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Why we love it: A luxury resort with top-notch amenities in the heart of Malta

The Highlights:
- A variety of room types to accommodate all travelers
- Five on-site bars and restaurants, including the historic Villa Corinthia
- A regal pool surrounded by loungers and gardens

The Review:
In 1959, the Pisani family patriarch bought the historic Villa Refalo, intending for it to be a home for him, his wife, and their six children, as well as a restaurant. When he died unexpectedly, his children took over the property, first turning it into a wedding hall, and then a luxury hotel called Corinthia Palace. Even though the Pisanis have since expanded the Corinthia brand to 14 hotels around the world, they still own and operate the Malta original, running it with all the amenities required of a five-star stay. Here, guests find five bars and restaurants, a swanky outdoor pool and garden area, tennis courts, a deluxe spa and fitness center, and friendly, attentive service. The afternoon tea, served in your choice of British or Maltese style in the Orange Grove Brasserie, is a must, while the daily breakfast spread is generous and tasty.

Ranging from superior rooms to executive suites, accommodations feature comfy beds and private balconies or terraces. All come with complimentary access to the Athenaeum Spa, but higher category options also include entry to the Executive Lounge, where guests can enjoy a daily breakfast buffet and complimentary wine, spirits, and canapés each evening. Speaking of the spa, it’s currently being renovated and will be unveiled in April 2020 with a new design by Goddard Littlefair, a new parternship with ESPA for treatments, and new facilities including seven treatment rooms, a relaxation lounge, and a thermal area.

Ask anyone you know who grew up in the Bay Area about the Exploratorium, and they’ll likely be able to share stories of class trips and seeing their hair stand on end at an installation about electricity or fun-house mirrors that taught about optics and visual perception. This is not, however, a museum simply for kids—though curious kids will definitely be entertained while learning. Instead, its exhibits aim to raise the scientific literacy of visitors of all ages, by providing engaging, amusing, and hands-on experiences. Long housed at the Palace of Fine Arts, the Exploratorium opened in its current, and much larger, space on Piers 15 and 17 in 2013. One advantage of the new waterfront location is the North Gallery and its outdoor spaces, focused on environmental phenomena like the wind, rain, and tides. The completely dark Tactile Dome and the disorienting Monochromatic Room may prove not just the highlights of your visit to the Exploratorium but the most memorable, or at least strangest, moments of your time in San Francisco.

Sopot is one of Poland’s favorite leisure destinations, and Sopot Pier (Molo w Sopocie in Polish) is its center. An extension of lively Monte Cassino Street—Sopot’s entertainment, dining, and shopping promenade—the pier stretches over a third of a mile into the Bay of Gdańsk. Built in 1827 as part of the local harbor, it was reconstructed after the wars and renovated several times since, gradually becoming the fashionable leisure facility it is today. Since the very beginning, the pier has featured an international dimension—it was conceived by a Frenchman on Polish land belonging to the Kingdom of Prussia; became a popular destination for Europeans during the 19th and 20th centuries, thanks to railway and sea links; and continues to draw travelers from all over the world. When visiting today, you’ll hear several different languages being spoken, and see flags from various countries on the yachts moored on the side deck, which serves as the marina.

Located on Fleming Street in the heart of Old Town Key West, the Marquesa has everything you might expect from a romantic coastal-Florida retreat. Wide porches overlook lush gardens and a bijou pool at the center of the complex, and brick paths shaded by large palms and tropical foliage give the 1884 Greek Revival–style property a secret hideaway feel. It’s understandable if you want to hole up in the guest rooms, which reside in traditional clapboard conch houses and are furnished with an eclectic collection of wood pieces sourced from around the world. In 2018, Marquesa 4-1-4 opened across the street, featuring a new compound of three buildings around a central swimming pool and courtyard. After a day spent exploring nearby Duval Street, make your way back to Café Marquesa, which is perennially packed with locals and visitors enjoying fresh seafood and an inventive menu.

