Unique Destinations & Honest Hotel Reviews

Colorful waterfront houses in Varenna beside Lake Como, with flowers and a small sailboat in the foreground.

Two vintage Volkswagen Beetles drive past a pale lakeside villa surrounded by palms and clipped hedges.

3 Days in Lake Como: The Perfect Itinerary

My three-day Lake Como itinerary connects lakeside towns, historic villas, gardens, ferries, and mountain views, with room to slow down along the way.

Wide aerial view of Babylonstoren farm buildings and gardens surrounded by vineyards in the Cape Winelands.

South Africa

Babylonstoren: a working farm stay in the Cape Winelands

At Babylonstoren, the garden was not scenery around the hotel. It set the rhythm of my days, from fruit gathered by hand to breakfast and a sunset climb…

Olga stands on her balcony at The Oberoi Amarvilas, looking toward the Taj Mahal beyond the gardens.

India

The Oberoi Amarvilas, Agra: a night with the Taj Mahal

My stay at The Oberoi Amarvilas in Agra, where the Taj Mahal view, Indian cooking, in-room mehendi, and a pre-dawn buggy made the hotel part of the visit.

Olga sitting on pale sand beside five African penguins beneath a massive granite boulder at Boulders Beach.

South Africa

Boulders Beach beyond the penguins

A first-person visit to Boulders Beach, with African penguins, sheltered granite coves, and practical advice for seeing both responsibly.

Olga watching sunrise from a hot-air balloon above the Masai Mara on her birthday.

Kenya

Entim Camp: My Birthday Beside the Mara River

My 2021 stay at Entim Camp in Kenya’s Masai Mara, with riverfront tents, deeply personal service, memorable food, and a birthday balloon flight.

The central cedar rises above Monasterio's arcaded courtyard and geometric flower beds in Cusco.

Peru

Monasterio in Cusco, a Belmond hotel

A stay at Monasterio before a long-planned birthday at Machu Picchu, with practical notes on altitude, breakfast, the hotel’s restaurants, nearby art, and San Pedro Market.

Olga sitting inside a canvas tent at Scarabeo Camp in Agafay, with tea, strawberries, woven rugs, and the camp outside

Morocco

Scarabeo Camp in Agafay: three quiet nights after Marrakech

After four busy days in Marrakech, I spent three nights at Scarabeo’s original Stone Camp in Agafay. Here is what stayed with me and what has changed.

Olga looks over the stone dye vats at Chouara Tannery in Fez.

Morocco

The Fez I remember begins at dawn

I arrived in Fez with an old television version of the city in my head. Three nights in the medina replaced it with something louder, stranger, and much…