Luxe Life: Relais and Chateaux on your iPhone

If you love luxury and technology, take a gander at this latest melding - the iPhone app from Relais & Chateaux. Avail for free, this new app allows for geo-location of member properties, availability, a telephone tab that connects directly to Relais & Chateaux, proposed itineraries to help get the most out of a stay, and Google Maps. Each of the 480 properties comes complete with panoramic photo images and personalized pages, so there's no need to return to your laptop before booking. You can also forward the details to friends, in case you're interested in planning a group outing.

"Relais & Chateaux constantly adapts to the needs of its guests by offering both innovative and efficient interactive services and information. Following up on the upgrade of our central reservations and our website, the development of applications for mobile phones is the next logical step to ensure that travelers can get information anytime they wish," said Jaume Tapies, the International President of Relais & Chateaux.

We're just excited that booking at some of our fave hotels, including The Jefferson and the Inn at Little Washington, is now even easier!

Luxe Life: Book Your Next Spa Appointment Via iPhone

If you're like us, your desire for a great massage or facial often needs to be scratched on an instantaneous basis.

"I think I want a massage rightthisverymoment," you think. If you have an iPhone, you can now fulfill this very desire. A new app, launched today by SpaFinder (yes, those people who bring you the ultra fab Spa Week twice per year), haev launched an iPhone app that allows users to find nearby spas and deals, check the real-time availability of appointments, and book a reservation instantly. The free SpaFinder app is available from the App Store.


The free iPhone app allows spa-goers to search SpaFinder’s database of more than 5,000 day and destination spas around the world by price, deals, treatments, and online booking availability. Each spa in the database includes an overview, treatment menu, and customer reviews. The app currently allows users to instantly book appointments at more than 1,000 spas in the United States. Future versions will allow instant reservations at spas in additional regions worldwide.

“Whether your desire is a lunch-break facial or a vacation-day massage, the last thing anyone needs is stress and hassle when trying to find and book an appointment,” says Sallie Fraenkel, Chief Operating Officer, SpaFinder. “The SpaFinder app makes it possible to not only find the treatment you’ve been dreaming of, but also to pin down the best deal and book it with the touch of the screen.”

Fraenkel noted that the SpaFinder app is particularly valuable for time-strapped or stressed-out travelers in a new or unfamiliar city. Using the iPhone’s GPS features, the app allows users to quickly and easily find and confirm an appointment at a nearby spa, including providing map and directions.

"Travelers are able to view the real-time availability of spas in their vicinity and immediately book a free, confirmed spa appointment, all without having to research options or making multiple calls to find available appointments,” says Fraenkel.

App users who book reservations via the iPhone app also earn SpaFinder Reward Points, which can be redeemed for SpaFinder Gift Cards. SpaFinder Gift Cards can be used at more than 5,000 spas worldwide.

Luxe Life: Go Go Gucci (on your iPhone, that is)

We know you're tech-savvy, banging out Tweets and blog postings like they're going out of style.

But what about your technology itself - is it style savvy?

Deacon here still works from a Blackberry, preferring a keyboard over thousands of apps and a too-cool-for-school touch screen, but if we had an iPhone, this is one app we'd get immediately.

Frida Giannini of Gucci (yes, the fashion house) collaborated with the one and only Mark Ronson to create an app that mixes the hottest beats (aptly called Gucci Beats) that can be mixed directly on the phone as well as share tracks and playlists with friends. The app also allows you to stream music by city, 'aptly' titled the Little Black Book, which combines a city guide, images from the latest fashion shows, news from Gucci, and a look book so you can shop while you groove to the latest tunes.

Best of all, it's free!

Download here.