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BrownTravels
BrownTravels

Amara Okafor

Destinations Editor

Amara shapes the Journal's destination guides, mapping the neighbourhoods, seasons and rhythms that determine where a stay truly belongs. Her editorial beat spans city breaks, island escapes and everything in between.

Stories by Amara Okafor

The Yasaka pagoda rising above a stone lane in Kyoto's Higashiyama district at dusk

Destination Guides

Kyoto's Maple Season: How to See the Old Capital at Its Most Beautiful

For a few weeks each year, Kyoto's temple gardens turn crimson and gold. When the colour peaks, where to find it, and where to stay so the city's most beautiful season feels like your own.

4 min read

A tiled Moroccan riad courtyard with arches, lanterns and filtered light

Destination Guides

Marrakech: A Luxury Traveller's Guide to the Red City

Riads behind unmarked doors, gardens that changed design history and the Atlas rising beyond the palms — how to experience Marrakech at its most refined.

8 min read

The Seine and the bridges of Paris under a soft golden sky

Inspiration

The Amber Weeks: Why Autumn Is the City Break's Finest Hour

Galleries reopen, kitchens change their menus and the light turns to gold — the case for September to November as the supreme season for the European city break.

6 min read

A serene spa treatment setting with folded towels and soft candlelight

Wellness

Steam and Stone: The Modern Hammam Comes of Age

From Marrakech's riads to the Bosphorus and the newest London spas, the hammam has moved from heritage curiosity to the most coveted ritual in luxury wellness.

6 min read

A vast ocean horizon meeting the sky in fading evening light

Inspiration

Keepers' Quarters: The Rise of Lighthouse and Remote-Station Stays

Decommissioned lighthouses, fjord-head hotels and high-mountain stations are becoming the connoisseur's alternative to the resort. On the strange luxury of staying where the world runs out.

6 min read

Rugged mountain peaks rising above a Highland glen in dramatic light

Destination Guides

The Scottish Highlands: A Grand Tour of Castles, Glens and Coast

Baronial castle hotels, single-track roads to white-sand bays and the world's most atmospheric whisky country — how to travel the Highlands in proper style.

9 min read

Golden spires of a Bangkok temple against the city sky

Destination Guides

Why Bangkok Remains One of the World's Great Hotel Cities

Service culture, riverfront legends and fearless new openings: the case for Bangkok as one of the world's truly great hotel cities, decade after decade.

7 min read

Elephants crossing open savanna grassland with trees on the horizon

Family Travel

Taking Children on Safari: What Families Should Know Before Booking

A safari can be the most formative journey of a childhood — or an expensive misfire. The difference lies in choosing the right lodges, the right pacing and the right expectations.

8 min read

Paris rooftops with the Eiffel Tower rising in the distance at golden hour

Destination Guides

A Luxury Weekend in Paris

Two nights, one arrondissement of palaces and a city that rewards unhurried planning: how to shape a flawless luxury weekend in Paris, hotel first.

7 min read

A serene spa treatment space with soft natural light and calm tones

Wellness

What Asia's Great Hotel Spas Understand About Rest

From Thai massage lineages to Japanese bathing ritual, Asia's finest hotel spas draw on traditions older than the hotels themselves. Here is what sets them apart — and how to use them well.

7 min read

A quiet Venetian canal with historic buildings reflected in still water in soft light

Inspiration

In Praise of the Shoulder Season: Europe at Its Most Generous

The weeks either side of high summer are when Europe's most celebrated destinations return to themselves — and when their grandest hotels are at their most rewarding to inhabit.

6 min read

A curve of overwater villas stretching across a turquoise Maldivian lagoon

Destination Guides

Where to Stay in the Maldives

Every Maldives resort is its own island, which makes choosing the right one the whole game. Our guide to the atolls, the styles of stay and the standout addresses.

8 min read

A palm-fringed white-sand beach meeting calm turquoise water

Family Travel

The Free-Range Island: Resorts Where Children Can Simply Roam

The rarest amenity in modern family travel is unsupervised freedom. The island resorts that offer it safely have quietly become the most valuable bookings in the sector.

6 min read

Gondolas and historic facades along a Venetian canal in warm evening light

Inspiration

The Art of Arriving by Boat

No transfer on earth rivals the water approach — Venice by lagoon, Como by launch, an island dock at dusk. On the oldest and grandest way to reach a hotel.

5 min read

Dense green tropical foliage in soft, humid morning light

Wellness

The Ayurvedic Renaissance: An Ancient System Finds Its Luxury Form

India's classical medical tradition is enjoying a serious revival at the top of the wellness market. What genuine Ayurvedic retreat involves — and how to tell it from the spa-menu version.

