MELISSA BIGGS BRADLEY
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE AK ITEM AND WHY?
I adore my iPad case, which I once left at security in Jordan and had returned to me two days later, and my cognac alligator wallet, which gets more beautiful with age.
WHAT ARE YOUR TOP 10 LATEST OBSESSIONS AND WHAT CAN YOU NOT LIVE WITHOUT AND WHY?
I was blown away by a recent visit to Inhotim, the garden/outdoor museum in Brazil; it is a celebration of beauty-natural and manmade.
The Upside of Down: Why Failing Well Is the Key to Success is an insightful book on learning from challenges, which I am a big believer in.
My daughter recently introduced me to mochi, which I think of now as Japan's version of Ladurée macarons; it's made of rice powder but comes in tons of flavors and is delicious
I love Parme Marin's leather necklaces that make any t-shirt look tribal and modern at the same time.
Vivino is a great wine app that catalogs wines you like and recommends similar ones; a sommelier in South Africa told me about it, and I have made some wonderful discoveries with it.
Mii amo, the healing spa in Sedona, is not a new obsession but a place that always restores me. I have been lucky enough to share the experience with my three sisters and many of my closest friends.
My best present this year (thanks Alex): the Deepak Chopra 21-day meditation challenge; I am hooked.
My husband gave me a MINI Cooper a few years ago for my birthday, and it is so fun to drive that I am always happy to do errands, which I used to hate.
I am still going through House of Cards and Newsroom withdrawal.
My daughter and I recently fell in love with a restaurant in Madrid called Luzi Bombon. I would eat there five times a week if it were in my neighborhood.
WHAT ARE YOUR TOP FIVE PRIZE POSSESSIONS?
A series of black and white photos of my children that were taken when they were young; the photographer really captured their spirits.
My sister, who has an amazing jewelry store, FD, has given me many wonderful pieces but my favorite may be the wishbone pendant that she gave to me and my other sisters; it reminds me of how seriously we took each other's wishes as children-and still do today.
My sweet but ugly dog, Izzy. I tell my kids that she is our constant reminder that it doesn't matter what you look like but how big your heart is.
Our house in Southampton is the most peaceful retreat that I know.
My mother was a ballerina with the Royal Ballet of England, and she gave me an album with photos, clippings and notes from her years as a dancer; it is a testament to her grit and grace that I treasure.
BEST ADVICE YOU HAVE EVER RECEIVED?
On my 40th birthday my dad gave me a copy of the poem "Moments" by Jorge Luis Borges. I keep it by my desk and am thankful for his/its wisdom every day.
TELL US ABOUT HOW YOU STARTED INDAGARE AND SOME BACKGROUND HOW IT CAME TO BE?
Even after twelve years as the travel editor of Town & Country, I was frustrated planning my own trips so in 2007 I started Indagare as a place to pool the knowledge of passionate travelers. It has morphed into a magazine, a web site, a community, a travel agency and a boutique. It still revolves around travel and people who are passionate about great experiences, but it now delivers different things in different ways.
WHAT MAKES INDAGARE UNIQUE OVER TRAVEL AGENCIES?
I started Indagare because I wanted to get the most out of my travel moments. My team and I travel constantly, scouting the best restaurants, guides, hotel rooms and experiences and then we share that really current information so all of our members benefit. It's been called the Net-A-Porter of travel because we merge content and commerce, offer exclusive access and have a cult following.
WHAT ARE YOUR TRAVEL FAVORITES AND WHY?
Favorite Hotel
Impossible to answer. I love the Bristol in Paris, Sasakwa in Tanzania, Isle de France in St. Barth's, Abu in Botswana and Laucala in Fiji. I would be sad not to return to all of them at least once.
Favorite City
New York because it's home; Paris because it was home; but this year I also love Rio, Berlin and Madrid.
Favorite Eatery
I love Le Tilleul in St. Paul de Vence, where you sit within the medieval town walls under a huge tree and eat divine French food.
Favorite Museum
I love small museums like Ca' Rezzonico in Venice, Villa Kerylos on the Riviera and the Louisiana in Denmark.
Favorite Spa
Mii amo
Favorite Family Destination
Africa. Our best family vacation has been on safari, so we are going back again next year.
Favorite Romantic Destination
Any place can be romantic with the right person or deadly with the wrong one; I am a real believer that who you travel with is more important than where you go.
WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU ARE NOT TRAVELING?
Work and spend as much time with my family and friends as possibly and luckily my work and travel often includes spending time with friends and families, so I feel super lucky to do what I do.
WHO IS MELISSA BIGGS BRADLEY AND WHY DO WE LOVE HER?
I am not a girl's girl. There I said it. I was talked into going on a girls hiking trip at the Ranch in Malibu five years ago and I was not taking any more applications for friends. I had no room for more and could not imagine having time for new ones. Let's say I was not in the best of shape, so I was in the very back of the pack hiking which gave me an even greater gift than eternal health- Melissa! After days of endless hours of hikes it was all worthwhile. Never before had I met another woman who shared so much with me and from the moment I met her I felt comfortable enough to share it all. She is my sister from another mother, my confidant, my business mentor, my travel partner and has generously shared her circle of amazing friends with me. I will travel anywhere with this girl. She introduces me to places and countries I have only dreamed of visiting and the trips are behind the scenes and over the top amazing and truly life changing experiences. I am looking forward to spending time with her this summer and Bhutan and Morocco in the Fall and thank her everyday for including me in the Indagare family.
After more than a decade as an editor with Town & Country, in 2003, Melissa launched Town & Country Travel magazine, which, under her editorship in 2006, was nominated for a National Magazine Award for General Excellence by the American Society of Magazine Editors (ASME).
Melissa spent a month in Australia when she was ten, went on her first safari in Africa at the age of twelve and lived in France with a French family for a year of high school. She has traveled to more than 100 countries, has favorite neighborhood restaurants and shops in cities on six continents and believes that travel broadens our vision and enlarges our soul. Though she doesn't claim to have mastered jet-lag completely, it rarely slows her down, and she travels with her children, friends and Indagare members multiple times a year. Whether she is exploring Boston or Bangkok, Chicago or Chile, Melissa seeks to get the most out of every trip and to share what she discovers with others so they, too, can make memorable journeys.
She's regularly invited to speak as a luxury-travel expert at conferences. She has been interviewed by USA Today, Allure, InStyle, People, the Wall Street Journal and The New York Times as well as on CNN Headline News, Good Day New York and the Discovery Channel.
She received her B.A. from Yale in 1989 and her master's degree from Columbia University in 1993. When she is not traveling, Melissa resides with her family in New York.
