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Renaissance Phuket Resort and Spa, Phuket, Thailand.

You don't have to buy in to the nightlife of Phuket. Sunday Travel editor Angie Kelly found a peaceful and party-free part of the island.

There are no sleazy bars at Mai Khao Beach. There are no neon lights, touts, scooter shops, boozy crowds or backpackers.

While the island's most popular resort strip of Patong heaves with about 25,000 holidaying Aussies at any given time of year, just 16 kilometres north of the airport an alternate universe awaits.

Renaissance Phuket Resort and Spa, Phuket, Thailand.

While the party crowd turns right out of the airport, those seeking spa time, fine food, an art scene, historic architecture and an 11-kilometre strip of undeveloped, business-free beach, turn left.

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Tucked inside the Sirinat National Park, on the north-west coast, is a handful of low-rise, boutique resorts where silence and the sand are golden and abundant.

The resorts are totally hidden from the main highway and the dirt-road drive through untouched national park underlines the isolation.

But there's nothing rustic about the Renaissance Resort and Spa, despite its location. We drive through a set of fairly serious security gates and pull up to find an ultra-modern, minimalist foyer warmed by staff who are genuinely smiling and friendly.

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On the quiet side

As we sat in the booth at Old Chicago, wrapping up our first round of their Cinco de Mayo tour (second round for the special-edition shirt still up for discussion), I realized something: We were in a rut, socialization-wise.

When you know the Old C's waiters in two locations, you go too much.

And if the last time you "partied" in public was for your friend's Ugly Sweater party in December, you've been in hibernation too long.

Booze columnist to the rescue.

"We need a night to just get slutty and dance

*Silence and raised eyebrows*

But seriously, I insisted, it was time to let the ladies out -- yes, I'm talking about breasts, gentlemen -- and leave the winter layers at home. Eventually, my persuasion -- and our third beer -- got 'em considering my plan, with a subsequent discussion on what tall girls like me wear instead of heels, and how we'd pay for this night of debauchery on less-than-nothing paychecks.

Psssh. Details.

But for you hip folk that haven't lamed out yet, Absinthe House (1109 Walnut St.) is already thinking big on how to party hardy Saturday night.

Pukka Up, a party boat company in Ibiza, is marking its 10th anniversary. Ten parties in 10 nightclubs in 10 countries around the world, all on the same night. And Absinthe is one of the only parties happening in North America.

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WEEKEND IN BOULDER: Pukka Up Ibiza boat party at Absinthe House

Ibiza Edge Villas offer villas across the island, from smaller places sleeping two to four people up to larger accommodation for over six people. They also provide other services, including boat/yacht charter, private catering, restaurant and club bookings, scuba diving and a mobile bar service.

Leeds, England (PRWEB) April 18, 2013

The company have stated that the increase shows that people are no longer interested in staycations and would prefer to seek the sun in warmer Mediterranean locations this summer. This also tallies with The Association of Travel Agents, who have reported an increased demand for last-minute breaks abroad.

Snow, wind and freezing conditions continuing through March and into early April have led to fed-up Britons abandoning their plans for a stay-at-home break and turning to sunnier climes for their holidays this year. Traditional pastimes such as camping and caravanning over the recent Easter holidays were impossible for most people.

However, the bad news for Brits has been good news for Ibiza Edge Villas, who have reported a significant increase in bookings thanks to the poor weather conditions in the UK. The company, which provides luxury villas to rent in Ibiza, is enjoying extremely high levels of demand for this time of year.

Traditionally the domain of holidaymakers looking for nightlife and nightclubs, Ibiza is becoming an increasingly popular destination for UK travellers of all walks of life, with families, couples and older people now turning to the island as a nearby and reliable source of sunshine.

Offering villas right across the island, the company has been able to take advantage of poor UK weather conditions by attracting families looking for somewhere sunny to spend their Easter holidays.

Millions of Brits flocked to airports across the UK seeking an escape from the doom and gloom of the prolonged winter and hoping to find solace and sunshine on other shores. The Association of British Holidaymakers said that its members were experiencing a high demand for last-minute holiday deals overseas as a result of freezing temperatures at home.

About Ibiza Edge Villas

Ibiza Edge Villas offer villas across the island, from smaller places sleeping two to four people up to larger accommodation for over six people. They also provide other services, including boat/yacht charter, private catering, restaurant and club bookings, scuba diving and a mobile bar service.

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Poor Weather Sending Holidaymakers Abroad, Says Ibiza Edge Villas

With a paintbrush between his teeth, Lightening jumped out of the water and jabbed fuchsia acrylic paint onto a blank canvas while I did my best to hold the frame steady and not fall into the pool next to Flipper.

It wasn't my first encounter with dolphins on this trip. Earlier in the day I demonstrated the downward dog position to dolphins swimming by my yoga class at the Mirage hotel.

Our instructor told us that communing with animals and exercising is a great anti-depressant, or as she put it, "the best cocktail in Vegas."

