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The Pacific Asia Museum’s collection includes art and artifacts from the Pacific Islands and Asia, and the museum offers free cell phone audio tours in multiple languages. The audio tour includes a curatorial tour, a family-friendly tour focusing on animals and legends that appeal to kids, and a poetry series featuring original music and poetry relevant to the collections. Even if you’re not a shopper, don’t miss the gift shop as you leave. One of the highlights of my visit was discovering the gift shop’s collection of old photographs (certified, authentic, and matted for sale)—most are originals taken in Asia during the 1800s and early 1900s.

Cane’s chef and owner Paul Yellin grew up on Barbados, and he drew on this experience while putting together this bar and restaurant: the menu is full of Caribbean dishes, and the space is decked out with palms, corrugated metal, and bamboo. Another Barbados-inspired touch? The heavy presence of rum at Cane. The bar houses bottles from across the wold, and the drinks menu serves classic rum-centric cocktails like Zombies and Painkillers alongside more creative concoctions.

Iconic chef Roy Yamaguchi helped popularize Hawaiian-fusion food a generation ago, but at Eating House 1849 he takes a delicious detour with dishes inspired by Portuguese, Spanish, and Filipino flavors. This “plantation cuisine” evokes the immigrant dishes served in the mid-1800s, when the state’s first restaurant—a Honolulu establishment called Eating House—opened (according to legend). Yamaguchi brings some serious chops to the table: He trained at the Culinary Institute of America before serving as executive chef in Los Angeles‘s La Serene and winning a James Beard Award. The menu shifts seasonally, according to what farmers, foragers, ranchers, and fishermen produce. Expect delicacies like a beef-and-wild-boar burger and pork lumpia with green papaya. Cap it all off with cinnamon-dusted malasadas (Portuguese doughnuts) with Koloa Rum sauce!

Opened in 1879, Mandarin Oriental was Thailand’s first hotel and is still among its best, offering a touch of romance from a bygone era. The high-rise buildings are modern and blocklike from the outside, but the interior shines with elegant details, from sweeping white staircases and filigree woodwork to towering tropical ferns and potted frangipani flowers. There are expansive river views from most rooms and public spaces, thanks to the riverside location. The world-class service has attracted personalities from Somerset Maugham and Audrey Hepburn to Mick Jagger. The New Wing consists of modern, brightly decorated rooms; the Garden and Authors’ Wings are a better choice for those looking for Old Asia. Each suite is unique. The restaurant, cooking school, and spa are some of the most sumptuous and highly regarded in the region.

The MacRitchie Reservoir is one of four reservoirs in the heart of Singapore at the Central Catchment Nature Reserve, where the surrounding forests are protected as national parks to ensure the quality of the water. Though unfortunately not accessible to the public, the ruins of a once-massive Shinto shrine built by the Japanese during their World War II occupation of Singapore are hidden in the overgrown, off-trail jungle near the northwestern corner of the reservoir. There is more to Singapore than meets the eye.

Soak up the endless horizon on this 15k tramp alongside Lake Wanaka. Why is this worth your Kiwi time? The rolling and winding track that follows the lake’s edge provides an unobstructed and ridiculous view of the snowcapped mountain tops (head over in spring for sunny skies and cool winds). Park your car in one of the lakefront car parks in town and head clockwise along the lake. You’ll pass Waterfall Creek and the small Damper Bay before you reach Glendhu Bay. The only thing that is missing here are sculptures of hobbits, dwarves, and trolls (just saying).

One of Canada’s most iconic hotels, the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise is cradled by the Rocky Mountains, its grand, castle-like structure surrounded by towering peaks and the pristine, protected wilderness of Banff National Park. The hotel was founded in 1890 by Cornelius Van Horne, the general manager of the Canadian Pacific Railway, who envisioned creating a refuge for “the outdoor adventurer and alpinist.” What began as a one-story log cabin ended up helping to kick-start tourism in the Canadian Rockies, launch the Canadian mountaineering scene, and draw a host of notable names to the region, from Marilyn Monroe to Queen Elizabeth II.

Today, guests arrive in a grand lobby outfitted with imposing chandeliers and sweeping staircases. Common areas are decorated with old-timey photos from the hotel’s past, while the 552 spacious rooms and suites are all about showcasing views of the stunning turquoise lake and snowcapped Victoria Glacier. There are plenty of activities to enjoy year-round, from canoeing, hiking, fishing, rafting, and horseback riding in warmer weather, to skiing, snowboarding, ice skating, and snowmobiling in the winter. In between, savor everything from European alpine dishes, authentic Italian fare, and Canadian comfort food to a large selection of bourbons and whiskeys at the seven dining outlets, or head to the spa and health club for a pampering treatment or dip in the indoor heated pool.

Some say that The Chapel of the Holy Cross is located in the heart of a vortex. Others regard it as a place of contemplation and spirituality. The Chapel itself was actually built by a devout student of Frank Lloyd Wright named Marguerite Brunswig Staude in 1956. Staude wanted to create a lasting tribute to her religious beliefs, and was so taken with the beauty of Sedona that she began work on the Chapel. Nestled between massive red boulders, the Chapel is a must see in Sedona. And, if you look carefully enough in the red rocks next, you can still see an Rx carved into the rock as a tribute to Marguerite’s father, a pharmacist.

