Search results for

Each of the Como resort’s 33 over-water bungalows has a private terrace that lets guests jump straight into the lagoon and snorkel amidst colorful fish and coral. Some of the larger suites are built in the shape of dhoni boats, the traditional wooden vessels used by local anglers. Cocoa Island is home to some of the best diving in the Indian Ocean, with at least 25 sites near the resort, including a shipwreck. Como recently launched its Coral Propagation Program, which allows guests to help protect and regrow the 1,000-plus species found around the resort by planting a coral frame.

There are few more storied lodgings in Atlanta—perhaps the South in general—than the Georgian Terrace. Opened in 1911, the grand dame hotel has hosted the likes of Calvin Coolidge, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Walt Disney and was the site of the premiere of Gone with the Wind in 1939. Though the landmark Beaux-Arts building’s opulent crystal chandeliers, marble columns, and detailed molding recall a bygone era, modern appointments bring the property into the present: Recently renovated rooms are outfitted with pillow-top mattresses, eco-friendly toiletries, and free Wi-Fi. While the neighborhood has plenty to offer, you could feasibly never leave the grounds. A rooftop pool provides cool comfort from the city’s oppressive heat, and guests can choose between an elegant New Southern restaurant and speakeasy-style lounge come dinnertime.

Set within a century-old, Pantheon-inspired former bank building, the Ritz-Carlton, Philadelphia raises Center City living to classical heights. When the building opened in 1904, the Girard Trust marble dome was the largest in the country, and its columns and styling matched its inspiration down to its oculus 142 feet from the floor, the exact height as the Roman original. Today, every stay starts in this grandiose rotunda, where staff man the immaculately preserved bank-teller booths. Guest rooms and suites are in the attached 30-story office tower, gutted and transformed into a hotel by Ritz-Carlton.

All 299 rooms and suites bring classic Ritz-Carlton elegance, with wood furnishings matching gold, sage, and pumpkin hues. High ceilings and picture windows with stunning city views enhance the vibe, while spa-style marble bathrooms have rain showers.

Cape Town already feels like it’s at the tip of the world, but the sensation is magnified at Tintswalo Atlantic, where guests get cozy in suites just a few feet from the ocean. Park in the lot just off famed Chapman’s Peak Drive and take the hotel van, which winds its way down a steep road and drops guests at a collection of semi-detached units. Each is themed after a different island—Zanzibar, Antigua, Sicily, and, oddly enough, Robben (where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned). The details are thoughtful, however, from the elaborate, wood-carved headboards to the seashell-encrusted bathroom walls and idyllic paintings. It’s hard to find a setting more romantic and remote. In the unlikely event that you want to venture out, there’s a shuttle that whisks guests to Cape Town, just over 30 minutes away.

Set in an 18th-century palazzo, once a former bank, the Park Hyatt Milan boasts interiors designed by American-born, Paris-based architect Edward Tuttle. It aims to wow from the outset. Guests are greeted by a lobby decorated with sophisticated materials such as warm travertine stone and alabaster, and topped with a 30-foot glass-domed cupola. There’s a discernibly modern aesthetic throughout the rest of the hotel, though, from the vibrant modern art scattered throughout the public areas to the contemporary color palettes (creams, beiges, and gentle grays). Rooms are correspondingly elegant, with high ceilings, expensive dark woods, rich wool carpets, and hand-selected furnishings (Murano light fixtures, Bang & Olufsen TVs). The bathrooms are especially impressive, not only because of their generous size and marbled interiors, but also thanks to the mirrored walls, double sinks, octagonal stone and glass showers, and Lauro Tonatto bath products.

Set in the Catskills, the Graham & Co is a boutique hotel that has reimagined the classic weekend mountain getaway. Located about two-and-a-half hours from New York City, this retreat offers spacious minimalist rooms, some with kitchenettes. Details include Mexican blankets, Tivoli radios, and custom bath amenities that are available for purchase at the front desk. The Graham & Co is designed as a place to sit back and read while putting your feet up next to the fire pit. Plenty of outdoor activities (fishing, hiking, skiing) are nearby, but many guests settle into the property and its Adirondack chairs, hammocks, and picnic area for a welcome escape from the bustle of city life. Explore the town of Phoenicia on a complimentary bike or simply stay put at this unpretentious mountain property.

Hemingways is a new hotel in Karen, which is sort of the equivalent of Atlanta’s Buckhead in Nairobi. It is near the Wilson airport, where so many of the domestic Kenya flights fly out. Traffic is a huge issue in Nairobi and cars creep both by day and night, so being in this area puts you near many of the best restaurants and shops like Anna Trzebinski’ s studio. The Giraffe Manor and the Sheddrick orphanage, where one can adopt a baby elephant, are also nearby.


If you arrange your trip to Kenya with Betty Jo, she can arrange upgrades at Hemingway’s, private visits to the elephant orphanage and Trzbenski’s studio, as well as private local drivers and drinks with a local Kenyan personality. “I can basically do whatever anyone wants,” says Betty Jo. “All bespoke.” Contact her at [email protected].

