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Touring this one-of-a-kind urban villa and archaeological site allows a unique insight into the city’s history. The beautifully restored urban mansion was once the residence of a wealthy Spanish family; they fled for higher ground when yellow fever struck San Telmo, and the abandoned building later served as tenement housing for countless immigrant families. When a new buyer purchased the property in 1985, he discovered layers of historical objects in the subterranean tunnels. Today, knowledgeable local guides take small groups through the grand villa and its underground maze, pointing out the old water cistern and display cases filled with antique children’s toys, old hairbrushes and beautifully painted dishes, reminders of an era gone by.

Via Tornabuoni, one of the most elegant streets in Florence, is lined with many imposing Renaissance palazzi, including a 15th-century beauty owned by the Antinori family, the famed wine producers. The ground floor of Palazzo Antinori is given over to a refined restaurant with a formal dining room—think starched linen tablecloths and waiters in white jackets—suitable for the aristocratic atmosphere. The kitchen relies on ingredients from the family’s estate, so the menu is limited, seasonal, and fresh. Not surprisingly, the wine list is deep, with a selection of super Tuscan blends and wines from the Antinori cellars.

Trattoria i’Raddi, a classic Tuscan trattoria in the Santo Spirito neighborhood, is run by the Outran family. (A few family members are locally famous for playing calcio storico, a historic and brutal sport that seems like a mix of soccer and MMA fighting.) Come here to eat pappa al pomodoro (Tuscan bread-and-tomato stew), pici all’aglione (pasta with garlicky red sauce), and peposa. Peposa is a slow-cooked, peppery beef stew, almost a Tuscan version of chili; according to legend, it was invented by Brunelleschi. The food here is affordable and the prix fixe lunch specials are an even better value.

One of the most luxurious Western guest ranches, opened in 2005, Paws Up Montana, in Greenough, sprawls over 37,000 acres of classic Montana landscape: elk-filled meadows, rocky peaks, and ponderosa pines in the Blackfoot Valley, with the river of the same name running through it all. The most sought-after accommodations are the “glamping” tents on the banks of the Blackfoot or along Elk Creek that are available May through October and organized into five separate camps, taking just six guests each. The camps combine a Western lifestyle with an African safari formula: canvas suites with private baths, a communal dining pavilion with fireplace and fire pit, private camp chef, and butlers to help organize guest activities. Families and friends who prefer four walls between themselves and nature stay in enormous wood-and-stone villas with heated hardwood floors, fireplaces, leather furniture, huge flat-screen TVs, and panoramic windows; some of these homes come with outdoor hot tubs and tented bedrooms for kids.

All guests have the opportunity to hike, rappel, canoe, play paintball, take cooking classes, and more, but the main action is on-site fly-fishing and horseback riding for all levels on 100 miles of private trails or in a 23,000-square-foot equestrian arena; adults and kids 12 and up can help move small herds of Black Angus cattle on sample stock drives. If parents want private adventure time, kid wranglers entertain young’uns. In the evening, communal entertainment takes place in a renovated barn that serves as stock sales venue, dance floor, and movie theater. Despite the busy activity menu and flow of golf carts transporting guests to and fro, the ranch is large enough, and accommodation so widely spaced that guests can survey the landscape and not see anyone.

Located in historic Memorial Hall in Fairmount Park, the Please Touch Museum has long been a favored attraction for families with kids ages 7 and under. (Parents—who are so often tired of saying no and holding kids in check in public places—are among the museum’s biggest fans.) Not only does the museum’s collection include over 25,000 toys, it houses a working carousel from 1908, and some of its permanent exhibits include a kid-size city, an interactive garden, and a space station. Special changing displays are also part of the fun. Current program updates and discount offers to followers are posted on their Facebook page.

Athens is an incredible city to visit but can feel busy and overwhelming, especially during peak tourist season. Escape the hustle and bustle with a visit to the resort town of Vouliagmeni on the Attica coast. I took this photo from a café right on the beach. We spent an entire afternoon drinking coffee, eating fresh seafood, and watching surfers in the sea.

A pleasant way to spend an evening in Milan is to stroll along the Naviglio Grande, a 12th century canal in the south of town. The warehouses along the towpath are now home to lively restaurants and bars. I recommend El Brellin. The second floor restaurant offers refined modern Italian fare with ambiance to match and the bar below gets busy on the weekends.

A modest, friendly family establishment (serving since 1963) where locals and visitors-in-the-know visit for flavorful James Beard award-winning New Mexican cuisine including carne adovada with warm, marinated roast cubed pork in a brick red chile sauce.

