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If you fancy a trip back in time to catch a glimpse of how life changed throughout the 19th century, Naper Settlement is the time machine you seek. There is a dizzying array of educational and cultural learning to be done on these hallowed grounds. Check out the schoolhouse, the chapel, the carriage house, or perhaps the stonecutter’s shop; these and many more await you at this marvelous outdoor museum. The Naper Settlement is also great for field trips, corporate events, weddings, volunteer activities, or just spending some time exploring. With the litany of choices, the best bet is to check out the website and see what part of the 19th century suits you best.

Here’s your chance to ride on a hands-free Segway, where you can tour the boardwalk on a 30-ft promenade over three miles long. The Hollywood Beach Boardwalk is one of the best beachfront paths. You’ll see all kinds of restaurants, the gorgeous emerald waters of the Atlantic, and plenty of locals. You’ll pass historic hotels, volleyball courts, and shuffleboard players. You’ll hit top speed going north for a full mile. The wind hits your hair as you cruise the intracoastal waterway going south. It’s truly the best way to fly across the boardwalk.

One of the best things about Barcelona is its many delicious cafes, offering strong Spanish coffee and rich, flaky pastries. I’ve found the best cafes to be concentrated in the city’s enchanting Gothic Quarter, or “Barri Gotic.” As in a lot of other European cities, you can linger over a cup of coffee, chocolate croissant, and the morning paper for as long as you’d like without risk of being bothered to give up your table. When you’re in Barcelona make sure to enjoy a leisurely breakfast followed by a stroll through the charming Gothic Quarter, where you’ll find everything from entertaining street performers to fun little shops to the obvious highlight, beautiful Gothic architecture.

Nina Compton, a native of Saint Lucia in the Caribbean, came to New Orleans a few years ago to compete in the Top Chef television series. She didn’t win the culinary slugfest, but New Orleans came out ahead—a short time later she returned to set down roots by opening Compère Lapin, a charming, brick-accented restaurant in a hotel that’s a reasonable stroll from the French Quarter. It’s good to get there early to grab a drink at the bar, which treats its libations with the same seriousness as the kitchen does its food. (A frozen drink… with chartreuse.) The dishes are alive with creative Caribbean flavors—among the more memorable plates are the seafood pepper pot, black drum, and curried goat.

This, the bar lauded for the city’s best sliders, has just added another star to its menu: Neapolitan pizza. Regulars are mighty keen on “carbo pepe,” by Chef Miwi (at the helm in this kitchen as well as at acclaimed hipster-heaven Belmondo, both in Roma). Félix remodeled a porch into a garden where they’ve got salads, pastas, and the aforementioned pies. These and other dishes took the chef to Italy, for expert education, leading to experimentation and that perfect dough. Super-chill and friendly, yet the service could hardly be improved.

If you find yourself at Founding Fathers Pub, you should know it’s going to be a late night. Open since 1968, the hole-in-the-wall tavern is a local favorite, but generally flies under the radar of travelers visiting the area. It’s the type of no-frills spot where you meet old friends to catch up, or get quizzed on Buffalo’s rich history by owner and former social studies teacher Mike Driscoll, who decked out the space in presidential memorabilia. Grab a seat at the bar and strike up conversation, then order a pint or two to pair with the free popcorn and nachos served nightly.

Already a popular day trip, this jade-colored waterway rocketed to fame as the site of Calypso’s house in Pirates of the Caribbean. Hire a guide and colorful rowboat—most seat up to eight passengers—for the one-mile excursion upstream and watch for crayfish and young barracudas in the brackish river, which is lined by mangroves with mighty buttress roots. Don’t miss the fruit drinks and Dynamite rum punch at Cobra’s Bush Bar, the trip’s turnaround point.

Tucked into a former cobbler’s workshop, Boot Café is making a determined bid to be the city’s tiniest (and most Instagrammable) specialty coffee bar. In a robin’s-egg-blue storefront, the café pours lattes made with beans from the highly regarded Parisian roaster Belleville Brûlerie and foreign roasters such as Five Elephant in Berlin. It’s a tight squeeze but worth a visit for bagels, cakes, and expertly pulled shots.

All-night adventure for the big kids - I suppose that’s a sound way to sum up Aura, the enormous Jeffrey Beers club that sits at the heart of the Atlantis nightlife experience. Two bars, two VIP sections, a fantastic DJ booth, and posh accommodations are the signature of Aura, a great place to kick back with a cocktail after... kicking back with a cocktail on the beach.

Isola is Milan‘s sleeper neighborhood because of its great location, hip shops and local vibe. It is also a great area to hang out in because, well, it feels like a neighborhood. Weekend street markets, clever graffiti, cute boutiques, artisanal shops and great bars. Add in there a strong sense of AC Milan fans and lots of people to meet, you’ve got your weekend.

Guadeloupe’s outdoor markets are an important part of daily life and a sight for sore eyes. Fragrant cooking spices compete with colorful bottles of homemade rhum, women in traditional madras head ties smile at passersby, zouk music or gwo-ka drums blast in the background, and the calm Caribbean Sea is the backdrop. Saint-Anne Market, on Grande-Terre Island, is a favorite. It borders a beautiful white-sand beach, steps from a row of casual restaurants and bars.

There’s no shortage of sex shops or love stores in LGBT-friendly Zona Rosa, but Erotika may be the cleanest and most inviting, with its hot pink color scheme and “No shame here” attitude. This is one of several stores Erotika runs throughout the city. The surrounding neighborhood is filled with gay-themed nightclubs and bars, so you’ll have plenty of choice about where and how to spend an evening in Mexico City.

Claiming the dubious title of “largest night club in Latin America,” the City is located in the hotel zone. Spread through three floors, it offers nine bars and claims a capacity of 5,000 people, which many guests claim is too many bodies trapped in one place. Laser shows, loud music, and a host of guest artists try to compete with neighbor Coco Bongo, but miss the mark.

Once the home of Teddy Roosevelt, this two-story lounge has featured local and world-renowned DJs spinning house, electronic, and trip-hop since 1995, as well as live bands playing jazz, hip-hop, reggae, funk, samba, and Latin. Along with the beats, enjoy the chill, living-room-like ambience, stylish crowd, and strong drinks in a variety of spaces—the Deck Bar is a favorite summertime hangout.

The right bank of the Limmat is home to the busy, cobblestoned Niederdorfstrasse, lined with bustling cafés, bars and restaurants, none more bustling than the sprawling over-a-century-old Johanniter, a can’t-miss-it spot with its giant Swiss and Zurich flags marking its entrance. Inside, patrons dine on huge portions of traditional specialties like raclette (melted cheese served with potatoes and pickled cucumbers and onions) under tall, vaulted ceilings.