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Copenhagen’s grandest hotel, and one of its oldest, the d’Angleterre originally opened in 1755 as a restaurant, the brainchild of Jean Marchal and Maria Coppy, who met and fell in love while working at the royal court. The current building, on Kongens Nytorv, across from the Royal Danish Theatre, was renovated and reopened in the 1870s and has hosted royalty, foreign dignitaries, luminaries, and celebrities throughout the years. The hotel reopened in 2013 after extensive renovations, restored to its original glory and luxury, with each room decked out in elegant Danish design intended to give the feeling of a stately private residence worthy of royalty. Antiques and historic works of art like a portrait of Queen Victoria by Winterhalter demonstrate the hotel’s dedication to its heritage, while modern touches like a Warhol portrait of Queen Margrethe II and the latest modern technology in all rooms keep it contemporary and accessible.

The insistence on luxury is also apparent in the eateries: a Michelin-starred restaurant and a champagne bar are both as popular with locals as with guests

While cute souvenir shops and even haute couture boutiques exemplify the changing face of the retail scene in Siem Reap, the city’s famous Old Market remains a heady hub of traditional trade and commerce. Located right in the heart of town, Psar Chas is amply stocked with lots of things that you might want to buy—as well as plenty of things you probably do not. That said, perusing the labyrinthine aisles full of silverware, silks, handicrafts, spices, stone carvings, and other assorted ephemera is worth a couple hours of anyone’s time. Stay calm and haggle politely with a smile on your face, and you’re sure to find a bargain or two.

Founded in 1859, this 79-acre oasis is the nation’s oldest continuously operating botanical garden and a National Historic Landmark. Built by Henry Shaw, whose estate still sits on the grounds, the garden boasts one of the world’s largest collections of rare and endangered orchids, as well as more than 48,000 trees, including a few specimens that date back to the 19th century. Also on-site are Japanese, Chinese, English Woodland, and Ottoman gardens, plus a Victorian district with a labyrinthine maze. After touring the grounds, guests can get their hands dirty with cooking and gardening classes, while senior citizens and those with special needs can take part in a therapeutic horticultural program that provides stimulating nature-based activities.

Interior designer and owner Denis Roy eschewed the palapa-inspired elegance employed by so many Costa Rican resorts in favor of a tropical take on European influences—Victorian architecture, French colonial touches, and Grecian columns among them—creating a resort like no other on the country’s west coast. Owing to its vantage point 1,100 feet above the entrance to the Gulf of Nicoya, the views of the rain forest, ocean, and sunsets are stunning, especially from the infinity pool. Rooms in the main building are fairly basic, but suites and villas offer more luxurious touches, such as Jacuzzis, private ocean-facing terraces, and plunge pools. The property has its own beach (with sun beds, showers, and a snack bar), but since it’s at the bottom of a steep hill, the resort provides hourly transfers. Retreat to the open-air yoga studio, then head to the bar atop the Greek amphitheater to linger over a martini at the nightly sunset happy hour.

Hampstead Heath is a legend: 800 acres of wide-open space dotted with ponds, woods, walking tracks, and the odd stately home. North Londoners take pride in this place, where you will find dog walkers, picnickers, Saturday soccer players, and hardy outdoor swimmers at all times of the year. It brings a touch of true wilderness to the city, and it’s also home to a lido, a stately home with an unrivalled art collection (at Kenwood House), and the famous bathing ponds established by the Victorians (and thus separate for gentlemen and ladies). Parliament Hill also offers one of the best views in London.

In a city packed with new construction, this Art Deco landmark remains a fixture of the Huangpu River—just as it has for more than eight decades. A favorite of visiting celebs and dignitaries, the Fairmont Peace Hotel is divided into North and South buildings. Complete with a copper-sheathed roof, Italian marble floors, and Lalique glass artwork, the 1920s North building—known as Sassoon House for its British businessman owner Sir Victor Sassoon—was once home to the Cathay Hotel; guests included Charlie Chaplin, George Bernard Shaw, and Noël Coward, who completed Private Lives here. The 1850s Renaissance South Building, formerly the Palace Hotel and once the tallest structure on Nanjing Road, was occupied by the Japanese during World War II. The two buildings combined to become the Peace Hotel in 1965, operating continuously until closing in 2007 for an overhaul of the exterior, interiors, lobby, and guest rooms by Hirsch Bedner Associates.

