A holiday destination for the most discerning travellers: Nowhere in the Baa Atoll of the Maldives is now open to guests. With this private island, the Hamburg-based Seaside Collection is redefining luxury

Hamburg/Male, 1 October 2026 – What is the most precious thing for people who already have everything? That’s right. It’s time. Time to spend with family and friends. And, of course, having leisure and plenty of space and a bit of distance from the madness out there in the world. All this is guaranteed by the new private island, Nowhere, in the Indian Ocean. Absolute privacy, a private beach with fine, white sand and a view across the sea, shimmering in a thousand shades of blue, all the way to the horizon. In addition, there is a private Fehi Spa with a gym and sauna, and two expansive swimming pools.

With the opening of Nowhere, Hamburg-based entrepreneur Gregor Gerlach and his sister Anoushka have set new standards: the private island in the UNESCO-protected Baa Atoll in the Maldives comprises a five-bedroom villa, measuring 2,300 square metres, and a three-bedroom villa, measuring 1,200 square metres. Its beauty captivates even seasoned travellers:The architects at Kulör Group have designed this unique location, featuring airy, light-filled two-storey buildings whose rooms open out onto the open sea or the lagoon. With spacious terraces and wonderful bathrooms, featuring plunge pools and the 28-metre-long main pool, whose floor is adorned with the finest mosaics to create a second seabed.

The Musa Lab team, led by London-based designer Inge Moor, has created spaces characterised by understated elegance. Subtle luxury, with an eye for detail and first-class materials, perfectly crafted. Treca beds from Paris ensure the utmost sleeping comfort. The bar is stocked with the finest champagnes and spirits, whilst the sound and entertainment system is state-of-the-art. The finest fabrics in cheerful colours and patterns, fine woods, elegant glassware and exquisite crockery. It is on these that the butler serves delicacies à la minute: Chef Georgios Vasilopoulos fulfils culinary requests on the spot. Round the clock. He is well versed in exclusive service and catering to individual requests; following stints at Raffles Dubai and Nobu Matsuhisa Mykonos, he served as personal chef to the Jordanian royal family before coming to Nowhere to pamper the guests.

Butler service is just as much a given as the transfer from Male Airport in a private seaplane. And from the landing strip to your own jetty aboard the yacht Asma, a Saxdor 400 GTO. ‘Asma’ means ‘seahorse’ in Maldivian. It is the symbol of the Seaside Collection – and fits perfectly with this hotel group: the seahorse is a symbol of creativity and perseverance, as well as imagination and good fortune. With the opening of Nowhere, luxury travel has reached a new dimension.

“Nowhere is the essence of our experience,” says Gregor Gerlach. “With every new project, we strive to improve even further and create something unique. Something that makes people happy. With this private island, we offer a delightful holiday destination for the most discerning guests.”

The strategy is proving successful: the Seaside Collection has already enjoyed great success with the ultra-luxury resort Somewhere, which opened at the start of the year: Immediately after opening, it made it onto the ‘Hot List’ of the high-end travel magazine *Condé Nast Traveller* as the ‘Best New Hotel’; it was also awarded the titles of Best Wellness Hotel, Best Beach Hotel, and Best Hotel in Australia, New Zealand and Asia. Shortly afterwards, the resort received the Hospitality Award from the German luxury magazine ‘Connoisseur Circle’ as the Best New Hotel in the Indian Ocean.

Nowhere is linked to the neighbouring island of Somewhere and its seven equally exclusive residences by a breathtaking restaurant and bar – ‘Safar’, meaning ‘journey’ in German, perhaps offers just the right amount of socialising to make you appreciate the ‘splendid isolation’ all the more after a drink or dinner. And, of course, guests can make use of the tennis courts, the Art Lab, the Teens Hut or Padi Dive Centre at the sister resort, Finolhu. The butler takes care of the arrangements, and the private boat takes guests there in a matter of minutes.

But perhaps you won’t even want to leave Nowhere. Because it’s the perfect place to spend happy moments. After all, what could be more precious than spending time with loved ones?

Fotohinweis: © Seaside Collection / .HERE – Nowhere

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The MICHELIN Guide ‘Hotel Selection 2026’ has awarded its renowned keys to the Château de Montcaud (Provence) and the Grand Hotel Residencia (Gran Canaria)

Grand Hotel Residencia

The Grand Hotel Residencia is the first Leading Hotel of the World on Gran Canaria. A total of 94 rooms and suites are spread across small, two-storey villas, all designed in a style that, years ago, might have been described as ‘colonial’. The French star designer and architect Alberto Pinto left no detail unconsidered in his interior design and gave the Seaside Collection hotel, which opened in 2000, an unmistakable character with hand-painted tiles, the finest fabrics and dark wood. It has often been recognised for its cuisine and design. Now it has one more accolade to its name: Michelin has awarded the hotel a Michelin Key in its ‘Hotel Selection 2026’ guide – and this stands for a unique character and service. Wolfgang Grobauer is in charge of the hotel’s kitchen. He sources produce locally from the island’s farmers and serves it up as unforgettable creations at just the right moment; and from time to time he reinterprets classic Spanish dishes in a modern style. Anyone who checks into this hotel, with its unforgettably beautiful cactus garden and large saltwater pool, is transported into another world in the truest sense of the word. General Manager: Robert Heitzig

