Kiwi Curated
Great Gardens
by Joy Pecknold“To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow,” said Audrey Hepburn. In fact, the actor loved gardens so much she did a documentary series in the ‘90s showcasing them called Gardens of the World with Audrey Hepburn. She would’ve loved the grand hotel gardens herein—use them to inspire your own spring gardening.
Great Gardens
Not only do the neighbourhood birds flock here, celebrities do too. Through the ‘50s and ‘60s, Hotel Bel-Air was a Hollywood hotspot, attracting the likes of Marilyn Monroe and Audrey Hepburn (we bet Aud came for their gardens). Is building your own backyard Swan Lake like they have too much?
VIEW HOTELGreat Gardens
Providing shade from the hot Miami sun, the Orchard at Delano South Beach was created to be a kind of indoor room moved outside, with different vignettes designed by Philippe Starck, including an oversized chess board. It’s inspiring us to plant more trees, and hang lanterns and hammocks from the ones already there.
VIEW HOTELGreat Gardens
You can’t talk about gardens without talking about English gardens. While the term doesn’t have an easy definition, it describes a wilder, overflowing style established in the 18th-century as a kind of rebellion against the more architecturally rigid gardens of the time. In Oxfordshire, Belmond Le Manoir Aux Quat’Saisons captures their romantic spirit to a tee.
VIEW HOTELGreat Gardens
English gardens are so good, you can’t just have one. The gardens at Barnsley House in Gloucestershire strike a beautiful balance of structure and whimsy. The pockets of dense, overflowing flora paired with well-manicured lawns and pathways are the perfect compromise for those who can’t choose one or the other.
VIEW HOTELGreat Gardens
Having a three Michelin-starred restaurant would be enough of a draw, but Les Prés d’Eugénie – Michel Guérard also sets the mood with surrounding rose, water and herb gardens. Lined with ferns, grasses, irises and bundles of bamboo, the water feature leading up to the main building is picturesque in the most natural, unfussy way.
VIEW HOTELGreat Gardens
A big backyard isn’t required to create a verdant oasis, just ask The Peninsula Paris. Their rooftop with views of Sacré Coeur and Eglise St. Pierre is packed with pretty greenery. Plus, lining a patio with hedges or bushy potted plants, like they have here, provides both privacy and serenity.
VIEW HOTELGreat Gardens
There’s a laidback vibe to life in Spain, and that goes for the plant life too. Just seeing the easy mix of olive and colorful flowering trees at Seville’s Hacienda de San Rafael triggers a desire to kick back, polish off a pitcher of Sangria and crack a Hemingway novel.
VIEW HOTELGreat Gardens
Those who’ve successfully trimmed their own bangs at home can graduate to level two and try their hand at sculpting bushes à la Edward Scissorhands with Villa d’Este in Lake Como as inspiration. Then there’s the visual impact of choosing one colour—in this case, fire engine red—for flowering plants.
VIEW HOTELGreat Gardens
In South Africa’s Drakenstein Valley, Babylonstoren provides the ultimate grow-your-own-food inspo. While they have 500 acres to work with, any sized plot will do for a few fruits, veggies and herbs (according to Gardeners’ World, radishes, squashes, shallots and strawberries are some of the easiest things to grow). Their “spa beach” is also a bright idea—a plot of sand encircled by a leafy hedge.
VIEW HOTELGreat Gardens
Part of what makes The Oberoi Udaivilas, Udaipur the Best Hotel Pool winner in the 2020 Kiwi Collection Hotel Awards is all the magenta bougainvillea pouring over the walls. We looked up “Where can you grow bougainvillea?” so you don’t have to: the sun-loving tropical plant is is happiest in climates that stay above 60 degrees Fahrenheit, but it can also be grown indoors.
VIEW HOTELGreat Gardens
Philosophical and symbolic, Japanese gardens are places of quiet contemplation where stone, water and plants are effortlessly integrated. Densely green, the gardens on the grounds of Abba Resrots Izu are a prime example. Located in the Izu Peninsula, a UNESCO World Geopark two hours from Tokyo, the resort is engulfed by a grander garden of hot springs, beaches and mountains.
