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Most visitors to the Philippines will learn something about the country’s Spanish and American colonial history; fewer will learn about the people who were here before. The mountains of Luzon are still inhabited by distinct indigenous ethnic groups known collectively as the Igorot, or “people of the mountains” (though today some prefer to use alternative terms). Despite hundreds of years of colonial rule, some indigenous peoples managed to maintain—and still continue—their traditional way of life. Sagada, a town in the Mountain Province, is a good place to witness this aspect of the Philippines. Many travelers check out the hanging coffins in Echo Valley, which are nailed to a cliffside and intended to bring the dead closer to heaven. But the real value of visiting Sagada is to interact with the Igorots and listen to their stories.

Stretching along the Narrows—the channel between St. Kitts and its sister island, Nevis—Cockleshell Bay’s powdered sands and crystalline waters are among the island’s prettiest. The beach is a popular place to swim, snorkel, or sip cocktails while listening to live local music.

One can’t help noticing Brazil’s stark social contrasts, especially visible in Rio thanks to rich neighborhoods that often sit cheek by jowl next to some of its poorest, the city’s famous favelas. High up in the favela called Tavares Bastos, visitors can take in an evening that includes some of the city’s best jazz, yet in a setting like few others: a boîte called The Maze. The owner, a British artist and longtime Rio resident, first decided to mount a First Fridays show in 2005, and those monthly events have become a citywide musical tradition. Those who journey up—aboard a minibus or in a taxi—will get breathtaking vistas to go with the great entertainment.

Opened in 1997, Nanta is the longest-running show in Korean history. Similar to Stomp, it’s a nonverbal musical that people of all ages and nationalities can understand. The comedic story follows a frantic kitchen staff as they prepare for an impending wedding banquet. In addition to impressive percussive performances with cooking equipment, the 90-minute show incorporates many opportunities for audience participation. It’s become so popular that it now plays at two theaters, one in Myeongdong and another in Hongdae. Each venue offers an afternoon and evening show, with a third added on weekends. It’s recommended that you buy tickets in advance as seats sell out quickly.

The Rex Hotel remains the most historic hotel in District 1. It’s undergone massive renovations since its heyday as a hangout for journalists during the war, including the addition of a luxury ground floor filled with pricey shopping. Skip that and head to the hotel’s rooftop bar. Some of my favorite memories have been talking to visitors who were here in the 1970s back to the setting of so many of their evenings. Everyone has told the same story- Saigon has changed but the roof remains frozen in time. The same kitschy elephant statues, stiff drinks, small steaks and the rotating golden crown illuminating the local Vietnamese band playing some pop love ballads. The Rex Hotel 08038292185 141 Nguyen Hue, Quan 1, Ho Chi Minh City

The timber-beamed ceilings, wooden floors, and brick walls give a cozy feel to this pub in the tiny village of Rossnowlagh in County Donegal. Overlooking the long golden Rossnowlagh Beach and Donegal Bay, the pub specializes in seafood, with tasty oysters, mussels, and crab claws appearing on the menu at the Conservatory restaurant and Gallery dining room. There’s a very popular Sunday lunch and, from June to October, live music every Saturday night.

Just a short walk from Auckland‘s Eden Park, home of big rugby games in the city, the funky and bohemian Kingsland neighborhood is also developing a reputation as an eating and drinking destination. Some of the city’s best coffee is served at Atomic—try the Vietnamese iced coffee with coconut milk—and the savory pies at the Fridge are world-famous across Auckland. Packed with vintage furniture, the Portland Public House is a raffish live-music venue, and Citizen Park’s combination of Mexican food and robust cocktails has a strong following. Travelers seeking unique gifts should head to the Royal Jewellery Studio, with work by local artists including Maori designs crafted from pounamu (greenstone).

Remember the oldie “Under the Boardwalk” by The Drifters? The owner of Drifters Bar, Luddy Samms, tells stories of his career with The Drifters, as well as tales of singing with Eric Clapton and Stevie Winwood and Bruce Willis. Samms opened this hot-spot bar and performance venue on Seven Mile Beach in 2011, and expats, locals, and tourists flock here for cold Red Stripe, good food, and lots of live music in a variety of genres. Because this is an authentic Jamaican beach bar, though, reggae is king.

Meant to resemble a hanok (traditional Korean house), this sophisticated bar in the basement of the Park Hyatt is separated into three distinct sections, meant to represent different rooms in the house. Start with some couldn’t-be-fresher sashimi at the sushi and sake bar, then grab a martini at the cocktail bar, followed by a rare single malt at the whiskey bar, all while listening to mood-setting music emanating from the sleek grand piano. There are also vintage champagnes that need to be fitted into the schedule, so save room for some bubbly. 606 Teheran-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul

Why we love it: A food-focused retreat in the scenic Willowemoc Valley

The Highlights:

• 600 acres of private land for hiking, fishing, and more
• A nine-course dinner included with each stay
• Cozy common spaces for soaking up the peace and quiet

The Review:
Set on a ledge overlooking the Willowemoc Valley and its namesake river, The DeBruce brings a touch of sophistication to an otherwise quiet corner of the Catskills. Here, in a restored inn from the 1880s, guests find 14 modest rooms spread over three floors. Designed to create a sense of calm, all feature down duvets, Sferra linens, and tile-and-marble bathrooms stocked with Malin & Goetz toiletries, while some also include clawfoot tubs and expansive views of the surrounding scenery. Guests spend little time in their rooms, however, as The DeBruce is home to several cozy common spaces, including the Great Room (filled with antique couches and wingback chairs), the Conservatory (with an original fieldstone fireplace and comfy reading chair), and a serene pool (surrounded by lounge chairs, a firepit, and manicured gardens). The property also sits on nearly 600 acres of private land, which spans two mountains, a river, and several ponds. Simply walk over the private bridge for access to trails for hiking, birding, snowshoeing, and cross-country skiing, as well as a half-mile of river for fly fishing.

