Bondostol

What if you could actually visit the Garden of Eden? And what if it was surrounded by vineyards, historic Cape Dutch farm buildings, and a formal French-style potager garden, where you could pick your own strawberries and fragrant herbs? At Babylonstoren, in the Drakenstein Valley, 33 miles northeast of Cape Town, the mythical garden comes to life. Founded in 1690, the 590-acre compound is modeled on the farms that supplied the ships making their way around the Cape of Good Hope en route to India. The cottages and suites are minimalist but stylish. You won’t find a grand lobby or an obsequious concierge here, but the staff, most of whom are wearing T-shirts, aprons, or khakis, combine a genuine eagerness to help with a high level of knowledge about the farm and its long history. Stay long enough and eventually—after a visit to the on-site bakery, the winery, the cheesemaker, the butcher, and the farm-tank-style swimming pool—you may forget that you’re staying at a hotel.

Fifteen years ago, the tragic passing of Bernard Loiseau, one of France’s most iconic chefs, could have meant the end of his legacy. Instead, it led to a new chapter in his budding hospitality empire with his wife, Dominique, at the helm. Over time, she turned the Relais Bernard Loiseau, a five-star Relais & Châteaux hotel and double-Michelin-starred table in the sleepy town of Saulieu into a luxury retreat. But culinary stars are a dwindling draw these days and Madame Loiseau knew she needed something more than exquisite food to entice travelers to stopover for more than a night. Transforming the property’s formerly modest spa into a four-story fantasyland of wellness and organic dining was risky for such a small town but paid off. Villa Loiseau des Sens, the 16,000-square-foot balneotherapy spa is set within a modern, Morvan oak–paneled lodge with all the right amenities: indoor pools, massage alcoves, water bikes, ten treatment rooms, an area dedicated to skin exfoliation, and a laid-back neo-bistro. But it’s the 700-square-foot private spa suite outfitted with a steam room and sauna with panoramic views of the Auxois mountains that make it worth a full weekend escape.

The pretty Georgian manor house, all honeyed Bath stone, sits at the end of an avenue of sky-high beech and lime trees, surrounded by gardens like a Jane Austen film set. On the grounds there’s a personable cottage for weekending families, a world-class equestrian center, and a serious cooking school. But you don’t have to whip up your own supper. Chef Hywel Jones plates up exquisite food in his eponymous restaurant. That in itself is a reason to stay. So are the roaring fires, the paneled libraries, the canopied four-poster beds, and the moody oil paintings. A purposeful drive in recent years to make the place feel less formal has resulted in a cheery bounce in the staff's step, a raising of chatter levels to almost a hum in the evenings, and a relaxed atmosphere where you can wear your robe down to the ESPA spa and back again without feeling like a terrible slob. Eagle-eyed guests will spot the curious Greek elements dotted around—the urns in the bathroom, the Acropolis paintings in the dining room, the Hellenic motif on the plates. This country retreat feels resonant and rooted, delightfully British to the core.

Slopeside bragging rights weren’t enough for Wes Edens, the billionaire hedge-fund titan and visionary behind Caldera House. His eight-suite dream hotel at Jackson Hole had to be tramside, with north-facing rooms actually looking out upon Big Red, the 100-passenger aerial shuttle going up and down the peaks. Edens and his three ski-addicted business partners spent six years and nearly $100 million building their ultimate adventure base, culminating in a collection of penthouse-like suites that feel like private chalets masquerading as a hotel. L.A.-based studio Commune and local architects Carney Logan Burke collaborated on the American Craftsman-meets-alpine-hideaway interiors, and perks include an on-site gear shop and the largest ski lockers in the country. Wanting to embrace the community, Edens opened an outpost of universally loved Italian restaurant Old Yellowstone Garage on the second floor and curated a team of regional legends, including Olympic skiers, to help create guest experiences.

Opened in 1910 as the Bellevue Hotel, the downtown Beaux-Arts building has a long history of welcoming visitors to San Francisco. But when it re-opened in 2018 with a fresh redesign by Perkins + Will, a new era began. The rooms are decorated with expressive pops of color, statement walls, and a collection of furniture that seems to know no decade. Active travelers will be glad to hear that each room comes with its own yoga mat, and free bike rentals help you cruise around and explore the city with ease.

Surrounded by the most splendid gardens on the Amalfi Coast, this historic Ravello property can trace its origins back to the 11th century. The villa was largely rebuilt in the early 1900s by Lord Grimthorpe (an English co-designer of Big Ben), and it soon attracted the likes of Virginia Woolf, Greta Garbo, and E.M. Forster. The sumptuously decorated suites include vaulted ceilings, Majolica tile floors, and cheerful frescoes. Michelin-starred restaurant Il Flauto di Pan serves elegant twists on homestyle local dishes, such as white rabbit ragù and marinated Cetara anchovies. But the villa’s simplest delight is also its most spectacular: Gore Vidal once said that the view from the garden’s belvedere was the most beautiful place in the world.

This 32-room hotel may appear traditional thanks to its colonial facade, but guests know that the sleek Hotel Matilda is anything but: there’s a crazy video installation installed behind the front desk, and the hallways are lined with contemporary artwork. Once you get to your room, you’ll discover crisp white beds dressed with Egyptian cotton linens and adorned slate gray accents, and marble-clad bathrooms stocked with Malin + Goetz products. The infinity pool and the rooftop bar, though, are the true standouts.

A fitting emblem of the new Perth, The Treasury is part of the ambitious Cathedral Square development, a $580 million reinvention of a cluster of 19th-century state treasury and Anglican Diocese buildings on the edge of the Central Business District, which sat empty for more than 20 years before the COMO outpost moved in. Almost every detail in the hotel (which primarily occupies the top floors of three 140-year-old buildings) has been returned to its original state, from the reinstalled dormer windows to the roofline’s copper trim. Check out Wildflower, the hotel's glassed-in rooftop restaurant, for a taste of this pioneer city's thriving food scene, courtesy of executive chef Jed Gerrard, and David Thompson’s Thai street-food joint, Long Chim, adjacent to the hotel.