Today, Art Deco influences and romantic flourishes are evident throughout the 270 rooms and suites, many of which boast Bund views. Fairmont Gold rooms come with private check-in and lounge access, while the each of the opulent Nine Nations Suites is named for a different country and features corresponding décor. The Dragon Phoenix and Cathay Room serve Shanghainese–Cantonese and European cuisine, respectively, and the legendary Jazz Bar takes you back to a 1920s-era private club. After a day spent exploring the city or shopping along nearby Nanjing Road, take refuge in the Willow Stream Spa, which has 11 treatment rooms and a skylight-lit pool.

A hotel with the words “gallery” and “art” in its name would be remiss not to include at least a nod to the art world in its decor (though more than a few establishments have been known to throw up a wall-sized painting by a well-known artist and declare themselves art hotels). As Florence’s pioneering design hotel, the Gallery Hotel Art doesn’t skimp. Virtually the entire ground floor, from the lobby through to the lounge and trendy Japanese-Mediterranean-Peruvian fusion restaurant, is one giant gallery, its sleek white decor acting as the calming, understated counterpart to the contemporary art and photography not often found in this city.

Indeed, don’t underestimate the groundbreaking nature of this hotel. Design hotels may be a dime a dozen these days, but when the Ferragamo family’s Lungarno hotel collection launched with this modern getaway designed by Michele Bönan, its clean-lined furnishings and chrome, white, and natural wood hues were a challenge to a city outfitted in rich brocades and dark wood antiques. As such, the Gallery Hotel Art isn’t the flashiest stay, but it is the kind of place you can relax and unwind and feel like you aren’t living in the Renaissance days.

Lahaina, with its many Victorian flourishes, may look picturesque today, but the port town teemed with sailors, gamblers, and prostitutes in the 19th century. The Pioneer Inn changed all that when it opened for business in 1901, foreshadowing the tourist industry that would ultimately replace whaling, sugar, and pineapples. Step through the swinging doors of this vintage bar, which now bizarrely anchors the courtyard of a Best Western, and you’ll be transported back in time. Oars, harpoons, and a ship’s figurehead still adorn the space, looking down on platters of coconut shrimp, Parmesan-crusted fish over coconut rice, and margaritas made with POG (a mix of passion fruit, orange, and guava juices). Come during happy hour, which runs daily from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., for discounted beers and cocktails.

Östermalms Saluhall is one of Stockholm‘s most famous markets. While the prices aren’t cheap, since 1888 the market has been where those looking for the very best fish, meat, and produce shop. For most travelers in Stockholm, it provides a good lunch option if you want a fish sandwich or snack in an atmospheric Victorian food hall. The Saluhall will be closing for renovation and moving to a temporary building across the street in January 2016, and is scheduled to return to its home in 2020 after it has been refurbished and upgraded, ready to serve discerning Stockholm residents for another 125 years.

Why we love it: A 19th-century palazzo-turned-boutique-hotel that’s full of sophisticated details

The Highlights:
- Historic details like restored tiles, antique furniture, and traditional Maltese wooden balconies
- Guestrooms with deep-soaking tubs or Jacuzzis
- A central location just off Valletta’s main drag

The Review:
Formerly home to the Ellul family, this Victorian-period palazzo is now an exceedingly charming boutique stay that’s a member of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World. Fourth-generation brothers Matthew and Andrew Ellul converted the property, which sits on a quiet but easily accessible side street, into nine luxurious guestrooms, each uniquely decorated with restored Maltese tiles, wrought iron accents, richly hued rugs, and antiques sourced from around the world. Rooms also feature original works by local artist Ritty Tacsum as well as either a private terrace or traditional Maltese wooden balcony. One suite even has a piano, while several others boast free-standing bathtubs or Jacuzzis. In keeping with the Casa Ellul’s family-owned ethos, service here is friendly and personalized, making guests feel as if they’re staying in a friend’s home.

Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1903 for a wealthy businessman, the Martin House is one of Buffalo’s architectural masterpieces. Situated in the beautiful Parkside neighborhood, it stands out among the restored Victorian homes and canopy of old-growth trees for its Prairie house style, complete with strong horizontal lines, deeply overhanging eaves, and a sheltering, cantilevered roof. A pergola connects the home to a conservatory and carriage house with chauffeur’s quarters and stables, while a smaller residence and gardener’s cottage sit nearby. Over the decades, the complex suffered considerable damage and three of the original five buildings were destroyed, but in 1992, the Martin House Restoration Corporation was formed to raise funds and oversee a complete restoration.

