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An Italian lakeside villa, a remote fishing lodge accessible only by float plane and more...

By Mary Gostelow

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Grand Hotel a Villa Feltrinelli
Lake Garda, Italy

Hotelier Bob Burns invested $40-million in renovating this 25-room lakeside villa, built in 1829. Today it’s so popular you’re expected to take any room GM Markus Odermatt offers. But perfection awaits, from a posy presented on arrival to your Frette linens. Pamela Babey’s interiors are complemented by silver framed antique photos. There’s also an immaculate croquet lawn, perfect pool and memorable cuisine.

www.villafeltrinelli.com

Amansara
Siem Reap, Cambodia

All 24 villas at this inner-town oasis – an expansion of the late King Sihanouk’s guesthouse – come with your own motorized rickshaw, driver and guide. Your personalized agenda for touring Angkor Wat and other ancient temples is presented daily by GM Toby Anderson. After your tour, relax by the pools and in the gardens. New-block villas come with really private courtyards enclosing 16-square-metre pools and sunbeds.

www.amanresorts.com

Shiwa Ng’andu
Zambia

Charles Harvey and his wife, Jo, now run the estate of his late grandfather Sir Stewart Gore-Browne, who established a miniature utopian state here with its own schools, shops and aerodrome. (Today you fly in by air charter from Lusaka or Mfuwe.) Stay in the original (but fortunately modernized) early 20th-century Italianate home, and the Harveys will immerse you in history and introduce you to the local wildlife, including impala and wildebeest. Boat trips, horseback riding and trekking are also available.

www.shiwangandu.com

The Fairmont Algonquin
St. Andrews, New Brunswick

Shades of tea gowns, gin and tonics and summer picnics make this a favourite with regulars. Come to this 240-room seaside resort, run by GM Bill Smith, to truly relax. The Sir Leonard Tilley Suite has great views across Passamaquoddy Bay. The Algonquin is also memorable for its heated pools, local walks, hikes and in-village shopping – as well as for resort therapist Christy’s back massage with Pevonia Botanica spa products.

www.fairmont.com

Tikchik Narrows Lodge
Alaska

Fishing addicts adore this all-inclusive six-room lodge at the tip of the narrow peninsula that separates Nuyukuk and Tikchik lakes. A typical day starts off with a big breakfast, then it’s off for a day’s guided fishing, with sandwiches or the salmon you’ve caught for lunch; pre-ordered cocktails await your return. Enjoy the natural cedar sauna, scenic walks and brilliant views. The lodge, run by owner-managers Bud and Linda Hodson, is open from June to September and is accessible only by float plane.

www.tikchiklodge.com

Write to us: letters@enroutemag.net

Mary Gostelow is one of the world’s top authorities on luxury hotels and the editor-in-chief of Wow Travel, the online magazine of www.kiwicollection.com. E-mail her at mgostelow@enroutemag.net.

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