You might have visited hotels which offer stellar mini bars, complimentary Wi-Fi in lounges and rooms, and latest technological upgrades. But, do you find all these exciting or inspiring. I think they don’t. Then, what after all the hotel of your dreams should be that you will find inspiring. Art hotels might just be the answer where you can rejuvenate your senses and recharge your creative faculties. Let’s take a look at some of the awe-inspiring art hotels around the world.

The Embassy Row Hotel, Washington D.C. (USA)

The Embassy Row Hotel in Washington D.C. is exquisite and magical. Just wander around its premises and you will find art weaved all over. The street artists can be seen creating murals inside and outside the hotel. The restaurant’s candles are handmade by the restaurant manager. Guests visiting the hotel can look forward to enjoying a weekly Art Fusion event pairing a DJ and live music with painting. They can also entertain themselves with a weekly silent disco on the rooftop as well.

Hilton Anatole Hotel, Dallas (USA)

The Hilton Anatole is home to one of the largest art and antiques collections found in any hotel in the United States today. Art can be seen everywhere – throughout the entire hotel as well as its onsite sculpture park, where you will discover more than 1,000 pieces ranging from those of the Berlin Wall to 19th century Asian sculptures. Apart from all these, the hotel also offers art pairing dinners, art scavenger hunts and art-infused fitness walks.

Hotel Matilda, Mexico

Get ready to be welcomed by the dazzling Nacho Rodriguez Bach piece as you set your foot inside the hotel premises. The hotel’s design also has mesmerizing Spencer Tunick’s tasteful nudes, Daniela Edburg’s metaphorical photography and Spencer Tunick’s tasteful nudes. The hotel also regularly organizes art-centric film showings, artist receptions and art exhibits. You can also look forward to attending the hotel’s annual spring SMART arts festival fusing art, dancing, tequila and more.

Gladstone Hotel, Toronto (Canada)

The Gladstone Hotel is housed in a Victorian building belonging to 19th century. The hotel offers 37 rooms to its guest, with each room being individually designed by renowned Canadian artists. The Snapshot Room here can be seen portraying embedded images of Toronto’’s High Park in fall into the furniture and walls. The Felt Room here offers more of a textural experience. The art gallery in the hotel holds rotating exhibitions such as “”In The Playroom” and “That’s So Gay: On the Edge”. Among other part of creative programming here include regular events such as karaoke, crafting workshops, dance classes and artist receptions.

Swatch Art Peace Hotel, Shanghai (China)

Swatch Art Peace Hotel in Shanghai is the place where you will discover art and artists everywhere. This unique hotel offers free accommodation to artists who create their art works, with some of them being displayed in the hotel’s exhibition spaces and art galleries. The suites and rooms in this hotel are also individually-designed portraying astounding creativity. The walls can be seen lined with canvas, and so are the hanging birdcage beds.

La Posada de Santa Fe Resort & Spa, New Mexico (USA)

The La Posada de Santa Fe Resort & Spa is a part of the renowned Starwood brand. The hotel provides a stunning look with a gallery prominently featuring a collection of American painting and sculpture being showcased in every nook and corner of the hotel. These art collection and sculpture are available for purchase at studio prices. The buyers are also provided incentive by being offered a half-price stay on a return visit. Among other activities here include guided property art tours by curator Sara Eyestone, painting classes and opportunity to watch her live painting every Thursday in the hotel lobby from 5 to 6 pm.

Wine, often described, as the ‘nectar of the gods’ is a much-loved beverage. France is widely acknowledged to be the home of wine. The country is the world’s largest producer of wine, followed by Italy and Spain. The wines that hail from these established European countries bear the classification of ‘Old World Wines’.   

However, nowadays, aside from Europe, wine is produced in various other countries around the world. Countries like the USA, Argentina, South Africa, Australia and even China produce significant amount of wine and the wines made by these countries are fittingly called ‘New World Wines.’

Regardless of where wine is produced, it is fêted around the world. These wine-themed events attract hordes of wine enthusiasts, some of whom travel great distances to be present at these fetes.  Listed below are some popular wine festivals, which if you love wine should pencil in for your travel bucket list.

Vienna Wine Hiking Day, Austria

Wine has been a part of Austria's heritage for centuries. Wine growers based around the Austrian capital city of Vienna have been producing and selling wine since the Middle Ages. Currently, more 630 producers practice their craft in the lush vineyards that dot 1680 verdant acres around the city.  White grapes like the native Grüner Veltliner along with Reisling and Chardonnay make up much of the harvest. Visitors can access these vineyards by tram or then on foot, but they often need to make an appointment before they can get access to the vineyard. However, every year for one day in autumn the Vienna Wine Hiking Trail is open to the public. During this annual celebration, visitors can visit the many vineyards around Vienna to sample the wines and soak in some gorgeous views of the lush countryside.

Sula Fest, Nashik, India

India has in recent years joined the wine-growing club. The city of Nashik, in the western Indian state of Maharashtra, is the wine capital of India. One of the best-known Indian vineyards belonging to Sula Wines is located here. Every February, the vineyard throws open its gates and hosts a well-attended festival over a weekend called Sula Fest. Sula Fest features music, fashion, gourmet eats and the entire repertoire of Sula wines.  Festivalgoers usually stay over for both days of the festival as they camp on the grounds of the winery or stay at hotels located close to the vineyard.


