The destination designers taking bespoke travel to the next level

Grand, glamorous and undeniably bespoke, there is a certain appeal to couture – or, rather, tailor-made – travel. Just as designers coax style-savants away from the everyday to the wilder shores of their imagination, these specialists have been creating the most fantastical holidays for the great and good for years.

It’s not just their insider intel and theatrical flair, or the fact they have done hundreds of location recces across the globe; a large part of their skill lies in recognising a person’s style and instinctively knowing how to elevate their trip.

Take Emily FitzRoy of Bellini Travel, whose immaculate taste and attention to detail make her the unparalleled Italian expert to piece together a holiday that has all the exuberance and craftsmanship of a Dolce & Gabbana Alta Moda show.

For she thrives on elevating everyday experiences to stratospheric heights: be it the best guide to hike the volcanoes of Salina, the most verdant of the Aeolian Islands, or a private after-hours tour of La Foce in Val d’Orcia, whose gardens are an inspiring example of Renaissance-style planting created by Cecil Pinsent for the writer Iris Origo.

There are grand palazzos and sprawling vineyards at FitzRoy’s fingertips, white-truffle suppliers on speed dial, and restaurant tips galore – not to mention her miraculous ability to get a last-minute table through contacts at, say, Locanda Cipriani on Torcello, Venice, for the vongole of your dreams.

She just has that sixth sense of exactly where you want (and need) to be.

For Indiaphiles, no one compares to Bertie and Victoria Dyer of India Beat for helping you to tune in to the exceptional culture and rhythm of Rishikesh or Rajasthan – or, really, anywhere in this vast country.

Having lived in Jaipur for many years, they have a great book of contacts, whether you want to meet maharajas or mahouts.

When it comes to palaces and gem shops, and you don’t know where to start, they excel at guiding you to the best.

They also know the most original places to stay, including some heavenly havelis near the Pink City, with gauze-draped four-posters and jasmine-fringed gardens, and a remarkable eco-camp in the Aravalli Range, Dera Amer, which doubles as a sanctuary for two rescued elephants, Rangmala and Laxmi.

India Beat encourages you to stray from the well-trodden Rajasthani path, seeking out wildly beautiful abandoned temples and arranging blessings with priests or an appointment with an astrologist.

Stars aside, take the Dyers’ recommendation of lunch at organic retreat Anopura, where the thali is pleasure incarnate.

They also excel at safaris, where you might witness thrilling encounters with leopards or tigers – a hard feat to achieve, but then Bertie spent many years working for next-level photographers such as Mario Testino and Michael Roberts, so is very used to making the impossible happen.

Another dream-maker is Lord Edward Downpatrick, whose company, Aristeia Travel, offers unrivalled knowledge of Scotland – and entrée to some of its most spectacular castles.

Eddy Downpatrick’s bespoke trips are as extreme and wide-ranging as the Highland landscapes, where he can take you on a camping adventure in a converted Defender, off-piste skiing in the Cairngorms, or to seek out the country’s best beaches and island gems.

‘I’ve read pieces comparing the likes of Claigan Coral Beach on Skye and Luskentyre Beach on Harris to the best that the Caribbean has to offer and, rain or shine, I’d agree,’ he says, adding, ‘Perhaps none are as spectacular as the holy island of Iona, though.’

It was here that St Columba arrived on the white beaches with 12 followers and established a monastic community in AD 563.

With Downpatrick, you can even ride to the island (the horse goes on the ferry) – and, through his contacts, stay in its most charming house, where you can pull mussels off rocks or scuba dive for scallops for dinner.

If you’re seeking a more far-flung excursion, another of his specialities is helicopter tours of the Himalayas.

For even more Bondian glamour, when you want a seismic, life-changing trip, look no further than the founder of Cookson Adventures, a world-record-holding polar explorer and creator of some of the globe’s most imaginative and mind-expanding expeditions.

Something special happens when you travel with Henry Cookson.

Not only can he deal with the most excessive demands of rock stars and high-maintenance hedge-funders (it can take him months to draw up trips with the most military of planning), but the places he takes his clients render them speechless.

‘I tend not to reveal too much about the most remote places on this planet – there are still numerous secret spots I don’t even share with clients as, unfortunately, they become the victim of globalisation, thanks to people Instagramming them,’ he says, adding that a large part of the magic of his trips comes down to ‘authenticity, real culture and taking the time to fully immerse yourself – and let these places deeply affect you as they should’.

But then it is the way Cookson possesses the spirit of a place that makes being with him so special – whether in Socotra or Svalbard, he can amplify the energy of these incredibly otherworldly sanctuaries.

‘A place that always grabs me is the Great Bear Rainforest in British Columbia, which has an energy like nowhere else,’ he tells The Blend.

And what a series of natural highs he delivers. Indeed, there is something very 007 to Cookson’s approach – although he leaves guests far more stirred than shaken.