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A 600-suite hotel within a hotel, The Cove is the most luxurious of the room towers at the Atlantis Paradise Island Resort. Kids aren’t banned, but the vibe is definitely grown-up—witness the adults-only Cove Pool, with its DJ-driven party scene, outdoor gaming tables, and mating-ritual pool wear. But there’s a sense of sophistication in the two-story lobby, which soars above ponds of water lilies, as well as the suites, which have balconies with ocean views, sunken living rooms, and marble-floored bathrooms. All the activities of Atlantis, including those that make adults feel young again—such as the Abyss and Leap of Faith waterslides, or the dolphin encounters—are only steps or a free shuttle ride away. Also available is immersive programming that connects guests to the rich history, art, people, food, and festivities of the islands, from exhibits showcasing regional artists and a weekly Junkanoo Fest & Feast (honoring a more than 500-year-old tradition) to five new outposts of beloved local Bahamian restaurants.

The most luxurious way to experience Dubai’s desert may smash an entire holiday budget, but a stay in the Bedouin-inspired tented suites at Al Maha might well be worth it. It’s one of the best places to see desert conservation in action: Al Maha is in the heart of the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve, home to the UAE’s largest free-roaming herd of Arabian oryx, a species brought back from extinction in the wild through rehabilitation initiatives. Guests should keep their eyes peeled for gazelles, too—300 Arabian and 100 sand gazelles inhabit the dunes, and the more inquisitive ones often come right up to the 42 tented accommodations. Water recycling, biodiesel, and solar panels all contribute to Al Maha’s efforts to tread lightly on the fragile desert ecosystem.

Atenas (whose name means Athens, as in Greece‘s capitol) is actually a quaint agricultural town in the province of Alajuela, about a 45 minute drive west of San Jose. With a population of only 27,000 people, and surrounded by coffee plantations and mountains, this is the absolute perfect place to experience Costa Rica as it truly is. The village has cute shops, some eateries, and stores that will carry any items you may need during your stay. The town square is adorable, and the various restaurants (all very casual) have excellent food based on local fresh catches and fresh-from-the-farm fruits and vegetables. The particular view above is from a lookout point on a private gated property. However, there are three housing developments in the area, and various owners rent out their places for very reasonable rates, and plenty have a view like this. Another fast fact about Atenas: it’s claimed to have one of the best climates in the world according to National Geographic, and you will come to know the phrase ‘El Mejor Clima del Mundo’ because it is proclaimed everywhere - and it’s true.

Nestled into the base of Mount Sturgeon, at the southern entrance of Grampians National Park roughly three and a half hours from Melbourne, the Royal Mail Hotel combines a bush experience with world-class food and wine. The property is a slow-paced reprieve at the site where the town of Dunkeld was first settled. Accommodations range from minimalist mountain-view rooms bedecked with furniture and light fixtures by Melbourne designer Jardan to the Mt. Sturgeon sheep station, home to a six-bedroom homestead as well as eight dog-friendly sandstone cottages with bathrooms built inside old water tanks. Gardens play a prominent role in the Royal Mail experience; the hotel has the largest kitchen garden in Australia, which supplies the restaurant with nearly all its organic produce, and a 24-acre private garden is home to many rare indigenous and non-indigenous plants. With the Grampian Mountains and their year-round waterfalls right at the hotel’s back door, the Royal Mail is also a prime base for exploring the wilderness and its native wildlife. After a day in the woods, guests can indulge in an eight-course tasting menu with matched wines from one of the top-ranked cellars in the world.

After a cotton krama, a colorful lacquered elephant by the artisans at Theam’s House has become the must-buy Siem Reap souvenir. Cambodian artist and designer Lim Muy Theam was the creative director of Artisans d’Angkor, the organization responsible for the revitalization of traditional arts and crafts in Cambodia, before leaving to open his own crafts atelier and art gallery in his beautiful home. Theam exhibits his own art in the gallery space near the entrance, and shows exquisite objects he has collected, from Buddha statues to antique musical instruments, in the small salas and main showroom. Most visitors are here to buy Theam’s modern takes on traditional Cambodian arts and crafts, including lacquerware, painting and sculpture. Wander through the various rooms and you’ll see artists and artisans at work out the back, doing anything from painting canvases to carving. Amongst other things, they’ll be painstakingly painting and sanding the elephants that have become Siem Reap’s must-have souvenir. Avoid buying the bad copies you see in the market - not only are these poor quality reproductions but they represent a loss of income to Theam and his artisans. Theam now has a couple of shops and his objects can be bought from other stores, but it’s a real joy to visit Theam’s House, where you might just find the artist at home. Tip: it’s tricky to find. If your tuk tuk driver doesn’t know it, call Theam’s House and they’ll explain or they’ll send you a driver.

