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Maison Premiere’s French influence invites you into another era around its marble horseshoe bar. If you come early, you can take your time here. We were lured by the $1 oyster special during happy hour. It all washed down well with a boozy sazerac and a sweet Pimm’s cup (as pictured). If your liver is craving more, MP has the largest collection of premium absinthe in New York City, centered around “the world’s most accurate working replica of an absinthe fountain,” according to their site. It’s a great place for your day drinking needs.

Just to the southwest of Tucson, on the San Xavier Reservation, sits the late XVIII-century Mission San Xavier del Bac, one of the finest examples of Spanish colonial architecture in the U.S. The combination of late Baroque and Moorish-inspired design is a beacon any time of the year, but on this winter day, the flooded fields worked some magic—panoramas of reflected landscapes are almost nonexistent in southern Arizona! The ‘white dove of the desert’ is the oldest intact European structure in Arizona, and it still serves as a parish church for the Tohono O’odham people.

On most days in Prague, it feels like every tourist in town has gathered on the Charles Bridge. And for good reason — this 14th-century cobblestone span crosses the Vltava River, connecting the Old Town with the Lesser Town (Mala Strana) and providing picturesque views of both sides of the river, medieval churches, towers, and Prague Castle on the hill. King Charles IV commissioned the bridge in 1357. The bridge has 16 arches and protected by towers on either end: the Old Town Bridge Tower in Old Town and the Judith Tower and Lesser Town Bridge Tower on the Mala Strana side. The bridge is lined with 30 large statues of religious figures and luminaries, dating from the Baroque era to the present day The best time to go is at dawn, sunset or after dark after the crowds have thinned and romance is in the air.

Lake Maggiore, the second largest Italian lake after Lake Garda, holds the three jewel-like Borromean Islands, Isola Bella, Isola Madre, and the quaint and picturesque, Isola dei Pescatori.

We were offered the chance to visit Pompeii or Herculaneum when we docked at Sorrento. People rave about Pompeii because it’s absolutely huge and gives you a great sense of just how sophisticated Roman civilisation was. Herculaneum, by contrast, was a Roman seaside town, a sort of holiday resort, and doesn’t offer the same kind of scale. Still. I remembered my Latin lessons, and how we’d learned that while Pompeii’s buildings were smashed and burned by the falling volcanic ash, Herculaneum was actually preserved in the thick mud that engulfed it. And it’s true: wandering around the archaeological remains of the town, you feel like you’re in a place that’s only recently been abandoned. The wine shop (above) still has its amphorae stacked to the side, the houses have beautifully preserved frescoes and mosaics. What it lacks in size it more than makes up for in detail.

Why we love it: A boutique stay in Faubourg Marigny that’s full of history, character, and style

The Highlights:
- High design mixed with historic details
- A restaurant from a James Beard–nominated team
- Character-filled common spaces like the parlors and sun room

The Review:
Located in New Orleans’s culturally rich Faubourg Marigny neighborhood, the 71-room Hotel Peter and Paul comprises a historic church, rectory, schoolhouse, and convent, all built in the 19th century. When converting the site, local resident Nathalie Jordi and New York–based interior design firm ASH NYC took pains to preserve original features like cypress wood moldings, stained glass windows, and marble fireplaces, while adding signature details like antique chandeliers and custom rugs handmade in India. As a result, each guestroom has a personality all its own, evident in touches like canopy beds, Italian linens, and trays of locally sourced snacks.

That love for local eats extends to The Elysian Bar, where the team behind James Beard–nominated wine bar Bacchanal serves regionally focused fare like roasted Gulf shrimp and braised beef short ribs, and Sundae Best, which offers small-batch ice cream made with seasonal, locally sourced ingredients. Also on site is a cheery cafe for coffee and pastries; two grand parlors for reading the paper in a vintage rattan chair; a sun room modeled after Claude Monet’s Giverny home; an amber-hued bar serving low-proof spritzes for aperitivo hour; and a tranquil brick courtyard lined with palms, ferns, and vines. More impressive still is the decommissioned Catholic church, designed by famous New Orleans architect Henry Howard. Here, the hotel hosts a mix of private and public events, from weekly concerts to yoga and floral design classes.

