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A 19th-century private estate just outside San Sebastián’s city center, Villa Soro was commissioned by a wealthy businessman as a wedding gift for his daughter; it was designed by the same architect who built the iconic Hotel de Londres y de Inglaterra, which towers over the La Concha waterfront at the city center. In contrast to that classic belle epoque building, the villa takes its inspiration from English architecture—complete with peaked roofs and faux-Tudor beaming—that was in vogue at the time, while the manicured gardens were designed by renowned Romantic landscape designer Pierre Ducasse.

Now an intimate, 25-room boutique hotel, Villa Soro maintains the same relaxed, cozy atmosphere one might expect to find at a friend’s estate, complete with two elegant drawing rooms outfitted with armchairs that beg to be curled up in with a book. The dark-wood-and-leather bar room (complete with a fireplace, of course) beckons visitors with vermouth and txakoli. Rooms are homey and classically elegant, spread between the main house and the restored carriage house, and they make for a romantic retreat within walking distance of the city’s sights and Michelin-starred restaurants.

If you’re visiting Tahiti with a large family or group of friends and hoping to surf the island’s most powerful wave, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better, more affordable place to stay than Green Room Villa. The 1,500-square-foot, four-bedroom property—the only vacation rental in the sleepy surfing village of Teahupo’o—practically opens up to the water and offers a unique place to rest your head. The main house is shaped like an octagon, with a huge mangosteen tree growing out of the open center, plus a large covered deck, teak flooring, and brightly painted walls that show off the owner’s creativity. The property even works well for a small destination wedding, as there’s a “honeymoon bungalow” near the fruit tree garden. Built on stilts, it sits over a purple-hued, lily-filled pond. It’s also the only room with air conditioning, although breezes keep the main house relatively cool. On a very local part of the island, Green Room Villa is extremely private, providing a relaxed place for your group getaway. Note: the owners require a credit card damage deposit and a three-night minimum stay.

While the Liberty Hotel may have deep roots in Boston lore, it’s not for the reasons you think. For more than 100 years the hotel existed as the Charles Street Jail, an in-city penitentiary that housed (in)famous inmates like James Michael Curley, Malcolm X, and Sacco and Vanzetti. Its inspired transformation came in 2007, but the owners maintained some of the jail’s vestiges, from the exercise yard to several jail cells, while turning the building into a 298-room luxury hotel. Richly appointed rooms offer sweeping views of the city skyline and the Charles River.

The hotel houses five distinct restaurant and bar venues, all of which attract large swaths of locals, especially on the weekends. Located at the foot of Beacon Hill, the hotel is steps away from the boutique and antique stores along Charles Street and also sits next to the picturesque Charles River Esplanade.

Maupiti, the smallest and most isolated of the Society Islands, feels like an unblemished tropical playground, where tranquility trumps everything else and romantic love stories of deserted sparkling white-sand beaches surrounded by shimmering aqua lagoons are realized. The best beaches are on the five motus, or small sandbars that also house pensions, ringing the main island. Of the five motus, Motu Tiapaa has the best beaches by far. For surfing and decent kite-boarding, you’ll want to head to Motu Tuanai, which also houses the airport.


Serving up a Robinson Crusoe version of paradise, Maupiti seduces lovers and adventurers on a quest for the heavenly Polynesia of lore, but it is not for everyone. Time moves slowly on this island, and the resort focus here is on small family run “pensions” (guesthouses), not luxury five-star resorts with multiple restaurants and Wi-Fi. If you’re the kind of traveler who’s craving a temporary separation from your Facebook account, and love watching the sun set over the lagoon while reading a book or chowing on fresh caught seafood with the family that owns the pension where you’re sleeping, Maupiti may be the perfect island for you. Oh, and if you stay at any of the guesthouses here, sign up for full-board, as it isn’t really the kind of place where many restaurants exist.

I love finding Love Locks all over the world. Sydney did not disappoint with a collection on the Sydney Harbour Bridge, with a perfect view of the Opera House.

The Bonsecours Market is hard to miss, whether you are walking around Montréal’s historic center or looking at the skyline from the harbor. A silver dome caps the long building, which dates from 1844 and was modeled on Dublin’s Customs House. It looks more like a stately civic building than a market, and in fact it was Montréal’s city hall for a while, as well as the seat of Canada‘s parliament for one session. After serving as the central market of the city for nearly a century, it closed in 1963 and was largely abandoned until 1992, when it reopened as the home of a visitors’ center for Montréal’s 350th anniversary. Today it houses a dozen or so boutiques featuring works by local designers, as well as a few restaurants that make for good pit stops on a day of sightseeing.

The Victorian-era glass and wood structure, which looks like a sugar-coated castle atop a grassy slope, is Golden Gate Park’s oldest building. It’s also one of San Francisco’s most splendid historic sites. Wander through five different galleries housing 1,700 species of aquatic and tropical plants along with the world’s largest public collection of high-altitude orchids. The potted plant gallery features rare flowering plants and an assortment of decorative urns and containers from all over the world, including a leftover from San Francisco’s 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition. Keep your eyes open for special exhibits, including the annual Butterflies and Blooms, which transforms the conservatory into a magical garden aflutter with hundreds of butterflies.