The off-Strip Red Rock Casino, Resort & Spa, a locals’ favorite, is named after the government-managed wilderness to the west of the resort: The Red Rock National Conservation Area. The expansive tract of ochre-colored rocks and desert is only a 10-minute drive from the hotel’s main entrance. From various trailheads along the park’s scenic drive, visitors can head out for hiking, rock climbing, mountain biking, and horseback riding, depending on the season. For the less adventuresome, the Red Rock hotel is a short walk to City National Arena (where the Golden Knights practice), the Las Vegas Ballpark (where the Las Vegas Aviators AAA baseball team plays), and Downtown Summerlin, which is essentially an outdoor shopping mall. It’s possible to spend a long weekend here and never see the Strip at all.


The 796 spacious guest rooms, with floor-to-ceiling windows, rival any of those on Las Vegas Boulevard, and feature sumptuous bathrooms with jetted tubs. The Villa Suites even have their own pools and patio areas ideal for private sunbathing. The 25,000-square-foot spa is a destination unto itself; it offers a variety of treatments and fitness classes, as well as group coordinators who can help plan spa days in conjunction with friend getaways.

Just a short hour drive away from Kelowna, and only a 5-10 minute drive from Penticton, Naramata sits hidden with acres of green vineyards cascading off of clay cliffs into Lake Okanagan. In the heart Naramara is the historic Naramata Heritage Inn & Spa. Built in 1908, some say it’s haunted with its history of being a school and the first cultural hub upon Lake Okanagan. Today it functions as an ideal getaway with nearby beaches, over 100 wineries and the variety of adventure activities nearby. I always make time to stop in during my wine tasting trips to sit in the sun with a glass of local wine and a variety of local cheese and charcuterie selections. This is foodie stop one shouldn’t miss while visiting the area if not staying with the hotel. Take a tour through the chefs garden, tour the quirky town of artists and vintners, or enjoy the cycling, zip lines, hikes, fishing and water sports all within the Central and Southern Okanagan.

Sometimes Caribbean travel is about more than just a cold drink and a beach. It takes driving as far as possible (only about 40 minutes) from the tourists on the east side of the island in Nassau to find this moving piece of art, appropriately titled, “Sacred Space.” Located only a few hundred yards from the ruins of old slave quarters, and just above where the slave ships used to dock, these faceless carvings silently stare back across the ocean toward Africa. Trees that typically erode the coastline were cut down to create these powerful pillars that are still rooted in the ground.

Whether you are celebrating a special occasion or just for a spontaneous night of indulgence: Medellin is blessed with romantic dining spots. El Cielo, just opposite Parque Lleras, is as well-known throughout Latin America as its creator Juan Manuel Barrientos—a young chef synonymous with creating unforgettable experimental cuisine. Dishes are separated into ‘moments’ and are all created by his team of chefs and designers in his food lab. Diners can choose from either 10 or 15 ‘moments.’ Each dish has a lifespan of three months, after which it is replaced by a new, vastly different dish. Meanwhile Carmen, located a few blocks away, offers not only high-end, diverse cuisine but also a seductive interior and some extraordinary cocktails.

It’s fair to say that a trip to the hammam is a quintessential Moroccan experience and is a salve for the soul as much as it is for the body. Fes’s bathhouses may not have the sheer wow factor of those in Marrakech, but they perhaps offer a more intimate and authentic experience at more wallet-friendly prices. Your safest bet is to take a taxi to Nausikaa in the Ville Nouvelle and hang with locals while being treated to a deluxe treatment which involves a luxurious steam, followed by an enthusiastic scrub-down (gommage) with an exfoliating mitt (kessa) and olive oil soap, before getting slathered in rose-scented clay which leaves the skin baby-soft and sparkling. It also offers excellent pedicures and waxing.

