptuous of surroundings but you can always order coffee! The trick is to find out what’s available to non-residents – most fancy hotels have a bar or a coffee shop where you can pose and have your photo taken. Book a cheap flight and a motel room then swan into the swankier parts of town looking adorable. At the Copacabana Palace Hotel in Rio, the rooms may be out of bounds to most of us but sipping a caiprinha in the Piano bar isn’t. (copacabanapalace.com.br).
2. Claridge’s of London is right in the heart of Mayfair, two minutes from all the chi-chi boutiques in Bond Street and has its own Champagne Bar with a discreet entrance on Davies Street. Here you can luxuriate in its Art Deco interior over a bottle of house bubbly – as long as you’re dressed up and looking adorable. If you see photographers outside the front door (which is a common occurrence), stick around, you don’t know who you might spot being papped! (claridges.co.uk)
3. Many swish hotels have a sister hotel which is cheaper but you can still use many of the facilities of the more expensive one. This goes for the Hotel Spendido in Portofino, for instance, where Liz Taylor and Richard Burton used to hang out. The sister hotel, the Splendido Mare (hotelsplendido.com) is not only cheaper, but much less scarily snooty.
4. And finally, the greatest travel tip of all comes from Ernest Hemingway: ‘Never go on trips with anyone you do not love.’