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Frenchmen Street is, more or less, the local-music version of Bourbon Street. It also has its share of tourists trundling about with go-cups in hand, but they’re drawn more by the music than the drink. Plan to spend an evening (things start to pick up around 8 p.m., earlier on weekends) along a three-block stretch of small, informal clubs where there’s often no cover (give generously and give often when the bucket comes around), or at most $5 or $10. Notable clubs include the Spotted Cat, the Maison, Blue Nile, D.B.A., the Apple Barrel, and Snug Harbor. Earlier in the evenings, there’s often an impromptu brass band at the corner of Chartres and Frenchmen. Between sets, take a moment to browse the night art markets, the largest of which is next to the Spotted Cat.

A Greek Revival family mansion built at the turn of the 20th century, Hotel Ella owes both its name and its grandeur to its very first lady of the house, Ella Wooten. Known for her impeccable style and grand tastes, Ella was a fixture of Austin high society who hired the stone carver responsible for the Biltmore Estate to craft her house’s columns and verandas and worked with Neiman Marcus’ Stanly Marcus to redecorate the interiors in 1925.

Nowadays, Hotel Ella pays homage to her good taste with fashionably understated decor, a locally sourced restaurant, and an art collection that the original proprietress would have coveted. Works include original Ansel Adams photographs and Wooten family portraits and jewelry. The owners pride themselves on making guests feel just as pampered as Ella might have, with perks like a free town car service—even though the hotel is within walking distance of downtown—and a concierge team for whom no request is too much.

Key West’s most famous literary resident, Ernest Hemingway, lived in this two-story Spanish-colonial villa for nearly a decade and composed several of his best-known works here. His second wife, Pauline, insisted they add a pool to the spacious grounds—the first inground pool in Key West. The cost ballooned to around $20,000, a fortune in the 1930s, and was said to have contributed to the breakup of their marriage. It’s just one of the fascinating stories guides will share on the half-hour tour of the home and gardens (included in the price of admission). And yes, you’re guaranteed to see plenty of six-toed cats, descendants of Hemingway’s original six-toed cat, Snow White.

Part of the ‘Leading Hotels of the World’ group, Gleneagles is a destination in and of itself for visitors to Scotland. From their website, “Set within the gentle beauty of 850 acres of Perthshire countryside, this five star [resort] is home to three championship golf courses, a sparkling, award-winning spa and an exhilarating array of outdoor activities.” Fancy learning Falconry? You can. Anxious to become an accomplished equestrian? You can do that too. Want to golf in the footsteps of greats like Jack Nicklaus or Adam Scott? Of course, you can do that as well. Fancy a full day being pampered in a spa? ESPA can sort you out. Don’t know how to make traditional Scottish ‘tablet’ or Christmas Pudding? One of the accomplished chefs can teach you with a cooking demonstration in the grand kitchen. Even those who love to shop, and can’t fathom a trip without a few luxury brands, will find the arcade inside Gleneagles well-stocked to please. Built in the decade where Art Deco was all the rage, today’s Gleneagles still exhibits much of its original architectural detail as well as furniture and lighting. Yet modernity and old world details mix reasonably across guest suites as well as common areas to give the hotel a balanced, elegant feel that’s both welcoming and jaw-dropping at the same time. Be sure to leave time for a meal at the Andrew Fairlie-helmed restaurant on site which is one of only eleven restaurants in the UK to have two Michelin stars.

Less than two hours from Barcelona, in car or via TEISA buses (during the week), La Fageda is a leafy green wonderland after too much time spent in Barcelona’s hectic city center. This beech forest is unique, growing at a much lower altitude than usual for the Iberian Peninsula.In the fall, the vivid red leaves on the trees are especially stunning. No motor vehicles are allowed in the forest itself, but you can hike, bike-ride, or explore the reserve on horseback or even in a horse and buggy for a reasonable fee (reserve ahead). Inside the reserve, visit La Fageda’s dairy farm--you can learn about how the yogurt and ice-cream is made (in Catalan or Spanish), pet the calves, and taste some of La Fageda’s products. Beyond la Fageda, in the larger area of La Garrotxa Volcanic Zone Natural Park, there are volcanoes, Olot and Sant Feliu de Pallerols’ old towns, and a medieval castle to see, as well as numerous routes for hiking, biking and horseback riding.