At the center of all of this is the restaurant—a glass-walled dining room overlooking the valley, where guests enjoy the a la carte breakfasts and multiple-course dinners included in their stay (one night is always a nine-course tasting menu). Chef Aksel Theilkuhl, formerly of BLT Steak Group in New York City, draws from a bounty of local, seasonal products for every meal, impressing with dishes like smoked trout and mushroom three ways. Should guests prefer something more casual, there’s also the Club Room in the basement, where Theilkuhl serves bar classics and small plates in an intimate setting. For more insight into The DeBruce’s culinary program, sign up for sessions with Theilkuhl and help with kitchen prep, sample new dishes, or forage the hotel grounds for ramps and more. Other activities like Pilates and yoga classes, exploratory nature walks, and fly-fishing lessons are also on offer, giving guests plenty of ways to while away their days in the Catskills.

Overall:
Housed in a restored 19th-century inn, the 14-room DeBruce is a warren of cozy common spaces that invite travelers to linger in wingback chairs next to stone fireplaces or chat on porch swings hung from the verandah. Guests may take a dip in the outdoor pool or join a fly-fishing or foraging excursion, but the main event is dinner. Chef Aksel Theilkuhl, formerly of BLT Steak Group in New York City, serves a nightly tasting menu in a 32-seat dining room facing the lodge’s ponds and rolling hills.

In a city packed with new construction, this Art Deco landmark remains a fixture of the Huangpu River—just as it has for more than eight decades. A favorite of visiting celebs and dignitaries, the Fairmont Peace Hotel is divided into North and South buildings. Complete with a copper-sheathed roof, Italian marble floors, and Lalique glass artwork, the 1920s North building—known as Sassoon House for its British businessman owner Sir Victor Sassoon—was once home to the Cathay Hotel; guests included Charlie Chaplin, George Bernard Shaw, and Noël Coward, who completed Private Lives here. The 1850s Renaissance South Building, formerly the Palace Hotel and once the tallest structure on Nanjing Road, was occupied by the Japanese during World War II. The two buildings combined to become the Peace Hotel in 1965, operating continuously until closing in 2007 for an overhaul of the exterior, interiors, lobby, and guest rooms by Hirsch Bedner Associates.

Today, Art Deco influences and romantic flourishes are evident throughout the 270 rooms and suites, many of which boast Bund views. Fairmont Gold rooms come with private check-in and lounge access, while the each of the opulent Nine Nations Suites is named for a different country and features corresponding décor. The Dragon Phoenix and Cathay Room serve Shanghainese–Cantonese and European cuisine, respectively, and the legendary Jazz Bar takes you back to a 1920s-era private club. After a day spent exploring the city or shopping along nearby Nanjing Road, take refuge in the Willow Stream Spa, which has 11 treatment rooms and a skylight-lit pool.

The Newseum is an interactive, ever-evolving tribute to our First Amendment freedoms of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition. Powerful exhibits such as eight sections of the Berlin Wall (the largest display outside Germany) provide historical context for the importance of free press, while timely exhibits about the civil rights movement provoke reflection on the progress of achieving equality. The daily-updated “Front Pages” gallery of local, national, and international publications is a comparative study on current events, while the archive of headlines highlighting momentous events from the 1400s through today is an engaging history lesson. Peruse Pulitzer Prize–winning photography, enjoy panoramic views down Pennsylvania Avenue, and test your journalistic skills with a recorded mock-broadcast—reading a teleprompter is not as easy as you may think!

Tango is as essential to Buenos Aires as pizza is to Naples, so the Anselmo Hotel is a perfect fit for the city, with its location in the heart of the San Telmo neighborhood—known for spontaneous street dancing—in a 1906 mansion once belonging to tango composer Anselmo Asiento. The hotel is perched on Plaza Dorrego, a lively public space surrounded by cafes and shops which especially gets going on Sunday, when the San Telmo antique fair and flea market spills into the street, attracting shoppers, musicians, and revelers. Clean-lined, modern furniture and black-and-white photographs of Buenos Aires compliment the building’s original wooden shutters and wrought-iron balconies. Sip a glass of Malbec in the cozy wood interior of the Acacia bar and restaurant, or take it outside into the calm inner courtyard. A small gym is available if you haven’t gotten in enough steps wandering the neighborhood’s cobblestone streets or tango dancing the night away.

Al-Lusail Sports Arena: This conch-shaped stadium, which is colored according to Qatar’s sand, pearl and sea water, can be easily transformed from a site hosting a basketball championship game into a setting for a music concert within two hours. It’s a sexy looking arena, sleek, unique, ultra modern and highly photogenic. With capacity to hold 16,000 spectators; multi-purpose hall fields such as basketball, volleyball and handball; training courts and warm-up area; changing rooms for 4 teams; VVIP and VIP facilities; corporate boxes; retail, food and beverages, this stadium has been blowing minds since serving as the main venue to the 2015 World Men’s Handball Championship.

The establishment bears two names for a reason. Lenox is the front room, a restaurant chasing after that holy grail of U.S.-style diner food that’s just refined enough to appeal to the beautiful people (remember Max’s Kansas City?). Tables are tight and eavesdropping may be impossible to avoid, so watch what you say. Behind Lenox lies Parker, a larger (if just as crowded) space, home to live music, sexy lounge areas, and a long, shimmering bar whose staff is thoroughly up-to-date on the latest craft cocktails. What might first seem like a cliquey crowd opens up after a drink or two.