With its fourth U.S. location, the Hoxton brings its signature coolness to the old Los Angeles Railway Building in the center of downtown. The 1922 structure is now home to 174 hotel rooms, three bars and restaurants, and The Apartment—the Hoxton’s signature meeting and event space, complete with stylish conference rooms and a communal kitchen filled with tasty snacks. The F&B outlets come courtesy of the team behind New York’s popular Sunday in Brooklyn, and range from Sibling Rivalry (an all-day lobby spot with seasonal comfort food and its own soft-serve bar) and Pilot (a Mediterranean-inspired rooftop bar and restaurant by the pool) to an as-yet-unnamed bar set to open in early 2020.

Tucked into the hilly northwestern corner of Jordan, Umm Qais (or ancient Gadara) commands grand views of the Sea of Galilee and the Golan Heights from the edge of its plateau. It was here that Jesus is said to have performed the miracle of casting demons out of men and into pigs. The town has existed since the Hellenistic period, but is best known for its Roman ruins, which once sat along a prosperous trade route. Many ancient streets and buildings are still intact, as are several Ottoman-era stone houses, which remained occupied all the way until the 1980s. Grandest of all the ruins is the black basalt theater, located along the wide Decumanus Maximus that still holds its original paving stones. Visitors should also be sure to check out the small museum in what was once the home of the Ottoman governor, as well as the celebrated restaurant in the old Ottoman school. In recent years, Umm Qais has become a pioneer of community tourism in Jordan, and it’s even possible to take cooking classes, nature walks, or tours with a local beekeeper after enjoying the ancient ruins.

Located in southern Galilee in the Jordan Valley, Beit She’an National Park was created to protect and preserve the site of one of Israel‘s oldest cities. One can easily spend a few hours exploring the vast and fascinating park. Some of the country’s most spectacular artifacts dating back to the Bronze Age are on exhibit, as well as an impressive 7,000-seat Roman amphitheater, public baths, workshops, a temple, and the colonnaded Palladius street. Don’t miss She’an Nights, an evening sound-and-light show in which images of Roman buildings and people are projected onto the ruins along the central street, briefly bringing the city back to life.

There are helipads but no cell phones or young children at Triple Creek Ranch, a 600-acre luxury Western playground on a slope of 10,157-foot Trapper Peak, Montana’s highest mountain, near the Idaho border. Owned by Craig and Barbara Barrett (he, the former CEO of Intel; she, a former astronaut and U.S. ambassador to Finland), this elegant, high-end dude ranch offers sapphire pan mining, scenic trail rides, fishing from stocked trout ponds, and guided hiking, cross-country skiing, and snowshoeing (including starlit expeditions), as well as themed weekend stays focusing on art, food, and wine. The owners’ no-hunting policy has resulted in large herds of elk and other game gravitating to the property, and guests frequently spot animals from huge log cabins decorated with leather furniture and original Western-themed art and equipped with wood-burning fireplaces, private decks, bar, Blu-ray players, and working Wi-Fi connections. (Though the ranch deliberately has no cell phone signal.) From May through October, for additional fees, the ranch pairs up guests with professional rodeo trainers and Orvis-endorsed fly-fishing operators. In winter, the lodge facilitates transportation, tickets, and equipment rental vouchers for the nearby Lost Trail Powder Mountain downhill ski center (300 inches of snow annually) and Chief Joseph Cross Country Ski Area.

• Location: County Clare, Ireland
• Why we love it: A regal 19th-century castle that feels like stepping back in time—with all the comforts of today
• Loyalty program: I Prefer (Preferred Hotels and Resorts)
• From $3,800
• Book now

Dromoland Castle, located in Ireland’s County Clare, was built in the early 1800s and served as the ancestral home of the Irish Gaelic O’Brien clan for eight generations. Today, it’s a luxury hotel offering a range of refined experiences across its stately grounds—from hawk walks and boating on Dromoland Lake to golf, archery, and sporting clays lessons. Inside, original oil paintings, stained glass, antique furnishings, and the historic Ornamental Walled Garden evoke the castle’s storied past.



Recently refurbished rooms, such as the Grania O’Brien Suite, offer charming details like a hidden bookcase that opens into an adjoining room. The octagonal cocktail bar, once the O’Brien family library, now serves drinks named for Celtic deities. New to the 500 acre grounds is Dromoland Lodge, a five-bedroom private residence along the golf course for those seeking extra seclusion. If you’re looking for a royal stay that whisks you back in time, Dromoland is a great option, located a mere 20 minutes by car from Shannon Airport.

Copenhagen is one of the world’s most sophisticated cocktail cities. Bars as far afield as Tokyo and New York keep a close eye on what is shaking—and stirring—here. Ruby, among the more elegant of Copenhagen’s bars, opened in 2007 with a focus on classic cocktails. It can be hard to find, but look for the flag of Georgia to guide you there, as it’s in the same building as that country’s embassy.

It was raining when we arrived in Donostia-San Sebastian, but the skies cleared on our second day, and we rode the funicular railway up Mount Igueldo to take in the view back on the city, La Concha Bay, and the empty beach. The “low” travel season had just begun, and the strange little children’s amusement park on the mountaintop had shuttered up for the fall and winter, adding just the right disorienting touch of weird desolation to the Basque country panorama.

Throughout Luzern, so many of the buildings have crazy, wild paintings all over them. Loving it! Wish more buildings in Brisbane were like this!