Celebrate your New Year’s Eve 2013 in Dubrovnik: an exclusive party at Hotel Excelsior

See in 2013 with the ultimate New Year’s Eve celebration at one of the Dubrovnik’s most exclusive settings, Hotel Excelsior. The charm and magic of one of the most beautiful cities on the Adriatic coast is the perfect framework to spend a new year’s eve you will never forget.

 The elegance of the architecture and furnishing of Hotel Excelsior makes it ideal to spend a romantic and sophisticated new year’s eve in Dubrovnik. Blending dinner dancing, live performance and exquisite fine dining, Hotel Excelsior’s New Years EveParty promises to be the hottest ticket in town.

Unabashed luxury harks back to the Golden Jazz years, a high-end cabaret-style parties of the 20’ties and 30’ties bringing back the atmosphere  of cool cabaret evenings, black & white movies, dancing theater and ladies in long evening gowns and elegant gentlemen with top hats and  tailcoats.

Guests will be greeted with a champagne reception at the Abakus bar, overlooking the hotel’s renowned Gallery of Fame, with the sounds of traditional musical greetings in Dubrovnik. The Gala Night will continue with seven-course dinner and dancing.

Enjoying the sounds of live music and plentiful supply of champagne, you will find yourself immersed in superb service, and dance into the most memorable start of 2013.

Exuding elegance and timeless glamour, this stunning New Year’s Eve celebration costs 110 EUR per person and accommodation prices start at €110 per night (breakfast included), with a minimum stay of two nights applicable to the offer.

The best ingredients for a high quality of life are in Dubrovnik!

What do London’s Harrods, the Four Seasons hotel chain and Dubrovnik’s Grand Villa Argentina have in common? Thierry Caruel! The Frenchman worked at Harrods for three years, spent an equal amount of time as head of kitchen in the luxury hotel chain and then joined Grand Villa Argentina in Dubrovnik, where he has been the chef for the last nine months. Thierry was educated in Paris, and then he worked all over the world – New York, Thailand, India, Switzerland. What brought him to Dubrovnik?

“I remember that one day I was sitting at my computer,” says Thierry Caruel, “and I saw a tempting offer from the Grand Villa Argentina. I had my CV ready in my computer and I was contemplating whether to press the button and send it or not. In the end I did, and I have not regretted it. Fine dinning restaurant Victoria in Grand Villa Argentina is my baby and a great challenge to me. We do lots of weddings, banquettes and parties, and we prepare meals you can find in large cities but are also characteristic of this region and prepared in a modern way. I am delighted to be surrounded by such wonderful young people who are willing to learn, and therefore the atmosphere in the kitchen is relaxed, which is not the case in New York restaurants where a competitive spirit prevails.”

The high point of his successful career has surely been his engagement at the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.  “Preparations for the wedding took two months and everything was top secret. Only my wife knew I had been hired for the royal wedding. The menu was international, and I was in charge of the French cuisine.  All the ingredients had to be bought exclusively in France and were delivered to us in sealed packages which were opened in the presence of the Queen’s security staff, who then tasted all the ingredients. Despite all that, I did not feel I was under pressure, I felt good, and the atmosphere in Buckingham Palace was relaxed. That was a wonderful experience. I met wonderful people and realized why they were proud to have an opportunity to work for the Queen,” says Thierry.

Thierry regularly cooks for his wife and children, who are his most honest critics. At home, he tries new dishes, and specialities from different world cuisines find their place in the menu. The family around the table is always a small celebration for them. “At the moment, my greatest challenge is to create a new speciality which will make Victoria recognized,” reveals this likable and energetic chef. He finds life in Dubrovnik quite similar to the one in London because of the many people from all over the world whom he meets every day in the course of his work. Only the climate is much nicer and life is less hasty and stressful. And these are the best ingredients for a high quality of life, a recipe we should all stick to.

Francis Ford Coppola: “Next time I will visit Villa Agave with my family”

Francis Ford Coppola, one of today's greatest living directors, stayed in the luxurious Villa Agave in Dubrovnik last week. The famous director flew to Dubrovnik from Paris on his private plane, and arrived at Villa Agave where he was welcomed by the director of the hotel, Jasna Đurković, and the hotel’s hostess, Marija Zečević. He brought an old wooden desk and a computer and said he was going to spend all five days that he was in Dubrovnik in the quietness of Villa Agave in order to write materials for his next film project. While talking with his hosts, the hotel group Adriatic Luxury Hotels, and sipping Turkish coffee, he revealed his reasons for revisiting Dubrovnik where he first stayed back in 1962, and at the same place – the Excelsior Hotel.

“In the very beginning of my career I was invited to Dubrovnik in order to participate in the shooting of the film 'Operation: Titian'. I spent three months in Dubrovnik, namely in the Excelsior Hotel, in a room which was then the only one with a balcony and a view of the Island of Lokrum and Dubrovnik. I also devoted the time that I spent there to writing the scenario for the film 'The Rain People'.” Since his first visit to Dubrovnik, Coppola's career has been full of great successes, and today, 50 years later, he wanted to return to the same place for the same reasons. “I wanted to return to Dubrovnik, to the same hotel, in order to find inspiration for writing again. This time, however, in an even more luxurious environment. Here, at the Villa Agave, I have found an ideal place for writing. I have the peace that I need and an inspiring atmosphere. From the terrace of the Villa Agave is the most beautiful view of Dubrovnik and the Island of Lokrum.”

In an exclusive interview, he told us numerous anecdotes from the times he remembers, as well as his impressions of the Old Town, which he visited again. The three months he spent in Dubrovnik many years ago have remained beautiful memories, and ever since he has followed the events in this area with particular attention. “I followed the events here with huge sadness and disbelief. I couldn't believe that the war broke out here, because I remember Yugoslavia as a country of hospitable and peaceful people and was generally impressed with the harmony of life among the people,” Coppola said. “I am glad that those times are behind you. I am amazed with the beauties of Dubrovnik, which is now much more beautiful than I remember. I will come here again next year, but I will not be working. I want to show my family this wonderful place which holds such beautiful memories for me; specifically because the first time I was here I was with my girlfriend who, two years later, became my wife.” 

After a four-day stay at Villa Agave, Francis Ford Coppola said farewell to his hosts and wrote in the guestbook: I’m sitting in almost the same spot, looking at the same view (Island of Lokrum) as I did fifty years ago, when I was trying to write 'The Rain People'. It is more beautiful here than ever – 50 years passed and there's a wonderful sense of well-being and prosperity. Congratulations! Francis Ford Coppola.