Nothing defines Boston quite as much as the town’s devotion to sports (10 championships since the turn of the century doesn’t hurt), and with all due respect to the five-time-Super-Bowl-champion Patriots, it’s Fenway Park, not Gillette Stadium, that’s the temple of sports fandom. Opened in 1912, the quirky green bandbox between Lansdowne Street and Yawkey Way is almost as famous for its obstructed-view seats as it is for its fabled Green Monster wall in left field, but that’s a price Sox fans gladly pay in exchange for maintaining Fenway’s historic layout. It’s both intimate and loud on game day even in years when the Sox aren’t contenders (tickets are often hard to come by, so plan ahead); the old ballpark also is open for one-hour, behind-the-scenes tours that take you inside and atop the Green Monster. You’ll be able to stroll around the field (the warning track, not the grass), and visit the press box, the Pesky Pole, and (on days with no games) the dugouts and bull pens.

The Grand Place in Brussels is the magnificent main square in Brussels. The square is the main tourist attraction in Brussels and is surrounded by numerous cafes and shops. Most of the buildings were constructed in the late 17th century, although market activity in the square dates back to the 12th Century. It’s a great place to hang out, grab a coffee or a liege waffle, and people watch.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art—or, commonly, the Met—is one of the world’s great museums, alongside the Louvre, the British Museum, and a handful of others. It would be easy to devote an entire week’s visit to the museum alone, and realistically you probably won’t get far beyond a few exhibitions and galleries at one shot. The Costume Institute’s temporary shows are always popular, while others will (like the museum itself) focus on a range of regions and periods—at any one time there may be temporary exhibitions on an Italian Renaissance painter, miniatures from Mughal India, and Polynesian carvings. The Temple of Dendur, a roughly 43' x 21' x 16' temple that dates to around 15 B.C.E. and was given by the government of Egypt to the United States in 1967, is one of the museum’s most photographed (and Instagrammed) works. The 34 period rooms, including a 12th-century cloister, English parlor and a Shaker “retiring” room, are among the museum’s other highlights. On summer evenings, site-specific installations make the rooftop terrace is a favorite place for drinks. The general admission of $25 for adults, $12 for students, and $17 for seniors is a suggested one for New York residents, as well as students from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. Whatever you pay also includes same-day entry to The Met Cloisters.

Central Jordan is bisected by the King’s Highway, which runs south between the Dead Sea and the desert. The undoubted highlight of traveling this route is the massive Crusader castle of Karak, with its immense fortifications looming over the provincial town that bears its name. Built in 1140, it was one of the last outposts held by the Crusaders after Jerusalem was recaptured by Saladin in 1187. It fell to the Arab-Kurdish armies the following year after a long, drawn-out siege and continued to change hands—and shape—over time. The Mamelukes widened the moat and added more towers, while the Ottomans built a massive entry gate.

Today, Karak remains the largest, best-preserved castle in Jordan. Inside, there are tunnels, dark chambers and dungeons, and vast, arched-roof stables to explore. If you head east out of town, past the Cairwan Hotel, there’s a lookout point where you can get a spectacular view of the castle in its entirety.

Why we love it: A faithful reimagining of a classic travelers’ hotel

The Highlights:
- Conveniently located right next to East Tennessee State University and near downtown
- Delightfully comfortable sleigh beds
- Historically accurate decor, including oil paintings and antique furniture

The Review:
While the original Carnegie Hotel in Johnson City was lost to a fire in the early 20th century, guests can get a taste of history at this faithful re-creation, which offers upscale accommodations for both business and leisure travelers. Today, the hotel combines historical grandeur with modern amenities, such as a state-of-the-art fitness room, a heated outdoor pool, and a full-service spa for massages and body treatments. In the 128 rooms and 11 suites, guests also find sleigh beds with mattresses so comfortable they’d be wise to set two alarms for the morning.

The on-site restaurant, Wellington’s, serves elevated Southern cuisine made with traditional Appalachian ingredients, while the bar offers craft cocktails and a wide selection of whiskey. After your meal, take a nightcap down the hall to the clubby Roosevelt Library lounge, where you can admire original oil paintings, dark wood accents, and antique furniture that recall the Carnegie Hotel of yore.