You might encounter this evolving collection of apparel, accessories, and furniture “popping up” here and there. Owner Linda Hamilton, interior designer, fashion stylist, and entrepreneur, has spent years traveling the world on a quest for exciting and authentic apparel and accessories. You can find her Nomad Chic collection at boutique hotels and other locations and events across the United States and Mexico. Perhaps in a fabulous hotel lobby, poolside, or in her Moroccan tent filled to the brim with extraordinary apparel, jewelry, and accessories. She has created a unique mobile shopping experience. Nomad Chic’s carefully curated merchandise is a combination of unique and limited-edition creations by a host of international designers (which you will not find in other stores) along with Linda’s own apparel, jewelry, and accessories collection. Nomad Chic has been known to appear at the white building, Juarez (@ Hidalgo), Todos Santos, B.C.S., Mexico.

First opened in 2004 in a former office building in the Central Business District, the Loews New Orleans Hotel completed a $4 million renovation in November 2014. The new look is modern, but with a nod to the Big Easy: rooms and suites (which, by the way, are among the most spacious in town) are done up in soothing blues and grays, and feature local photography on the walls, and the carpets have a wrought-iron fence motif. Large picture windows afford vistas of the city or the Mississippi River.

Run by the legendary Brennan family and named after the vivacious Adelaide Brennan, the hotel restaurant also got a makeover—think canary-yellow seats, teal tufted banquettes, and Andy Warhol–esque pop art of its namesake.

Somewhere between a luxury yacht and a royal residence, the Hotel Lungarno seems like the sort of place where Audrey Hepburn’s Princess Ann, of Roman Holiday, would have felt right at home. A 16th-century private residence on the southern banks of the Arno, next to the iconic Ponte Vecchio, the hotel was the first entry into the Ferragamo family’s Lungarno hotel collection, lovingly restored by renowned Florentine architect/designer Michele Bönan. With rich navy carpets, stained-wood furnishings, crisp white linens, and as many large, river-facing windows as he could get away with. It comes as no surprise, either, that the house restaurant is considered among the best in the city. Even if the food and the atmosphere weren’t top-notch (and they are), the sunset views of the city lights reflected in the river would be worth it.

The 25hours brand is known for its playful take on the hotel experience, and this Zurich establishment follows suit. With an interior concocted by local designer Alfredo Häberli, the space features the usual mix of colorful, offbeat furnishings, slick design, and casual friendliness, as well as the cute touch of Häberli’s personal city tips scrawled on various surfaces.

The rooms and suites are separated into categories of silver, gold, and platinum to reflect the city’s banking-capital status. That’s as corporate as it gets, however, since the interiors are decidedly funky, with bold colors, quirky carpets and artwork, and angular work desks. The hotel also offers a restaurant, living room and business lounge (with iMac workstation and free Wi-Fi), plus an in-house kiosk that stocks everything from necessities (shampoo and toothpaste) to accessories (Freitag bags).

• Location: County Clare, Ireland
• Why we love it: A regal 19th-century castle that feels like stepping back in time—with all the comforts of today
• Loyalty program: I Prefer (Preferred Hotels and Resorts)
• From $3,800
• Book now

Dromoland Castle, located in Ireland’s County Clare, was built in the early 1800s and served as the ancestral home of the Irish Gaelic O’Brien clan for eight generations. Today, it’s a luxury hotel offering a range of refined experiences across its stately grounds—from hawk walks and boating on Dromoland Lake to golf, archery, and sporting clays lessons. Inside, original oil paintings, stained glass, antique furnishings, and the historic Ornamental Walled Garden evoke the castle’s storied past.



Recently refurbished rooms, such as the Grania O’Brien Suite, offer charming details like a hidden bookcase that opens into an adjoining room. The octagonal cocktail bar, once the O’Brien family library, now serves drinks named for Celtic deities. New to the 500 acre grounds is Dromoland Lodge, a five-bedroom private residence along the golf course for those seeking extra seclusion. If you’re looking for a royal stay that whisks you back in time, Dromoland is a great option, located a mere 20 minutes by car from Shannon Airport.

One of the South’s top art institutions, the High Museum was established in 1905 with a collection of European works. Over time, it has expanded to include modern art, regional artists, and rotating exhibits on everything from designer sneakers to the Terracotta Warriors to the Louvre’s most notable works. Outside, guests can view Rodin’s famous sculpture The Shade, which serves as a memorial to the 106 art patrons from Atlanta who died in a plane crash in 1962. Also outdoors are several interactive exhibits that encourage visitors to get up-close-and-personal with the art.

Shopping for unique crafts and other souvenirs is a trip highlight for many travelers, and this art collective, representing 70 local artists, is a special spot. Nordic imagery, such as the northern lights and winter landscapes, figures prominently in many of the works. You’re sure to find a one-of-a-kind gift here, from glass angels to handmade cups.