A cloudy, windy day on Tylösand Beach.

After about two weeks in my grandmother’s summer cottage, a few minutes walk to the sea in Frösakull, I returned to her place in Halmstad. We spent part of Sunday together and lunched at a Greek/Italian restaurant in Tylösand — mostly because I wanted to relive fond childhood memories of super-tasty food in a cozy setting overlooking the water. But the place had changed over the past years; the venue had lost much of its past charm, and even though the location near the sea is nothing to complain about, and the menu caused me to break my vegan eating habits for one meal and fall for the temptation of ordering a vegetarian pizza, I wouldn’t pay to eat there again.

The pizza didn’t quite manage to live up to my belief of how a good pizza should taste like. Whoever made it put on slightly too much cheese, way too much oil, not enough vegetables, didn’t spread out the vegetables evenly over the whole pizza, and failed with the combination of spices. I could barely feel any flavor. My grandmother, who ordered a non-veggie pizza, wasn’t pleased with her food either. Having learnt that disappointment is a completely pointless feeling to wallow in, I just made a mental note that Restaurang Paradiso is not worth any further visits.

After lunch, we continued to Grötvik for a walk along the coast. Despite the lack of sunshine and warm winds, we had a pretty good time. I felt somewhat cold as we arrived home though and curled up in the sofa with a blanket to read my latest gift — the original Mr & Mrs Smith guide. Usually I’m a rather quick reader, but when faced with an irresistible coffee-table book, or certain hotel guides, like the ones by Mr & Mrs Smith, I may very well find myself reading for hours on end. Although published in 2003, the guide didn’t feel outdated the least bit and made me smile/chuckle/laugh/sigh/daydream as I read the reviews and admired the stunning photography. Most of all, the guide reminded me that I want to see more of the UK than London, and that Ireland is a must-visit at least once during a life time — including a stay at one of Smith’s member hotels, of course, preferably The Morrison.

I was pleasantly surprised by the review of Rick’s (not a hotel, a cocktail bar with ten contemporary rooms) in the heart of Edinburgh, the same goes for the section on how to play strip poker. The guide also includes chapters on how to throw a frisbee and how to fly a kite — skills that may come in handy in the British country side or in one of London’s many parks. The terrific insider reviews — 41 in total — were followed by a smart diary style calendar of events in the UK and Ireland, recommended pack list, useful numbers, and witty bios of the anonymous reviewers as well as the Mr & Mrs Smith team. If you haven’t had the chance to read the guide yet you can pick up your own copy at UK/Ireland Hotel Collection, or — for a chance to win a copy — join Jen Laceda’s montly giveaways on her fabulous blog Folie a Deux. Do also check out UK/Ireland Volume 2.

After finishing reading the guide, I made a call regarding an apartment. Can’t live with my grandmother forever! Both her and I agree that another week is (more than) enough, and since I’ve partly recovered from my latest setback, I need to move somewhere else. Fortunately I’ve now found a new apartment, which I’ll move in to the 26th. To my delight, it has an affordable rent, free broadband Internet connection, shower, pentry, access to a small garden, 15 minutes walk to the beach, and a 5 minutes walk to the center of Halmstad. I need somewhere to live before I can travel abroad and this place feels like the best choice. For now.

Possibly related posts:

1. Frösakull to Tylösand on Bike
2. The Swedish West Coast: After Beach in Tylosand
3. You Can Always Rely on Mr & Mrs Smith

Erica Johansson: How did the company come to life? When did you first get the idea to Mr & Mrs Smith?

Tamara Heber-Percy: My partner (now husband) and I were always looking for great hotels for weekends away – we both ran our own businesses so weekends were precious. Unfortunately, none of the guidebooks out at the time represented the kind of hotel we were looking for, so, after a few disastrous trips where we were disappointed the moment we arrived, we decided to write our own guidebook. That Christmas we received more than 2,000 brochures through the post from hotels around the UK and in January we embarked on a mammoth drive around the country to check out 200 that we thought looked special. Of that 200, 41 made it into the first Mr & Mrs Smith Hotel Collection.

Initially, we’d thought of selling the idea to a publisher but none would take it – we got the usual rebuttals – ‘market too saturated’, ‘no one needs another guidebook’, etc. So we set up our own publishing company. We pleaded with a distributor to take us on and he predicted we’d sell 5,000 copies, so when we’d already sold 15,000 within a month of printing, we knew we were on to something.

I must say your books and CDs are terrific. Were the products a part of the initial plan?

The books came first. The CDs were a later addition. My husband James used to be a DJ and also ran his own bar and club, so he is passionate about music. Mr & Mrs Smith developed very organically, as we began to understand what the possibilities were. For example, we only started taking bookings when we realised how much business we were giving the hotels. We were visiting a hotelier we had met two years previously when signing hotels up for the first book – we asked him how it was going and he looked at us incredulously: ‘My God, you have no idea do you?’ he said, ‘You guys are 40 per cent of my business!’ It was amazing to think that people didn’t just like our books as coffee-table browsing fodder, they were actually using them to pick out their next hotel stay.

For someone who considers becoming a member, what would you say to convince them to… take the plunge? What are non-members missing out on?

Well, we’ve tried to make our first level of membership, BlackSmith (£15/$30), a ‘no-brainer’ decision. Whenever a member books a hotel through us, they show their card on arrival and get a little life-enhancing extra: a bottle of chilled champagne, a spa treatment or afternoon tea for two – it varies from hotel to hotel, but is ALWAYS worth a lot more than the membership fee.   We wanted to ensure Smith membership makes sense even if you only stay in one of our hotels once a year.

