Pinnacle Of Perfection
Welcome to Austria’s largest ski region, the Arlberg —a heady and decadent European playground.
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It’s 11am and already skiers sip bright-orange glasses of branded spritz at slope-side bars in the sun. The joy of the late season is rippling through the Arlberg, blizzards replaced by blue skies while deep winter snow still blankets the 300 kilometres of slopes on offer, renowned as playgrounds of the rich and royal.
Long sunny days reveal spectacular alpine panoramas to their fullest as skiers look to cruise and navigate for kilometres via the 88 lifts and extensive network of runs that seamlessly link the villages of St. Anton, Stuben, St. Christoph, Lech and Zurs.
The allure of Austria’s biggest ski district, comes wrapped in alpine mystique—the area is hailed as the birthplace of modern skiing, and boasts some of the most magnificent on-and-off- piste terrain in the Alps. Now the world’s fifth largest ski region, the Arlberg has amassed a list of attributes that set it apart as one of the most appealing in the world.
ON THE MAP
It was in the Arlberg hamlet of Stuben in 1912 that teenage farmer Hannes Schneider invented the parallel ski technique that’s still taught today. He then opened the first ski school in Zurs in 1921—and soon, learning to ski became the height of European fashion. Schneider later exported “the Arlberg technique” abroad, while back home, enterprising locals made skis, clothes and boots to cater for an influx of visitors that included some of Europe’s most wealthy and powerful. By the 1930s, the former farming community’s fortunes had changed forever.
Nearly a century later, the region retains an historic charm like few other snowy European ski hubs—a large part of its appeal coming from having eschewed major hotel chains and other hallmarks of modern ski resorts to retain a local identity, one underpinned by a wealth of family-run establishments.
SOPHISTICATED ENCLAVES
The formula has won the villages of Lech and Zurs, in particular, an enviable list of clientele—the privacy offered by the remote yet sophisticated enclaves is priceless. Between them, the two villages have the highest concentration of four- and five-star hotels in the European Alps. Shared histories between hoteliers have seen generations of return guests, many royals among them. Until Covid came, the Dutch royal family had not skipped a Lech winter vacation in 60 years. Princess Caroline of Monaco is another regular, while Princess Diana famously holidayed in Lech and taught sons William and Harry to ski here.
Still, the vibe remains low-key—streets lined with rustic chalets, a regular small- town bakery, the Backstube Café, on
the main street. Lech’s most revered establishment is Hotel Post, a former 1930s post office that today stands as a five-star Relais & Châteaux property; a place where men are encouraged to sport jackets for dinner. Third-generation owner and general manager Florian Moosbrugger presides over the expanded, richly decorated hotel, built around the original building’s structure.
“We offer a very intimate and discreet atmosphere—always have,” offers Moosbrugger. “This has grown organically. You cannot plant an old tree.”
This is most evident in the traditional Austrian décor that adorns the Post’s corridors, public areas and its 46 finely appointed rooms and suites of which no two are the same. All designed by the Moosbrugger family, expect ornate interiors of colourful antiques, and four poster or king beds intricately painted with folk art. The Post’s suites are among the Arlberg’s most generous, with the superior Kaiser Suite offering 114 square metres of opulence that includes a private sauna.
Gertrud Schneider, daughter of Othmar Schneider who won Austria’s first Olympic gold medal for skiing in 1952, is another to successfully transform her family’s historic chalet into an alluring five- star establishment, Kristiania. Yet the ebullient hotelier has swapped rusticity for modernity, the hotel awash with playful contemporary art and riotously coloured furniture evoking the feel of an eclectic ’60s mansion. Artists are often in residence and exhibitions held. Somewhat of a walking artwork herself, Ms Schneider’s favourite guest room is the Puccini Suite, a cosy two-level apartment on the top floor with magical views of Lech. Here guests are delighted to find complementary Bollinger on ice as they step into the suite’s lounge room, and upstairs, vases of tulips by the ensuite’s spa and king-sized bed.