This beloved boutique hotel in the center of Tel Aviv is named after Norman Lourie, the South African-born renaissance man who became not only a “one-man film industry” in Israel, according to a 1948 issue of Variety, but also the nation’s first luxury hotelier. It comes courtesy of Lourie’s son, who bought two adjacent buildings off King Albert Square—both designed in the 1920s Eclectic style—and had them painstakingly transformed into a modern urban retreat. Guests of the hotel can look forward to a rooftop infinity pool, a Japanese tapas restaurant with gorgeous views, a lengthy menu of unique excursions, and, of course, the Norman Series—a monthly event at the Library Bar, during which you can catch various leaders (think diplomats, economists, artists, and scientists) in conversation. Rooms here are equally singular; no two are alike, though all feature Frette linens, beautiful bouquets, and homemade treats at turndown.

You might think of Vienna’s Zentralfriedhof (Central Cemetery) as a Mittteleuropa Walk of Fame. Some of the city’s most important figures are buried in this graveyard that opened in 1874, from Beethoven (his remains were moved here in 1888) to 1980s pop star Falco, with Brahms, Schubert, and Schoenberg in between. The cemetery, which measures almost one and a half square miles, has a section for Austria‘s presidents, and another for Sephardic Jews who came from the Ottoman Empire—the elaborate Alhambra-style Elias family mausoleum is especially impressive. Thanks to shady groves of maple and ash and a beautiful church constructed in the early-20th-century Jugendstil style, it is worth the effort to travel to Simmering, a neighborhood southeast of the city center—even if only for the bucolic setting.

Far from Juneau’s cruise crowd, this secluded oasis is popular with honeymooners—and the appeal is clear. Situated inside Tongass National Forest, its 10 rooms and suites come furnished with cozy fireplaces, while two offer a private balcony overlooking a small glacial kettle pond. The serenity extends to the inn’s rain-forest garden, dotted with a wooden footbridge, three gazebos, a sauna, and two hot tubs surrounded by lush Sitka spruce and hemlock trees. Those looking to experience local floes don’t have to venture far. It’s a mere eight-minute drive to the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center. Expect phenomenal views of the 13-mile-long river of ice and the lofty peaks of Southeast Alaska’s Coast Mountains, along with miles of hiking trails that meander past cascading waterfalls and salmon streams.

Set on St. Lucia’s westerly Anse Cochon beach, Ti Kaye is a secluded, adults-only oasis that feels worlds away from the rest of the island. Each of the 33 cliffside, gingerbread-style houses feature outdoor showers and verandas with double-wide hammocks, and some even include plunge pools. Since there are no TVs, the focus remains squarely on the picturesque beach, home to a PADI diving center, crashing waves, and breathtaking sunsets. The same is true in the resort’s two open-air restaurants (don’t miss the banana pancakes at the beachfront grill) and treetop spa. Rum connoisseurs can schedule a tasting in Ti Kaye’s wine cave, but if you crave a rowdier scene after all the relaxation, know that it’s a 20-minute drive to the nearest fishing village—you’ll want to make the trek on Friday nights though, when Anse La Raye hosts its weekly street parties.

A stay at OneFortyEight, in Nairobi’s Langata suburb, feels like hunkering down at your most stylish friend’s home. The former private residence has eight eclectic rooms that blend regional artwork, custom furnishings (by local fashion designer Anna Trzebinski), gothic touches, and feminine finishes and come in a variety of layouts to satisfy every kind of traveler, from two-storey apartments to a three-bed loft perfect for children. A large, welcoming fireplace sits in the middle of the living area to greet guests, dinners take place around a giant wooden table, and a covered lounge overlooks gardens filled with grazing warthogs and tree-leaping monkeys. Days are spent visiting nearby sights—dropping in on the giraffes at the African Fund for Endangered Wildlife Center, adopting a baby elephant at the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, or walking in the footsteps of Karen Blixen. Of course, no one could blame you for holing up for the night: each room has access to Wi-Fi and Netflix.

Accessible only by seaplane, Kuredu rewards the adventurous with a secluded stretch of powdery white sand on the Lhaviyani Atoll. The resort is popular with dive enthusiasts thanks to its PADI certification center, but water babies of all stripes will find plenty to love, including snorkeling, catamaran sailing, kiteboarding, and private dolphin-watching trips. Those who would rather stay dry might prefer to hit the links: the country’s first golf course is right next door. A range of simple yet comfortable villas and overwater bungalows, many with private pools or Jacuzzis, provide a low-key crash pad after days spent among the waves; couples seeking even more quiet stay in the adults-only section of the property. Housed in a cylindrical domed aquarium on nearby Hurawalhi Island, the much-photographed 5.8 Undersea Restaurant is open for lunch and dinner, giving guests yet another opportunity to get close to their aquatic neighbors.