When hiking in parts of South Korea’s Seoraksan National Park, you won’t go thirsty. Spectacular crags all around, rustic restaurants dot some of the trails. Mountain spring water combined with rice from nearby paddies leads to fermentation...and voilà: “rice wine!’ Yeah, the milky-colored contents in the bowl look like porridge...but that chunkiness comes from the fact that the beverage is semi-frozen. Ladle some into your bowl and sample some of this very local “dong dong joo.” (If you’re familiar with Korean liquor, this is similar to ‘makkeoli.’ If not, there’s something else for you to try.) Slightly sweet, a hint of sour, and ice cold. It wasn’t my wife’s favorite, but I bottled up what she couldn’t finish--yep, the little establishment let me fill up my empty water bottle with it so I could take it ‘to go.’ Ahh, the alchemy of rice and mountains... [This particular ‘rest-stop’ for hikers is located on the trail to Biseondae in the Cheonbuldong valley. Avoid autumn weekends at all costs--the crowds are formidable.]

The boat basin Bassin de la Villette is berth to Marin d’Eau Douce, a service that rents out easy-to-steer electric boats by the hour. Captaining your own boat is an unforgettable way to see Paris and beyond. Cruise through the industrial countryside, watch graffiti artists working on city-sponsored projects, pass shipping barges, bob alongside the swans, and putter past the city limits on your self-guided visit. The trips are perfect for couples, families with young kids, or small groups of friends. (The youngest sailors will love the mini-boat rides available for 10-minute spins around the basin.)

It’s a sad fact that many swaths of Johannesburg aren’t exactly walkable, but that’s not the case at Melrose Arch, a trendy complex filled with some of the city’s hottest restaurants, galleries, and shops. Guests are in the heart of the action if they book a stay at the African Pride Melrose Arch Hotel, a slick property with 118 stylish, contemporary rooms adorned with modern African art. And now that the hotel falls under the Marriott family umbrella, guests can expect all sorts of perks and upgrades associated with the brand.

Quinta Nova Luxury House Winery, the first wine hotel in Portugal, was born from the reconstruction of the old 19th century manor house, in full harmony with nature inside this 120 hectares property. Quinta Nova N. S. do Carmo is a place of extreme beauty in the heart of the Douro and it’s owned by the Amorim family since 1999. But this property is prior to 1764 and a historical research confirms it as a great land belonging to the Portuguese Royal Family. The historic sites that are still preserved today and opened for visitors reveal all this: the creek, the gazebo, the stone mark of the Marquis of Pombal dated of 1758, the cellar’s crest, two chapels and three secular orchards.

This remote, family owned property of cabins is an experience you’ll savor if you’re in the Moosehead Lake area of Maine and hoping to get away from it all. Closed from October to mid January, the camp reopens for the winter season where you’re treated by breakfast and dinner by Eric and his family and given a bag lunch if you need one. During the other summer and early fall months, your stay and your schedule will revolve around three home cooked meals in the main dining lodge. You’ll be hungry, there’s fishing, canoeing, swimming and hiking in the summer months. There is no cell reception out here and you can be certain to not have any sort of wifi connection. Cherish that. Chill the beverages you purchase at the local general store in the camp’s cold, natural spring at the water’s edge and soak up the visits by the local moose in the morning and early evening. This is a great location for a private family reunion or a celebration in the heart of Maine.

On the steep hills above the truffle-obsessed town of Livade in central Istria, Croatia, a man named Vlado Tomažič makes olive oil on his family’s farm. When my husband and I rented the apartment, Casa Maršić (casamarsic.com), adjacent to the farmhouse, we found it the perfect base for exploring the nearby medieval hill towns. We visited Motovun-Montona and Oprtalj-Portole, where we ate fuži, traditional Istrian pasta, with fresh mushrooms and grilled lamb chops at the fantastic Tončić agritourism (agroturizam-toncic.com). We happened to be at the farm during the October harvest and helped Vlado’s friendly crew rake the olives from the trees, taking frequent breaks for gemišt—white wine and sparkling water. Classic Journeys offers seven-night tours of Istria. This appeared in the August/September 2014 issue.

Aqua Nature Park, a well-maintained and verdant retreat 40 miles east of Negril, offers visitors a chance to take a dip and cool off in the Venture River. The river, which flows through a swimming hole on the property, has small, colorful fish and a cascade. Owner Steven delights in conducting walking tours of his family’s property, and can teach you quite a bit about the Jamaican plants and fruits he grows. (Don’t miss seeing the enormous cotton tree.) A casual restaurant and bar, with some reggae playing in the background, rounds this experience out into a lovely, low-key afternoon escape for couples, families, or anyone looking for a taste of real Jamaica.