Glossy Holidaymakers Share Their Bucket (and Spade) List Destinations: From Miami to Connemara

MIAMI BEACH, USA

Roz Lipsett, Model and stylist. I dream of going back to Miami Beach, where I lived briefly when I modelled for Elite Miami. I love the Latino vibes of Miami, its white sandy beaches, art deco architecture and its art scene. I would love to revisit my favourite hotel, The Setai, have lunch at Cecconis at Soho Beach House followed by a dip in the sea. I’d then make my way to Wynwood, the art district, and lose myself in the famous Wynwood walls and local art galleries. After a walk on the beach at sunset, I would have dinner in Casa Tua. Listening to some live music on South Beach would be the perfect finale to the day. @rosalindlipsett

DINGLE PENINSULA, KERRY

Edelle Kenny, Film director and photographer. We’re spoiled for choice in Ireland with beaches – not only by their variety but also their beauty. They are a medicine for the madness of everyday life. Having just moved back to Ireland after a decade, I rarely want much more from a holiday than a piece of home. I have a Bird’s Nest cabin on the Dingle Peninsula in mind for my Bucket List retreat. It’s simple but has a private beach, a kayak and a bedroom that hovers above the Atlantic. I will go there and read that book I’ve been putting off finishing, while letting the sound of my racing thoughts be absorbed by the waves. @edelle_kenny

KANGWENA BEACH, TANZANIA

Zoe Purcell, Founder, Bowerbird Wild Florals. There’s just one water’s edge that I think about all the time. Though I have been there before (I am pictured there with my daughter Bella, 28 years ago) it never leaves my Bucket List: a single soft crescent of sand on Kangwena beach on Lake Tanganyika in the Mahale Mountains of Tanzania. Above it rises blue mountains covered in deep green forest where I used to track wild chimpanzees and study the trees. We’d get tired, hot and dirty with all the hiking and then head to the water’s edge and plunge into the lake’s liquid crystal. Sometimes I want to go back so badly, it hurts. @bowerbirdflorals

THE MALDIVES

Orlagh McCloskey, Designer and co-founder, Rixo. I would love to return to the Maldives. I tend not to switch off on holidays – I am always looking for inspiration, so my mind whirs non-stop with ideas. In the Maldives, you can switch off, clear your mind and enjoy the moment. I stayed at Soneva Jani, which is like a secluded beach-style Soho Farmhouse, with brilliant food, the most amazing azure water. “No news, no shoes” is its motto and we stuck to it. 

OMEY ISLAND, CONNEMARA 

Rebecca Guinness, Director, Elfie London. Given that I’ve spent a good portion of my life enjoying sand-filled sandwiches on windswept Atlantic beaches, it might surprise some that my Bucket List beach experience is located just a little further south of my usual stomping ground of NW Donegal. The area is most famous for its eponymous ponies but Connemara’s equestrian spirit is evident too just north of Clifden, where a beautiful tidal strand links Omey Island to the Galway coast. The beach hosts annual pony races in July and my idea of heaven is a blue-skied day there with my children (decked out in Elfie clothes of course!), a picnic, a bit of a flutter on the ponies, followed by seafood and a pint at Cleggan mainstay Oliver’s! @radioguinness

BENONE BEACH, CO DERRY 

Becky Cole, Wild gardener and author. Living quite close to the beach I am lucky to enjoy regular sunrise walks along the breathtaking Northern Irish coast. However, I do have a slightly embarrassing confession to make: I cannot swim! So, on my Bucket List is learning to swim and taking crystal-clear cool sea dips at Benone beach with some friends. At the moment, I’m relegated to the rock pools of Portstewart, which seems to be the place children learn to swim. However, I hope one day to make it to the wide, uncurtailed sea and finally lift my feet off the ground. @beckyocole