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The largest luxury hotel in the city, the Charleston Place takes up a full city block with entrances on King and Meeting streets; the latter leads to the grand lobby, with its imperial open-arm staircase, 12-foot crystal chandelier, and Italian marble floors. Its 433 large guest rooms have old-fashioned Southern details like mahogany and damask furnishings. The hotel’s lower level houses fine-dining restaurant Charleston Grill, an attractive hotel bar, a large indoor saltwater pool with a retractable glass roof, and a shopping arcade with designer stores. The hotel recently began a $150 million renovation but will remain open as the property is upgraded from stem to stern.

The Hotel Orphée, in the medieval city of Regensburg, oozes 19th-century French glamour. Centrally located to Regensburg’s cobblestone streets, local shops, restaurants, and small squares, it’s decorated in a Baroque palazzo style. Each large, reasonably priced room is styled differently, but nearly all feature antiques and four-poster beds. Also on-site is the Orphée Restaurant, a French bistro that’s been in operation since 1896. Surrounded by its authentic wood wainscotting, tin ceiling, old French posters, and overall patina, you’ll feel transported to a distinctly different era—a time when sitting in a small café, drinking wine and watching passersby, could be the grand plan of your day. Note: In the summer, the narrow streets surrounding the hotel get very noisy, so if you’re a light sleeper, this may not be the place for you.

Built in the 1910’s, the Big Synagogue in Allenby street is one of the known monuments in Tel Aviv which serves as a cultural and religious center for the many residents in the area. When it was constructed,it’s beautiful dome stood in stark contrast to Judaism’s usually bleak houses of prayer, but the dome is barely visible now thanks to the columns around it. The synagogue is still active and opened to the public and actually getting very popular for weddings and Bar Mitzva’s ceremonies

Take a stroll down one of the cobbled streets of Valladolid and you might come across a cart peddling “volcanos.” The busy vender sells one item: a thick masa bun stuffed with chili marinated pulled pork and topped with red onion. For an extra kick, pour on a spoonful of homemade habenero sauce, but be careful! These small pockets pack heat.

My guide, Paco, a.k.a. Francisco de Santiago, 46, is a full time tour guide, and also a former child chess champion and bullfighter (“that was many kilos ago”), orders a flight of artisanal mezcal samples at our first mezcalería of the evening, and instructs me on the proper way to taste the purest of agave drinks. “You spread the mescal on top of your hand, like this, then wait for the alcohol to evaporate, then smell it for citric, floral, or smoky tones.” After smelling, a sip, then another for good measure, you take a bite of orange slice dipped in crushed maguey worms and sea salt. After that, we dive into the city’s tacos and street food, beginning our night with two cups of esquite—boiled corn kernels mixed with lime, chili pepper, and mayonnaise, which we bought from a father-son team who have been working the same street corner for 22 years. I booked my 4-hour “late-night taco and mezcal tour” with Eat Mexico Culinary Tours. Francisco de Santiago of Mexico also runs Every Angle Tours ([email protected], tel. 55-2086-0851, $85–145 per person, depending on tour, includes food, beverage, transport, guide); all kinds of specialty culinary tours, or an all-day Frida Kahlo tour of the city.)

Derick Avenue in Cyrildene on the Eastrand of Johannesburg, is home to a whole host of different Asian run stores and restaurants. It is the new home of the original Chinatown which started in Commissioner Street (Now Albertina Sisulu Street) in Newtown. You can get a good bargain on a whole lot of cheap “Made in China” goodies here and once you’re done shopping you can grab some bubble tea from the corner store at the bottom of Derrick Avenue or rest your weary feet and fill your empty tummy at one of the numerous restaurants along the road. If you get to Cyrildene early, get yourself into a restaurant and have some mid-morning brunch or ‘Yum Cha’ which literally translates to Drink Tea in Cantonese. Don’t be too scared to try out something out of the ordinary, it may be the best thing you’ve ever tasted! Derrick Avenue is also a great place to watch Chinese New Year Celebrations as the whole road is closed off to traffic and vendors come out onto the sidewalks to sell the food and wares.

Le Diplomate brings France’s chic bistro culture to D.C.’s trendy U Street Corridor. Upon entering through its bright blue door frame, the high ceilings, antique decor, and bread-cart centerpiece will have you checking for your passport. The classic French cuisine is on display with colorful salads, juicy steak frites, and rich crème brûlée. The only reminders that you’re still in America are the generous portions and the warm, attentive service. Request a seat in the glass-enclosed and tiled sunroom, where the wall reads “Blanchisserie de Chemise,” an homage to the location’s former life as a laundromat. This District arrondissement certainly welcomes the tasty transformation. Bon appétit!

