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With time to sink your teeth into the savoriness of Spanish life, you can walk the cobblestone streets until your soles are worn, ride a funicular to a hilltop overlooking San Sebastián, enjoy tapas and Spanish wine with sunsets, and maybe learn to cook a dish or two of Catalan and Spanish specialities. And with cheap domestic flights, it’s a cinch to travel from Catalan Barcelona to British Gibraltar.

The peak called Monserrate towers over central Bogotá and lends its name to the church that tops it. Perched more than 10,000 feet above sea level, the sanctuary—dedicated to the Passion of Christ—has beautiful gardens showcasing marvelous highland vegetation, and the city views from here are spectacular (sunsets are especially recommended). Ascend Monserrate by cable car, via railway, or on foot (this last is only for the fittest and those already acclimated to the altitude). That beautiful white house on the mountainside is Casa Santa Clara restaurant, a better-than-expected, special-occasion-suitable venue at which to try traditional Bogotá favorites like ajiaco, a thick potato-and-chicken soup.

Valparaíso is to Chile what San Francisco is to the United States: a unique and charming port soaked with atmosphere, unlike anywhere else in the country. Its painted, corrugated-tin houses cling to the sides of the city’s 24 hills. Funicular railways in myriad styles make an ascent to the city’s different neighborhoods easy (but take the stairs down, there are thousands). Some areas, named for the hills on which they sit, are gentrifying, and there’s a new swath of boutique hotels and restaurants, especially on Cerro Concepción and Cerro Alegre. Be sure not to leave without visiting Nobel laureate poet Pablo Neruda’s fascinating house, La Sebastiana, in the Bellavista quarter.

Get whisked away to the Upper Town in just 64 seconds on Zagreb’s emblematic blue funicular. Connecting the Lower and Upper Town areas since 1890, the cable railway is said to be the world’s shortest for public transport. Once you reach the top, take in the sweeping views of the city, then amble along the leafy Strossmayer Promenade. The city’s first public walkway, Štros (as it’s called by locals) is lined with tall chestnut trees and benches, and hosts an outdoor event every summer called Summer on Štros.

There’s so much to see at Montserrat, the picturesque mountain located a few hours outside of Barcelona. Nature lovers will enjoy the wide range of hikes while, non-sporty types can bask in the breathtaking views available from almost any vantage point. Take the two funiculars, Santa Cova and Saint Joan, to visit the corresponding difficult to reach chapels. With travel, plan to spend a whole day at Montserrat. Between the mountain, basilica, museum, and monastery. Food is available from several shops and cafeterias, but many visitors plan ahead with a picnic. On Sundays local vendors sell cheese and honey outside the monastery. Purchase a ToT or Trans Montserrat card in Barcelona, they include transportation and funicular rides to different parts of the mountain. The ticket is good for a certain length of time, no need to specify a specific day, so wait for nice weather. Barcelona’s transit system is very easy to use, but trains to and from the mountain can be busy. Arrive early to guarantee a seat for the two hour journey.

You’ve strolled the 1.5km of Istanbul‘s famous Istiklal Street for a spot of shopping, but hunger sets in and the purse strings are tight. Where do you go for a bite to eat? Answer: Helvetia, a modest lokanta (restaurant) tucked away on a quiet side street in Tünel. With its relaxed, no-frills atmosphere, this place is a local favorite for lunch and dinner. The food is deliciously fresh, generously served, and an excellent value for money. Plates overflow with homemade mezes featuring Turkey’s home-grown produce—olive oils, yogurt, tomatoes, eggplant, potatoes, spinach, kofte, chicken, and more. Choose among the mostly vegetarian mezes by pointing to the dishes lined up on the counter near the open kitchen. To get there: Follow the tram line on Istiklal to the Tünel funicular (tram) exit. With your back to the funicular exit, see a book shop on the other side of the road. Just to the left of this shop is the Tünel Pasaj, a pedestrian arcade lined with cafes and shops. Walk through the arcade to the end. You will see Helvetia on the corner as you exit the arcade.