Arriving at Viceroy Los Cabos (formerly Mar Adentro) is like getting a glimpse into the future of hospitality. Linked by a seemingly boundless plane of water, a series of minimalist white cubes—housing a rooftop bar, spa, world-class fitness center, movie theater, and more—rises from the desert landscape like a mirage, the work of Mexican architect Miguel Angel Aragonés. The view is memorable at Nido, a ceviche restaurant that sits under a nestlike dome of twigs. Equally striking are the 104 modernist guest rooms. Unlike the region’s traditional stucco and terra-cotta haciendas, they’re serenely spare, with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the Sea of Cortez and tablets that guests can use to create their own lighting concept.

The doorway of the Portrait Roma is one of a growing number of blink-and-you-miss-it boutique hotel entrances behind which contemporary luxuries await. Tucked behind an unassuming facade on a side street off the busy Via dei Condotti, the Portrait Roma is part of the Lungarno Collection, a small group of boutique hotels owned by the Ferragamo fashion house. Opened in 2006, the property prides itself on customized service, and each of the rooms comes with a Lifestyle Manager, or 24-hour concierge, who provides personalized holiday management throughout the stay based partly on the guest questionnaire completed before arrival.

All 14 rooms are suites, and each is classically decorated and designed to mirror the prestige of the Ferragamo brand. Rooms are accented with linen, leather, and cashmere, as well as artwork that evokes the beauty and spirit of Ferragamo. Weather permitting, the rooftop terrace hosts food and drink service and offers views of the historic center.

Opened in 1890 as an unofficial state guesthouse, the country’s first Western-style property built for the aristocracy to welcome an increasing number of foreigners, the Imperial Hotel has had a momentous history. Ravaged by a fire in 1922, it was rebuilt in 1923 by Frank Lloyd Wright in Maya-Revival style, though it fell into disrepair over the decades and was demolished in 1967. The blocky current version comprises a main building and a tower that together house 931 rooms, but the interiors stick to the property’s past with leather headboards and velvet-covered furnishings. The hotel boasts the largest executive center in Japan, but more leisurely activities await in the 20th-floor swimming pool and sauna, in the fully equipped music room (complete with Steinway piano), and in 11 restaurants that range from upscale French and traditional Japanese cuisines to snack-worthy sushi and confections.

The French chef Daniel Boulud made his name in New York, where he oversees seven restaurants and has since expanded his culinary empire to six other outposts around the globe. His venture in Montréal makes perfect sense, with Québecois cuisine combining French traditions and techniques with New World ingredients—not unlike Boulud himself. The space—by Super Potato, one of the hottest design firms today—is elegantly restrained, with smoked glass details, wooden floors, and a contemporary enclosed fireplace warming and lighting the room. Boulud uses the best of Québec’s produce in dishes centered on local foie gras, duck, and salmon. The result is refined yet soulful contemporary French dishes, prepared by Maison Boulud executive chef Riccardo Bertolino. In warmer months, guests can dine alfresco, while in the winter you can take in the snowy scene from the restaurant’s enclosed greenhouse. Image courtesy of Ritz-Carlton Montreal.

Even during Antigua Sailing Week, when English Harbour is chock-a-block with yachts from all over the world, the 28-room Inn at English Harbour remains serenely detached from the chaos. The inn is five minutes by water taxi from the center of things at historic Nelson’s Dockyard, but its tucked-away location on a white-sand beach backed by 19 leafy acres (and a no-kids-under-10 policy) ensures tranquility. Four snug rooms, with marble floors and queen beds, occupy two beachside cabanas, while 25 more generously proportioned suites, all with dark mahogany floors, four-poster king-size canopy beds, and verandas or balconies, are in three wooden buildings sitting farther back among the tropical greenery. Although the Terrace Restaurant and Stone Bar are in the property’s original stone house, the rooms, despite their colonial look, are relatively modern, which means there is a flat-screen TV, an iPod docking station, and Internet access.