Australian photojournalist launches 'i love it here' Travel Guides

'i love it here' is a brand-new series of travel guides that aim to offer the seasoned traveller what conventional accommodation guides and coffee-table architecture books often don’t.

Australian photojournalist Tony Watts has been based in South-East Asia for more than a decade, and admits the series was born of frustration, “Honest, unbiased opinions about the hotels and resorts in the region was non existent,” he said. “I stayed at one resort where they had confirmed there was a lap pool – but didn’t mentioned that it was drained for maintenance at the time. It just wasn’t good enough.”

“I knew friends back home had the same frustrations because my in-box was full of e-mails asking for advice. There are plenty of places here that make Fawlty Towers look professional, but the region is also home to some of the most sensational hotels and resorts in the world – and that’s what i love it here is all about.”

Hotels are reviewed from a consumer’s point-of-view, and are accompanied by original photography that is indicative of what visitors will experience when they stay.

The author claims no property has paid to be included, and each is evaluated with quirky rankings including Lifetime Love, Lost Weekend, and One-Night Stand. Insider tips and candid comments help readers navigate the best the region has to offer.

Each property has been selected because it is unique, but with the realisation that it takes more than a brand-name architect and funky design to make a good hotel.

Tony Watts has lived in Singapore for 11 years, contributing to a range of titles, including Straits Times Life!, The Edge, Asia Inc, Stuff, The Graduate, The Highway, Tatler, FHM and August Man. He started his career as a photographer at a Fairfax magazine subsidiary, and then Australian Consolidated Press, before moved on to become Editorial Director for the Expat Group; publishers of the lifestyle titles Expat and Indulgence.

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