Travel from Europe to Asia for 2.15TL? Yes you can—with an Istanbulkart aboard a Bosporus ferry. If you’re planning to use public transportation in Istanbul, then it pays to buy an Istanbulkart. The swipe card provides discounted fares for Istanbul’s Metro (train), Marmaray, trams, funiculars, ferries and buses. Instead of paying 4TL (US$2.00) per person per trip for a jeton (token/ticket), pay only 2.15TL—sometimes less—with an Istanbulkart. That’s a significant saving if you’re staying for a few days, and it’s the cheapest ticket for travel from Europe to Asia! To buy the card, look for magazine and confectionary kiosks near tram and Metro stations displaying the words ‘Istanbulkart’ or ‘Akbil Dolum Noktası' (Refill Point). Ask the shopkeeper for an Istanbulkart, pay 10TL for the card, and add credit for your journeys. One card can be used for up to five people. To board a tram, Metro, Marmaray, funicular or ferry simply swipe the card for each person at a turnstile near the platform/port. A screen on the turnstile will display your ticket price and the credit remaining. Buses do not accept cash fares, so swipe the card at the machine at the front of the bus as you enter. When credit wanes, top-up at selected ticket machines near tram and train platforms or at the kiosks. Note: The price above is for an adult fare (people aged over 7 years) for most journeys. Special journeys, such as those to the Princes’ Islands, will charge more. Children under 7 are free.

Since 1901 (minus a few years here and there), Angel’s Flight funicular railway has transported people up and down steep Bunker Hill in downtown L.A. At the top you’ll find the Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Museum of Contemporary Art, and the bottom, good eats at Grand Central Market and historic City Hall.

There are two ways to arrive at this exclusive Deer Valley perch—ski in from the slopes, or hop on the Swiss-crafted funicular and climb the 250-vertical-foot ridge. The 12-acre, 181-room St. Regis is literally and figuratively in rarefied air, bringing swanky suites, signature butler service, and celebrity chef–driven dining to the high Wasatch Mountain range. Après-ski is a treat at the ski “beach,” which features loungers, an outdoor fire garden, and a menu by Jean-Georges Vongerichten. From there, guests can enjoy a slope-side dip in the steamy pool, or descend a spiral staircase into the 14,000-square-foot Remède Spa for a massage. Come dinnertime, book a window-side table at the J&G Grill.

Natural elements in the lobby and library—stone fireplace, exposed wood, leather furnishings—complement the mountain setting without devolving into log-cabin kitsch. The contemporary aesthetic continues in the spacious guestrooms and suites with dark-wood furniture, state-of-the-art electronics, toasty gas fireplaces, and massive marble bathrooms.

The poet Pablo Neruda redefined the city with his Ode to Valparaíso, calling it “the patched bow of a small courageous ship.” Today, visitors can tour his home, known as La Sebastiana. The building is now a museum with one of the city’s finest gift shops. —Steven Bodzin Ferrari 692, 56/(0) 32-225-6606. This appeared in the November/December 2011 issue.

For less than $2, you can take a quick funicular ride to the Pipila Monument to get this top-of-the-world view of Guanajuato, Mexico. We arrived just after sunset, when lights were flickering across the colorful city. There were people around, but the scene was quiet. Walking down the hill, we stumbled upon Casa Zuniga, a hotel run by an enthusiastic expat named Rick Zuniga. He toured us around the property’s glass-walled rooms as the city was growing darker yet more luminous.

The terrace at ETH Zurich—where Einstein was an alum—lords high above the city for catch-your-breath views beyond to the lake and the Alps. A number of trams will take you to the terrace, but the most fun way to get there is on the fire-engine red Polybahn, one of only two funiculars left in the city, and the most conveniently located. It runs every 2.5 minutes from the Central stop.

The winding streets of ancient Genoa all lead in one direction—straight up. Lace up your tennis shoes and keep climbing. Eventually you will reach a small park at the edge of the city, the entrance to one of the many fortresses that speckled its 17th-century walls. From here you’ll be treated to one of the best views of both old and new Genoa. Come at dusk for a stunning sunset over the urban edge of the Ligurian Sea. (And if you are too tired to walk back down, catch the funicular for less than two euros!)

One of the delights of Valparaíso is exploring the colorful hillsides that ramble down towards the sea. Take the century-old funicular elevators Ascensor Concepción (Turri) or El Peral near the main plaza, constructed between 1883 and 1911. Once high into the hills of Cerro Concepción & Alegre, explore the meandering alleyways and cobblestone streets on foot. There are boutiques, cafés, mom-and-pop shops, old school bakeries, bars, restaurants, art galleries, and church bells tolling. It often feels more like a small village than a city. Climb up and down the many staircases often lined with bright graffiti. In the distance, the bay gleams in sunlight and the busy port never tires. At dusk, the lights twinkle like fairylight. Grab a table at a spot like Café Turri for a view of the sunset and a cocktail.

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.