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SHANGRI-LA HOTEL, ABU DHABI
ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – The “1001 Arabian Nights’’ it’s not, and that’s OK. There’s no sleeping in tents at this sumptuous seaside redoubt - though if there was, I’ll bet we’d be in really nice tents.

HOTEL PLAZA ATHENEE
NEW YORK – For generations the Upper East Side has been synonymous with genteel living. The Plaza Athenee, a heritage hotel that brings Old World charm and style to its operations and is situated just off Madison Avenue a block from Central Park, fits right in.

As an occasional visitor to the first class cabin of commercial aircraft, the home-truth that there is as much difference between first and business class as there is between business and economy class became clear to me again on a recent trip.

GENEVA - Once in a while, the Old World elegance that we in the New World grew up hearing about comes to life. The Hotel des Bergues, located at the intersection of two picture-postcard pretty bridges on the shores of Lake Geneva and done up in the understated swank of neo-classical decor, is one place where this happens.

SINGAPORE - With a name like the Scarlet, you’d think a hotel would emphasize style and passion, and this hotel – which bills itself as Singapore’s first luxury boutique hotel – does just that. Everything is designed to the max, inside and out, but especially inside, where inflamed reds, deep, velvety blacks and bold dashes of other colors abound. Most everything you see screams “edge’’ and ‘’attitude.’’

For a special occasion, you want a special meal, yes? Sure. And part of what makes an occasion special is getting a great table when you're dining out. This is especially true for a couple, who may be celebrating an anniversary, a birthday, a fun holiday like Valentine's Day or just looking for a romantic night out. You might want a secluded table for privacy's sake. Or you may prefer to be in the heart of the action without feeling you've just been shoehorned in at a restaurant that's merely tolerating you.

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Coonskin Cuvee: Tasting Wine at Fess Parker’s
Tuesday, September 11th, 2007

SANTA BARBARA COUNTY - It’s not every winery that uses a likeness of a coonskin cap as its insignia, but then, not every winery is owned by Fess Parker, the TV and film star who played the coonskin-cap-wearing frontiersmen Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone back in the 1950s and ’60s. These days, Parker is a prosperous businessman who owns inns and hotels and restaurants, and makes wine in the rolling hills and valleys of Santa Barbara County northeast of the seaside city of Santa Barbara. The winery harvests grapes from several lovely vineyqards just inland from the Pacific Coast.

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BEVERLY HILLS, California – Long famed as the capital of shop-till-you-drop, this chic Southern California city also boasts one the USA’s prime heritage hotels: the aptly named Beverly Wilshire, a 1920s landmark located at the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Rodeo Drive. As I discovered on a recent two-night stay, the renewed property is an artful fusion of grand classic style and contemporary cool – all made possible by a $35 million makeover that is nearing completion.