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Necker, his beach-fringed property in the
(aptly named) Virgin Islands. The American
magician David Copper eld spent £30 million
developing Musha Cay, the collection of
Bahamian islands he calls his holiday home.
Johnny Depp snapped up Little Halls Pond
Cay in the Bahamas. And American billionaire
Malcolm Forbes became so attached to his
Fijian island of Laucala that he requested
that, even when he died, he was
left there. Today, hike to the top of
a hill and there he lies, beneath a
gravestone engraved simply
with 'When Alive, He Lived'.
Unsurprisingly, where millionaires
go, others want to follow -
particularly to places that o er the
attractive combination of both
privacy and serious luxury, away
from the lenses of prying paparazzi.
Princess Margaret was one of the rst to
make the island of Mustique her romantic
hideaway after the war, with her new beau
Lord Snowdon. More than half a century
later, when Elle Macpherson chose to tie the
knot with billionaire Je rey So er, she knew
precisely the place that would o er the right
combination of romance and exclusivity:
Laucala, with 80 friends as her guests.
Given the wealth of most of the visitors
to private islands, it is unsurprising that no
expense is spared in giving them the best,
from furnishings to toys and food. Most
islets will have butlers trained by leading
hotels (including Four Seasons and Aman
Resorts), who have been acclimatised to
such Hollywood demands as speci cally
fragranced candles, Frette sheets, fresh
herbal smoothies - and, on one island, toy
pistols with which guests could shoot Cristal
Champagne into each other's mouths.
On Necker Island, Branson has hunky
beach boys who can teach such guests as
Kate Moss and Kate Winslet to surf, kite-surf,
snorkel and waterski - or take them sailing
in one of the eet of catamarans. Musha Cay
comes with a resident entertainer who can
arrange a concert on the beach or a bespoke
treasure hunt. The new Coco Privé Kuda Hithi
in the Maldives has spa therapists on call 24
hours a day, and cooks who can deliver meals
to order - from South American to Chinese.
In spite of the image that is often
presented of islands being places to relax,
eat simple food and regain health, cuisine is
taken seriously, and celebrity chefs are often
own in to suit guests' tastes. On Necker, a
chef might be brought in from The Ritz to
concoct gustatory feasts and add his touch to
a dugout canoe oated in a pool that's full of
owers and fresh sushi. On Musha
Cay, caviar tagliatelle, grilled lobster
and warm chocolate tarts can be
whisked up under palm trees by a
top Miami chef. And on the almost
incomparably perfect Laucala,
dishes by Australian chef Anthony
Healy are all the more delicious
because three-quarters of his
ingredients are produced on the island itself.
Diversity is o ered not just in the food on
most islands, but their activities, too. Laucala,
for instance, doesn't just have a spa, but nine
therapists. The dive centre has among its
collection of water toys a DeepFlight Super
Falcon submarine. There's a cultural centre
celebrating Fijian crafts and local tradition,
stables with thoroughbreds, a golf course
with a pro always in attendance. And best
of all: dozens of pools, one a breathtaking
60,000 sq ft of landscaped, island-dotted
ON MUSHA CAY, CAVIAR TAGLIATELLE,
GRILLED LOBSTER AND WARM CHOCOLATE
TARTS CAN BE WHISKED UP UNDER PALM
TREES BY A TOP MIAMI CHEF
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