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As of May 2018, El Conquistador Resort and Las Casitas Village are closed indefinitely, due to damage sustained during Hurricane Maria.

Situated atop a 300-foot bluff on the eastern tip of Puerto Rico, El Conquistador Resort, a Waldorf Astoria Resort, spreads across 500 acres overlooking the converging waters of the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. A stay at El Conquistador is a transformative experience. Guests can relax at the Eucalyptus steam room, enjoy exotic cocktails while gazing at the El Yunque Rainforest, or even kayak around a private island. Guestrooms and suites are divided into five villages, and feature ocean views, 23 restaurants, an 18-hole golf course, a state-of-the-art aquatic playground/water park for families, and the resort’s private island, Palmino Island, featuring water sports and white sand beaches.

The ambience alone is worth a splurge at the dining room of the Majestic Yosemite Hotel, the stopover of presidents, queens, celebrities, and moguls since it opened in 1927 (and, allegedly, one of Stanley Kubrick’s inspirations for the hotel in The Shining). The formal dining room—there’s a dress code at dinnertime—serves such Continental classics as French onion soup, duck leg confit, and rack of lamb Provençale under 34-foot, chandelier-studded ceilings. The Sunday brunch buffet is especially popular, as are the annual Renaissance-themed Christmas dinners in December. For a more casual option, the bar serves sandwiches, salads, and soups and, maybe best of all, offers outdoor tables so you can eat and enjoy a craft cocktail or glass of wine surrounded by glorious views. Note: This restaurant is open year-round.

Newlyweds looking for a luxury boutique villa style hotel experience will dig the Somerset, which has just 53 rooms spread over eight buildings right on Grace Bay Beach (walking distance to DIY snorkeling). A sort of hotel/villa hybrid, digs are in multi-room suites with fully equipped kitchens. It works great for families, especially as dining out in Provo adds up quickly. Beyond the rooms, there is a 70-foot infinity pool to chill by as well as a lengthy list of activities that will keep the kids busy while you do so. A spa and two restaurants -- one casual, the other more formal -- complete the picture. Oh, and on Monday nights, the property’s general manager hosts a cocktail hour with free drinks, tapas, and live music for guests. Tuesday nights are dedicated to BBQs on the beach. The villa resort also works well for couples, as the suites here are beyond spacious and very private and there are a few different swimming pool options.

Based on an idea by Simon Wiesenthal and erected in 2000, British artist Rachel Whiteread’s Nameless Library in the Judenplatz sits in one of the most tranquil squares in Vienna’s Inner City. The simple, stark, 12-foot-high concrete block is dedicated as a Holocaust memorial. Since the Middle Ages, Viennese Jewish life centered around the Judenplatz, and excavations during the memorial construction revealed a synagogue that had been destroyed in the pogroms of 1421. The square’s Misrachi-Haus, with its baroque facade dating from 1694, is now a branch of the Jewish Museum Vienna (its main location is in the Palais Eskeles). Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach’s stately Bohemian Court Chancellery building and a monument to the Enlightenment author Gotthold Ephraim Lessing also face the square.

Its imposing structure now in ruins like an ancient stone temple, the sea-facing Huanchaca silver foundry was abandoned at the beginning of the 20th century only to be named a national monument in 1974. At its foot now sits the Museum of the Atacama Desert, a striking, largely underground building opened in 2009 that was designed by a leading Chilean firm and reflects the same monumental scale as the foundry. The galleries are dedicated to geology, astronomy and archaeology, while the site as a whole—the museum, the foundry ruins and a foundation that supports local artists—forms the Huanchaca Cultural Park. It has quickly become a popular stop for visitors to Antofagasta, providing an excellent introduction to this region of Chile.

I love visiting big iconic bridges during the sunset. Trips at dusk to the Golden Gate Bridge and the Brooklyn Bridge have resulted in spectacular photographs of the urban landscape. The Sydney Harbour Bridge was another great experience! The bridge is accessible by foot or by bike and is surrounded by some of the biggest attractions in Sydney. More adventurous types might opt for the Bridge Climb Tour (http://www.bridgeclimb.com/) where participants get to scale the summit of the 134-meter arch for panoramic views of the city. And yes, they offer a Twilight Tour near sunset (and a dawn tour at sunrise). We were content walking across the bridge on the pedestrian walkway. It was a brisk spring evening in Sydney, and we didn’t envy the tourists climbing the bridge overhead. The views from the bridge are stunning in every direction, and it is a magnificent vantage point to see the Sydney Opera House and the Central Business District.

On sunny days, Parisians head for the Luxembourg Garden, built by Marie de’ Medici in 1611 and modeled after the Boboli Gardens in her native Florence. In addition to the magnificent Medici Fountain, there are more than 100 statues arranged around the garden’s 20 hectares (50 acres), which encompass both formal French and English gardens. Here you’ll find chess players, puppeteers, children sailing tiny boats on the octagonal pool and sometimes a free concert in the gazebo.

The Louisiana-style, year-round barbecue at Buster’s is in a league of its own. Main-course options at this no-frills (read: It’s a glorified picnic shelter) Calistoga eatery include shoulder, pork ribs, tri-tip, chicken, pork loin, and pulled pork—all cooked medium rare unless otherwise specified. Most dishes come with sides such as baked beans, macaroni salad, and cole slaw. All portions are heaping, and every dish comes with signature garlic toast. Dessert options include house-made sweet potato pie and fresh-baked cookies. Because of Buster’s proximity to downtown Calistoga, the restaurant is a great stop after a morning hike on Mount St. Helena. On warm days, try to grab a table outside and watch the ‘cue masters work the outdoor grills, and on Sunday afternoons, stick around for live blues and jazz on the patio.

