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In addition to its beaches, Aruba’s gambling culture is one of the island’s biggest draws, with most casinos located in the large hotels of Palm Beach and downtown Oranjestad. Stellaris, in the Aruba Marriott Resort, is one of several glittering options that stay open 24 hours a day. The sprawling floor boasts rows of slot machines and 26 tables, offering all manner of poker, craps, and blackjack games. Visitors can also look forward to bingo, sports kiosks, and a VIP club for high rollers. Note: Aruba’s casinos are restricted to those 18 and older.

A tribute to the zinfandel grape, which originated in Croatia, this restaurant and bar features a zin-centric wine list but also showcases regional favorites like Plavac and Dingač. Of its 100 wines, it offers about 30 by the glass, encouraging guests to taste their way through Croatia’s wine heritage. Pair your drinks with one of the restaurant’s three-tiered platters, which come loaded with Dalmatian bites, then settle in on the terrace for some live music. If you’re hungry for a full meal, opt instead for the five-course “Taste of Dalmatia” menu, which includes everything from seared Adriatic tuna and homemade oxtail ravioli to calamari stuffed with ricotta and sun-dried tomatoes. Come morning, Zinfandel also serves breakfast, which diners can pair with champagne or fig-flavored travarica, a local herb grappa.

This luxury hotel melds historic charm with 21st-century designer sass. Located deep in the middle of Barcelona’s bustle, it occupies a 1920s building that’s been lovingly reworked by architect Oriol Tintoré. Original features, most notably the winding neoclassical stairway, are immediately apparent in the stately lobby entrance, and these heritage touches continue into the hotel’s public spaces and many of the rooms. Not that the rooms are traditional; on the contrary, they’re very slick, decked out with modern conveniences such as media hubs, complimentary minibars (restocked daily), and rain showers. The rooms, arranged so they face outward, are generously flooded with daylight, which highlights the restrained color palettes and elegant wooden floors. Shared facilities at the hotel include a roof terrace with infinity pool, a Mediterranean bistro-style restaurant, and a comprehensive spa and wellness center.

In the heart of SoHo, the colorful Crosby Street Hotel is a boutique from the Firmdale Hotels group out of London. In 2009, owner and design director Kit Kemp opened this fresh, whimsical property, full of art, bold patterns, and a feminine touch that is frequently missing from the more common masculine-themed hotels of New York. Rooms feature floor-to-ceiling warehouse-style windows, with gorgeous views over SoHo and lower Manhattan. The ground-floor bar is a popular gathering place for New Yorkers, but many common spaces at this hotel are reserved just for guests. The Sculpture Garden and vibrant Drawing Room with deep, plush couches provide space to relax after a day of shopping in SoHo’s boutiques. There is also a 99-seat cinema where films are screened weekly.

Thai cuisine, with its balance of three to four fundamental taste senses, may be complex but that doesn’t make it difficult to pick up the basics. Bangkok has a plethora of cooking schools, some of which are attached to renowned Thai restaurants such as Bo.lan and Blue Elephant. Blue Elephant is one of the most respected venues in the city and its tuition reflects its exalted status. Two courses are offered daily, with the morning session featuring a visit to a local market and the afternoon session including a detailed introduction to Thai ingredients. A homier option is Amita Thai Cooking Class. Classes are held in an antique canalside home and include an explanatory visit to the resident herb garden.

Fresa’s Chicken al Carbon is an Austin-owned restaurant serving charcoal-grilled, locally raised chickens, freshly prepared tortas, salads, sides, homemade ice creams, aguas frescas, and a selection of beer and wine. The family-style meals feature the highest quality pasture-raised birds from Vital Farms. Either marinated in achiote and freshly squeezed citrus or rubbed with fresh oregano and cracked pepper, the chicken is grilled slowly over hardwood charcoal and served with house-made tortillas, rice, beans, and fresh salsas. Don’t leave without ordering the cajeta churros for dessert!

Situated on 10 acres in the heart of downtown, this 24-story hotel lives up to its name with 775 elegant guest rooms, appointed with handcrafted cherrywood Richelieu furnishings, floor-to-ceiling windows, Italian marble bathrooms, and spacious balconies. Public outdoor spaces include an immaculately manicured courtyard garden with a central fountain, a pretty-as-can-be terrace café serving house-made breads, and an outsize pool lined with loungers, all against a backdrop of classic white granite. To top it off, the hotel also features a colorful toy store with costumes galore, a jewel box of a sweets shop with macarons and other divine confections, and a men’s haberdashery. The lobby lounge hosts a live jazz band on weekend nights, and the staff tends to a crackling open fire during cool weather.

The Hotel Orphée, in the medieval city of Regensburg, oozes 19th-century French glamour. Centrally located to Regensburg’s cobblestone streets, local shops, restaurants, and small squares, it’s decorated in a Baroque palazzo style. Each large, reasonably priced room is styled differently, but nearly all feature antiques and four-poster beds. Also on-site is the Orphée Restaurant, a French bistro that’s been in operation since 1896. Surrounded by its authentic wood wainscotting, tin ceiling, old French posters, and overall patina, you’ll feel transported to a distinctly different era—a time when sitting in a small café, drinking wine and watching passersby, could be the grand plan of your day. Note: In the summer, the narrow streets surrounding the hotel get very noisy, so if you’re a light sleeper, this may not be the place for you.

