White Line Christmas. Part 3: Korcula, Croatia

Whether you are travelling to any of our hotels over the coming month, or in fact are residents of the cities that play host to our collection, we thought you’d appreciate knowing about the Christmas related delights on offer amongst the hotels.

Part 3 takes a look at a very special opportunity to spend Christmas in the surrounds of an 18th Century palace – The Lesic Dimitri Palace in Korcula, Croatia.

The Lesic Dimitri invites you to experience the real essence of Dalmatia, but on your terms.

There is nothing wrong with just relaxing and enjoying the easy-going pace of island life. However, there are many things to see and do too. The following are suggestions to give you some ideas, which you can further personalise when you speak with the hotel.

Indulge in the sumptuous comfort of the palace’s residences whilst your every need is attended to. They have assembled a three-day celebration, which will leave you relaxed, pampered and very well fed.

Their three-night package includes:

24.12.09

Welcome drink upon arrival.
Early evening drinks and canapés in the lounge.
Traditional Christmas Eve Dinner at Ranc Maha, a fairytale restaurant hidden in the hills above Korčula, surrounded by pine forests and the distant view of the sea. A roaring fire and the lights of a hundred candles set the scene for a magical Christmas Eve feast of traditional dishes such as bakalar, grilled fish and bread baked in the open oven.

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25.12.09

Christmas Brunch, a rich buffet brunch of festive dishes will be served in the palace’s lounge.
Christmas tea & cakes will be served in the afternoon.
Christmas dinner at restaurant Kanavelic. Enjoy an authentic five-course Korčula Christmas dinner at the beautiful Kanavelic restaurant, with local musical entertainment.

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26.12.09

Christmas Brunch.
Dinner at Konoba Mate. Boxing day dinner will be arranged at Konoba Mate, the island’s best organic restaurant. Guests will enjoy a fabulous spread of creative dishes all homemade. Organic ingredients are gathered within metres of the restaurant.
After dinner guests are invited to join the locals at the Korčula Christmas concert and Moreska Party.

27.12.09

Breakfast.
Guests depart.

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Throughout your stay the following activities are available, weather permitting. For prices and further details just ask the hotel when you book:

Hiking and rambling, Mountain climbing, Buggy island adventure, Fishing, Sailing, Cooking classes, Wine tasting, Extensive SPA treatment list (The package includes one free SPA treatment of your choice)

The package starts at € 785 per person, with additional nights from € 93. Prices include accommodation, all taxes, food & beverage as detailed above, transport to and from the restaurants, a SPA treatment of your choice and a Christmas gift for every guest.

To book, contact the hotel directly on +385 20 715 560 or via info@lesic-dimitri.com

Tell us if you booked dinner and/or a room at the hotel over the festive period by emailing us at feedme@whitelinehotels.com, and we’ll enter you in a draw to win a weekend at your choice of hotel from our collection. Remember to include the details of your booking.

White Line Christmas. Part 2: Zurich

Whether you are traveling to any of our hotels over the coming month, or in fact are residents of the cities that play host to our collection, we thought you’d appreciate knowing about the Christmas related delights on offer amongst the hotels.

Part 2 takes a look at the seasonal offerings of the Greulich Hotel in Zurich.

The Greulich has two treats for you, the first a delightful Advent and Christmas menu, the second a romantic menu, including accommodation at the hotel.

Advent and Christmas

Head chef, David Martinez Salvany has created a festive menu for you with no culinary wish unfulfilled.

Menu
Amuse-bouche of two Catalan tapas
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Home-made duck liver terrine and poached stockfish
Puree of dates, leave salad
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Fried fillet of monkfish in an olive crust
Puree of white beans, fennel, mousse of peppers
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Duo of Ibérico fillet and sucking pig
Catalan „trinxat“, market vegetables
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Three kinds of chocolate
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3 courses, with meat as a main course 100 CHF / ca. €66, 3 courses, with fish as a main course 102 CHF / ca. €68, or 4 courses for 135 CHF / ca. €90.

This menu is available until 23 December, bookable directly with the hotel - mail@greulich.ch or phone 043 243 42 43.

