The Most Lavish Members-Only Venues

It’s nearing midnight on a Friday and electronic DJ Dixon is starting his set in the red-bathed splendour of Koko’s converted Victorian theatre in Camden. Lights illuminate a dance floor of shoulder-to-shoulder revellers, who had to be Glastonbury-quick to secure even standing-room tickets to see the hugely popular German artist. Yet the place you really want to be is on the stage, behind the booth. Here, photogenic groups of chiselled European bankers, gallery owners, actors and tastemakers sip tequila on ice, arms adorned with various levels of VIP wristbands. After enjoying lobster linguine on the second-floor Stage Kitchen, perhaps taking time out over a paloma mixed in the secret Goon Bar next to the hidden vinyl listening booths, complete with stacks of rare records, the partygoers in this exclusive space have made their way to the coveted backstage area. The former Camden Palace — where shoes sticking to the dance floor was obligatory — has now morphed into one of the smartest members’ clubs in London.

Aimed at music and culture lovers, it welcomes members and their friends, including Sienna Miller, Benedict Cumberbatch, Leonardo DiCaprio, Olivia Colman, Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Stormzy. After a supper club hosted by artist Jeremy Deller you might catch Liam Gallagher performing on stage, or watch John Oates of Hall & Oates performing an intimate show in Ellen’s jazz club and a breakout show from a future Grammy winner. At weekends even offspring get a look in, with activities from craft tables to circus training. Entry is a strictly vetted process, costing £2,150 per year for over 35s. One way to secure a 10-year membership is to join its Patrons programme — for a one-off £75,000 for two memberships, Patrons provides ongoing support for Koko’s programming and for the charitable Koko Foundation, which provides support to upcoming artists.

London boasts one of the most revered members’ clubs scenes in the world, stemming from its storied, deep-rooted tradition in the fabled streets of St James’s and Mayfair. Yet a new breed of specialist club is fostering loyal communities, from wine lovers to fine diners and voyaging one-percenters. Take Surrenne, the handsome new subterranean wellbeing and longevity sanctuary below The Emory, Maybourne’s new suite-only hotel in Knightsbridge. For members who can splash out £10,000 a year plus £5,000 joining fee, this means classes from cult celebrity instructor Tracy Anderson, and a multi-functional studio, which offers on-demand virtual classes such as Yin Tibetan-bowl meditation in a Japanese garden, Heart Fire Flow yoga in the Agafay Desert in Morocco and Broga Body Rehab on a cliff edge in Devon. There are OxyGeneo facials with a backdrop of Damien Hirst artwork, and bespoke Alice Temperley kimonos in the changing rooms. You can also gain entry by staying at the hotel, at rates from £2,040 per night, which include The Emory Standard services.

The UK capital has always has its dining clubs too. Harry’s Bar, serving pastel-pink bellinis and truffle risotto to its soigné Savile Row-suited clientele, celebrates its 45th anniversary this June. And Mark’s Club — also owned by Richard Caring of The Birley Clubs — has just undergone a major refurb.

A cool physical space or elite access isn’t enough these days — most of the new breed of clubs offer a cultural or experiential element too, in order to build a like-minded community. Crurated is a new platform offering insider access for oenophiles to uncork some of the finest wines and spirits — from en primeur ex-chateau bottlings to rare Macallans and magnums of Château Lafite Rothschild. It offers everything from wine dinners with Charles Lachaux and Théo Dancer in Miami and LA to an overnight Riesling excursion in Germany that includes masterclasses at Egon Müller and Dönnhoff wineries. “As a collector myself, I struggled with the fact that I was buying bottles in shops or at auction, and I had too many experiences where the quality of the wine was below the expectations and the price paid for them,” explains Crurated founder Alfonso De Gaetano. “I wanted to create a system that adds authenticity and traceability from the moment the bottle leaves the producer’s cellar.”

The handsome stucco St James’s institution 67 Pall Mall has served wine lovers for eight years and has now spread  
its tendrils to locations such as Verbier and Singapore, with openings coming up in Beaune, Bordeaux and Melbourne. The members’ club has just introduced its En Primeur category — launching in Hong Kong — which brings wine lovers together in locations without a physical club. Members can expand their knowledge by taking advantage of a calendar of vinous events ranging from workshops to dinners and masterclasses, and can access a sommelier concierge service as well as other worldwide clubs. A brogue’s clip away from 67 is Oswald’s, Robin Birley’s distinguished wine and dining club. His New York club, opening later this year, is hotly anticipated.

In the US, securing a reservation has become a full-time profession for some — with recent reports of bots snapping up the hottest tables and operators then selling them for an extortionate fee. One way to avoid this: fight tooth and nail to achieve membership of one of the most covetable clubs in NYC and Miami. ZZ’s Club is an offshoot of Major Food Group and is designed in sleek night-time tones by Ken Fulk. Under candelabra and nestled in plush terracotta banquettes in the private outpost of Carbone in New York’s Hudson Yards, members dine on caviar tostados and perfect fritto misto.

Also keeping its American members well fed, and away from snaking queues and digital dealing, is Miami-based MM Club (clearly double-initialled dining clubs are all the rage). Its three restaurants — Ava, Mila and Casa Neos — have introduced members’ areas, allowing patrons to skip queues or relax in private rooms and bars. The club has built a strong community, responding to the desire for people to get together. This summer MM Club has also partnered with Vanquish Yachts to cater to high-rollers looking to take to the water. Membership is accessed with two member friends and the club hosts a varied programme of events.

Miami’s maritime community is spoiled for choice, in fact, as Yaya, an invitation-only boating members’ club, is set to launch soon in Biscayne Bay. A gathering place for the boating community, it offers marina access, valet, drinks on arrival in dock, and access to the private Yaya Club room.

For many of the super-wealthy, voyaging this summer will come in stretched vessels on the high seas, private jets in the skies or mega villas with six-figure weekly price tags. The woman you want on speed dial — if you are lucky enough to be invited — is Jules Maury, who runs Scott Dunn Private, the invitation-only upper tier of the luxury travel company. “We are like the wealth management side of a private bank,” she explains, fresh from planning a completely off-grid adventure spanning Alaska and Patagonia for one of her most elite members this summer.

Her team of six can flip a trip at the drop of a hat (although look away now if your annual travel spend is less than £100,000). Cancelled flights, sandstorms or dodgy snow? The team have you covered. Even  
the elite, however, aren’t immune to sky-high flight and hotel prices at the moment, brought on partly by super-spending in Europe by American travellers. “This summer our clients are looking at price and going to the US, Kenya or the Caribbean instead — a ticket costs the same as to Greece in some cases,” Maury explains. “We can be nimble, and secure that last room with personal relationships with the GM.” You need to get your skates on, though: according to Maury, there are no BA business-class tickets left returning from Antigua — a hub for a lot of smaller islands in the Caribbean — in early January 2025, and one safari lodge is booked out until 2026. But if anyone can get you in, it’s Maury: “We invest our clients’ money in holiday dreams and memories that not everyone can make happen.”