Members also benefit when they get home – they’ll find a deposit of Smith Pounds in their account as part of our unique and super-generous loyalty scheme, The Vault. We’ve designed this so that even a two-night booking will give the member enough Smith Pounds to treat themselves to one of our hand-picked ‘Vault Valuables’ – luxury goodies from brands we love such as Agent Provocateur, Links of London and Mulberry.

Once a month we put together some amazing offers from our hotels (such as two nights for the price of one), exclusively for our members, which we mail out to each member in our e-newsletter, Room Service. But even if a member isn’t taking advantage of a special offer, they’re still safe in the knowledge that our rates are guaranteed to be the same as or lower than the rates they’d get directly from the hotel.

Basically, if you don’t like champagne, amazing hotel deals and treating yourself for free, then Smith membership is definitely not for you!

How are you able to guarantee the best rates available?

That’s simple – we make it a stipulation for hotels wanting to work with us. Aggregator sites such as Expedia and Lastminute may discount more as part of a package that includes flights and car hire but if you are just booking the hotel we should have the best rates available. If any customer finds cheaper hotel-only rates elsewhere we refund the difference.

When you select which hotels to include in your collections, are you visiting the hotels in the pretence of being regular guests? Or have your reviewers ever accepted complimentary stays in return for exposure?

We initially visit a hotel to determine whether it’s suitable for Smith so we let them know we’re coming – this is so they can give us a tour of the property and let us see as many rooms as possible (which you can’t do if you go anonymously). If the hotel is ‘Smithy’ enough to invite into the collection, we then send an anonymous reviewer couple. They get to experience the hotel as it really is. We make sure we send couples so we get a balanced view, and we don’t tend to send them midweek – we’re all about romantic weekends away, after all. We never allow a hotel into the collection unless the anonymous review comes back positive. The hotels do pay a fee to be part of our collection – after we’ve scouted them out – but they cannot pay their way in.

What can members and other Mr & Mrs Smith fans expect in the future? Any current plans you’d like to reveal?

We are launching in the USA at the moment; it’s a very tough time to do so, but we are doing it organically, with a book we created especially for the States – we are not spending money on offices out there so I think our strategy is sound. We have also just signed a deal with someone in the Asia-Pacific region who will be setting up offices there. This means that our Travel Team will have 24-hour worldwide coverage – so you can book a hotel through us at any time. We also have some exciting plans for new book titles – but that’s a secret!

Last, I’m curious to know, what are your 5 top favorite Mr & Mrs Smith hotels?
I love hotels, but I am also addicted to new experiences so there are few hotels I would choose to go back to but the following are so special that I would jump at the chance:

The Royal Malewane safari lodge in Kruger Park, South Africa – this is where I spent my honeymoon. It’s set in a private game reserve, and every room has a pool; we woke on the first morning to find a giraffe drinking from it. The people who run this place are amazing and make you feel so special.

Ca’s Xorc in Mallorca – I got married here. When we found this hotel for Smith, my husband and I turned to each other and agreed we wanted every single one of our friends to experience the place. I was born in Mallorca so it has a special place in my heart, and the views from Ca’s Xorc are incredible.

Blakes in London -it’s Anoushka Hempel’s original boutique hotel and still a favourite. No fancy spa or corporate meeting rooms, just the perfect romantic atmosphere.

Hacienda de San Antonio in Mexico is a working hacienda set on a coffee plantation. The scenery here is stunning, with volcanoes, mountains, and jungle greenery. It’s a splash of luxury in the untouched heart of Mexico.

Fazenda da Lagoa in Bahia, Brazil, is on it’s own island in the rainforest where freshwater meets the sea; you have to take a boat ride through the mangroves to get there. There are 11 stunningly designed bungalows right on a white sand beach that seems to go on forever. This is one of the few places in the world where you feel totally alone.

For more places to stay including affordable stylish hotels and luxury ski chalets, head over to Mr & Mrs Smith. And don’t miss Smith Travel Blog, where they share insider travel tips, interviews and top 10 features from around the world.

Possibly related posts:

1. You Can Always Rely on Mr & Mrs Smith
2. Interview with Writer and Photographer Joel Carillet
3. This Time in Seoul: Interview with Felicia Shelton

No, I’m not going to write about Mr & Mrs Smith with Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. The online hotel directory Mr & Mrs Smith actually chose the name long before the movie. Apparently because they are all about romantic getaways with your other half. Their directory includes the best hand-picked boutique and luxury hotels in the world and the hotel search on their website makes it easy to find the ultimate option. Whether your ideal destination is Spain, South Africa, Sweden or Sydney, you can rely on Mr & Mrs Smith.

If I could choose any of their hotels, my preferred pick would be La Suite in Rio de Janeiro. First of all I feel attracted to the energetic and laid-back lifestyle in Rio. Secondly, the hotel’s Black Suite with views of the ocean, the mountains and the city doesn’t sound like anything else than heaven to me.

Possibly related posts:

1. Interview with Tamara Heber-Percy, Co-Founder of Mr & Mrs Smith
2. Three Hotels in South Africa: The Bay, Oudekraal and Sabi Sabi
3. You Know You Have Stayed in Luxury Hotels Too Long When You…