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When people think of Florence, they usually think of Renaissance art and crowded museums filled with altarpieces and “Madonna and Child” images. While the Renaissance is the biggest draw of this historic city, there is a lot more to its art-museum scene. The Palazzo Strozzi is a fine example of a museum that doesn’t just showcase great art but also plays an important role in the community. Inside this Renaissance palace—a work of art in itself—visitors will find temporary exhibitions that cover a variety of time periods and cultures.

On Thursday evenings, the courtyard is transformed into a social hub with hip Florentines having drinks and coffee at the café and on outdoor couches. The museum also offers free entrance to the downstairs exhibition space on select evenings and, in summer, hosts movie and music nights. Palazzo Strozzi has also gotten on board with making art an interactive experience, especially for children. Parents can purchase a family ticket which includes kid-friendly activities including workshops, sketching in the galleries, storytelling, and “stroller tours.”

Florida’s nature is alive and well at this wildlife refuge, located on the north side of Sanibel Island. Rich with mangroves and seagrass, the protected, subtropical habitat is home to more than 230 species of birds as well as alligators, manatees, and many land mammals. Head here from October through April to see most of the shorebirds, or during the summer months if you’re looking for manatees in and around Tarpon Bay. All year long, you can also spot alligators during four-mile wildlife drives. Back at the information center, be sure to check out the great displays, which are free to all visitors.

Just across the street from Montréal’s City Hall (or Hôtel de Ville), the Château Ramezay has been witness to almost three centuries of history. It was first built in 1705 by Claude de Ramezay, then governor of Montréal, as his official residence. While the building principally served as the home of later governors, it was also briefly the headquarters of the Continental Army when American troops occupied the city. (Benjamin Franklin spent a night in the house during that period.) In 1895, it began its current incarnation, as a portrait gallery and history museum. The collection includes prints, drawings, photographs, and other works of art, as well as humble household objects, that shed light on the daily life of the city’s residents and First Nations peoples in Québec over the centuries. Be sure to leave time to explore the small kitchen and pleasure gardens, as well as the orchard, for an introduction to the horticultural practices of settlers in New France and residents of 19th-century Montréal.

Owned by the world-renowned art collector Dakis Joannou and smartly decorated by quirky Brazilian designers the Campana brothers, the New Hotel is the city’s coolest upscale design-centric property, with 79 rooms (including seven suites) and an intimate restaurant. Although centrally located, just a five-minute walk to Syntagma Square, it’s tucked back in a modernist building on a side street so it feels hidden and discreet. The interiors are both playful and smart; the Campanas created much of it with items recycled from the previous hotel. Imagine puzzlelike walls and chairs constructed of layered, repurposed wood intermingled with sculptural chairs of their own design. In the rooms, they had fun riffing on Greek cultural objects, like the Karagiozis, a shadow puppet, and multiple versions of the glass “evil eyes” used to protect against ill omen. Bottom line: stylish contemporary design, excellent location, and friendly service.

Throughout Budapest are a whopping 123 therapeutic hot springs, but these, in the stately, slightly dusty Hotel Gellért (built in 1918) might be the most famous. The communal bath in the center of the hotel spa is for everyone, but the most interesting traditional spa experience is in the back thermal pools, which have been coed since 2013. Here, join Hungarian locals in pools of varied temperatures, steam baths, and saunas, and jumping into ice-cold baths in between. Everyone takes their time to not only bask in the baths but also gaze at the Art Nouveau tiling on the walls and vaulted ceilings.

Catch a glimpse of what Hawaii looked like before European contact. An unmissable destination for culture buffs, this sacred area stretches along the lava flats of the Big Island’s western coast. Behind a massive wall stands an ancient pu’uhonua (place of refuge)—where defeated enemies and those who violated the kapu (laws) could seek pardon. The park also shelters the Royal Grounds, a residential and ceremonial epicenter, and the 1871 Trail that takes in the shoreline. Tip: This is a religious site, so be respectful and don’t smoke, picnic, play sports, take wedding photos, or carry beach equipment (including towels) here. Just north of the boat launch outside of the park you can find Two Step, a phenomenal scuba and snorkeling spot.

One block west of the Bund you can find the Rockbund Art Museum, housed in Shanghai’s former Royal Asiatic Society building (1932). Like many of the grande dame Bund buildings, RAS was dreamt up by British design firm Palmer and Turner and done to the nines in art deco style. The museum hosts its share of heavy hitters from the contemporary art world, such as Zhang Huan, Cai Guo-Qiang, and Felix Gonzalez-Torres. Rockbund is small but charming, especially the tranquil top-floor café and lounge, which give way to a small terrace overlooking the Pudong skyline.

