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Overlooking the San Miguel River and trail, Camel’s Garden sits right at the base of the gondola connecting Telluride with Mountain Village, just a few short blocks from Main Street. In addition to a convenient location, the hotel offers several complimentary niceties, including continental breakfast, wine and cheese in the winter, ski valet and storage, and heated underground parking—all of which make getting to the slopes easier, faster, and more pleasant. There’s also Oak, a full-service restaurant and bar beloved for its Southern-style ribs, and the award-winning Atmosphere Day Spa, which features a 25-foot hot tub with stunning mountain views.

Standard rooms are spacious at 385 square feet, while deluxe rooms include a sitting area and wet bar. No matter which you choose, you’ll enjoy a fireplace, balcony, and large soaking tub to soothe post-ski muscles. If you’re traveling with a large family or group, however, opt for one of the condos, which feature separate living areas, washers and dryers, and top-of-the-line kitchens with Sub Zero and Viking appliances.

Puerto Princesa Underground River is set in a protected area of the St. Paul Mountain Range in Palawan. It’s a five-mile stretch of the Cabayugan River that runs through a huge limestone cave and directly into the West Philippine Sea near Sabang village (the bottom half of the river is tidal). Announced as one of the New7Wonders of Nature in 2012, it’s hard to fully envision unless you experience it for yourself. Reservations are required for the tours, which enter the underground river on a small boat. The boatman manually paddles you in as the light fades, the water becomes pitch-black, and you almost lose sight of the person beside you. The boatman will then start flashing his tiny light on the stalactites, stalagmites, and other rock formations you pass. The tour takes about 45 minutes and covers only a mile or so of the river (the inner portion is closed to the public).

Every Wednesday and Saturday, a farmers market sets up in Union Square in New York City. On the west side of the square, by 16th Street, is an orchard stand which makes the best apple cider donuts in the entire world. Breezy Hill Orchard is always there with many different types of apples, pears, pies, baked goods and - best of all - apple cider donuts. A bag of three will only cost you a few dollars. Coupled with a cup of hot apple cider, it might just be the most perfect breakfast. Pull up a seat on one of the many benches in the park and gaze up through the towering trees as donut crumbs tumble down your chin.

If you love art in all its many forms, the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) in Boston is a ‘must-see’ destination. They have a great collection of Impressionism and Asian art works, from Monet and Van Gogh, to Chinese furniture and Japanese paintings, as well as the Egyptian collections. In addition, their newly opened west wing contains many stunning pieces of American art. Besides the arts, there is a cafe, a restaurant, gift shops of course, and a mini cinema for special shows. To get there: The MFA has its own subway stop called, what else, the MFA. If you drive, there are parking garage options as well. You can easily spend half a day here—or more!

Each evening as the sun sets, Stone Town’s Forodhani Gardens park transforms into an open-air food market. Skip the fish kebabs and head straight to the vendors selling urojo, a thick mango-and-tamarind soup served alongside chickpea fritters, boiled potatoes, cassava flakes, chutney, and as much hot sauce as you dare. Follow it up with hand-pressed sugarcane juice with ginger and lime.

Like on French counterparts Martinique and St. Martin, Guadeloupean rhum agricole is distilled from 100 percent pure sugar cane juice rather than from molasses (and is known as “rhum” versus “rum”). A number of well-respected small rhum factories in Guadeloupe—including Boulogne, Damoiseau, and Bellevue—offer distillery tours year-round, and these are particularly interesting during the sugar cane harvest season between February and June. Domaine de Bellevue, in Marie-Galante, is a solid pick for a full educational experience. You’ll see the ancient sugar mill, learn about the eco-friendly distillery process, and taste various rhums (including one flavored with Ethiopian beans) as well as a traditional ti’ punch, Guadeloupe’s official cocktail. There’s on-site shopping as well in case you’d like to stock up for home.

The Franciscan Basilica di Santa Croce, with its striped green-and-white marble facade, dates from about 1294. Inside are the tombs of many celebrated early Florentines, including Dante, Michelangelo and Machiavelli. Among the many art treasures are radiant frescoes by Giotto and his pupil Taddeo Gaddi, which decorate the Bardi and Peruzzi chapels, and the newly restored Cappella dei Pazzi, a Renaissance architectural masterpiece designed by Brunelleschi.