A few doors from Hotel Post on Lech’s main street is another Arlberg diamond— the seven-level Strolz Sport and Fashion House. Skiing’s equivalent to shopping on Fifth Avenue or the Champs Élysées, the elegant boutique offers the world’s largest range of designer skiwear bearing the names Bogner, Fendi, Moschino, Bottega, Burberry, Versace and more. You can
also secure a pair of coveted handmade Strolz ski boots, or simply sip cocktails at the store’s elegant second floor bar.
Ultimately, the Arlberg would not have developed such an allure were it not for the blessing of epic terrain. The entire lift network is skiable on one ski pass, and the lengthy season runs from December through to April. Slopes are a perfect balance of easy cruisers, intermediate runs, steeps and off-piste, with stunning views across Europe’s highest peaks found from its highest point, the 2,809 metre Valluga.
To say one skis regularly at St. Anton, the largest, liveliest and sportiest Arlberg village, is indeed a badge of pride.
BEST CHEFS, BIGGEST CELLARS
The high quality of the area’s restaurants is equal to its luxury lodgings. The small patch occupied by Lech, Zurs, Zug and Stuben contains Austria’s highest concentration of top-end dining options, many in possession of Gault & Millau torques (think localised Michelin stars).
Tucked away in the middle of the charming hamlet of Stuben is one of the Arlberg’s most exceptional finds, the Foxbau Restaurant. The modern eatery, housed in a century-old building, more than lives up to its hefty three torques. Foxbau’s menu spoils for choice with crayfish to coq au vin, and is the only place to find saibling, a rare local freshwater fish with exquisitely delicate flesh which matches perfectly with the 2017 Gruner Veltliner Smaragd from Wachau on the Foxbau wine list.
A few valleys away is the tiny village of Zug, a pretty yet unassuming assortment of just over a dozen buildings clinging
to a hillside. Among them is the renowned Rote Wand restaurant, discreetly situated inside the village’s former 18th-century schoolhouse. Rote Wand has long figured among Austria’s best fine-dining establishments, and many top Austrian and European chefs have run the kitchen.
The latest is 28-year-old wunderkind Julian Stieger, who took the helm in October. Already a veteran of 2 and 3 star Michelin restaurant kitchens, he came to Rote Wand from Copenhagen’s 3 Michelin- star Geranium, a restaurant Michelin also happens to rank as Europe’s best. His move to Rote Wand was noted by observers as ambitious, stepping as he has into the shoes of Austria’s most acclaimed chef, Max Natmessnig. Stieger must now rise to the challenge of catering to one or two sittings a day of 14 diners who book months in advance to experience first-class cuisine in a location so remote it is only accessible on skis most of winter.
Elsewhere, in the Arlberg’s most elevated village of St. Christoph, lies Hospiz Alm restaurant. Aim for the award-winning platters of schnitzel (true) and piping hot kaiserschmarrn—a famous Austrian dessert of warm shredded pancake served fresh in the frypan with jam and cream. Claiming a table on the sundeck or upper terrace on a sunny day is to secure one of the most prestigious seats in the Arlberg.
Wash things down and slide into the afternoon by ordering from Hospiz Alm’s extensive wine cellar, which holds the world’s largest collection of big-bottled Bordeaux and Burgundy. More than 3,000 bottles line the walls and ceiling—from 1.5 litre magnums and jeroboams right up to 27 litre primats and a decadent Chateau Latour worth around $129,000.
Hospiz Alm’s owner, Adi Werner, started collecting wine in the ’70s at the behest of the kings, millionaires and presidents who made up his clientele at the time. Now, like so many others in the tight-knit Arlberg community, he too has created something truly unique, another one-of-a-kind experience that makes this pocket of the European Alps extra special.
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One of Hollywood’s Favorite Bespoke Tailors Is Making His First Ready-to-Wear Line
Leonard Logsdail, who’s dressed everyone from Denzel Washington to Robert De Niro, is finally going off the rack.