Perhaps the most relevant museum in Hanoi for American visitors is the Hoa Lo Prison Museum, popularly known as the “Hanoi Hilton” during the Vietnam War. Its exterior is a strangely cheery yellow, and it was part of a complex built by the French around the turn of the 20th century. You’ll know you’ve reached the building when you see its original French name, Maison Centrale, in bold letters above the entrance. The exhibits cover both the French treatment of Vietnamese prisoners and the U.S. soldiers and pilots housed here during the Vietnam War—including Senator John McCain, who was detained here from 1967 to 1973. (His flight suit is among the displays.) A visit can be a powerful, and at times emotionally difficult, experience.

You don’t have to be old enough to drive to have fun at LVMGP; four tracks, three amusement rides, one super-slide, and tons of arcade games make the destination a fun spot for the entire family. Go-carts headline the action, with three speed tracks (and a course for kids that often devolves into a bumper-cars situation). On one of the speed tracks—dubbed the Adult Gran Prix—cars get up to 60 miles per hour and feature technology that keeps tabs of how fast you’re going; during your “race,” your time is displayed on a leader board so you can compare and compete with your friends. Elsewhere at the facility, there’s a small roller coaster and a giant 90-foot slide. Inside, the arcade takes center stage, with air hockey, video games, and four games of pop-a-shot, as well as a restaurant.

Among California’s 21 Spanish missions, the late-18th-century national landmark Mission Santa Barbara is considered the “queen of the missions.” Those interested in early California history will also want to stop by the whitewashed, red tile–roofed El Presidio de Santa Bárbara, a late-18th-century Spanish military outpost that was built by local Chumash Indian laborers. The park’s nearby adobe homes have exhibits of historic objects found in the area. The legacy of this period lives on at the Santa Barbara County Courthouse, a masterpiece of Spanish colonial revival architecture built in 1929 and just five minutes on foot from the Presidio.

More than 250 artifacts of the RMS Titanic are on display at this 25,000-square-foot space at the Luxor. Among the truly incredible mementos excavated from the wreck of the sunken ship: an unopened bottle of champagne, a floor tile, a window frame, and a giant piece of the ship’s hull. Perhaps more impressive than the artifacts themselves are the full-scale re-creations of what guest quarters looked like on the ship—attending the exhibit gives you a sense of the difference in the experiences of a first-class passenger and a third-class passenger. Since it opened in the late 1990s, the exhibit has been seen by more than 25 million people, which makes it one of the most popular attractions in Las Vegas history.

Sailing is Anguilla’s national sport, but it’s also the best way to explore the island’s dreamy Caribbean shores—and the best way to explore its marine life while in transit. Spend the day with Tradition Sailing Charters, gliding across iridescent blue waters on a 1978 50-foot sloop, drifting from one cay to another. You’re welcome to watch and learn how to sail if you’re a newbie, or to participate if you have experience. After a lunch stop at the only restaurant in Prickly Pear Cays, get underwater to check out this reef-protected bay where sea turtles, blue tang, and numerous other tropical critters thrive. There’s also a brown booby colony on land here.

When it opened in 2015, this museum drew headlines for its extensive contemporary art collection and Diller Scofidio + Renfro–designed building, which resembles a futuristic honeycomb. Then a single exhibition catapulted it into fame: artist Yayoi Kusama’s installation of thousands of twinkling LED lights called Infinity Mirrored Room—The Souls of Millions of Light Years Away. (The artist’s follow-up, Longing for Eternity, opened in 2017.)


There’s plenty to be dazzled by in this museum founded by philanthropists Eli and Edythe Broad. Hundreds of skylights illuminate the column-free third floor’s permanent galleries—featuring the Broads’ considerable collection of pieces by Kara Walker, Barbara Kruger, Jasper Johns, and Jean-Michel Basquiat. Insiders know to visit on weekdays for the most relaxed experience or around major holidays and occasions such as Halloween and International Women’s Day for engaging and sometimes provocative tours. Pro tip:

Though general admission tickets are free, it’s wise to book tickets online ahead when they’re released on the first of each month for the following month, especially if you’re taking a date or going with a group (the same goes for Kusama’s rooms). At least two weeks out, request a before- or after-hours guided group tour of one hour, not including the Infinity Mirrored Room.

And make sure to also book reservations at Otium, the trendsetting restaurant by Chef Timothy Hollingsworth located next to the Broad.

This sprawling 19th-century former gasworks complex west of the Canal Ring was a polluted site for decades after its closing in the mid-1960s. It was cleaned up and reopened in 2003 as a park, and its architecturally significant red-brick buildings were turned into cultural venues, restaurants, bars, nightclubs, and shops. The Gashouder, a massive circular structure measuring more than 27,000 square feet, hosts mainly techno parties, while the nearby North Sea Jazz Club is an intimate space for live jazz performances. You’ll also find TonTon Club, a restaurant and arcade with video games, air hockey, and table tennis; Pacific Parc, a café with live rock music and DJs; and a three-screen art-house cinema.