Raffles Resort Canouan Island
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, West Indies

An authentic medieval church is the centrepiece of this idyllic village-like resort, nestled around several half-moon-shaped coves. (The church was imported, stone by stone, from England two centuries ago.) I love villa 634, with its own private golf buggy and plunge pool and views over the Jim Fazio golf course to the Caribbean. Try the spa, with treetop rooms connected by boardwalks, and do not miss a tour of the wine cellar in La Piazza restaurant. GM is Louis Sailer.

www.rafflescanouan.com

Opus Hotel
Vancouver, B.C.

Elixir is one of Canada’s most exciting in-hotel restaurants, thanks to charismatic maître d’ Mikel Kanter. Finish dinner with an elaborate ritual of Infuze tea, and check out the washrooms, where over-sink video screens show all the action in the bar above. I have many favourite hotel bedrooms here but would probably choose to be on the seventh floor for its balconies. (Room 704, with great views of the water, also has a metal four-poster bed and a double-sided working fireplace.) Hotel GM is Daniel Craig.

www.opushotel.com

The Landmark Mandarin Oriental
Hong Kong

Combine Bang & Olufsen, Bose, Bulgari, designer Adam Tihany, retailer Harvey Nichols and acres of glass walls, and you get a picture of this new-look Mandarin. Splurge and take the wood-panelled, gold-leaf and marble presidential suite, which has its own spa room. The main Oriental Spa, with 14 single rooms and one for couples, also offers amazing yoga, including the Ashtanga and Iyengar methods. Hotel GM is Susanne Hatje.

www.mandarinoriental.com

HÔtel Le Bristol
Paris, France

Situated on the Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, home to countless couture houses, the hotel holds its own fashion events on Saturday afternoons. Enjoy Bastien Gonzalez pedicures at the Anne Sémonin spa, and do not miss the unique rooftop indoor swimming pool, with sloping wood walls and trompe l’oeil frescoes that give the impression of a century-old yacht. Les Ambassadeurs restaurant (with chef Éric Fréchon) has two Michelin stars. Ask for a garden-facing room. GM is Pierre Ferchaud.

www.lebristolparis.com

The Setai
Miami Beach, Florida

Look past three parallel outdoor pools (all with different temperatures) to the raised beachside open-air café, and you’d think you were in Asia. Take a multiroom suite with friends; high up in the 40-floor Residences tower, with 270-degree ocean views, it feels like you’re on a non-rocking yacht. Oriental furnishings are everywhere, and the walls of the Restaurant, which serves everything from fine caviar to tandoori and pizza, are made of bricks from old Shanghai homes. GM is Manvinder Puri.

www.ghmhotels.com

Four Seasons Resort Hualalai at Historic Ka’upulehu

Big Island, Hawaii

As well as the Jack Nicklaus golf course – with Alan Wong food at the 18th hole – this 850-acre resort offers snorkelling among exotic fish, water sports, tennis, a climbing wall, an enormous gym and spa and hiking up the nearby Hualalai volcano. Dine outside under the stars on the Pahu i’a terrace, right by the water’s edge. I like room 2412, upstairs in a two-floor block, with a half-tester bed and a view of one of the four pools. GM is Kathleen Horrigan.

www.fourseasons.com

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Mary Gostelow is one of the world’s top authorities on luxury hotels and the editor-in-chief of the Wow Traveler newsletter for elite travellers. You can reach her by writing to mgostelow@enroutemag.net or visiting www.wowtraveler.net.

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