If your heart is set on going old-school, be aware that the medina’s hammams are not always as hot, nor as clean, as you might like. In the medina, the pink and womblike hammam at Dar Bensouda is perfect if you’d prefer a private to a public hammam. It’s properly hot, and the local women who do the gommage mix their treatment lotions with lavender and chamomile as well as with other healing herbs and spices. A treatment costs 350 dirhams. The Riad Laaroussa provides a luxurious, candlelit experience. It’s the place to go if you want to experience a hammam with your partner, followed by sublimely relaxing massage. Have a cocktail in the courtyard afterwards; the orange- and cinnamon-infused gin and tonic is legend.

You’ll feel zen from the moment you drive in from nearby Kyoto, along a narrow road through Japanese cedars and past temples and shrines, to the moment you sink into a hot bath at this intimate ryokan. Refreshed and relaxed, you’ll then sit down to an exquisite kaiseki meal of freshly foraged food prepared by a Michelin-starred chef. Oversized windows bring the outdoors in to the immaculate and simple tatami rooms, which come with both lunch and dinner. Book well in advance, given the inn’s small size and low-tech reservation system.

Good luck if you’ve come here to witness the eponymous monster—though, given the dark, brooding waters of Loch Ness, seemingly anything is possible. At the very least, you’re bound to enjoy some beautiful scenery, from verdant shores to snowcapped peaks. One of the best ways to experience the loch is by boat tour, several of which leave daily from the Loch Ness Centre & Exhibition in Inverness. Alternatively, you can drive up the A82 highway along the lake’s western shore, stopping at such spots as Castle Urquhart, a romantic stone ruin that’s some 1,000 years old.

Fancy trying to get a gander at the Loch Ness Monster? There’s only one way and that is on a boat trip out onto the deep and foreboding waters of Loch Ness. “Nessie” has certainly defied many a scientific attempt at location. The earliest mention of the serpentine beast with a snakelike head dates back to Adomnán’s account of the life of St. Columba, completed in the late 7th century. Cruises leave from just south of Inverness and feature interpretive guides who can tell much more than monster stories.

The Mayflower Inn & Spa in tony Washington, Connecticut, is the perfect place to spend a weekend if money is no object. Located in the heart of idyllic Litchfield County, the Maflower Inn & Spa is just a two-hour drive from Manhattan, but you’ll feel a world away from the hustle and bustle of the city as soon as you pull up to this rural gem. The owners decorated each of the inn’s 30 rooms differently - there’s nothing cookie cutter about this place - offering a unique experience every time you visit. And don’t forget dinner at the inn’s five-star restaurant, with a menu and wine list that rivals the best you’ll find anywhere. Complete your stay with a massage or facial at the inn’s magnificent spa for the ultimate luxury weekend. It’s not inexpensive, but if you want the height of luxury in the heart of bucolic Litchfield County, the Mayflower Inn & Spa is the place to stay.

To say that the drive from Nice to Monaco is scenic, is an understatement. After driving around a bend on the mountain, everyone on our tour bus suddenly rushed to one side and pressed up against the windows trying to get a snap of this GORGEOUS view. Pity about the fence at the bottom! ...Guess I’ll have to go back to get a better photo... I couldn’t remember the exact spot this photo was taken, but it was on this drive that we passed the site of Grace Kelly’s fatal car crash, so I have listed it as on that road.

Haleakala, a huge and dormant shield volcano, forms more than 75 percent of Maui’s landmass. As such, it pretty much demands you ascend its slopes and peer into its crater—the island’s very soul. Legend claims the demigod Maui snared the sun here, freeing it only after it swore to inch more slowly across the sky.

The 38-mile, two-and-a-half-hour drive up Haleakala climbs from sea level to 10,023 feet through several different ecological zones. One of the most popular ways to experience the volcano remains cycling down from the summit at sunrise. Do it yourself if you’re confident, or join a guided tour (Skyline Eco-Adventures offers one that includes a zip-line ride). Once you’ve mastered the motion—and the 21 switchbacks along the road—effortless downhill freewheeling rewards you with unsurpassed views of the island. If you’d rather savor the vistas from a lofty perch, drive to the top for the sunset or book an overnight at one of the park’s wilderness cabins, accessible only by hiking trail.