Stays

Where to sleep when you’d rather put the money into the view than the logo. A running list of the stays we vouch for — most we’ve slept in, a few we’ve only visited (and we say so on the page) — each one earning its place by punching well above its price.

Some links on this page are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. We only feature places we’d actually stay.

Cape Town & the Winelands

• POD Camps Bay, Cape Town — a five-star design hotel steps from the beach, with the warmest service in the city.
• Blackheath Lodge, Sea Point — an 1880s Victorian guesthouse with boutique character at a guesthouse price.
• Leeu House, Franschhoek — walk-everywhere Winelands luxury right on the village’s main street.

New England

• The Garrison Inn, Newburyport — a boutique inn in an 1809 brick mansion, with a pink tea room and a made-to-order breakfast.
• The Williams Inn, Williamstown — a beautiful modern inn in the heart of a Berkshires college town.
• Omni Mount Washington, Bretton Woods — the grand four-season resort beneath Mount Washington.
• The Mayflower Inn & Spa, Washington — a 58-acre Auberge hideaway, and the muse for Gilmore Girls’ inns.

Further afield

• Naman Retreat, Da Nang — a wellness resort that feels like an Aman for a fraction of the price.
• The Peninsula Bangkok — one of the world’s great hotels, at a fraction of its sister properties’ rates.
• Villa Favorita, San Sebastián — a 19th-century villa directly on La Concha bay, two Michelin stars downstairs.