Bordeaux Fete de Vin, Bordeaux, France

Wine is grown in almost every region in France. Bordeaux, a port city on the River Garonne in South Western France, is perhaps the most famous wine destination in France.  Located within Bordeaux are some of the most renowned growers of wine like Chateau Lafite-Rothschild, Chateau Latour, Chateau Margaux and many others. The town of Bordeaux hosts a mega wine tourism event every two years. Scheduled for the summer season, the Bordeaux Fete de Vin is a celebration of wine, food, and culture.  

Extending over twelve acres in Bordeaux on the banks of the Garonne, the festival features eighty pavilions offering samplings of wines from Bordeaux and the Aquitaine regions along with culinary treats and cultural events.  Approximately 300,000 wine lovers make it a point to attend the festival, which spans four days.

La Percée du Vin Jaune, France

The region of Jura situated between Burgundy and Switzerland, in the western foothills of the low Jura mountain range in Eastern France is the smallest wine-growing region of France. This little enclave stretches from the town of Arbois to Lons Le Saunier, and it produces a few distinctive wines under five appellations. The wines of Jura have a cult following and each year the region celebrates a grand wine festival called La Percée du Vin Jaune which takes place over the first weekend in February. The event marks the release of the latest vintage of vin jaune; a wine, which is processed like a sherry. The festival annually attracts 50,000 wine enthusiasts and features wine tastings, auctions of notable wines, processions, and ceremonies. The festival is held in a different town or village of the region every year.
    
Dürkheimer Wurstmarkt, Germany

The spa town of Bad Dürkheim located in the district of the same name sits on the eastern edge of the Rhineland-Palatinate region. The German Wine Road, a picturesque road traverses through the district as it borders some of the best vineyards in the Palatinate region. The Mittelhaardt area of the region is renowned for its excellent Riesling hence it’s hardly surprising that the town of Bad Dürkheim each year hosts one of the largest wine festivals in the world, the Dürkheimer Wurstmarkt.

The festival spans nine days and showcases the award-winning wines and sparkling wines at its wine village and festival tents. Other events include a beauty pageant to choose the Bad Dürkheim Wine Princess, live music, rides and theme nights. The festival is held in September each year and attracts more than 600,000 wine lovers from around the world.

Haro in La Rioja, Spain

Wine festivals are rather civilized affairs the world over. However, the wine festival in the town of Haro situated in the Spanish wine region of La Rioja in the northern half of the country is a rough and tumble, raucous affair. Slated for the last weekend in the month of June each year, the festival takes the form of a rowdy wine-fight. The event, which is known as La Batalla de Vino de Haro starts off with a grand street party on the evening of 28th June. The next morning the revelers head to the top of a mountain located 5kms away. Once at the summit of the peak, the party resumes as the merrymakers douse each other with wine procured from water trucks filled with wine. Buckets of wine, wine-filled water pistols, and wine barrels all feature prominently in this mother of all battles.

The privileges and top notch services in first class and business class is well known.  In today’s day of travel, coach class amenities and services seem to be slim to none.  But are they?

However, this is an era of intense airline competition. Coach class airlines are listening to their customers and are gearing up the competition with conveniences and services to keep you flying happy. Many international airlines have ramped up their services and proving the best possible comforts in the coach class as well. Let’s take a look at some of the best coach class airlines in the world renowned for offering top-quality services to their customers.

JetBlue Airways

JetBlue Airways is presently considered to be the best overall coach class airline in North America. The customers are offered extra legroom than any other airline. The fee it charges for a checked bag is also less than what is usually charged by most other airlines. The airline is also renowned for offering complimentary satellite-based Wi-Fi service. The speed is however slow, but enough bandwidth is available for streaming movies at a small fee per hour. The seats in the airline’s Airbus fleet are also comfortable and an inch wider than on its rivals’ Boeing 737 aircrafts.

Allegiant Air

Allegiant Air is presently the best coach class airline offering ultra-low-fare in North America. The airline is renowned for offering the only low-fare mainline service to several communities where travellers essentially had to otherwise depend on regional flights to nearby hubs.  Even, communities as small as those in Stockton, South Bend, Provo, Owensboro, Missoula and Hagerstown are heavily dependent on their travel by Allegiant Air.

Norwegian

If you are planning to travel to trans-Atlantic destinations, then there is no better airline than Norwegian today. The airline is considered to be the best low-fare coach class airline offering trans-Atlantic flights. The U.S. destinations being currently served by Norwegian from Scandinavia includes Los Angeles, New York, Baltimore and Boston. The airline’s Boeing 787 offerings are on par with its big rivals.
 
Japan Airlines

Japan Airlines is considered to be the best coach class airline for offering intercontinental flights. The airline has unveiled its newly-designed Sky Wider economy class seats providing enough legroom one would ever find on any other international airline presently. Japan’s national carrier is known to offer eight-across seats in its Boeing 787 aircrafts and nine-across seats in its Boeing 777 economy class. The airline is thus offering one seat less in each row than is the current standard with other airlines. Among other amenities provided by the airline include top-quality onboard catering service, private 10-inch screens, and satellite-based Wi-Fi on its new Boeing 777s and 787s fleet.

Southwest Airlines

If you are a senior citizen residing in North America then the best coach class airline to fly with is undoubtedly Southwest Airlines. It is presently the only airline in the United States offering senior fares for travellers aged 65 and above. These fares though have to be booked much in advance. The unrestricted senior fares offered by Southwest Airlines are usually much low than any-age fares.