Published on January 18, 2025
When Hollywood’s best-dressed men need suits—to wear on-screen or off—they call Leonard Logsdail. The English-born, New York–based bespoke tailor had already cultivated an enviable legacy by the time he dressed Robert de Niro in 2006’s The Good Shepherd.
In 1971, after graduating from what is now the London College of Fashion, he became the youngest person to open his own store on Savile Row. He set up shop in Manhattan 20 years later and has since dressed everyone from Al Pacino to Hugh Jackman. A lengthy list of devoted clients suggests the long lead time for one of his $15,000 rigs is worth it.
If you like his strong-shouldered look but want to skip making the dozens of decisions bespoke commissions require, you’re in luck. This year, Logsdail will begin offering a line of ready-to-wear jackets, available for purchase directly via his website.
“It’s an idea that’s been percolating for years,” Logsdail tells Robb Report. The result of his ruminations is timeless and essential: a two-button jacket with a double vent, using the same pattern he has employed countless times to give actors such as Denzel Washington (American Gangster) and Michael Douglas (Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps) a commanding on-screen presence. It’s all about the shape, he says of the jacket’s leading-man look. There will be “a little bit of waisting,” so it flatters guys of all sizes.
Fabric options include a classic navy from the same Vitale Barberis Canonico textiles Logsdail uses in his bespoke garments; beautiful tweeds made at the Lovat Mill in Hawick, Scotland (the best tweeds out there, in his opinion); and a solid-blue Japanese seersucker. In a nod to his ancestry, he’ll use an 1888 painting by distant relative William Logsdail, St Martin-in-the-Fields, for the lining.
The choice underscores that the venture is as much personal as it is professional. The jackets, priced under $2,000, will help him reach a wider audience. But his business is a family affair: Two of Logsdail’s sons and one of his daughters help run it, handling everything from marketing to web design. One lesson he hopes to pass on with his uncomplicated, refined approach? “Fashion goes out of style,” he says. “But style does not go out of fashion.”
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Forget a Bow Tie. Here Are 3 Black-Tie Accessories to Rock Instead
Stylist Tom Stubbs on ditching the bow tie this festive season—and what to wear alternatively.
Black tie, that essential marker of an increasingly rarefied ceremonial style, is inspiring. Nothing coaxes men into upping the sartorial ante quite like reading those words on an invitation. I say amen to raising the bar, but I can’t bear wearing a traditional bow tie—and haven’t done so for over a decade.
Around the turn of the millennium, I was enthusiastically dress-code obedient, but two unstoppable forces put me off: Fashion moved on, and I got old. Where abiding by hallowed traditions once felt exalted, it suddenly began to seem restrictive and stuffy. And while it was extraordinary to be a bow-tied 30-something, in my 40s, the convention made me feel like a pompous, conservative square. Now, menswear has changed so much that bow ties register as pedestrian garb better suited to waiters than to revellers.
Fortunately, there are several black-tie alternatives that excite and inspire me now that I’m well into my 50s—many espoused by stylish guys on the red carpet and innovative designers in London, Paris, Florence, and Milan. And though I might take a bow on nonconformism as I step into my 60s, I still plan to steer clear of the bow tie, that ultimate symbol of gentlemanly customs, for as long as I can. Here’s what I’m replacing it with.
Form and Function
I got excited seeing Lemaire’s slim metallic modernised bolo ties in the house’s fall 2024 show. A favourite of men as varied as Johnny Cash, Bruce Springsteen, and Snoop Dogg, the bolo is perhaps best remembered as the chosen neckwear of John Travolta’s surly hit man, Vincent, in Pulp Fiction. Originally, Native American tribes including the Zuni, Hopi, and Navajo used these accessories used to fasten bandannas with plaited-leather cords. High-end versions double as a bit of jewellery, with silver slides set with turquoise and often engraved with animal motifs, including buffalo skulls and eagles. Contemporary takes abound, but vintage sleuthing can turn up some particularly beguiling options.