New Delhi’s original power hotel, The Imperial opened in 1936 and played host to celebrities and historic figures: It was here, rather than at Connaught Place that Pandit Nehru, Mahatama Gandhi, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, and Lord Mountbatten met to discuss the partition of India and creation of Pakistan. Though renovation has lent a bit of a corporate vibe to the high-ceilinged hallways, the hotel still oozes nostalgia at every turn. A vast museum-worthy collection on display throughout public and private spaces includes life-size oil portraits of princely rulers, statuary, tapestries, old photographs, and British and Indian military and polo regalia. Rooms come in Victorian, Indian heritage, and Art Deco motifs, with marble floors, sumptuous velvet furnishings, and antique rugs. The centerpiece of the palm-studded lawn is a huge, beautifully tiled swimming pool where red-uniformed staff deliver ice-cold drinks to sunbathers in the stultifying heat, but if you prefer a moodier venue for your cocktails, the property has a library-like bar with wood-panelled walls as well as four atmospheric restaurants serving every kind of cuisine. And don’t miss the afternoon tea, enjoyed in the light-filled atrium.

Only in Berlin could a hulking, aboveground World War II‒era concrete bunker, right in the center of the city, be turned into an art gallery. The structure—too bulky to be blown up after the war—was transformed in 2008 by collector-curator Christian Boros, who lives in a penthouse on top of the building. After extensive renovation, the lower floors house the Boros Collection, around 500 works of art spanning sculpture, installations, paintings, and photography. Works change every couple of years but always feature big international names such as Damien Hirst, Olafur Eliasson, Elizabeth Peyton, Wolfgang Tillmans, Manfred Pernice, Ai Weiwei, and Michel Majerus. You can view the collection only on weekends, as part of a guided tour; book an appointment via the website.

While San Francisco’s Contemporary Jewish Museum dates back to 1994, it moved into its current location in 2008. The heart of the museum’s new home is a 1907 Pacific Gas & Electric power substation, with additions designed by one of architecture’s leading figures, Daniel Libeskind. The museum tends to take a thematic and often surprising approach to its subject with, for example, exhibitions of artists inspired by the biblical book of Genesis and others focused on the notable personalities of the Jewish life of California, America and beyond. If you are looking for some unexpected gifts, the museum’s store carries updated menorahs, humorous T-shirts and a large selection of books on Jewish culture and history.

After strolling Storm King Art Center or DIA Beacon, Tarry Lodge is the perfect stop on your way back to New York City. Mario Batali opened it up as a neighborhood restaurant for the Port Chester crowd and a go-to for out-of-town Manhattanites who love his Italian comfort food. Don’t miss the clam, chili, and oregano or pistachio and goat cheese pizzas. Waits can be long so if you’re trying to beat traffic just get take out from their curbside service.

You can find Cuish brand mezcal in a few establishments in Oaxaca city, but head to their own tasting bar located on the outskirts of the city center to learn what this brand stands for. They offer mezcal that is artisanally produced from several different varieties of wild agave, including the one for which they’re named. This is a bohemian haven, and besides sampling the different mezcals, you may also enjoy an art exhibit or concert on the weekends. Diaz Ordaz 712, Centro Oaxaca (951) 516-8791

This Romanesque Revival landmark has become Nashville’s crown jewel. The city’s main train station from 1900 until the 1970s, when railway service was discontinued, the building sat vacant for decades until it was restored to its former glory and reopened as a boutique hotel in 2016. Now on the National Register of Historic Places, the hotel retains pieces of the past—including its iconic clock tower, an original arrivals and departures board, and the solid wood staircases—while providing all the comforts of the present. The 125 guest rooms skew contemporary, with soothing tones of gray and neutral walnut, as well as cowhide headboards and custom ironwork lights. By contrast, public spaces veer on the nostalgic: The atrium lobby has painted barrel-vaulted ceilings, 100-year-old stained-glass skylights, bas-relief moldings, and ornate crystal chandeliers. It’s an atmospheric backdrop for the hotel’s “Riffs on the Rails,” a weekly series of live music performances.

Originally the Union National Bank Building—built in 1911—the 12-floor landmark in downtown Houston debuted as Hotel Icon in 2004 after a $35 million makeover. The historic structure beautifully maintains its neoclassical architecture with period details like grand arched windows and stately columns and nods to its roots with rich interior design details that make guests feel like they’re stepping back in time. All of this is juxtaposed with contemporary luxuries—from plush linens and velvet seating to Jacuzzi bathtubs and walk-in rain showers. Charmingly (and appropriately), some rooms have antique claw-foot tubs.

Hotel Icon is one of two Marriott Autograph Collection properties in Texas, and its Main Street location sits along the 7.5-mile Metro LightRail line that runs through downtown. That means easy access to Houston’s Central Business District, George R. Brown Convention Center, Texas Medical Center, Hermann Park, and the Museum District.

The brick-and-iron warehouses of the old Eveleigh Railway Workshops host a diverse lineup of experimental music, theater, film, and fine art. Located on the border of Redfern and Waterloo, Carriageworks was restored to keep the historical roots intact while providing a space for cutting-edge culture. Every Saturday, more than 70 stalls fill the former railyard outside with organic produce, artisan breads, specialty coffee, and exotic flowers as well as street food from the likes of chef Kylie Kwong during the farmers’ market. Fuel up at the market and then get inspired by whatever is on display inside this artist-run venue. Big annual events for Sydney Contemporary, Pacific Runway, Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, and the Sydney Festival are also held here throughout the year.