Suppose I told you there was a small, remarkably idyllic and fairly unpopulated island in the Caribbean just a short distance from the mainland United States, an island so immaculate, plans were in the works to make it a National Wildlife Refuge, an island with a beach rated one of the best beaches in the world, an island where you could basically do whatever you wanted along its iridescent shores with little chance of being interrupted by prying eyes.... What’s the first thing you’d do? Well, if you were the U.S. military back in 1901 and the destination in question was the island of Culebra, you’d blow it all to hell! For nearly 75 years, bombs pounded Flamenco Beach on Culebra, la “Última Virgen,” while the U.S. military used it for target practice. Protests drove the Navy away, but some relics remain on the once pristine sands as a reminder of how never to treat one of the best strips of beach in the world. During the weekends, Flamenco Beach can get fairly crowded with “mainland” Puerto Ricans taking the ferry over for a day in the sun, so I recommend you make time during the week for a more secluded experience. There are vendors nearby, but not too near, to make your stay a pleasant one with local cuisine and plenty of ice-cold beer.

A short drive from Amman, the town of Madaba is home to one of Jordan’s largest Christian communities and several impressive churches. Of these, the Greek Orthodox St. George’s Church is the most interesting. The church wasn’t built until the end of the 19th century, but during construction workers uncovered one of the most important surviving artistic relics of the Byzantine era: the Madaba Mosaic Map. Created by artisans in the 6th century, the mosaic was once an intricate map of Holy Land sites, covering modern-day Jordan, Israel, the Palestinian Territories, and Egypt’s Sinai. Only a quarter of the original work survives today, but even this fragment, which sits in the floor of the church, shows astounding detail. Look closely and you’ll see fish swimming in the Jordan River, the walls and gates of Jerusalem, Mount Sinai, and even the Nile Delta. There’s also an excellent exhibition next to the church to help you get the most out of your viewing.

Around since the 18th century, the Avila Beach Hotel is Curaçao’s longest operating hotel. The property’s signature Pen restaurant got its name from the English and Dutch governors who once used the hotel as a country residence, while its classic Schooner Bar has been a beach fixture since the 1950s. A variety of room types all have bright, modern décor and private balconies or patios. Some even have kitchenettes or fully outfitted apartments, which are perfect for families. For a distinctly Caribbean experience, book one of the Ocean Front Blues rooms, housed in an all-wood building on the pier with unbeatable water views.

The resort features two beaches (one of which is exclusive to guests staying in suites), an infinity pool, and a fitness center with a sauna, steam room, and outdoor Jacuzzi. About a 20-minute walk from Willemstad’s UNESCO World Heritage buildings, it also offers a shuttle to town—a very welcome amenity on hot days. Check the resort schedule for weekly happy hours, live music, classical concerts, and arts events, and be sure to look for the vintage Rolls Royce inside the gift shop.

Avalon Hotel is situated in the very center of town, opposite the covered market, on a site formerly occupied by a vegetable market. When the neighboring house was destroyed in a fire and the location was up for development, Avalon was born. The hotel has a modern, artistic look with Nordic simplicity and bold colors. The 101 rooms are decorated in a style that combines the strict Scandinavian aesthetic with a more artistic coloring. Twenty-four of the rooms have an open bath—integrated with the rest of the room, so you can watch TV while taking a bath—and three of them have their own gym. One of the first things you notice about the hotel is the turquoise pool that looks like it’s going to fall off the roof. That belongs to the top-floor penthouse suite, but you can access the pool and have a swim while overlooking the streets below even without booking the room, since the pool is open for all guests in the afternoon. And the outdoor street-level terrace is a good place for an afternoon drink in the sun or a long summer lunch.

When my husband and I went to Provence last summer I, uncharacteristically, did not do much planning. When we were checking into our hotel in Aix I saw a picture of the most brilliant blue water in a brochure and I asked the woman at check-in what this was. She told me it was Les Calanques, France’s newest national park, and it wasn’t that far. We set off for the park the next day and parked in the beautiful seaside town of Cassis. What followed was a highlight of our summer. It was hot and dry but the park’s cool blue green waters provided a respite from the heat. We hiked to the first three inlets jumping in to cool off each time. I loved the tingling sensation I felt when I would get out of the bracing water and feel the dry heat start to warm my extremities. Before we knew it, we had been in the park all day and we had to rush to get to our next destination before dinner. I felt alive, I felt like a kid again and it really felt like summer.

