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Like all outdoor markets in Rome, Campo de’ Fiori is a bustling social center where locals push past throngs of tourists to complete their errands. Every morning you can find nonni shopping for produce with their grandchildren, feisty butchers running the day’s orders, and barmen hand-delivering trays of espresso to the vendors. By late afternoon, the market quiets down as vendors head home for the evening, and slowly buskers and musicians make their way to the square. By sunset, Campo once again surges with energy, this time to fuel the nightlife.

No trip to Oaxaca is complete without spending at least a few hours sitting in one of the outdoor cafes around the Oaxaca city main square (the “Zocalo”). It’s the perfect spot to watch the street scene: couples and families walking by, vendors selling their wares, shoeshine boys offering to polish your footwear to a gleam. Strolling musicians wander by and perform a few songs in exchange for a handful of pesos. Balloon sellers with their colorful merchandise suspended above and around them entice passing children. In the morning enjoy a frothy hot chocolate with pan de yema, a local bread made with egg yolk. In the afternoon, sip a cold beer and snack on some spicy peanuts or chapulines, spicy fried grasshoppers. Any time of day, this is a wonderful spot to enjoy the bustling but unhurried pace of life in Oaxaca.

With shops offering enough pumps, boots, spike heels, designer clothes, cosmetics, suitcases and specialty foods to satisfy the fussiest shopper, Leidsestraat attracts droves of tourists, locals and fashionistas. Whether you’re searching for high style, camp shoes, Dutch cheese or soft drugs, you’re likely to find what you’re looking for in the boutiques, high-end department stores, specialty shops and coffeeshops on this busy passenger byway and the small streets shooting off from it. Running from Koningsplein to Leidseplein, Leidsestraat continues the shopping adventure where Kalverstraat (Amsterdam‘s other pedestrian shopping street) leaves off. Walking south, you’ll know you’ve reached it when you come to the flower stands at the Bloemenmarkt. Popular draws include Sissy Boy, Replay, Abercrombie & Fitch, Metz & Co., Cora Kemperman, V & D, Eicholtz and a Henri Willig Cheese & More shop. As you approach Leideseplein, one of Amsterdam’s entertainment squares, more souvenir shops, fast food options and money changing outlets appear. Watch out for trams running down the center of the pedestrian byway!

Everyone is familiar with the breathtaking Flower Carpet, which takes place in Brussels’ UNESCO-listed Grand Place. Sadly, it only happens for one week, every other year. In an effort to curb the disappointment of tourists who visit during the odd-numbered years, the designers of the Flower Carpet have teamed up with a popular flower exhibition, based in Ghent, to bring us Floralïentime. Floralïentime lets dozens of Belgium’s top floral designers loose inside the dramatic city hall building. There, they create floral displays of all shapes and sizes. The Grand Place itself is transformed into a pretty park area, making the stunning square even more beautiful than normal. Best of all, for the cost of a 5 EUR ticket, Floralïentime offers visitors a look inside Brussels’ stunning city hall building, normally closed to the public. For more information and plenty of photos: http://cheeseweb.eu/2013/08/floralentime-flower-exhibition-brussels-grand-place/

This square is located in the oldest and one of the most typical neighborhoods in Lisbon. Yes, typical houses, old cafes, and grocery shops can still be found here. If you hear hollering out a window, don’t worry, probably it’s just someone calling a neighbor, it isn’t a fire; it’s just how things are done in the daily life of the Alfama locals. If you’d like to know more about Fado (Portuguese folk singing), visit Fado Museum. If you feel like trying to sing it, just choose one of the narrow streets and look for an old tavern. In these taverns, after some cups of aguardiente (Portuguese brandy), everyone sings Fado—usually Fado Vadio (sung by non professionals) or Desgarrada (between two singers, improvising verses that tell a fun story). Don’t expect great voices, as probably everybody is out of tune!

For such a remote region, Big Sur has more than its share of amazing places to stay. One of the most unique is Treebones Resort, nestled high in the foothills of South Big Sur overlooking the Pacific. The off-the-grid property offers 16 signature yurts as well as oceanfront campsites, a 500-square-foot “autonomous tent,” and the “human nest,” a spherical dwelling woven from tree branches by local artist Jayson Fann. Even nesters have access to the resort’s pool, hot tub, and restaurant, which highlights produce from the on-site organic farm and houses what has to be one of the world’s most scenic sushi bars.

Tucked among the pristine rain forests of Kauai’s remote North Shore, Princeville Resort’s lush 9,000 acres feel like they’re straight out of South Pacific. In fact, the classic musical used neighboring Mount Makana as a stand-in for Bali Hai. The peak’s verdant slopes are visible from many of the property’s 251 rooms, which are clad in ocean- and floral-inspired hues and outfitted with custom wood furnishings and marble baths, but the real draws lie elsewhere on the property: in the private snorkeling beach and massive infinity pool overlooking the cerulean waters of Hanalei Bay, an 11,000-square-foot spa that specializes in traditional Hawaiian clay treatments, and a world-class golf course designed by Robert Trent Jones, Jr.