Miami is all about presentation. The heels are higher, the skirts are shorter, the portions are larger, and the drinks are works of art. Meat Market, in Miami Beach, is a steak house that could fool you into thinking it’s more of a nightclub than a restaurant. At the bar, an esteemed team of mixologists create handcrafted cocktails, including the Some Like It Hot: reposado tequila, raspberry, fresh lime juice, and jalapeño-infused agave nectar, served mild, medium, or hot. The menu features a variety of prime cut meats, fresh seafood, and innovative side dishes, and highlights include the super-size wedge salad, the roasted truffle oysters Rockefeller, the creamy lobster mashed potatoes, and the decadant Gouda Tater Tots. To share, try the Waygu beef tomahawk rib eye that weights a good 30 ounces. Bigger is better. That’s just how it goes in Miami.

The house in which U.S. statesman Alexander Hamilton was born in 1757 and lived until he was eight years old (when he moved with his family to St. Croix) is now a museum dedicated to tracing his life and achievements. The stone house itself, while handsome, is mostly a restoration, but inside you’ll find fascinating texts describing Hamilton’s childhood, upbringing, and subsequent contribution to politics.

The small museum also features a range of interesting artifacts that chart the history of Nevis, starting with the indigenous Amerindian peoples through the arrival of the Europeans and continuing right up to the present day. After touring the displays, visit the modest gift shop, where you can pick up souvenirs like local stamps and prints.

If you find yourself in Asheville, NC (and you should, as AFAR’s recent feature pointed out - there’s a lot to love in Asheville); stay at The Grove Park Inn. This historic hotel is part art deco/part arts and crafts with rambling porches and a view of the mountains to rival other properties in town. The Horizons restaurant serves up Michelin-worthy meals and their sommelier will not steer you wrong. The spa buried in the depths of the property has salt water pools and heated waterfalls, with trained masseurs who can erase any ill your body is suffering. Rooms are spacious and comfortable with updated bathrooms. The elevator is built into a massive fireplace. It’s an incredible place that does an excellent job of showing off the quirky character of the Southern town it calls home.

Whether you’re up for the adventure of a mobile tented camp, or would prefer a private house staffed with personal chefs, Singita Grumeti is the place for the ultimate safari experience and unbeatable Great Migration views. The 350,000-acre protected nature reserve is home to five distinct properties (plus an exclusive private villa option), ensuring there is an option for any traveler—though luxury, service, and attention to detail are constants across the board.

The five main Grumeti properties offer a singular setting and experience, along with the option to visit any of the others for meals, or to make use of their facilities. Choices include traditional tented-style camps like Sabora Tented Camp, with its plush, 1920s-explorer-inspired decor, and Explore Mobile Tented Camp, an eco-friendly setup that can be moved as the migration progresses. Faru Faru Lodge features contemporary interiors and boasts two striking pools, while Serengeti House is a four-suite private house favored by honeymooning celebs. The grande dame of the reserve, Sasakwa Lodge, boasts luxury cottages, a spa, a wine cellar, dining room, a bar and lounge, a billiards room, a conservatory, and even an equestrian center.

With all this to choose from—not to mention the endless panoramas, gourmet cuisine, and unforgettable wildlife viewing—Singita Grumeti has become known as the pinnacle of safari getaways. And with good reason: the experience here is so impeccable, it just might spoil you on safaris for life.

Talk about first impressions: Carved sandstone elephants welcome guests into a two-story chandeliered lobby at this palace-style hotel. Attentive service starts at check-in, with gifts of bindis and fresh jasmine necklaces. At 550-square-feet or larger, rooms are palatial themselves, and richly decorated with oriental carpets, jacquards, and hand-embroidered brocades. Those on higher floors offer panoramic city views, but many visitors choose spaces overlooking the internal courtyard or expansive garden (and away from a 16-lane highway) for a sense of calm. The hotel’s Edwardian-inspired bar draws locals and guests alike with its 25-page whiskey and scotch menu, as does a rooftop pool with stunning vistas over New Delhi’s urban landscape. Unique amenities include an on-call astrologer and, for women travelers, the option of an all-female service staff, including butler, gym instructors, and private city guides.

Superlatives reign at this massive Palm Beach resort. Among the outsize offerings? The biggest casino in Aruba, with more than 500 slot machines and 26 gaming tables, as well as the island’s largest spa. Its 414 accommodations aren’t lacking for space either: Each room has a walk-in closet, double-sink bathroom, and private balcony; the highest-end suites are so palatial their balconies alone measure up to a sprawling 500 square feet—with ocean views to sweeten the deal. When you’re not playing roulette or indulging in a moisturizing coconut-milk wrap, kick back in one of the beachside palapas, or practice your breaststroke in the free-form pool, complete with cascading waterfalls and a volleyball net (a serene adults-only pool features a swim-up bar if that’s more your speed). In keeping with the more-is-more theme, guests are spoiled for choice with seven on-site restaurants, bars, and cafés, including a Ruth’s Chris Steak House, where the 500-degree plates ensure another best—the hottest meal in town.

Opened in 1963, Gene McCarthy’s is a Buffalo institution. Nestled in the shadows of towering grain silos next to long-abandoned railway tracks, it’s a snapshot of the city as it once was, done up in pub tables, Irish tchotchkes, and photos of favorite locals. While not much has changed in the past five decades, the tavern did switch hands in 2012, and new owners Bill Metzger and Matt Conron decided to expand the business by adding a brewery. Now, Old First Ward Brewing Company produces more than 40 different beers on-site, then offers some on tap in Gene’s. The whole operation is the opposite of flashy, but it’s exactly what you want from a Buffalo dive bar. Visit in summer and you can even sip your suds in the seasonal beer garden, which features live music every Saturday night starting at 7 p.m.