It may not look like much and there’s certainly no need to dress up. But despite its humble appearance on the posh Brouwersgracht, Swieti Sranang serves up some of the best—and most affordable—Indonesian and Surinamese food in town. Owned by Henk van de Weerd and Juliet Chang, the tiny hole-in-the-wall reflects Amsterdam‘s immigrant influences with Indonesian and Surinamese-inspired sandwiches, snacks, rice, roti and bami/nasi specialties. Swieti Sranang is the perfect source for casual lunch or dinner fixings. Pick up a few Indonesian sandwiches, a bag of banana or cassava chips, a few loempia and kip sate sticks, and you have the perfect ingredients for a canal-side picnic. All dishes are lovingly prepared by Chef Juliet, who was born in Indonesia and raised in Suriname. Most sandwiches and snacks are priced under €3, while main meals are €9 or less, making it easy for two to fill up for about €20. You can sample a few selections from the menu on the new Jordaan Food Tour, (http://www.eatingamsterdamtours.com/jordaan-food-tour/), offered Tuesday through Saturday, beginning at 11am.

When I told friends I was going to Papua New Guinea eyebrows were raised; when I mentioned I was staying with a Highlands tribe, jaws dropped. I flew into Tari, a small dusty town with a small dusty airstrip and there I got my first sight of the Huli wigmen. The tribe’s Fortune Teller, traditionally dressed with “arse grass” covering his behind, an ornamental wig made of his own hair, and a cassowary quill through his nose, was in complete contrast to the plane that he’d come to meet. The following day I began my time with the tribe itself and was lucky enough to meet this Wigman preparing for a sing sing – a traditional celebratory dance. I sat down beside him as he prepared his face: an ‘undercoat’ of oily white, then a clay ochre base and finally earthly red highlights. Using hand signals he demonstrated what he was going to do next, before picking up a broken mirror and carefully applying the final strokes. He may not have fully realised how brilliant he looked in the afternoon Sun, but for me, watching him go through this ritual was more inspiring than the dance itself.

The specialty coffee scene was slow to sprout in Paris but thanks to a brigade of entrepreneurial career baristas, the march toward change in consumption and taste is putting the city on the global bean map. At the vanguard of the movement are David Flynn and Thomas Lehoux, both veritable stars in the milieu. David, formerly of Télescope, and Thomas, currently the co-owner of the Canal St. Martin coffee shop Ten Belles, pooled their talents and brought in Anselme Blayney, owner of Le Bal café, to open a roaster in the 19th arrondissement. In a quick few months, the trio’s top-brass beans are popping up all over town in shops like Fondation and Holybelly. The space is reserved for roasting during the week but opens for public cuppings on Saturdays from 11:30am-6:30pm - a prime opportunity to chat with and learn from the city’s best.

Aldeia da Pedralva is more than just a hotel. It’s an actual village hidden away among the wildflowers and beaches of Portugal’s Vicentina Coast. The owner Antonio Ferreira was looking for a career change and when he stumbled upon Pedralva village (at the time no more than a pizza place and abandoned, dilapidated houses) he began to buy them up and rebuild them. It took Ferreira and his wife Filipa more than two years to find the original owners and get permission to buy their homes. Today, Ferreira has turned a former ghost town into a destination eco hotel with a restaurant and grocery shop stocked with produce from the on-site vegetable garden. Each of the 31 restored homes has a rustic charm and was furnished by a designer friend of Ferreira. The best part of staying at Aldeia da Pedralva is that you feel like part of a community. Ferreira’s Newfoundland dog Urso often greets guests. Dinner often features fresh seafood caught that day and plenty of Portuguese wine. A stay here is a lesson in how satisfying simplicity can be.

Imagine waking up in an opulent cream- and café-colored boutique bedroom with regal gold gilding. Picture a leisurely morning with a hearty Turkish breakfast on a rooftop terrace with views to Topkapi Palace, the Aya Sophia, and Bosporus Bridge. Sounds divine right? Well it is—because that’s what life has to offer when staying at the White House Hotel in Sultanahmet. The 22-room Ottoman-style hotel with modern comforts is close to some of the best restaurants in town, the Sultanahmet tram station, and all the major tourist landmarks of Old Istanbul. General Manager and Owner Harun Çadırcı and his team are onsite to provide personalized services that have earned them awards. Complimentary transfers from Ataturk Airport are available for stays of three nights or more, and if you’re celebrating a special occasion, be sure to let the hotel know so they can recommend restaurants and activities to make your stay extra special. The hotel has standard double rooms as well as luxury superior, triple, and family rooms available. Check their website for more details.