Today, I’m joined by Alex Polizzi, who you might know best as TV”s 'Hotel Inspector’. Alex has used her decades of experience working in hospitality to advise struggling hoteliers on how to turn their businesses around on the hit Channel 5 show. And on today’s episode we take a deep dive into what makes a great hotel, a great holiday and our ultimate pet peeves. 

Alex’s passion for travel and hospitality is something that runs in her blood. She’s part of one of travel’s most iconic family dynasties, the Forte family, Her grandfather was the legendary hotelier Lord Charles Forte, an Italian immigrant who opened a milk bar on London’s Regent Street in the 1930s and turned it into an empire of over 800 international hotels. Her uncle Rocco, established his own chain of luxury hotels, the Rocco Forte hotels. Her mother, is the hotel designer Olga Polizzi and founder of the Polizzi Collection (three hotels across the south of England), the third of which, The Star in Alfriston, she opened jointly with Alex in June 2021 to rave reviews. 

I spoke to Alex in one of her family’s most iconic hotels, Brown’s in London. Her travel diaries today take us from Cambodia to the Caribbean, from Portugal to Puglia, all across Italy and much more. 

Destination Recap:

• Browns’ Hotel, London, England, UK
• Dona Filipa Hotel, Algarve, Portugal 
• Cambodia
• Hong Kong
• Hotel Endsleigh, Devon, England, UK
• Venice, Italy
• Belmond Cipriani, Venice, Italy
• Providenciales, Turks + Caicos
• Torcello, Venice, Italy
• Murano, Venice, Italy
• The Coral House, Providenciales, Turks + Caicos
• Villa Igiea, Palermo, Sicily, Italy 
• Pompeii, Naples, Italy
• Ischia, Italy 
• Masseria Torre Maizza, Puglia, Italy 
• Lecce, Puglia, Italy
• Otranto, Puglia, Italy 
• The Priory Hotel & Restaurant, Caerleon, Wales
• India
• Japan

With thanks to today's sponsors:

Citalia - Discover the real Italy with Citalia, the UK’s leading Italian holiday specialists. Let the Italy Experts craft the perfect holiday for you and experience Italy like a Citalian.

Masseria Torre Maizza, a Rocco Forte Hotel - Be inspired by Alex's travel diaries, and discover an oasis of luxury in the heart of the Apulian countryside, Masseria Torre Maizza.

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If you want to be the first to find out who’s joining me on next week’s episode come and follow me on Instagram, I’m @hollyrubenstein and I’d love to hear from you. And if you can't want until then remember there’s the first eight seasons to catch up on, that's over 100 episodes to keep you busy there. And don’t forget that all the destinations mentioned by my guests are always included in the episode show notes and they’re also on my website, TheTravelDiariesPodcast.com 

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