They had me at the yellow building. I love wandering the Dogpatch neighborhood of San Francisco and both Piccino restaurant and separate coffee bar, are lovely places to gather. The coffee bar on 22nd Street serves carefully crafted Sightglass organic coffee drinks. Their baking team aims to impress and I can’t get enough of the mushroom turnovers. Bonus: If you’re looking to make a to-go order from the Piccino restaurant around the corner, the coffee bar is where you’d place and pick up that order (hours have recently been extended until 10pm).

Snaking, cracking, shimmering a brilliant blue in places and covered by mystical frost in others, the Mer de Glace displays nature in all its powerful glory. France’s longest glacier stretches for 4.3 miles and is over 650 feet deep. Quite literally a sea of ice, it continues to move under its own weight; its surfaces break up, crevasses appear, and pointed columns of ice known as seracs burst from the surface. Though this glacier continues to amaze, it’s slowly being decimated by climate change—in 1988, you only had to climb down three steps to reach the ice grotto, which is carved out every spring; now, the ice has receded so much that you have to tackle 430 steps.

Coney Island’s history dates back to the 1800’s, when it was envisioned as a working man’s paradise. For pocket change, you could enjoy rides and hot dogs. While you’ll need a little more than pocket change now, this venture outside Manhattan has a true charm, and can connect with most anyone’s inner child. Over the summer you’ll find packed beaches, Friday night fireworks, and the famous Nathan’s hot dog eating contest on July 4. But if you’re coming from Midtown or the Upper East/West Sides, be sure to take an express train or you’ll be in for a ride not quite as amusing as the Cyclone.

Hungry customers line up and down the block for a seat at Café Sarafornia, without question Calistoga’s most popular brunch and lunch spot. The restaurant offers a California spin on an old-school diner, turning out pancakes, corned beef hash, and cheese blintzes. Breakfast is available all day—at least until the restaurant closes (at 2:30 p.m. daily). Café Sarafornia is particularly fun for kids, who can order off special menus and receive crayons and activity mats when they sit down. Local historians say the restaurant dates back nearly 120 years to when Calistoga was known as a resort town.

An ornate late-Victorian heap of red sandstone, the Kelvingrove (located within a lovely park of the same name) is Glasgow’s signature museum—and one of the most popular attractions in Scotland. Free to enter, it features a full house of historic exhibitions on everything from animals to Ancient Egypt and Charles Rennie Mackintosh, plus a wide range of important Scottish art (like Colourist Samuel John Peploe’s Roses), several French and Dutch works, and Salvador Dalí’s iconic Christ of Saint John of the Cross. Visiting exhibitions, such as Leonardo da Vinci drawings, round out the offerings. There are also regular organ recitals and free tours on weekends, making the Kelvingrove a perfect family attraction.

On Sandoval Street, this warmly lit gourmet spot from chefs Mark Connell and Arthur Martel (Arroyo Vino) provides a welcome detour from the standard New Mexican fine-dining route. In a reconsideration of the traditional dim sum cart, shareable dishes—plated on pretty, Instagram-worthy ceramics, are presented to diners. Offerings change seasonally and often include creations like suckling pig wontons or cassoulet with rabbit sausage as well as veggie-focused items like parsnip risotto with thyme and maple, and English pea and stone fruit salad with a goat cheese sorbet. There’s also a stellar wine list.

Day and night, dumplings are being made by hand, boiled and fried at the original branch of Mr. Shi’s in Baochao Hutong and at the Sanlitun outpost. This is not your corner dumpling joint but a cleaned-up space where the menus are in English and the menu overflows with more than 50 varieties of dumplings. There are the traditional—think pork and chive or leek and egg—and there are the unusual, such as pizza (cheese and tomato). While you can certainly live on dumplings alone, Mr. Shi’s has solid sides, including sliced cold cucumbers with garlic (a treat on hot summer days), a nice tofu salad, and stir-fried egg and tomato, a home-style classic that’s also available in dumpling form.

Founded in 2002, Big Lou’s is famous for its enormous pizzas. Ringing in at 42 inches, the pies have been featured everywhere from the Food Network to the Travel Channel’s Man vs. Food. Cover yours in classic toppings, or order specialty versions such as the white, the veggie, or barbecue, which comes slathered in two types of cheese and barbecue sauce. In case you’re not a pizza person, the menu also features wings, salads, sandwiches, calzones, and pasta.