Gambling Man
Varying in size, flounce, and attitude, ribbon ties—also called gambler or Kentucky neckties—have long been a legitimate black-tie alternative. Actor Cillian Murphy has worn Saint Laurent’s take to various award shows, looking stand-alone chic and authentically cool. They have a distinct Western energy—Kirk Douglas donned one as Doc Holliday in Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, as did Robert Vaughan in The Magnificent Seven. But they’re as much rock star as they are gunslinger: The late Johnny Thunders of the New York Dolls and Bauhaus front man Peter Murphy (style role models of mine) also wore them with panache. Take a note from the runway and wear them with a pair of boots—cowboy, Chelsea, or with a Cuban heel—to really step away from the standard.
Fit to Be Tied
Getty Images/Courtesy of Lemaire
If you want to give yourself some breathing room, consider scarves and neckerchiefs. This fall, Tom Ford proposed a louche take on evening style, using black, slim-plaited, or delicately sequined scarves whose long tassels provocatively dangle at the hips. For maximum effect, the brand styled them with open satin shirts, recalling rockers Mick Jagger and Rod Stewart. London’s La Bowtique also does beautiful outsize bows. On a smaller scale, the Twilly—a short silk scarf pioneered by Hermès—works in much the same manner. The French maison makes gorgeous options with angled ends for extra verve, whether hanging loose or more discreetly knotted.
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Show Stoppers
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The logic behind staging a prestige automobile show on an island may, at face value, seem warped—history tells us that cars and water do not play nicely. The rationale twists further when said piece of land is a former shipyard that is, aesthetically, more workhorse ute than classic Ferrari.
Scratch beneath the surface, however, and the decision to plant the Sydney Harbour Concours d’Elegance on Cockatoo Island for the second year running begins to make locational sense: the steel arch of the emblematic bridge acting as photogenic backcloth; the UNESCO World Heritage site’s previous guises as 19th-century penal colony and eminent boat-building facility fleshing the show’s historical bones; the theatre of watching collectors delicately coaxing their four-wheeled artworks off a rusty roll-on/roll-off barge in the islet’s wharf before showtime. (After all, if owning a car in this stratosphere isn’t about projecting drama, then what’s the point?)
Throw in an endless endowment of free Champagne for guests and VIP transport from the mainland via superyacht, and it barely matters that the three-day jamboree is, in the words of founder and curator James Nicholls, “a logistical nightmare”.
“People love the energy, the adventure” says the Anglo-Italian, a broadcaster, writer and photographer whose extensive resume includes various stints as a concours judge across the world. “There’s a great contrast between the luxurious motor cars and the industrial environment. The Turbine Shop [a timeworn, hanger-like space used to display the vehicles] is where ocean-going liners and propellers were built. People interested in cars are also interested in that kind of thing but it’s just a backdrop. Cars are the main focal point.”
The concours d’elegance concept (“concours” means “competition” in French) can be traced back to 17th-century Paris, when aristocrats would flaunt horse-drawn carriages in local parks during summer months. Animals eventually gave way to automobiles, and the gatherings mutated into more organised contests in which these new-fangled contraptions were, in somewhat prescient fashion, judged solely on the appearance. The trend spread throughout European high society, before reaching America in 1950 with an inaugural pageant at Pebble Beach, California—a concours which has since evolved into a behemoth of the species, now billing itself as “the world’s most prestigious car show” and drawing 214 vehicles and spectators in the low five figures at the last annual meeting. Other concours are thriving globally, from spectacles in Lake Como in Italy (the longest running event, launched in 1929) to Udaipur in India. Vanity, it seems, remains in vogue.
Among this storied company, Sydney’s interpretation is playing catch-up. But Nicholls insists the local variant—launched in 2019, having occupied three other citywide locations—has no intention of locking horns with competitors. Not numerically, at least.
“In 2024, we had 500 people over the three days; this year we’ll aim for 750. But we’re never going to become a 20,000-people show,” he says. “We want it to be bespoke and beautiful, so people don’t have to queue for a glass of Champagne. You can talk to the car owners, and everyone feels like a VIP.” The overarching aim is to become a “destination event” on the socialite calendar, on par with the Melbourne Cup or the Australian Grand Prix.
