The world's most affluent travellers may toy with with all manner of getaways, from "choice-free holidays" to environmentally responsible escapes, but indulgent holidays with every conceivable comfort taken care of never fall too far from favour. Here, representatives from a selection of high-end tour operators provide details on the most lavish holiday they have booked for clients in 2013, and suggest the holidays you could book to go one better in 2014.  Cazenove+loyd’s holiday of the yearAfter the crowds have departed, the temples of Angkor in Cambodia revert back to their mysterious best. We arranged for a couple to dine in the Angkor temple of Prasat Thomanon on their anniversary. Special permission had to be obtained and the guests had the entire place to themselves. Apsara dancers entertained our clients throughout the evening and traditional Cambodian food was served by candlelight. The dinner was the culmination of a two-week trip taking in Cambodia and Thailand, much of it by private plane. It cost just over £200,000 in total.  How to better it in 2014We’re actually already arranging a 2014 trip that should prove a match for the above. At the quietest end of Udaipuar’s Lake Pichola sits Jagmandir Island, site of Jagmandir Palace. We are planning a private dinner on the island for a couple to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary, during which they will be serenaded by Indian classical musicians. Accommodation on the night will be in the top suite at the Oberoi Udaivilas and dinner will mark the end of a two-week holiday in Rajasthan. Arranging this type of experience costs about £200,000.Christopher Wilmot-Sitwell, Cazenove+loyd  Wexas’s holiday of the yearThis year we arranged for a couple to undertake an 18-day tour of Antarctica, the Falklands and South Georgia aboard Silversea’s Silver Explorer. Sailing south, the cruise passed breeding grounds that are home to over 100,000 penguins, and the icebergs and ice-covered mountains of the Antarctic Peninsula, a haven for seals and whales. Silversea Explorer offers all-suite accommodation, full butler service and various other extras; the trip cost £11,749 per person, which included return flights from Buenos Aires to Ushuaia.  How to better it in 2014Over the coming year, intrepid travellers could flip this trip on its head by exploring the Arctic, and particularly Svalbard, a Nordic archipelago deep inside the Arctic Circle that is home to creaking glaciers, soaring peaks and indomitable polar bears – approximately 3,000 live in this region. If the weather is right, guests will be able to circumnavigate Spitsbergen, the principal island of Svalbard, and hopefully glimpse an ice bear with her cubs. A 10-day cruise including charter flights and transfers would start at £6,550 per person.Tim Tan, Wexas  Red Savannah's holiday of the yearOne of our more extravagant holidays in 2013 was for a rock star who booked two weeks at Les Hauts de Vence, a seven-bedroom villa with spectacular views near Nice in the south of France; it costs £35,769 per week to rent. We made every effort to ensure everything was exactly as the client wished, including pre-stocking the villa with almond milk, 100 bottles of Evian and seedless cucumbers as requested.  How to better it in 2014If you wanted to stay in France over the coming year you could book the five-bedroom viilla Papillon Rose – its position on the Cap d’Antibes means it commands top rental prices. Facilities include a cinema room, wine cellar, fully equipped gym, billiard room, tennis court, outdoor bar & grill with fire pit, children’s play room with table football, juke box and TV. Rates start at £85,000 per week.Nick Westwood, Red Savannah  Bales Worldwide's holiday of the yearTwo of our clients undertook a five-week tour of India, taking in visits to many of the country’s most popular destinations. The couple was particularly impressed by the Chandela Dynasty buildings found in Khajuraho and a trip on the Himalayan Queen Train to Solan. One of their standout hotels was the Coconut Lagoon Resort in Kerala, which is reached by boat. The cost was £5,400 per person.  How to better it in 2014Travellers with 41 days to spare could take a tour that commences with the wildebeest migration in the Serengeti before going on to explore the Ngorongoro Crater, the world’s largest intact caldera. It’s possible to descend the 600 metres into the crater for a full day safari – the densely packed bowl is home to over 30,000 animals, including elephants, lions and dik-diks. Animal sightings are almost a dead cert at Chitabe Camp, a private reserve in Botswana that is home to lechwes, hippos, giraffes, leopards and tsessebes. Other activities would include a hot air balloon flight over the Serengeti and kite surfing while staying at Zanzibar’s Baraza Resort and Spa. The trip would end in Cape Town and cost from £25,500 per person.Sue Livsey, Bales WorldwideMagnum Travel Club’s holiday of the yearWe are based in Moscow and cater primarily to a Russian clientele and our most luxurious trip this year was arranged for a high-profile Russian football player and his equally famous girlfriend, a presenter and model. With their parents, they flew from Moscow to the Maldives by private jet and stayed in the best rooms at One&Only Reethi Rah. The trip was to mark the couple’s engagement so the standout moment of the trip was the presentation of a custom-made ring. All in all, the trip cost more than $500,000 (£300,000).  How to better it in 2014We could arrange a similarly extravagant itinerary for any couples looking to mark their engagement in a comparable way, but the most lavish trip we organise this year will likely be the wedding of the aforementioned couple. We’re currently considering which foreign property to rent out in its entirety for the party – La Mas Candille in France is a possibility, as is Schloss Fuschl near Salzburg – and of course there’ll be lots of extras. The budget runs significantly higher than that for the engagement trip.Alexander Berdyshev, Magnum Travel Club  Captain’s Choice’s holiday of the yearOn this year’s “South America by Private Jet” package, a group of 79 travelled on a fully inclusive 20-day trip to Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, the Falkland Islands and Bermuda. They were accompanied by an ex-Falkland Royal Marine as a guest lecturer, a private chef on the plane and a tour doctor. The cost was £17,000 per person; accommodation en route was at properties such as Argentina’s Llao Llao Hotel & Resort and Bermuda’s Fairmont Hamilton Princess Hotel.  How to better it in 2014Departing in October, the “Exotic India and Mountain Kingdoms by Private Jet” package will cater to no more than 44 guests. The 19-day, fully inclusive itinerary also includes visits to Nepal, Bhutan and Oman. During the trip, travellers will ascend to Jaipur’s Amber Fort by elephant; sail along the Ganges at dawn and explore the dzongs of Bhutan. Hotel accommodation includes the Oberoi Udaivilas and Hotel Zhiwaling in Bhutan. It costs £21,950 per person.Katie Panagou, Captain's Choice  Cox & Kings’ holiday of the yearOne of the most impressive trips we booked this year was for a couple who went from London to Tokyo, going overland to Moscow and then travelling in a top-end cabin on the Trans-Siberian express to Vladivostok. Accommodation was in hotels such as the Adlon Kempinski in Berlin and Ritz-Carlton in Moscow and treats en route included a visit to the Bolshoi. After flying from Vladivostok to Osaka, the couple explored Japan and then flew back from Tokyo in business-class. The total cost of the 30-day trip was £24,630 per person.  How to better it in 2014Travellers could enjoy an equally thorough trip by participating in a 25-day African odyssey. Beginning with business-class flights to Johannesburg, the tour would take in a visit to Victoria Falls and a two-night journey to Cape Town by Rovos Rail, for visits to Robben Island, Table Mountain and the Winelands. It would also be possible to go on safari, relax on the beaches of Zanzibar and, moving on, explore the rock churches of Lalibela in Ethiopia. The return leg could incorporate visits to Dubai, Amman, Petra and the Dead Sea. Accommodation would be in properties such as the Mount Nelson in Cape Town and Jaafferji House in Zanzibar and it would cost about £30,000 per person. Philip Grierson, Cox & Kings
Tour operators reveal the most extravagant holidays they arranged this year, and explain how you can surpass them in 2014