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Things move a little more slowly in Sacramento than in California’s other big cities. Local food and wine, an eclectic vibe, beautiful weather, and history as the state capital and center of the Gold Rush make Sacramento a fun yet laid-back place to explore.

Founder’s Note: Learning AFAR

Located on the southern tip of Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula, Los Cabos (made up of San José del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas) is the ideal beach getaway. Here, a variety of accommodations—from boutique hotels with palapas on the sand to luxury resorts with infinity pools, golf courses, and even butler service—await, all with breathtaking views of surf and sunset.

Southern California’s surf-centric city offers beautiful beaches and big-city attractions, from seriously good restaurants, breweries, and boutiques to several top hotels. Historic properties in Old Town, the Gaslamp Quarter, and Coronado continue to offer lodging in the grand style, with proximity to everything classically San Diego, while coastal options feature beachfront cottages, tiki themes, and the sound of the breeze from your bed.

One traveler discovers a tradition even richer than the cuisine.

A week in and around Los Cabos provides the perfect amount of time for both extreme adventure and extreme relaxation. You’ll experience magical towns and places like Flora Farms, water sports, art galleries, and beaches beaches beaches. Take day trips to go whale watching on the Sea of Cortez. Spend nights out dining on fresh local seafood and listening to live music. So, off you go: Cabo San Lucas, San José del Cabo, the corridor, and the rest of the Baja California Peninsula is waiting for you.

A journey into the ethnic neighborhoods redefining the City of Light

Hoi An’s iconic noodle dish was tangled in mystery for decades. Then writer David Farley came to town.

In Los Angeles, you’ll taste everything from modern food fusions to classic diners, roadside fruit stands, and global cuisine. Look to Beverly Hills for the A-List restaurants, and head downtown for a cheap, delicious meal from one of L.A.'s signature food trucks.

Marriott property, The Jay Hotel, was the most anticipated addition to the city’s hotel scene in 2023, transforming the brutalist building that formerly housed Le Méridien into a cozy and quiet retreat. Each of the 360 rooms and suites have warm, textured, and minimalist decor that evokes calm and serenity. Adding to the oasis vibes, are some seriously comfortable beds, blackout curtains, and mini bars stocked with local goodies, such as St. George in. If you can, book a room with a balcony (a rarity among the city’s hotels), and enjoy the impressive views of the Bay Bridge and nearby Transamerica Tower.

The Japanese-inspired Nobu Ryokan Malibu, located on the ocean just north of Los Angeles, sets the tone with its smooth teak exterior. An entrance gate leads to a garden where water flows over honey-colored rocks into a pond, and palm trees shade stone paths lined with black Japanese grass. In the 16 guest rooms, there are no exposed nails or screws, just smooth surfaces of teak and Jerusalem limestone and linen. The art on the walls is original—a watercolor of sparrows in muted tones, a panel of delicately carved black lacquer depicting waves and leaves. The furniture is oak, all right angles and brass fittings, and the bedside lamps look like lanterns. The bathrooms feature skylights, rain showers, and deep teak soaking tubs.

Hotel guests get first dibs on reservations at Nobu restaurant, just two doors down. If that seems too far away, you can get Nobu food delivered to your room: think scallop tiradito, salmon sashimi, and smoked duck with cherry and hibiscus. Another highlight of a stay here are the well being experiences, including yoga with partner studio ALO and an affiliation with Malibu Fit Concierge that offers private fitness classes and guided hikes.

Nobu has partnered with Surf Air to transport guests from various cities in California and Texas. Surf Air flies small planes out of regional airports (if you’re coming from the Bay Area, for example, it’s a 90-minute ride). A car in L.A. takes you on the 40 minute ride north on the scenic Pacific Coast Highway.

A Sunset Strip retreat that blends high design with sustainable practices

• A sustainable design that employs reclaimed timber, recycled carpeting, and lush native greenery
• Healthy extras like yoga mats, kombucha, and local snacks in every room
• Four separate dining options serving California cuisine and craft cocktails, plus a lobby farm stand with fresh fruits

After a brief stint as The Jeremy, this Sunset Strip property opened as L.A.’s first 1 Hotel in May 2019 with a strong focus on sustainability. As soon as you drive up to the valet (which offers electric charging stations), you’ll be enveloped by a biophilic world of plants, reclaimed wood, and rough-hewn granite. The reception desk is made from a massive tree that fell in Mendocino, while the cozy lobby is filled with wood and linen-covered furniture made locally by J. Alexander. Also on the ground floor is a farm stand with fresh produce for the taking; 1 Kitchen, which serves sustainably sourced California cuisine among tables that resemble sliced trees; and Goodthings, a retail shop selling Earth + Element pottery, organic cotton clothing, and a selection of all-natural face serums and tonics.

The 285 rooms feature earth tones, floor-to-ceiling windows, multiple plants in volcanic rock planters, and unfinished wooden wardrobes filled with hangers made from recycled paper. Guests can also look forward to extras like yoga mats, comfy cotton robes, and minibars stocked with kombucha and local snacks like Fat Uncle Farms Cajun-Flavored California Almonds, plus all-natural dog bones and candles with the hotel’s signature scent. Bathrooms have deep marble tubs and full-size bath products—no single-use plastics here. Elsewhere in the hotel, the heated pool features a plant-filled deck with plenty of loungers and views of downtown, while a fitness center by Performix, a rooftop bar, and an organic garden with a beehive offer more places for guests to gather. From $518

The Samoa Cookhouse has been serving all-you-can-eat family-style meals since 1890. It used to be just for the loggers who worked in the company town of Samoa, just outside of Eureka, but since the ‘60s it’s been open to the public, for people like me who don’t work nearly as hard as a lumberjack but can still eat like one. There’s a set menu for every meal. Breakfast on a Sunday means sausage, scrambled eggs, biscuits, and gravy, and best of all, thick slices of French toast made from enormous loaves of just-baked bread. The waitresses are as friendly and energetic as you’d expect of people who have to serve a room that holds hundreds at huge tables covered in red-gingham vinyl tablecloths. Giant saws hang on the walls, and there’s a little museum off the dining room full of old mill equipment and great old photos. Hearty food, nice people. This place is good for your soul.

In a city with a taco shop on nearly every corner, Salud stands out for its Chicano-inspired food and decor: According to owner Ernie Becerra, the tacos served here are not traditionally Mexican. The signature Barrio is served on a tortilla made of flour instead of corn, and its filling (stewed beef topped with nopal, beans, and sour cream) is a take on a popular dish in Southern California’s Mexican community. In the dining room, a tattoo mural and a car hood mounted on the wall nod to the lowrider lifestyle Chicano kids grow up idealizing.