Tucked away on a side street between King Street and Blue Jays Way in the heart of Toronto’s entertainment district, Hotel Le Germain is a cozy escape from the bustle of the city. The lobby has a library area where guests can curl up on sofas and, in wintertime, enjoy the atmospheric crackling of the wood-burning fire. In summer, the rooftop putting green on the 11th floor is the place to relax. Following a full renovation project in early 2015, the minimalist rooms are monochrome with colorful accents, and the generously sized bathrooms have glass-walled rainfall jet showers. The hotel piles on a raft of extras, such as free Wi-Fi, newspapers, and in-room Nespresso coffee machines. There is also a complimentary breakfast that includes croissants and pastries.

A candy store has occupied this building continuously since 1863. The current proprietors, the Berley brothers—who also own the Franklin Fountain ice cream parlor a few doors away on Market Street—are master confectioners. Even for those among us who don’t like candy (is that even possible?), a visit to the store is worthwhile simply to see its charming Victorian interior. Coming here is like stepping back in time, and you’ll feel as thrilled as a kid to peer into the vintage glass-topped cabinets full of chocolates and other sweets. Keep an eye out for the Whirly Berley Bars (chocolate nougat with salted chocolate caramel), and be sure to check out the seasonal creations, like the pumpkin-spice buttercreams.

This 12-cottage luxury hotel, 3,100 feet up in the Blue Mountains, is Jamaica without the beaches. It is the Jamaica of misty mornings, cool, cuddle-worthy evenings, and a musical heritage recognized worldwide. First as a private estate belonging to music producer Chris Blackwell and then as part of his Island Outpost collection of hotels, Strawberry Hill has been a creative refuge for performers including Bob Marley, the Rolling Stones, and Willy Nelson. After Hurricane Gilbert destroyed the estate’s great house in 1988, Blackwell commissioned Jamaican architect Ann Hodges, who specializes in historic reconstructions, to build the cottages, a restaurant, and a pool, which were opened in 1994. Yet despite the rock and roll history, and the hanging with like-minded souls up in the mountain mists, what guests seem to remember most is the far-below views of Kingston, especially at night, when the lights glow and sparkle from what must certainly be another world.

Why we love it: A classic St. Pete stay with a beachfront location and retro vibe

The Highlights:
- Cabana rooms with private patios by the pool
- The largest heated pool on St. Pete Beach
- A beach bar with frozen cocktails and live music

The Review:
Nicknamed “the Santorini of St. Pete Beach” for its white-and-blue color scheme, the Postcard Inn on the Beach strikes a balance between playful and sophisticated, attracting families and young couples alike. Set right on the beach, the property boasts a large heated pool, fitness center, and beachwear boutique, plus extras like a fire pit, beach cabanas, bicycles, and fun games like ping-pong and beach volleyball. The 196 bright, breezy guestrooms feature local artwork that pays homage to St. Pete’s surfers and sun worshippers of yesteryear, plus lime, teal, and sea foam accents for a funky vibe. Those looking for a little something extra should book one of the cabana options, which come with private patios right by the pool.

In the morning, guests can fuel up with locally roasted Kahwa coffee and freshly baked donuts at on-site cafe, P.S. Grind. Later in the day, head to the Beach Bar & Snack Shack for sandwiches, frozen cocktails, and live music, or Stamps Lobby Bar and Restaurant for blackened mahi tacos, barbecue dry-rubbed burgers, and other classic American dishes.

The Old Town’s main street, Stradun, also known as Placa, can’t be missed—it’s the biggest and widest of all the thoroughfares, and you will probably walk it several times during your stay here. It’s especially nice in the late afternoon, when the angle of the sun makes the pavement shine and the swallows soar overhead. Continue down to the old port and along the waterfront to the far end. Porporela Pier, built courtesy of the Austrian administration’s rule in Dubrovnik during the 19th century, is today somewhat of a lovers’ rendezvous. After your stroll, the benches along the pier provide a simple relaxing moment to take in the views of Lokrum island and Cavtat in the distance.

There’s no better place to stop and smell the roses (and the dahlias and the begonias) than Christchurch Botanic Gardens. From New Regent Street, hop on the renovated tram, which stops near the entrance to the 80-plus acres of majestic oaks, water gardens, and rose beds. Rolleston Ave. and Worcester Blvd. This appeared in the January/February 2015 issue.

Immerse yourself in clothes, shoes, bags, costumes, and accessories of bygone eras at By Retro in Suriye Passage, off Istiklal Street. This expansive basement shop is a wondrous labyrinth of vintage and retro treasures that feels more like a big kid’s dress-up box than a thrift shop. Take a trip back in time here—it will surely captivate vintage and retro fashion lovers for hours.

Simple, skilled treatment of raw product is the hallmark of the cuisine at Narru. With a chef once named in the Wall Street Journal as a top young chef to watch in Europe, the food here is quite simply delicious. Stars are the tomato salad, the seafood rice dish of the day, the crema de queso for dessert, and the secreto ibérico, an incredibly juicy cut of pork.