One of the more bizarre landscapes in the Philippines is Bohol’s Chocolate Hills, a 20-square-mile area that contains some 1,700 hills. To date, these natural formations still baffle geologists, though legend claims the hills are rocks once thrown by battling giants, or tears cried by a giant who lost his love. The hills are green during wet season and turn into brown mounds during the dry season, hence the name. Climb up to the viewpoint to get a 360-degree view and unleash your imagination. Some people say the hills look like giant Hershey’s Kisses; others just see mounds left behind by enormous moles. Before you leave, buy some local Peanut Kisses to help you remember your visit—perhaps inspired by the Hershey’s chocolates, they are shaped like the hills.

Hotel Tórshavn sits right in the city center, with the harbor to its front and the Town Hall Square to its back. Opened in 1923, it underwent a major renovation in 2007 and now features a sleek reception area and 43 bright, comfortable rooms, complete with work desks, complimentary Wi-Fi, and large windows to let in the ocean breezes. In addition to spacious conference facilities, the hotel offers two dining options—Hvonn Brasserie, which serves steak, pasta, and pizza overlooking the marina, and Hvonn Cocktail Bar, where guests can enjoy light meals, ice cream, and pastries alongside coffee, beer, and cocktails. Even if you’re not staying on site, you’ll want to be here on Tuesday evening, when the bar hosts jazz nights with local musicians.

The hip sister of the Centre Pompidou in Paris, this modern and contemporary art museum has become one of France’s most visited cultural venues since opening in 2010. Designed by Japanese architect Shigeru Ban, the 54,000-square-foot building features three rectangular galleries, which regularly host exhibitions of 20th- and 21st-century art from France’s illustrious Musée National d’Art Moderne. The piece de résistance can be seen outside, however—the building’s curvy, mesh roof, composed of glue-laminated timber, was inspired by a Chinese hat that Shigeru Ban found in Paris. Take it all in while dining at the museum’s Voile Blanche restaurant or outdoor brasserie, both of which are headed by Michelin-starred chef Eric Maire.

Set amid the mangrove swamps, coastal lagoons, and stretches of coral reef in Portobelo National Park, this Design Hotels property features just five colorful villas. The “houses” range from a small, one-bedroom retreat nestled near a waterfall, to an over 8,000-square-foot residence spread over two floors. The whole property is awash in a kaleidoscope of vibrant hues, from the bright interiors with their boldly patterned tiles, decorative fabrics, and local artwork, to the multi-colored lounge chairs surrounding the infinity pool, which seems to merge seamlessly with the turquoise Portobelo Bay. Those seeking adventure can take a deep-sea dive to explore the wreck of a C-45 airplane, while guests looking to relax can book an outdoor massage on the hotel’s century-old barge.

I Kriti (Greek for “Crete”) has been serving some of Athens’ best Cretan cuisine long before the island’s hearty cuisine became fashionable in the mid-2000s. A charming, utterly unpretentious tavern tucked into a nondescript arcade passage near Omonia Square, Kriti serves fare that will leave you reeling with pleasure—dakos (barley bruschetta topped with grated tomato, crumbled myzithra cheese, olives, and pickled samphire), smoked Cretan pork, snails in garlic, Crete-made sausages, spicy cheese dip, and baked pies, all at excellent prices and with real Cretan hospitality (the owners don’t really speak English, but it doesn’t matter). Expect to wait for a table but then, once seated, to spend some time here. And don’t forget to wash each dish down with some Cretan raki, a strong grape distillate similar to grappa.

Situated in three high-rise towers on the Golden Mile along Eagle Beach, the Blue Aruba complex is home to luxury condominiums as well as a full-service resort. Expect enormous windows with stunning ocean views and modern furnishings in apartment-style configurations that top out at more than 2,000 square feet; most come with fully equipped kitchens, and ground-floor residences have private patios and Jacuzzis. All the resort touches are here, including private beach facilities, two infinity pools, a spa and fitness center, and even a high-end restaurant that offers eight-course dinners. But golf lovers have an excellent reason to venture off-resort: The nearby Tierra del Sol Resort combines tee times on an 18-hole championship golf course designed by Robert Trent Jones II with sublime seaside panoramas.

The queue is long and you’ll have to eat standing up, but this spotless hole-in-the-wall does some of the best souvlaki in town. If you get antsy while you wait, be mindful of the multiple signs behind the counter saying: OXI AGXOS (NO STRESS). You won’t find frozen fries or garlicky tzatziki here. Just perfectly grilled pork skewers wrapped in a grease-free pita and garnished with sliced tomatoes, onions, parsley, a dollop of yogurt, and plenty of paprika. Don’t worry if you confuse it with the other Kostas souvlaki joint just off Agia Irini Square on Vassiliki Street, where the thing to order is pita bread stuffed with meatballs and spicy tomato sauce. Pull up a plastic chair and watch hipsters drink craft beer while you dribble tzatziki down your chin.

With soaring 10-foot ceilings and sprawling 700- to 1,200-square-foot configurations, the one- and two-bedroom accommodations at Twelve Midtown are more like modern apartments than hotel rooms. Each features a contemporary neutral-hued color scheme and comes with a full kitchen outfitted with stainless-steel appliances, plus separate dining and living rooms to encourage living like a local. But a few hotel perks made the cut, including a Starbucks in the lobby, a seasonal rooftop pool, and a full-service, 24-hour concierge desk to help you make the most of your visit—this is vacation, after all. There’s also an all-day restaurant serving classic Italian fare, including pizzas, pastas, and vegetable-forward antipasto.