VIEW HOTELGreat Gardens
Oh, to have 2,400 hectares to call your own right now, like they do at The Farm at Cape Kidnappers. Until you can get to the cape, you can bring a bit of the cape to you. The Farm works magic with simple grasses, shrubs and bushes all bunched together. The even make letting the lawn get a little longer look good.
VIEW HOTELNot only do the neighbourhood birds flock here, celebrities do too. Through the ‘50s and ‘60s, Hotel Bel-Air was a Hollywood hotspot, attracting the likes of Marilyn Monroe and Audrey Hepburn (we bet Aud came for their gardens). Is building your own backyard Swan Lake like they have too much?
VIEW HOTELProviding shade from the hot Miami sun, the Orchard at Delano South Beach was created to be a kind of indoor room moved outside, with different vignettes designed by Philippe Starck, including an oversized chess board. It’s inspiring us to plant more trees, and hang lanterns and hammocks from the ones already there.
VIEW HOTELYou can’t talk about gardens without talking about English gardens. While the term doesn’t have an easy definition, it describes a wilder, overflowing style established in the 18th-century as a kind of rebellion against the more architecturally rigid gardens of the time. In Oxfordshire, Belmond Le Manoir Aux Quat’Saisons captures their romantic spirit to a tee.
VIEW HOTELEnglish gardens are so good, you can’t just have one. The gardens at Barnsley House in Gloucestershire strike a beautiful balance of structure and whimsy. The pockets of dense, overflowing flora paired with well-manicured lawns and pathways are the perfect compromise for those who can’t choose one or the other.
VIEW HOTELHaving a three Michelin-starred restaurant would be enough of a draw, but Les Prés d’Eugénie – Michel Guérard also sets the mood with surrounding rose, water and herb gardens. Lined with ferns, grasses, irises and bundles of bamboo, the water feature leading up to the main building is picturesque in the most natural, unfussy way.
VIEW HOTELA big backyard isn’t required to create a verdant oasis, just ask The Peninsula Paris. Their rooftop with views of Sacré Coeur and Eglise St. Pierre is packed with pretty greenery. Plus, lining a patio with hedges or bushy potted plants, like they have here, provides both privacy and serenity.
VIEW HOTELThere’s a laidback vibe to life in Spain, and that goes for the plant life too. Just seeing the easy mix of olive and colorful flowering trees at Seville’s Hacienda de San Rafael triggers a desire to kick back, polish off a pitcher of Sangria and crack a Hemingway novel.
VIEW HOTELThose who’ve successfully trimmed their own bangs at home can graduate to level two and try their hand at sculpting bushes à la Edward Scissorhands with Villa d’Este in Lake Como as inspiration. Then there’s the visual impact of choosing one colour—in this case, fire engine red—for flowering plants.
VIEW HOTELIn South Africa’s Drakenstein Valley, Babylonstoren provides the ultimate grow-your-own-food inspo. While they have 500 acres to work with, any sized plot will do for a few fruits, veggies and herbs (according to Gardeners’ World, radishes, squashes, shallots and strawberries are some of the easiest things to grow). Their “spa beach” is also a bright idea—a plot of sand encircled by a leafy hedge.
VIEW HOTELPart of what makes The Oberoi Udaivilas, Udaipur the Best Hotel Pool winner in the 2020 Kiwi Collection Hotel Awards is all the magenta bougainvillea pouring over the walls. We looked up “Where can you grow bougainvillea?” so you don’t have to: the sun-loving tropical plant is is happiest in climates that stay above 60 degrees Fahrenheit, but it can also be grown indoors.
VIEW HOTELPhilosophical and symbolic, Japanese gardens are places of quiet contemplation where stone, water and plants are effortlessly integrated. Densely green, the gardens on the grounds of Abba Resrots Izu are a prime example. Located in the Izu Peninsula, a UNESCO World Geopark two hours from Tokyo, the resort is engulfed by a grander garden of hot springs, beaches and mountains.
VIEW HOTELOh, to have 2,400 hectares to call your own right now, like they do at The Farm at Cape Kidnappers. Until you can get to the cape, you can bring a bit of the cape to you. The Farm works magic with simple grasses, shrubs and bushes all bunched together. The even make letting the lawn get a little longer look good.
VIEW HOTEL