Extensive reconstruction efforts began in 1997 and are ongoing today, but visitors can now experience the property on a variety of tours. Choose from one- and two-hour options to see details like Wright-designed furniture, art glass, and light fixtures, or pick a themed tour like the Twilight, Photography+, or Wright Night. Either way, save time to check out the conservatory, anchored by a stunning replica of the Nike of Samothrace statue.

Located on the Samaná Peninsula, 300 feet above Playa Cosón and the Atlantic Ocean, this 18th-century, plantation-style home impresses with Victorian trim and wraparound terraces perfect for sipping cocktails in the shade. Inside, antiques from Asia, Europe, and Turkey; rugs from Istanbul; and details like Brazilian hardwood floors and French doors add further charm. The six guestrooms, all housed on the second floor, feature four-poster beds, mahogany soaking tubs, and private terraces—rooms 5 and 6 have the best ocean views.

Breakfast and dinner are served on vintage china in the main house, while lunch takes place a seven-minute shuttle ride away at the Beach Club. This is where you’ll also find the inn’s pristine beach, a nearly 90-foot stretch of sand that’s mostly empty, great for swimming, and considered one of the country’s best places for kiteboarding. When you’re not lounging here, visit the town of Las Terrenas (just 10 minutes away) or try to spot the humpback whales that migrate from as far off as Greenland and Iceland to mate and calve in the warm waters surrounding the Samaná Peninsula (every January through March).

New Delhi’s original power hotel, The Imperial opened in 1936 and played host to celebrities and historic figures: It was here, rather than at Connaught Place that Pandit Nehru, Mahatama Gandhi, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, and Lord Mountbatten met to discuss the partition of India and creation of Pakistan. Though renovation has lent a bit of a corporate vibe to the high-ceilinged hallways, the hotel still oozes nostalgia at every turn. A vast museum-worthy collection on display throughout public and private spaces includes life-size oil portraits of princely rulers, statuary, tapestries, old photographs, and British and Indian military and polo regalia. Rooms come in Victorian, Indian heritage, and Art Deco motifs, with marble floors, sumptuous velvet furnishings, and antique rugs. The centerpiece of the palm-studded lawn is a huge, beautifully tiled swimming pool where red-uniformed staff deliver ice-cold drinks to sunbathers in the stultifying heat, but if you prefer a moodier venue for your cocktails, the property has a library-like bar with wood-panelled walls as well as four atmospheric restaurants serving every kind of cuisine. And don’t miss the afternoon tea, enjoyed in the light-filled atrium.

If a hotel has a swank spa that administers treatments using ultra-expensive (and effective) Sisley products, it’s probably something special. And if those treatments come in a Victorian manse overlooking the placid waters of Kenmare Bay in Southwestern Ireland’s Ring of Kerry, it’s yet more likely to engage even the jaded traveler’s predilections for plush resorts. Kenmare Manor, a turn-of-the-19th-century stone building backed by patchwork hills and forests, looks like something out of a storybook. But it’s more than attractive: At SÁMAS spa, the treatments, which are indeed high-caliber, come with views of the misty woods (from the pool) and the bay and mountains (from the relaxation room). Staff are attentive to even tiny details, like buttery Irish shortbread at turndown. Breakfasts of smoked salmon and eggs and flaky scones are served by smartly dressed waiters rather than set out at a buffet. The hotel’s restaurant is known as one of the best in the country for wild-mushroom risotto and Kerry lamb loin with eucalyptus-flavored peas.

The Eastern Market, now a National Historic Landmark, opened in 1873 to serve the Capitol Hill neighborhood (an 1805 version, located down by the Navy Yard, was a casualty of the War of 1812). The brick market hall, packed with butchers, bakers, vegetable markets, cheese vendors, flower kiosks, and a lunch counter, is bright and charming. Under the shed roof outside, additional local produce is displayed and sold. On weekends, booths selling vintage goods and handmade jewelry, housewares, and clothing do a brisk business down the center of 7th Street. Crowds spill out of the cafés, taco joints, and bagel shops occupying the first floors of the row houses along the block, adding to the lively mix at the market.