Beyond – Details, episodes & analysis

The dynamic Cindy Novotny has been branded the “Radical Mentor” and holds rooms of hundreds and thousands of people in rapt attention. She tells us about living with no balance, why you should never fake it, secrets to career success, how passion is a combination of love and anger, and always starting with the most important person in the room, the customer. Hotels she loves: Borgo Egnazia, Grand Hotel Mackinac Island, Four Seasons Prague, Royal Mansour Marrakech, and the Belmond Hotel Cipriani in Venice. 

First, Jack and Annie’s airplane pet peeves, like pretzels that make your breath smell, boarding groups 1 to 3 together when you’re Group 1 as British Airways Gold, and why do they make you put your laptop away 45 minutes before the flight lands?

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CEO of Virtuoso and the greater purpose of enriching lives through human connection, his top advice for how to become a luxury travel advisor, and SOME OF his favorite hotels (not his ONLY favorite hotels) which include The Brando in French Polynesia, &Beyond Masai Mara Bateleur Camp, the Bulgari in Rome, Capella Bangkok, Raffles Old War Office in London, and the Bellagio in Vegas. 

First, Jack and Annie’s hotel pet peeves, from lighting and trash cans to soap and open bathrooms.

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We talk to the amazing Bob Chavez of Hermès, who heads up a team of 1,800 people, on everything from how to scale a business through culture, how store directors (not managers) go to Paris 4x a year to buy product for their individual store–plus, fun stories on why the Hermès box is orange and how Sex & the City changed the trajectory of the Birkin bag. Annie asks if he has special insurance for his NYC closet–and we find out some of his favorite hotels, including Amanpulo in the Philippines; the Hotel Villa Cipriani in Asolo, Italy; and Como Laucala Island in Fiji. 

First, a quick rant on why we think there should be a dress code on airplanes.

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Why Annie won’t shut up about M&S All-Butter Biscuits; Jack’s favorite family tradition and things to buy for his kids while traveling. 

Plus: Tenniscore, the Great Japan Debate (and why one Embark advisor hated it), Taylor Swift changing all the lives, rates in the Mediterranean and why cruising is so popular, how to plan a multigen trip without meltdowns, and is there actual value in digital detox?

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Singita, Passalacqua, Chem Chem, Schloss Elmau, Peninsula Hong Kong, Palacio Principe Real, Hotel du Cap Eden Roc, Hermosa Inn in Arizona 

How do you choose between Le Bristol, La Réserve, the Shangri-La Paris, Cheval Blanc, Le Royal Monceau, Plaza Athénée, The Ritz, the Four Seasons George V, the Lutetia, J.K. Place Paris, and SO MANY MORE amazing luxury hotels in Paris? Jack Ezon divides the options between Left and Right Bank and with his signature opinions, gives us the lay of the land.

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The Story of Embark Beyond (still a business baby at five years old) and why it’s all about culture and emotional impact. Plus, co-founder Jack Ezon’s former life as a lawyer and what led to the creation of Embark Beyond. And Annie Fitzsimmons on why she calls herself a “travel person” being involved in many aspects of the business and a tiny bit about her new book, National Geographic’s 100 Hotels of a Lifetime. AND - since Jack and Annie both grew up one of five kids, they know the power of a great hotel even more.

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Where We've Been and Where We're Going (Personally and Professionally) 

Jack and Annie on a true mixed bag of topics including:

• 2025 Goals
• Jack’s Brand Crush (vs. Industry Crushes)
• The Best Hotel at Disney World
• Jack’s Business Goals
• Are People Using Websites Anymore?
• Annie Has Two Lives (Travel + Home)
• Paris in the Winter
• Turks & Caicos Recap
• The Glorious History of Beaverbrook
• Is The Most Insane Suite in the World in...Houston?
• And - Why Go to L.A. Now

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This week, Jack and Annie talk where to go when you're hot in the summer (cruises in Iceland, Scandi cities, Bavaria), and debate whether Jack might be talking a little too much about beach clubs–Annie thinks yes but that isn't stopping her from flying to La Guerite in Cannes.

Then, top travel and lifestyle journalist Mark Ellwood joins to talk about what joy really looks like in travel today, why “authentic” is just a filler word, the continual proliferation of fine dining in hotels, and why you should live like a tourist, not a local.

Plus, five of Mark's favorite hotels (and why Venice is so romantic in the winter), and three luxury brands he loves that aren't by LVMH or Kering.

Jack & Annie Intro 

15:45 – Mark Ellwood Interview Begins

42:55 - Five of Mark's Favorite Hotels

eriro in the Austrian Alps

Eden Rock in St. Bart’s

Violino d’Oro

Raffles London at the OWO

Aeolos Hotel in Koufonisia

On living away from the UK and living in NYC forever – “The longer you’re away, the more you become a weird version of not yourself. If you go back to where you’re from, the shape that you left behind you no longer fit but people don’t realize. But I relish that…a citizen of nowhere.”

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