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In Guadeloupe, drinks and meals go hand in hand, and not just as sundowners. Locals wash their appetizers down with a classic ti’ punch or perhaps a planteur rhum punch as an aperitif, while wine and fresh juices accompany heavier meals. As a result, restaurants double as excellent bars, each well-stocked with a variety of local and imported drinks.

Located in the East End of Melbourne is a creative cocktail bar called Bar Ampere. According to chef Victor Liong of Ho Lee Fook in Melbourne. “Bar Ampere is great for an aperitif or a night cap.”

Both the bar and kitchen are open until 3 a.m. each night, making it an excellent place to swing by for a late night drink and bite to eat. Don’t miss the steak sandwich with onion jam or the crispy ham and cheese croquettes. Though, of course, the drinks are the main reason we know you’ll be headed here.

Genuine Magallanes fare such as open-flame, spit-roasted lamb is what you find on the menu at this bucolic oceanside estate on the Eberhard Fjord in Patagonia. Aperitifs in hand, visitors can watch how the flavor-packed food that just keeps coming is prepared, and the service is a paean to Patagonia’s renowned hospitality. Connoisseurs recommend ordering the matambre, an especially tasty cut of beef. Tables hold parties of six or more, and individual diners are seated with whatever group can accommodate them. Reserve on the restaurant’s website (and remember that mobile service can be intermittent in this corner of the planet). Open mid-September to late April.

Right next to the famed Venice Fish Market, Naranzaria is a charming ultra trendy wine and tapas bar that specializes in raw fish with an Italian twist. Some of the dishes sound weird - like the mozzarella, tomato and tuna sushi, but the chef is talented and they come out tasting better than they sound. Beyond fish, there are also a lot of vegetarian tapas options, making it an all around solid bet regardless of your eating style. The restaurant is also a perfect place to relax over a traditional aperitif, like a spritz or a caipirinha or a glass of fine Italian wine. And the location on a just across from the Rialto Bridge is as romantic Venice as it gets.

It isn’t wine or cocktails that mark happy hour for locals in Marseille but Pastis, the anise-flavored drink of choice first commercialized by Paul Ricard during the prohibition of absinthe. Ricard’s recipe and formula– star anise, licorice root; five volumes of water for one volume of Pastis - proved an instant hit back in the early 1930’s and is largely responsible for popularizing the aperitif-hour tradition in the south. Today’s experts can be found at La Maison du Pastis, a shop tucked deep in the colonnades of the Vieux Port specialized in 75 different varieties of Pastis and Absinthe. Be sure to ask for a taste before you pick up a bottle, the staff is more than happy to oblige.

Michelin-starred Minetta Tavern, which opened in 1937, has attracted plenty of literary luminaries over the years, including Ernest Hemingway and e.e. cummings, and continues to attract the famous and not-so-famous with its Paris-bistro-meets-NYC-tavern menu and vibe. There’s roasted bone marrow and trout meunière, and plenty of aperitifs, beers, wines, and cocktails (including one named for a Hemingway novel) to wash down whatever you order. Before or after your stop at this iconic Greenwich Village stop, walk through nearby Washington Square Park (as close to a “campus” as New York University gets) or watch a game of basketball at the famous West 4th Street courts.

If you are in Venice, you will surely get familiar with local spritz (a fizzy, refreshing aperitif) and cicchetti, or small snacks. If you want to have a local experience, be sure to stop by Cantine del Vino Già Schiavi while walking around La Salute area.

It’s more of a wine bar or shop than a true restaurant, with floor-to-ceiling bottles along the walls and most patrons standing as they nibble cicchetti like bruschetta with a cod spread or brie and anchovies. Buon appetito!

The Hotel Flora is an ivy-clad 17^th-century palazzo tucked down a narrow alleyway in San Marco. It’s hidden from the crowds, but still an easy stroll to the buzz of San Marco Palazzo and the Grand Canal. Like all grand Venetian homes, it’s had its share of interesting inhabitants over the years, including a School of Painting, a salon for well-known local artists. Continuing the artistic legacy, the Romanelli family—photographers, writers, and antique collectors among them—has owned the hotel for the last 50 years.

In the classic manner of a pension, the hotel is intimate and the staff welcoming and friendly. Rooms are cozy and decorated with traditional antique furnishings, heavy drapes, and bold brocade wallpaper in some. Pop down to the Victorian-styled bar for an aperitif, or linger over an espresso with a good read in the hushed garden.

