Accommodation so exclusive it’s not on Expedia, Kayak or Trivago: the quiet luxury retreats that are only for those in the know

They are shrouded in secrecy, have no booking forms or advertisements on websites and are practically invisible online – welcome to the world of unlisted suites

The epitome of quiet luxury, these villas, rooms and cottages cater to wealthy clients who want ‘somewhere that is not already plastered over Instagram’

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The Mandarin Oriental, New York’s Suite 5,000, long shrouded in mystery for its secretive status, appeared on the hotel’s website last year. Other elite retreats, however, are as hard to book as ever as quiet luxury pervades the travel world. Photo: Mandarin Oriental, New York

Published: 4:24pm, 25 Jul 2023Updated: 4:44pm, 25 Jul 2023

It was only a matter of time before quiet luxury hit the travel world. Reflecting a chic tendency towards the inconspicuous, it has already shown up nearly everywhere else, from fashion to furniture, sports cars to skin care.

Enter the unlisted suite, the secret accommodation that can be booked only by those who know it exists. Not only does it shun the customary online booking engine, it practically evades public awareness altogether.

These suites are wiped from hotel websites and missing from search results – all but phantoms in the highly visible, over-Instagrammed universe of luxury stays.

Pricing is available only by direct inquiry, and you must dig extremely deep to see a photograph, even a description, in any published format. In the past year, they have sprouted by the dozens.

Villa de France at Cheval Blanc, in St Barts, is nearly impossible to spot in real life. Photo: Cheval Blanc

Take Villa de France, the new Jacques Grange-designed five-bedroom suite at Cheval Blanc, in St Barts, a French-speaking Caribbean island. It is a palatial retreat so discreetly nestled in the resort’s flora, it is nearly impossible to spot in real life. It is also virtually impossible to find online.