Steffen Michels

There’s much to admire about the corner of town you’ll find The Ritz-Carlton Istanbul in, from the pretty Maçka Democracy Park, one of the city’s few notable green lungs, to the bombastically decorated Dolmabahçe Palace. Perhaps in a nod to the latter’s Ottoman opulence, this upscale urban hideaway offers a wealth of dining options alongside famously regal service. Opened in 2001, The Ritz-Carlton Istanbul might at first strike guests with a slightly unusual location.

For a hotel brand to have three individual outposts in the same destination is a rarity, to say the least. But when Fairmont Pacific Rim opened in 2010, joining its Vancouver sister properties, the design-driven hotel did so with a new concept: one rooted firmly in bringing together locals and visitors who crave creativity, community, and tech-enhanced hospitality. As such, this is a place to stay that built its reputation on doing things differently. And it continues to lean into this spirit.

With the 2024 arrival of Morocco’s premier hospitality brand (and the only one famously owned by none other than its King), the sand-swept shores north of Tétouan – established as a ‘Moroccan Riviera’ par excellence just a decade prior – have entered a new era. Royal Mansour Tamuda Bay is the coastal expression of its iconic Marrakchi sister, though more excitingly still, it’s also a leap in the direction of advanced wellness hospitality in the Kingdom.