An exploration of Tlaxcala can begin and end in the Plaza de la Constitución, the zocalo in the old town center. Within walking distance are the Plaza Xicohtencatl, often full of crafts and food stalls, the Ex-Convento Franciscano de la Asuncion (built in the 1530s and one of Mexico‘s earliest monasteries and cathedrals, boasting a visually spectacular interior within its stone walls), several intriguing museums, and the municipal market. Around the zocalo itself you’ll find a colonial-style arcade of restaurants, cafes, and shops, the government building with an interior courtyard painted with historic murals, the Hotel Posada San Francisco an appealingly intimate bar, and plenty of places to park yourself and kick back in the shade. Ninety-five percent of the tourists you’ll encounter will be Mexican.

This is one of the new hot bars, just a few blocks down from the Jupiter Hotel on SE Grand and Morrision. Checkpoints: skinny hot bartenders in wifebeaters who shake up some inventive cocktails, a DJ, a 110-year old piano, a horseshoe bar and an impressive late night menu (cuban sandwiches, anyone?). I had the Sam Issacs which was mentioned in Portland Monthly as the drink to have but not even on their menu. It has bourbon, mint, blackberries and lime. It’s DELICIOUS. Portland seems to have a thing for libations with ginger beer and I’m loving it. I followed up with 96 Tears, a combination of vodka, lime, ginger and ginger beer. This was light but boozy. The perfect way to start a night or in this case, I’d end it here if you want to dance.

IndexG B&B was an art gallery before the owners renovated the second floor into a four-bedroom bed and breakfast. Housed on a sleepier stretch of Gladstone Avenue but close to the action of both the West Queen West and Parkdale neighborhoods, this family-run B&B offers affordable rooms and minimal amenities. Art is displayed throughout the hotel, and it is all available for purchase. With much to do in the area, this is a well-located hub from which to discover the best of Toronto.

Behold Gandria! When my Airbnb host first suggested I visit Gandria I was a little unsure, mostly because of it’s name. But boy was she right, this little village navigable exclusively by foot was so picturesque and quiet. Situated on a hill just off of the Lugano Lake this place is perfect day-trip distance from almost anywhere in Switzerland. Lugano and Gandria are only several thousand feet from the Swiss-Italian border making these towns seem like extensions of Italy. They speak Italian, serve great pizza, and even better coffee.

At a French Pyrenees mountain retreat in the village of Clermont La Grausse, yoga is practiced in a renovated barn and the top-floor studio of a château that overlooks a lake. Hour-long hatha-based classes are taught twice a day in English and are geared to all levels. Guests stay in converted stone barns and have access to three kitchens. Bikes are available for guests to ride to nearby markets where they can buy groceries. This story appeared in the January/February 2012 issue.

In early April, I spent a week on a yoga retreat at Amansala in Tulum, Mexico. We had four hours of yoga and Pilates practice a day, and I spent the rest of my time on the beach, swimming in the ocean, reading books (I finished Gabrielle Hamilton’s excellent memoir, Blood, Bones, and Butter), drinking coconut juice, and snacking on delicious homemade tortillas, salad, salsas, and guacamole. At night we ventured out to explore, and discovered a wonderful new open-air restaurant called Hartwood, where I wish I could eat every night.

Attached to the hip, retro Calistoga Motor Lodge, MoonAcre Spa & Bath welcomes hotel guests and non-guests over 16 years of age to experience its fun and funky spa. If you’re looking for a soak in one of the area’s natural geothermal hot springs, there are three pools to choose from at MoonAcre, as well as facials, scrubs, and massages galore. The Perfectly Muddled treatment takes the town’s famous mud baths—which typically call for spa-goers to submerge themselves in warm, sticky mud—and instead allow guests to apply the exfoliating mud themselves or have the spa attendant do so, making the mud “bath” a more personalized and, honestly, slightly more comfortable experience. For ultra relaxation, try a CBD massage featuring cannabidiol, an extract derived from cannabis. Stop by for Happy Spa Hour between 4-6 p.m. on Wednesdays, or, for frequent visitors, check out the newly launched Spa Club Memberships. MoonAcre is great for groups, too, with plenty of room to enjoy a friends’ getaway weekend. Treatments start at $70.

When it opened in 2016, Playa Largo, part of Marriott’s Autograph Collection, was Key Largo’s first new luxury hotel in 21 years, and its casual, sun-drenched luxury was a welcome addition to the mellow Upper Keys. The resort’s 177 rooms and suites offer a range of accommodations—most with great bay views. Upgrade to one of the ten bungalows for a private back porch surrounded by lush gardens and a second-level balcony. For ultimate privacy—and luxury—book the Beach House with three master bedrooms, wrap-around balconies, a private pool, event lawn, and private beach. The property’s four restaurants (the toes-in-the-sand Sand Bar is ideal for watching sunset), spa, fitness center, pool, and beach offer plenty of ways to relax, or partake in activities like snorkeling, diving, kayaking, paddleboarding, parasailing, fishing, sailing, or a glass-bottomed boat ride. Pro tip: Hobnob with the school of more than 100 tarpon that linger near the resort by hand-feeding them from the resort dock.