A fellow yoga classmate had just arrived from Europe, and when I asked how she managed to exercise instead of sleep, she told me her secret: staying in one of the MGM Grand's special rooms with lighting designed to cure jet lag.

Just where is this tropical resort, you ask? It's the most unlikely place you'd expect to commune with nature: Las Vegas. Spas and wellness packages are the latest trend in this trend-setting city. Yes, you read that right. Sin City is now enticing visitors who want to redeem themselves or just detox in order to retox.

Hotel Vdar encourages you to "Do Vegas differently" by staying in a no-smoking, no-gaming and eco-friendly establishment.

The Aria rebelled against the Vegas rule of keeping the hotel lobby dark so people have no idea what time it is and are more likely to keep gambling. Instead, three-story floor to ceiling windows allow natural light to permeate the lobby that

The MGM Grand has "Stay Well" rooms that feature air purifiers, a special coating that breaks down bacteria on surfaces, lighting for jet lag, healthy room service, aromatherapy and vitamin C infused into your shower. Even watching television is good for you here. Deepak Chopra welcomes you on a special health channel when you walk in the room.

If you're still not motivated to get in shape, go to the Cirque du Soleil show "Zarkana" at Aria, and you'll be in awe of their physiques. One local told me these dancers are never seen on the party circuit. They work out, perform their show and work out again, he said.

Instead of gambling, many visitors are heading to the blackjack-style tables at Aria's Tetsu restaurant. Michelin-starred chef Masa Takayama says Tetsu translates to "iron" in Japanese, which is why the Japanese version of Iron Chef is often called Tetsu. It's the idea that the chef cannot be beat, which is pretty much like all the tables in Vegas, except the "dealers" at Tetsu prepare a delicious meal in front of you.

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A new Sin City? That's right--spas, wellness latest trends in Las Vegas

Luke Leitch meets the menswear designers of Louis Vuitton, Z Zegna, and Rag & Bone - an elite quartet of British menswear designers who have swapped London for Paris, Milan and Manhattan.

BY Luke Leitch | 10 April 2013

Kim Jones of Louis Vuitton After two years as menswear designer for France's grandest luxury marque, Kim Jones could, if he wanted to, just about describe himself as a Parisian. After all, he has a flat in the 1st arrondissement in the streets of Little Japan, just north of the Grand Palais, that's a convenient 10-minute walk from his studio at Louis Vuitton. At weekends he enjoys the grand galleries of the Right Bank, walking his miniature pinschers, Dexter and Lulu Fishpaw, and window-shopping in the backstreets.

Jones, though, remains firmly English. 'I'm a definite expat, that's for sure,' he says when we meet in that studio. Unrepentantly Anglo-Saxon, he cheerily confesses that his French is not up to scratch yet - 'everyone in the studio speaks English, and I haven't got any spare time to do the homework' - a situation not helped by his fondness for watching British TV on satellite. He is a regular haunter of WH Smith by the Jardin des Tuileries to catch up on the English press - 'they've got a brilliant selection of magazines' - and BookMarc (owned by Louis Vuitton's creative director, Marc Jacobs) for weightier tomes. Food-wise, Jones favours Ralph's - Ralph Lauren's restaurant - for a Sunday lunch that's light on the garlic ('It's nice to have something a bit English-y if you're feeling homesick').

READ: Bhutan meets Brit-Art at Kim Jones' Himalayan Louis Vuitton autumn/winter 2013 show

It's not as if Jones, 33, is unadventurous. Professionally, his previous incarnations as designer for Dunhill and his own label garnered rapturous acclaim for their precise and playful take on contemporary streetwear and tailoring. And at Vuitton, where he is the figurehead for the masculine half of what is among the most globally recognised brands in the fashion industry, he has embarked on a brilliantly straightforward conceit around which to frame his biannual collections: a world tour.

On the day we met in Paris, Jones was adding the very final touches to his collection for this autumn, a collection that drew much of its inspiration from Bhutan. Slightly manic from the weight of his impending deadline, Jones took me to the rails to see his Himalaya-ready deerskin parkas, marble-ornamented carabiners, some great jackets and overcoats in yak felt (who knew?), Vuitton-ised luxury hiking boots (ostentatious, but knowingly so), blankets in Bhutanese check, shirt-studs made from stone taken from Mt Everest itself, and even a traditional Vuitton trunk transformed into a sherpa-ready backpack.

Looks from the Louis Vuitton spring/summer and autumn/winter 2013 shows. Photos: Getty/REX

'The truth is,' he says, 'I'm probably only in Paris about half of my time.' To research this collection, he went on an extended fact-finding mission to Bhutan. There is a full set of yellow-spined copies of National Geographic shelved tellingly behind his desk, and although he won't reveal the next country on his radar, he talks with particular enthusiasm about Papua New Guinea before adding, 'but how many countries are there in the world? Hundreds. I'd be dead before I could do them all.'

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Brits abroad: expat menswear designers