Expats Lionel Maitrepierre and Joëlle Jean Louise drew inspiration from traditional Cambodian rice spirit, which is potent and medicinal-tasting and not always safe for foreigners to drink, and the fruit-infused rums from Joëlle’s home Mauritius, when they developed Sombai. The Siem Reap-based couple started producing their range of quality rice spirits, which they infused with Cambodian fruits, herbs, spices, and roots, in 2012. You’ll see Sombai’s distinctive hand-painted bottles all over Siem Reap, and many bars offer cocktails made with Sombai’s rice spirits, however, it’s much more fun to visit their tasting room and infusion workshop, where you can taste the full range of eight blended flavors (for free), before buying the beautiful bottles with Cambodian cotton kramas tied around their necks. The spirits can be sipped straight as aperitifs, combined with spirits to make cocktails or drizzled over ice-cream or cake to create a heady dessert.

The creative energy of the Garment District in Midtown Manhattan has long been behind closed doors, but Archer Hotel, opened in early 2014, puts that artistic spirit on appealing display. A mix of fabrics, graphic prints, exposed brick, and floor-to-ceiling windows (with dramatic skyline views) pays homage to a neighborhood known for pushing the boundaries of fashion. Beyond its quirky style—including a house art collection with pieces spanning several mediums—this property entices with its rooftop bar, Spyglass, perched on the 22^nd floor with views of the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building. Archer excels at the small stuff, from in-room Nespresso machines and free Wi-Fi to gorgeous black-and-white subway tiled bathrooms with luxurious walk-in showers. Unwind after your day with an aperitif at the Foyer Bar, complete with seasonal outdoor patio.

An observer from the sidewalk might puzzle as groups of people march into this pretty flower store—and don’t emerge shortly with bouquets. The customers are not here for the blossoms but for what lies below. A door at the rear of the shop leads downstairs to a long speakeasy bar and an adjacent line of hard-to-snag tables. Sea monsters and fish scales emerge from the walls, and as the name Atlántico suggests, the seafood and old-school-aperitif recipes that European immigrants brought to Argentina when they crossed the eponymous pond are the inspiration behind cuisine and cocktails alike. The Spanish-style pulpo (octopus) or the jumbo prawns draw raves; reserve for dinner to avoid a likely wait. Or wedge into the bar to enjoy the innovative, much-ballyhooed mixology.

Founded by restaurateur Ryan Maybee and chef Howard Hanna, this downtown hot spot occupies the former Rieger Hotel, which dates all the way back to 1915. Many of the building’s original architectural details have been left intact, including the tile flooring, bathroom fixtures, and much of the decor, creating an almost nostalgic feel throughout the restaurant. In this stylish setting, Hanna serves what might be considered high-end Heartland cuisine—whole smoked trout, rabbit thigh, and pork shank and trotter to share—which is perfect for pairing with classic cocktails like the Missouri Mule (local vodka, house-made ginger soda, and lime). For a post-dinner drink, head downstairs to Manifesto, an almost-hidden lounge in the basement that served as the Rieger Hotel’s speakeasy during Prohibition.

At this luxury property perched over Matauri Bay near the top of the North Island, the colonial-style buildings are dwarfed by the endless wavy greens of a championship, par-72 golf course that ends at the Pacific. The ocean views and holes positioned adjacent to plunging precipices make Kauri Cliffs one of the most famous golf resorts in the world. The hilltop infinity pool is another crowd-pleaser, especially when it reflects the pinks and purples of the sunset. Featuring a beach-meets-country vibe, lodge interiors are outfitted with New Zealand artwork and furnishings imported from Europe and Australia. Outdoors, patches of totara trees dot the 6,000-acre property—one section houses the tranquil spa. Walking paths lead to a waterfall, three secret beaches, and picnic sites that offer sweeping views of Cape Brett and the Cavalli Islands.

The location for the most charming scenes in the movie Amélie, this once-forgotten neighborhood is now a destination for the young and fun-loving. As soon as the weather turns warm, picnickers line the paths along this 19th-century waterway, watching bridges rise and turn to allow barges to pass. Shopping, food, drink, and diversions also abound here: Artazart (83 Quai de Valmy) is recognized as one of the best design bookstores in Europe, while Le Comptoir Général, just across the bridge, offers live music and cheap drinks. Chez Prune has one of the city’s most popular terraces for enjoying a glass of something refreshing and a chance to watch Paris go by.

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.