Château de Montcaud

This château is living proof of Oscar Wilde’s saying that true beauty is a source of lasting delight
and a treasure for eternity. The Château de Montcaud was built by a French
silk manufacturer in the mid-19th century; a Swiss family has restored it with respect for its
history, transforming it into what it is today: a real gem. Understated elegance rather than ostentation.
A classical stone cube, surrounded by an enchanted forest featuring 140 different trees from
all over the world. Every dish created by head chef Matthieu Hervé is both a delight and a surprise
at the same time. A native of Normandy, he works with the precision of a watchmaker, and it is no coincidence that
the Michelin Guide has awarded the restaurant ‘Le Cèdre de Montcaud’ one star – and has now
gone one better: The hotel, with its 29 rooms and suites, was awarded no fewer than two Michelin keys
in the ‘Hotel Selection 2026’ guide for offering unforgettable experiences and being ‘run
with charm and great care’. Have we forgotten anything? Oh yes: alongside the enchanting park, we simply
must mention the pool, which, set against the backdrop of the southern French countryside,
would also have been the perfect setting for Romy Schneider and Alain Delon in the magnificent classic film ‘La
Piscine’. General Manager: Andrea und Rolf Bertschi

Fotohinweis (v.o.n.u.): © Seaside Collection / Grand Hotel Residencia; © Chateau de Montcaud

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How do you define good press work and what is the difference between TN Hotel Media Consulting´s approach and other agencies? Hans Amrein, editor-in-chief of HOTELIER magazine asked Tomas Niederberghaus

Public Relations work for hotels requires original ideas, journalistic sensitivity and often the courage to do things a little bit differently, says Tomas Niederberghaus, until three years ago author and hotel critic at DIE ZEIT, Germany´s prestigious weekly newspaper. An interview about hotel stories, emotions and a phenomenon called „The Art of Storytelling“.

Hotelier: Tomas Niederberghaus, your agency name doesn´t include the expression PR but media consulting. Is that supposed to signal a wider range of services than a classic PR-agency would offer?

Tomas Niederberghaus: As a journalist working for DIE ZEIT, I was often surprised when it came to dealing with PR agencies and their level of involvement with their clients. Some didn´t even know the hotels personally that they represented. The press releases were often just a collection of hollow phrases. That´s why I tend to avoid the expression PR. When I do presswork for hotels these days, I still see them through the eyes of a journalist. I look there for themes, that the media could be interested in. If the customer wants us to, we also do folders or in-house magazines. Then all the texts and pictures come from one source only.

You work with journalistic principles. What´s the advantage for your hotel clients?

If you run a hotel for years, you might not be able to see it´s potential anymore – it´s like an old marriage. Hotel owners are hosts, Yield Managers and F&B experts. They are not experienced in copywriting and they are not media professionals. When I do research on a hotel, I try to understand the DNA of the place, I talk to the staff, I experience the building and finally I develop some themes/subjects. But not only the content of a message is important. The timing of it´s release also matters and which subject suits which media.

Can you give us some examples of successful PR concepts?

When I did research for our client Kärntnerhof in Vienna I found some archive material, stating that the house used to be a brothel in the 1950s. When the hotel reopened after some renovation works, I called it „the smallest Grand Hotel of Vienna“ and sent out a press release with the headline „From Brothel to Grand Hotel“. The owner was slightly anxious initially. But newspapers and magazines made his place famous in no time. Even some TV programmes picked up on the story.

The concept of „Storytelling“ is very popular right now. What´s the hype about?

Storytelling is simply the art of telling a good story. That involves a statement, which has to be true of course. It also involves an element of surprise and emotions. A story like that will be remembered and told again to others. Storytelling has always been the job of journalists. PR and social media have recently hijacked the idea and tend to overstretch it a bit, in my opinion.

How important is the language you use?

Very important! The language used for the media must not look like advertising. A headline containing just one word that smells of selling can make an editor press the delete button on your message.

How will PR work for hotels change over the next few years?

There are new hotels opening every day. The market is being virtually flooded right now. In addition there is the competition from Airbnb. And everyone wants attention and media coverage. It will become increasingly important for hotel PR to underline the unique characteristics of the house and create content for storytelling. That requires quirky ideas and continuous work. On top of that PR and marketing will interlock even more in the future.

How important are the social media when it comes to spreading contents? And how important are bloggers these days?

Social media is a relatively new discipline for us, but they are gaining importance and will be an inherent part of corporate communication. A lot of representatives /players in the social media are not trained in storytelling though. That can be a big disadvantage. If 30 hotels tweet about their new drink at the same time, that´s 30 too many. The same is true for bloggers. Travel blogging in particular is still lacking professionals.

Editors today constantly receive information via all sorts of channel. That can create an overload. How do you manage to stand out from the crowd and get journalists exited?

With a good story, which doesn`t necessarily have to please everyone. It´s sometimes a good idea to polarize. One of our hotel clients recently hired a flying butler to take his guests on sightseeing flights around the area – an idea that we came up with.

Most PR is done swiftly, cheaply and comfortably via e-mail these days. Is it still worth it to send out an expensively created press kit via mail?

Whoever receives a handwritten letter on beautiful paper in this age of digital information flood is sure to appreciate it. It´s the same with press kits. It makes total sense for an outstanding hotel to send out this kind of special message. We all like to be surprised sometimes.

How important is personal contact?

It is absolutely vital to stay in touch with journalists to see what issues are important to them or where their focus lies right now. Quite often a hotel article starts off at the lunch table.

Can you measure the success of good media work at all?

Definitely! After a while you have to draw the balance. You look at clippings and analyze what articles were published in which media and what quality they were. Good media work doesn´t mean shooting from the hip.

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