While keen to keep paying visitors guessing, Nicholls offers Robb Report a sneak peek into some of the 44 objets booked to occupy the coarse, exposed-brick viewing hall, ranging from turn-of-the-century rarities to modern-day exotics: a 1905 Eugène Brillié 20/24 HP Coupé Chauffeur, believed to be the only one of its ilk left; a 1955 Porsche Speedster 356 “Pre A”, examples of which are valued in excess of $750,000; a Lamborghini Miura 3400, a model famed for its starring role in the opening sequence to 1969’s The Italian Job movie; a 2021 Audi R8 Spyder, an iteration that is no longer being produced and thus quietly accruing kudos.
Up to seven “classes” will be open, including categories solely for Porsche Speedsters and pre-war Australian coachbuilt cars. Two 1930s Bugattis are slated for appearance, one of which is, as this article is being written, on a boat somewhere, on its way to Australia. A panel of seven judges, led by the first ever female concours head assessor, who also adjudicated in 2024, will select the overall “Best in Show” winner—scored last time out by a 1964 Ferrari 250 LM, a model line with a $24 million price tag attached. And in a progressive play designed to lure the oil-shunning generation, an “electric elegance” section will debut. Nicholls estimates the combined value of all this precious metal at around $80 million.
While it would provoke an illicit thrill to discover that frenzied super-collectors were slyly puncturing rivals’ tyres or keying priceless bodywork—skulduggery has plagued other pageants, from dog show Crufts (canine poisoning) to Miss World (rigging allegations)—the entrants are, in keeping with the show’s refined, English-garden-party profile—a gentlemanly bunch. To a point. “They like meeting up, the community that’s here, but they do get competitive,” says Mark Ussher, the Sydney Harbour Concours d’Elegance managing director, and on-the-ground organiser. “They care about their cars but they’re investors as well as collectors. If they win a concours anywhere around the world it adds value to the car.”
Which makes it doubly important that, surrounded by all that deep Harbour water, everyone remembers to put their handbrake on.
The Sydney Harbour Concours D’Elegance runs from February 28th-March 2nd 2025; sydneyharbourconcours.com.au
Book tickets now and take benefit from the RR 15% discount code: ROBB15
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Jannik Sinner Is the First Tennis Player to Take a Luxury Bag Onto Wimbledon’s Centre Court
The 23-year-old Italian flaunted a custom Gucci duffle bag on center court.
Jannik Sinner aced the style game at last year’s Wimbledon Championships.
The Italian tennis star turned up to his match against Juan Manuel Cerundolo with a custom Gucci duffel bag on his shoulder. It marks the first time a designer bag has been carried onto centre court in the history of the prestigious, centuries-old tennis tournament, as reported by Women’s Wear Daily.
The duffel, which Sinner describes as a “timeless classic,” showcases the house’s signature beige and ebony colorway, the iconic GG monogram, and a contrasting green and red web stripe. It also features the athlete’s initials near the straps. Ironically, the rather traditional design has called into question a 150-year tradition.
“For sure this will create a conversation,” Sinner told WWD before defeating Cerundolo in straight sets. “Bringing sport and luxury fashion together in this way is something that’s never been done before and I feel extremely proud to be a part of it. I hope people will love it as much as I do.”
Wimbledon’s dress code is extremely strict: Players have been required to wear white at the event since 1877, with not even off-white or cream permitted on the court. Tennis whites were originally instated as it was believed the ensemble showed less sweat, as reported by Time. The tradition has continued out of respect for the sport’s history and a desire to maintain formality.
The rules are enforced, too: Our own player Nick Kyrgios was allegedly fined $25,000 for rocking red Air Jordan trainers at 2023’s tournament. Interestingly, the decidedly non-white Gucci accessory was reportedly given the all-clear by the powers that be. A spokesperson for Gucci told WWD the house worked with Sinner’s team “for the approvals from the ITF (International Tennis Federation), ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals), and Grand Slams, including Wimbledon, to ensure the bag met the necessary requirements.”