The second offer from the Greulich, includes:

A hot welcome drink with Christmas biscuits
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A romantic 3 course meal in the evening
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Two nights including breakfast
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Prices range from 770 CHF / ca. €511 for a Garden room for two people or 920 CHF / ca. €611 for a Junior Suite for two people. Additional nights can be bought for 180 CHF for the garden room and 220 CHF for the junior suite. This offer is available – on request – between 15 November and 23 December 2009.

For all of these offers, book in advance directly with the hotel  mail@greulich.ch or phone 043 243 42 43.

Tell us if you booked dinner and/or a room at the hotel over the festive period by emailing us at feedme@whitelinehotels.com, and we’ll enter you in a draw to win a weekend at your choice of hotel from our collection. Remember to include the details of your booking.

White Line Christmas. Part 1: Stockholm

Whether you are traveling to any of our hotels over the coming month, or in fact are residents of the cities that play host to our collection, we thought you’d appreciate knowing about the Christmas related delights on offer amongst the hotels.

Part 1 introduces the offering from the Hotel Skeppsholmen in Stockholm.

Kicking off tomorrow, the famous Swedish Christmas Table is served as a five-course dinner where they have selected their Christmas favourites from the classic buffet and added a modern twist, high quality and a bit of humour. Like their other menus, the Christmas special is inspired by traditional Swedish cooking combined with contemporary cuisine.

The Christmas Menu is served with a wide variety of national and local beverages, such as Hotel Skeppsholmen’s very own schnapps.

Prices: Christmas Menu 595 Sek / ca. €57 (five courses), beverage packages from 395 Sek / ca. €38. The menu will be available until 26 December.

Christmas Menu 2009
Small “Smorgasbord” / Pickled herrings and other cold starters
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Sandwich with smoked ham, preserved cabbage and home-made mustard on rye bread flavoured with wort
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Poached halibut with velouté, green peas and almond potatoes
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Roast fillet of deer with gravy of mulled wine and glazed carrots
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Christmas Sweets / Chocolate mousse, saffron pancakes, Christmas crullers, Rice pudding ice cream

If this tickles your Christmas fancy, then book direct with the hotel via: +46 8-601 30 05, restauranthotelskeppsholmen.se

Tell us if you booked dinner and/or a room at the hotel over the festive period by emailing us at feedme@whitelinehotels.com, and we’ll enter you in a draw to win a weekend at your choice of hotel from our collection. Remember to include the details of your booking.

Look out for Part 2 – Zurich coming soon.

Vase vs. Vases

Just a short walk from Berlin’s Lux 11 Hotel is the design gallery HELMRINDERKNECHT contemporary design who, until 9 January 2010, dedicate their second show completely to the subject of vases. 15 international designers and artists have been invited to show their contemporary interpretations of the vase.

Vases as objects of utility and decoration have been a common and classless part of our culture for many decades. From the simplest techniques to refined craftsmanship, from a commodity item and an early mass product to fabulous decoration of sophisticated perfection: vases can be found in almost every household and are a perfect mirror of prevalent design engineering and aesthetics.

The exhibition VASE vs. VASES brings together contemporary positions of 15 national and international designers and artists, namely Werner Aisslinger, Giulia Maria Beretta, Frédéric Dedelley, Oscar Diaz, Martí Guixé, Alfredo Häberli, Robin van Hontem, Nicolas Le Moigne, Julia Maendler, osko+deichmann, Ursula Palla, Tina Roeder, Robert Stadler, Studio Glithero and Hermann August Weizenegger. The novel handling of experimental and conceptual design, figuration, abstraction and craftsmanship result in vases that dance, that shine, that are actually a plant, that used to be a bag, and much more.

My personal favourite is the RGB vase where the values of red, green and blue overlap to create a specific hue of purple (p242).

Check the exhibition out for yourself at HELMRINDERKNECHT contemporary design, Linienstrasse 87, 10119 Berlin.

Homages to Toulouse-Lautrec

Any exhibition of Toulouse-Lautrec’s posters is automatically a nostalgic celebration of the legendary Belle Epoque, when Montmartre and the Chat Noir were the artistic and entertainment centre of the world. If these iconic images continue to fascinate us today, it is because they have become part of our international collective memory.

Check out the collection from Les Arts Décoratifs in Paris. They have 26 of the 31 posters Toulouse-Lautrec produced between 1891 and 1900.