LTR HAS A BUTLER AT THE HELM

The immaculate attention to detail that goes into each and every LTR luxury travel experience comes largely as a result of Andrew Loyd’s training and work experience prior to setting up LTR with Jonathan Townsend-Rose.  As with so many truly great companies those at the helm have arrived via an unconventional route with some fascinating stories to tell.

In 1983, Andrew Loyd started his life in hospitality as a room service waiter at The Connaught where he served the likes of Dolly Parton, Jimmy Stewart and Alec Guinness their poached eggs on toast.  Following stints at The Dorchester, Dukes and the Intercontinental, Andrew ended up as Room Service Manager at the Mayfair Hotel in 1990.  Here he looked after countless mischievous rock stars, including one who charmingly requested to have his breakfast served on the roof!  In 1991 Andrew was poached by one of the Mellon family matriarchs, who requested his services as her butler back in the US.

Within a matter of weeks Andrew found himself fully immersed in American high society attending to the Mellons every whim and looking after their billionaire friends.  Summer months were spent on a Bondesque private island on Lake Muskoka, Ontario; Spring and Fall were in 10 Gracie Square, the smartest building on the Upper East Side, New York; and Winter was spent in Palm Beach, Florida, the winter playground of the East Coast elite.  Andrew ran multiple homes, each with a minimum of 10 indoor staff, and on top of that he looked after yachts and gulf-stream jets.

After time at the Mellons, Andrew looked after various Wall Street Tycoons who led similar multi-homed existences in NYC, The Hamptons, Sun Valley Idaho, Palm Beach and Beverly Hills.  Parties were wildly over the top in the decadence, children totally out of control, wives tricky beyond belief and staff constantly on the fiddle.  In a nutshell everything you see in the movies and more.  Not always an easy environment to enter but Andrew’s training enabled him to maintain the right mix of emotional detachment and professional scrutiny.

Andrew witnessed wives buying $500,000 diamond rings just to irritate their husbands; tennis instructors exceeding their job spec off the court; chefs getting confused between cooking wine and Chateaux Margaux worth $10,000 a case.  At one presidential lunch a spoilt daughter who had recently discovered Buddhism sat chanting through the banquet.  Another guest turned up for a weekend house party with 36 Louis Vuitton suitcases only to wear the same sweater from start to finish.  There were facelifts aplenty and Andrew became ‘style consultant’ to countless insecure wives as he vetted their evening outfits and often sent them scurrying back to rethink that night’s attire.

In Andrew’s words there was “old money, new money, hangers on and wannabees …” but throughout cash was king.  Andrew’s experience in helping the super rich lead their lives has taught him how they like things done, so every client at LTR enjoys ‘royal’ treatment from start to finish.

LTR opens doors to exclusive use luxury accommodation in castles, mansions and stately homes across Scotland, England and Ireland; creating the ultimate experience in special events and memorable vacations.

Benefit from the intimate knowledge LTR has gained over twelve years of renting luxury castles in matching particular needs to the most appropriate property.  This knowledge, combined with our extensive network of expert guides is used by our LTR advisor to craft a very individual vacation experience.

We create the luxury travel experiences for you …  all you have to do is arrive!

If you would like to find out more about LTR’s services, please contact us on info@ltrcastles.com or + 44 (0) 1835 824642 and we will be delighted to help.