It’s little wonder why the cerulean infinity pool at Perivolas has graced more than its fair share of magazine covers. Overlooking shimmering Aegean waters to the Santorini caldera beyond, it feels like heaven on earth. But in fact, the luxury hotel had humble beginnings: Onetime fishermens’ residences in the typical yposkafa style—with cave-like rooms excavated from native volcanic stone nearly three centuries ago—the property has been a family-run boutique lodging since 1983. All 20 rooms have a sea view with terraces to take in the Greek sunsets; some suites feature private infinity pools and Jacuzzis, while the Perivolas Suite is the ultimate indulgence, claiming not only a huge indoor hot tub, but also a steam room and swim-out pool that stretches from inside the cave to the terrace. Furnishings are minimal but sumptuous, with occasional pops of fuschia and purple to add contemporary flair and skylights that flood the whitewashed walls with light. If you can peel yourself away, Perivolas is an easy 15-minute walk from Oia. But with its own highly regarded Greek restaurant, that gorgeous pool, and a cliffside spa with sauna, steam room, and outdoor hot tub, is there really any reason to leave?

In operation for almost 160 years, this renowned Belle Époque resort on the shores of Lake Geneva in Lausanne is steeped in important history and culture. The treaty that broke up the Ottoman Empire was signed here in 1923, and guests have included everyone from Charlie Chaplin and Gary Cooper to Rod Stewart and Nelson Mandela. From 2012 to 2014, the hotel received a nearly $30 million makeover, helmed by famed interior designer Pierre-Yves Rochon, which complemented the timeless elegance of all 168 rooms and suites with such luxuries as Murano glass chandeliers, expansive mirrors to bring the views indoors, and entertainment screens discreetly embedded in bathroom mirrors. There are four restaurants on the property, most notably the exquisite Anne-Sophie Pic, which has two Michelin stars. In the summer months, the hotel also serves dinner on its own turn-of-the-century, steam-powered paddleboat as it plies the waters of the lake. The state-of-the-art spa, offering a wide selection of restorative treatments, opens up onto the resort’s 10-acre park and includes separate saunas and hammans for men and women, a Jacuzzi, two heated pools (one indoor, one out), and two tennis courts.

A 19th-century private estate just outside San Sebastián’s city center, Villa Soro was commissioned by a wealthy businessman as a wedding gift for his daughter; it was designed by the same architect who built the iconic Hotel de Londres y de Inglaterra, which towers over the La Concha waterfront at the city center. In contrast to that classic belle epoque building, the villa takes its inspiration from English architecture—complete with peaked roofs and faux-Tudor beaming—that was in vogue at the time, while the manicured gardens were designed by renowned Romantic landscape designer Pierre Ducasse.

Now an intimate, 25-room boutique hotel, Villa Soro maintains the same relaxed, cozy atmosphere one might expect to find at a friend’s estate, complete with two elegant drawing rooms outfitted with armchairs that beg to be curled up in with a book. The dark-wood-and-leather bar room (complete with a fireplace, of course) beckons visitors with vermouth and txakoli. Rooms are homey and classically elegant, spread between the main house and the restored carriage house, and they make for a romantic retreat within walking distance of the city’s sights and Michelin-starred restaurants.

Opened in May 2014 with a facade mildly reminiscent of a 19th-century European grand hotel, the Mandarin Oriental Taipei might seem incongruous in an Asian city—at least to those unacquainted with the Taiwanese penchant for blending international styles with more typically Asian motifs. The hotel’s Old World luxury extends throughout, from the marble-floored lobby (complete with white columns holding up high cathedral ceilings) to the rooms themselves, which are coolly stunning. Each room, from the standard Deluxe to the sprawling Presidential Suite, has separate tubs and walk-in showers inside a marble bathroom designed to make anyone feel like royalty. As for sleeping arrangements, “plush” is an overused word in hotel reviews, but it’s hard to find a better one to describe the feeling of sinking into a bed with 480-thread-count satin linen (which rises to 1,000 in certain suites) and a goose-down duvet. As a finishing touch, look up: Every room basks in the glow of its own chandelier. Though Marie Antoinette and the Empress Dowager Cixi lived on different continents, both would feel quite at home at the Mandarin Oriental.