Elite Traveler Winter 2024/25

elite traveler WINTER 2024/25 52 Contributors

MITCH PAYNE

Photographer

London-based photographer Mitch Payne’s work spans both editorial and commercial projects, with clients including Nike, Grey Goose, British Vogue and The Wall Street Journal .On page 69, he returns to Elite Traveler for the third year running (alongside regular collaborator Maya-Linhares Marx) for our annual holiday gift guide, shot at Payne’s east London studio. Together, the duo have injected their signature vibrant, contrast-heavy styles to bring the shoot to life — highlights include a dazzling diamond-laden suite fromGra ff . mitchpayne.co.uk

MAYA LINHARES-MARX

Stylist

NICOLE TRIVILAS

For our annual gift guide, Elite Traveler has once again collaborated with London-based still-life stylist and set designer Maya Linhares-Marx. With over 17 years experience across both editorial and commercial shoots, Linhares-Marx specializes in creating sets for luxury goods. She comes from a background in textile design, which began with a BA Hons in the subject. Following a stint working in one of Europe’s biggest textile design studios in Vienna, Austria, Linhares Marx returned to the UK and now works across advertising campaigns and editorial content, and runs a prop rental company specializing in naturally

Travel writer

Regular Elite Traveler contributor Nicole Trivilas hails from New York, but now considers herself a Londoner — an ideal day in the city would start with a swing around Kensington Gardens to get the blood pumping, then breakfast at Dishoom, followed by a stroll through one of London's smaller museums. In the evening, it’s going out for cocktails in Mayfair — preferably a martini at Duke’s Bar. A bona fi de hotel expert, Trivilas’ industry-leading knowledge has been called upon to judge a number of awards, including National Geographic Traveller ’s Best New Hotels in 2022 and The Telegraph ’s inaugural Hotel Awards in 2024. On page 162, she checks into the newly opened Eriro — a nine-suite retreat in the remote reaches of Austria’s Tyrolean Alps. nicoletrilivas.com

found materials. mlmstylist.com

NATASHA BIRD Journalist, editor and consultant

Natasha Bird formerly worked as executive editor at ELLE , but now contributes to a number of titles including Cosmopolitan , Esquire and Harper’s Bazaar , and runs Tough Crowd — an automotive consultancy aimed at challenging the industry’s gender barriers. Her expertise spans a broad spectrum, from fashion and technology to relationships and travel, but for Elite Traveler ’sWinter issue, she has her motoring hat on. On page 62, Bird gets behind the wheel of the new Aston Martin Vanquish: “It’s a car that feels as tender as it does terrifying... Opening up the throttle in Sport mode on Costa Smeralda’s generous, empty straights feels like riding a bazooka rocket.” Home is London, which, despite being a frequent traveler, remains her favorite city on Earth. natashabird.com

Words Kim Ayling