Holiday homes without the hassle

At last, there’s a way of enjoying all the benefits of a tailor-made luxury holiday, without the responsibility of ownership or the hassle of arrangements. Distinctive Holiday Homes (DHH) offers a portfolio of stunning multi million pound holiday homes and yachts.

Properties range from a 17th century villa in Corsanico, Tuscany, to a five bedroom New Zealand mansion to a skiing haven in Beaver Creek, Colorado, amongst many other premium destinations.

Access to the luxurious destinations can be achieved by signing up for a DHH Club Membership, which includes an initial joining deposit and annual fees. Each member has access to opulent holiday homes worldwide each worth over two million pounds, the use of a luxury vehicle on the premises with no other cost than filling it up with petrol, and at least £500 worth of food and beverages each week for members to enjoy at their leisure.

“A stay at a Distinctive Holiday Home is like experiencing the lifestyles of the uber rich and famous without the price tag that would normally go with it,” says Nick Wood, CEO of Distinctive Holiday Homes.

“If you put the holiday together yourself you could expect to pay over £12,000 per week for a stay in the sort of premium homes we offer in the DHH portfolio. But our spectacular homes, food and beverages and use of luxury cars are all inclusive in the membership fees, which works out at a much lower cost."

DHH holiday homes typically have four to seven bedrooms so members can bring along their favourite friends and family for no additional cost. Hence the entire family can live like “movie stars” for a fraction of the normal cost.

Each meticulously decorated Holiday Home even comes complete with a concierge with local expertise to look after members and help them find the best local restaurants to dine out and plan holiday activities. There is a cleaning and laundry service and the luxury vehicle comes with a pre-programmed satellite navigation system to make local travel a breeze.

Even the little things, such as baby cots or high chairs, games for the children, local cellular phones and Internet are all organised.

“From the moment you arrive at the airport you are greeted and whisked to your home away from home, and from then on your every need is taken care of by your personal concierge,” says Nick Wood. “Members definitely get the movie star treatment and the ultimate in a stress free and luxurious holiday.”

The inspiration for DHH came from Nick Wood experiencing a number of stressful holiday encounters, but a trip to Miami in particular spurred him into action. “After waiting at a Hotel reception desk for 40 minutes upon arrival with my wife and two small tired children, then having to visit reception three more times to try to get the actual rooms we’d booked months in advance, I thought to myself there has to be something better than this?”

Already the owner of the successful Octopus Resort in Fiji (winner of the 2006 Lonely Planet Editors Choice Award), Nick began scouting the world for outstanding properties to become part of the DHH offering. The hand picked multi-million pound properties were selected not only for their opulence but also for an authentic holiday experience. Instead of the sterility some Hotels have to offer a Distinctive Holiday Home, mirrors, albeit luxuriously, the way the locals live, from chic river front apartments to sprawling villas.

Now there are Distinctive Holiday Homes in Italy, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, France and the United States as well as a sleek 86-foot Luxury Motor yacht and 53-foot sailing yacht based in the Mediterranean Sea. This winter a Ski Chalet in Megeve, France will be opened.

Membership fees are set at different payment levels, from “Lite” to Platinum, depending on how many days’ holiday members wish to take each year. Several levels of Membership allow Members to give their extended family gift days whereby family members can stay at a destination without a Club Member being present.

There is a shared membership option for friends or family groups and a corporate membership for businesses who would like to offer luxury holidays to employees, colleagues or clients.

“Membership is ideal for those who would like to buy a holiday home but the price of coastal and rural property coupled with high interest rates has made this an expensive way to invest, especially if the holiday home is only used a few times a year,” says Nick Wood. “The one-time membership-joining fee is 80% refundable and much less than a deposit on a house. The annual fees are much less than you would pay in rates and maintenance.”

DHH will continue to expand its accommodation offering so members will have an increasing number of luxurious destinations close to home as well as exciting overseas locations to choose from.

And in the next few months a waterfront 3 bedroom apartment in Auckland, New Zealand, a 3 bedroom apartment in Marina Del Rey, Los Angeles, USA and a beachfront 3 bedroom apartment in South Beach, Miami, Florida, USA, will become part of the DHH offering.
The next Destinations to be added after this will be a wine producing Chateaux in Bordeaux, France a Sydney harbour side apartment and Upper Eastside apartment in New York, and a country home in the Cotswolds in the UK and a Caribbean beach house in St Martin, with yachts scheduled for the Caribbean and Pacific region.

For more information about DHH go to D-h-h.com.