We don’t have a name for summer’s segue into autumn, but we feel it in our bones – a soft, electric energy that something subtle yet oh-so deep is underway. This energy infuses destinations, too, and tapping into it will enrich any trip at this time of year. Whether you’re visiting London or Shanghai, Mykonos or Santorini, here’s how to experience the season-between-season feeling – it’s all about being in just the right place at just the right time. And The Set’s extraordinary hotels make it very easy to do just that.
London
London has its own cooling system in the hottest months: the Royal Parks. As summer fades, the city’s life moves differently, and a renewed energy replaces summer’s languor.
This reawakened joie de vivre comes through in London’s autumnal cultural calendar, which sees galleries and theatres packed once more with patrons. As London’s natural world prepares to hibernate, its cultural hubs bloom, with the excitement especially palpable in the theatre district, that enchanted enclave bounded by Oxford Street, the Strand, Kingsway and Regent Street.
The last of these is home to Hotel Café Royal. With its gilded architecture, myth-painted ceilings and spectacular dining, the hotel has been part of London’s Theatreland cast for some 160 years. Its walls have absorbed the chatter of generations of bohemians, not least the great Oscar Wilde, who was a regular at the hotel’s Louis XVI-style Café Royal Grill. If anywhere has front row seats to London’s autumnal renaissance, this is it. Sink into a banquette for Michelin-starred dining at Alex Dilling after a Frieze preview – another of the season’s cultural highlights – or slip into the Green Bar once the galleries close.
Shanghai
The official centre of a city is a quirk of geography. What matters is its heart. Come autumn, when Shanghai emerges from the haze, literally and figuratively, of the summer months, Jing’an assumes this role. Why? Because in the cooler, less humid autumn, Shanghai is walkable, and the best walks radiate from this district – especially those exploring the city’s unique East-meets-West Haipai culture. Take Upper House as your home base here. Surrounded by leafy streets and tucked-away boutiques, it’s a brief stroll from the Jing’an Sculpture Park, which should be an early port of call.
What you notice when you walk in Shanghai, is the city’s astonishing contrasts. Now, every city has its contrasts, but Shanghai’s is truly a remarkable collage of styles, with lilong lanes set improbably besides glass-and-steel statements. Refresh yourself after this aesthetic adventure with the softer sight of seasonal chrysanthemum blossoming in the Yu Garden, followed by drinks on one of the city’s rooftop terraces – accompanied, perhaps, by a gentle autumn breeze.
The season comes in many forms – including, in Shanghai, that of the hairy crab. It’s the female crabs that you should order in early autumn, since their roe peaks first. Look out for them at the Upper House’s Sui Tang Li where chef and soup dumpling legend Tony Ye often takes guests to Yagcheng Lake in pursuit of this delicacy before the creation of his crab roe soup dumplings.
Mykonos
As summer’s party fades, Mykonos returns to its senses and daytime becomes about more than waiting for nightfall. Myconian Deos encapsulates this mood shift. Perched above Mykonos Town, it looks out as the blue of dusk gives way to darkness and the lights below begin to wink.
With autumn’s approach, nightlife becomes will-you-won’t-you. If one last dance calls, take one of the hotel’s complimentary buggies, still available for spur-of-the-moment jaunts into town till the early hours.
If it’s time instead to recharge, take your pick of restorative havens, be it your own private pool, the library, or the sunset terrace. The hotel feels private by design.
And if dusk rounds off your day, rather than launches your evening, know this: sunset simply envelops the hotel. The experience is intoxicating in itself – drink in its glow from the best views on the island and look forward to breakfast overlooking the ocean, with a full day ahead of you. And that day can still be spent at the beach. October temperatures average around 22°C, and a daily shuttle runs to Almiriki Beach Club on Agrari, where a shaded sunbed awaits. It’s a secluded stretch of coast reserved for Deos guests, with shaded sunbeds and uninterrupted views across the Aegean.
Santorini
Arrive in Santorini by boat if you can. Stand in the sweet Aegean spray, taking in the hills’ verdant reawakening and the magnificent, Atlantis-myth-inspiring caldera. Autumn’s cooler temperatures invite a different view of Santorini, one that extends beyond that familiar image of whitewashed walls and blue domes.
Indeed, the season inspires visitors to compile their own reel of postcard-perfect shots by engaging with the island’s lattice of walking routes. One of the finest is the Fira–Oia trail, on which sits Andronis Concept, its whitewashed suites and villas spilling down the hillside above Imerovigli. Private terraces open onto sweeping views, making it a particularly beautiful place to pause after a day on the trail.
Following your exploration, soak weary limbs in your private infinity pool and gaze out during the transcendentally wonderful sunset hour. Then on to dinner at Throubi. Named after the intensely aromatic herb that grows in the hotel’s gardens, the restaurant takes its cues from the island’s landscape, with locally grown fruit, vegetables and herbs informing its cuisine. Settle in as the sky deepens, the soft warmth of the afternoon lingering into evening.
Find the season between seasons at Hotel Café Royal in London, Upper House in Shanghai, Myconian Deos in Mykonos and Andronis Concept in Santorini, four extraordinary hotels from The Set.
