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Snowy backdrops and cozy firesides are the best for snuggling up to your special someone. Here’s where to plan your next romantic winter trip.

Plus: bag fees begone (there’s a catch) and Coppola joins forces with Backroads

One of the most dynamic conductors in the world of classical music, Alondra de la Parra, shares how music focuses her travel and informs her creative vision.

Throughout Luzern, so many of the buildings have crazy, wild paintings all over them. Loving it! Wish more buildings in Brisbane were like this!

Postcard-pretty cities, turquoise lake waters, and Alpine peaks are just some highlights of day trips from Zurich. Among the Swiss Alps lies Mount Rigi, a mountain almost completely surrounded by water and so beautiful is often depicted in works of art. Luzern attracts visitors for its mountain/lake beauty which is enhanced by the 14th-century Kapellbrücke Bridge, and the Wasserturm water tower.

The 27-room Château Gütsch is a hotel out of a fairytale, a nineteenth-century fantasy on a mountaintop overlooking Lucerne (or Luzern). This was one of Switzerland‘s finest hotels in its day, and while the location with its views of the lake and mountains remained enviable through the 20th century, the hotel itself had begun to show some wear and tear. Fortunately new owners made a decision to close it, renovate it, and trust the new interior design to Martyn Lawrence Bullard, an acclaimed Los Angeles based designer who also appears occasionally on Bravo TV’s Million Dollar Decorators. Bullard’s redesign respected the history of the property, while giving it a playful new look. It’s rich but never stuffy. Since reopening in 2014, it seems poised to retake its place as one of Switzerland’s top hotels.

I was forewarned that this monument to the slain Swiss soldiers killed in France was deeply moving, and that Mark Twain had called it “the saddest and most moving piece of rock in the world.” I still wasn’t prepared for how heartwrenching it was.It’s a very short walk from the center of town and is in a beautiful clearing, definitely worth a visit! Thanks to Davina for finding the exact Twain quote!

Hotel Hofgarten is a warm, welcoming establishment housed in one of Lucerne’s oldest manor houses. From the outside, the restaurant looks like a casual pub, but the minute you enter, you sense the elegance housed inside. The space is light and airy. One white-walled dining room has high ceilings, ornate chandeliers, and is flooded with light. The other dining area feels like an upscale greenhouse with floor-to-ceiling windows and a gleaming open kitchen. The chef focuses on fresh ingredients sourced from Lucerne greenmarkets and local cheesemongers. Menu items are seasonal and include favorites such as roasted scallops, porcini ravioli, pumpkin soup, venison, braised veal, poached salmon, and fresh soups and salads. This is a wonderful restaurant if you are seeking lighter, more sophisticated fare in an airy environment while you’re in Lucerne.

Restaurant Nix’s is located directly on the lakefront in Lucerne in a historic building that dates back to the 16th century. Featuring Continental cuisine with an Austrian influence, Nix’s prides itself on fresh, local ingredients and seasonal menu. For the fall, for example, menu items include pumpkin beer soup with dumplings, oven braised rabbit stew, deer schnitzel with saffron noodles, and an autumnal salad with roasted wild mushrooms. The restaurant has a beautiful terrace that abuts Lake Lucerne - a beautiful spot for a bottle of wine while watching the sun set.

in the Swiss city of Lucerne is one of the biggest transportation museums that I have ever seen! There are several parts to the museum including air, rail and sea transportation. What I found the very interesting are the walls that are made up of road signs of all sizes. If you go, plan on spending at least 4-5 hours if you want to cover everything!

The view from our gondola ride up to the top of the beautiful Mt Pilatus. Obviously, it was freezing and although the sun seems to be almost completely hidden by fog here, once up the mountain is was blindingly bright!

Max Chocolatier, a boutique chocolate shop in the heart of Lucerne, creates exquisite hand-made chocolate that is meant to be savored. The store is located on a high-end shopping street near the lake. While I normally don’t gravitate to “fancy” chocolate boutiques, something about this place beckoned. It is an intimate shop and the friendly staff is happy to explain the types of chocolate that best suit your preferences. Max Chocolatier uses local, 100% natural ingredients, so the chocolate products vary by season: there are spring, summer, fall and winter “collections” with different ingredients and recipes. In addition to basic chocolates (milk, dark, hazelnut, caramel, orange, etc.), there are also more exotic types with ingredients such as pumpkin, chili, and edelweiss providing some international flavor. Beautifully, lushly-packaged boxes of chocolate line the shelves. Clearly these sweet tidbits are lovingly crafted to please all your senses. While not inexpensive, each small bite delivers a rich, intense taste with a luxurious mouth-feel. Well worth it! www.maxchocolatier.com

Lucerne is no stranger to mass tourism: The otherwise lovely medieval city swells each summer with list-checking visitors en route to central Switzerland’s famed Pilatus and Titlis mountains. Surprisingly, few of them make the 15-minute trek from the train station to this gorgeous 19th-century badi (open-air swimming area) on the Lucerne National Quay, overlooking the clear blue waters of what the locals call the Vierwaldstätter See (aka Lake Lucerne). The entire facility was meticulously restored in 2010 and remains a favorite of residents for its excellent views of brooding, multi-horned Mount Pilatus, Jean Nouvel’s lakeside KKL performance hall, and Santiago Calatrava’s Lucerne Station Hall—and all without the hassle of tourists.