The 23-year-old, who turned pro at age 18, became a Gucci ambassador in 2023 in his first luxury fashion endorsement. “Gucci for me represents Italian excellence around the world, excellence which is rooted in tradition as much as in innovation,” Sinner said. “This is the kind of message I am proud to convey when I represent my country wherever I am in the world.”
The Italian player was capture in action last week during his 1st round men’s singles match against Nicolas Jarry (from Chile) on day two of the Australian Open at Melbourne Park with more Gucci gear. Sinner carried a custom duffle bag crafted by HEAD and designed by Gucci to the men’s singles match on day two of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne.
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Forget fantasy football—what about a heavenly hotel? Imagine you could create one from scratch, cherrypicking the best aspects of the world’s most noteworthy recent openings and reopenings, combined into the perfect, impossible property. That’s what we’ve done, from the best rooftop restaurant for supper to the only beach club where’s it’s truly worth basking in the sun, this is the world’s ultimate hotel. The only thing we can’t arrange: the chance to check in.
FACADE Capella Sydney
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It took seven years to turn this local landmark—the building once housed the departments of education and agriculture—into a luxury hotel. A honey-coloured jewel in a precinct awash with appealing sandstone facades, its crowning glory, literally, is the gleaming, four-storey glass addition that perches atop the structure like an architectural tiara.
SUITES
The Surrey, a Corinthia Hotel
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After a full reimagining by Martin Brudnizki and its new operators, Malta-based Corinthia Hotels, this Upper East Side stalwart’s signature suites now include a quartet inspired by Central Park bridges. Mouldings nod to the structures’ architectural details, while hand-painted sketches inside the grandes armoires evoke the Ramble-adjacent Bow Bridge.
RESTAURANT
Le Rooftop at Royal Mansour Casablanca
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Relax on the 23rd floor of this Art Deco-inflected skyscraper hotel and you’ll not only enjoy astonishing views over the water and toward the towering Hassan II Mosque, but you’ll also find yourself rubbing elbows with the coolest crowd in the city. Snag a sofa on the terrace before sundown and linger all evening.
LOBBY
Peninsula London
England
Hong Kong’s Peninsula hotels are renowned for their fleet of high-end classic cars—a personal passion of billionaire owner Sir Michael Kadoorie. No wonder he struck a deal with Surrey’s Brooklands Museum for his latest opening in London: not only is the Claude Bosi-operated restaurant named in its honour, but the institution also makes available a rotating selection of outstanding vintage vehicles—most recently, a Bentley Blower and a Napier-Railton—for display in the eatery’s dedicated lobby, close to the Concorde nose installed overhead, sourced from Kadoorie’s personal collection.
BEACH CLUB
Borgo Santandrea
Italy
The dearth of standout beaches is the Amalfi Coast’s dirty secret, so this is a remarkable asset: walk down through the terraced, lemon-tree-filled gardens of this Gio Ponti-inspired hotel bolted to the steep cliffs by Conca dei Marini, and you’ll stumble upon its own beach club attached to the property. The restaurant sits in a renovated boathouse; feel free to snip some herbs from the mismatched pots filled with sage and basil.
SPA
Meritage Resort and Spa
Napa Valley
The naturally formed 2,044 m² Estate Cave, located 12 m underground, was already spectacular—its extensive menu of treatments includes both cave-stone massage and guided breathing and meditation sessions—but the $37 million rehab of this establishment thankfully doubled the size of the adults- only pool in front of Spa Terra.
POOL
One&Only Za’abeel Dubai
UAE
This gravity-defying infinity pool, sitting atop the cantilevered link between the hotel’s two towers, has a clubby vibe, swim-up bars and sunken seating pods—and the fact that it’s Instagram catnip doesn’t hurt either.
Photos by ADRIAN GAUT; BORGO SANTANDREA; PENINSULA LONDON; WILL PRYCE.