7 min read

Tokyo's skyline at dusk with the city stretching to the horizon

Travel News

Japan at Full Capacity: What Record Visitor Numbers Mean for Luxury Travel

Japan has become the most desired destination on earth, and its famous cities are feeling the weight. How the luxury traveller navigates — and escapes — the crowds.

7 min read

A yacht anchored in a clear turquoise cove beneath a rocky coastline

Destination Guides

The Dalmatian Coast: Croatia's Adriatic Shore at Its Most Refined

Walled cities, a thousand islands and a wine culture older than Rome — how to travel Croatia's Dalmatian Coast with a yacht's freedom and an editor's itinerary.

8 min read

Sydney's harbour and opera house under a bright southern sky

Hotel Openings

Capella Sydney: A Sandstone Landmark Reborn Above Circular Quay

In the grand former Department of Education building, Capella's Australian debut has given Sydney the heritage luxury hotel it always deserved.

6 min read

Overwater villas curving across a turquoise Maldivian lagoon

Suite Reviews

The Water Reserves at Soneva Jani: The Maldives' Grandest Overwater Homes

Retractable roofs for stargazing, private pools the size of village squares and slides that spill straight into the lagoon — we profile the overwater residences that redefined the Maldivian villa.

7 min read

Terraced vineyard hills rolling towards the horizon in soft evening light

Food & Dining

Eating the Landscape: The Golden Age of the Wine-Country Hotel Table

In the world's great wine regions, hotel restaurants have become the truest expression of terroir — kitchens fed by the estate outside the window and cellars no city house can rival.

7 min read

A still alpine lake reflecting wooded mountains in the early morning

Destination Guides

Lake Bled and Beyond: A Considered Guide to Slovenia's Alpine Jewel

The island church and clifftop castle are only the opening scene. How to experience Lake Bled — and the Julian Alps around it — with time, taste and no crowds.

7 min read

Dense green jungle canopy surrounding a resort in soft morning mist

Travel News

Beyond the Bamboo Straw: Sustainability Grows Teeth in Luxury Hospitality

The era of gesture environmentalism is closing. Real standards, real audits and real architecture are redefining what a responsible luxury hotel actually is.

7 min read

A cloistered stone courtyard with cypress trees and warm evening light

Suite Reviews

The Owner's Villa at San Domenico Palace: Taormina's Pinnacle Address

In a fourteenth-century convent above the Ionian Sea, the finest accommodation pairs cloistered history with a front-row seat on Mount Etna. We profile the villa at the summit of Sicily's most famous hotel.

6 min read

Clear turquoise water meeting a pale beach under bright Mediterranean light

Hotel Openings

One&Only Aesthesis: The Athenian Riviera Gets Its Flagship Resort

On a protected coastal estate at Glyfada, One&Only's Greek debut channels the 1960s glamour of the Athenian Riviera — and confirms the coast's return to the front rank.

6 min read

A Mediterranean coastal town tumbling down cliffs towards a blue bay

Family Travel

The Multigenerational Mediterranean Summer, Planned Properly

Three generations, one coastline, two weeks: how to design a Mediterranean summer that works for gap-year teenagers and great-grandmothers alike.

8 min read

A creeper-clad stone hotel exterior in the English countryside

Destination Guides

The Cotswolds, Properly Done: Villages, Walks and the Art of the English Country Escape

England's most storied stretch of countryside is easy to visit and surprisingly easy to get wrong. Here is how to plan a Cotswolds escape that trades coach stops for country lanes.

7 min read

A grand historic hotel facade surrounded by mature gardens under a soft sky

Family Travel

Three Generations, One Castle: The Art of the Multigenerational Stay

Grand country estates have quietly become the smartest venue for family gatherings that span grandparents to toddlers. Here is why castles and highland resorts work — and how to plan one well.

7 min read

An infinity pool merging with the Atlantic horizon under a soft sky

Destination Guides

Madeira: A Luxury Traveller's Guide to the Atlantic's Garden Island

Levada walks at dawn, cliff-top pools and one of Europe's great heritage hotels — how to experience Madeira at its most refined, season by season.

8 min read

Rolling vineyard hills in Tuscany under soft afternoon light

Destination Guides

Tuscany at a Slower Pace: A Guide to Hill Towns, Vineyards and Where to Base Yourself

Tuscany rewards the traveller who resists the checklist. This is our guide to the region's hill towns, wine country and coast — and how to structure a week that feels unhurried.

8 min read