Montreal

A few of our favorite places in Canada and the compelling reasons to go there.

As crime and austerity swept through the Big Apple in the early 1970s, New York City’s Mayor John Lindsay took to a podium to declare a “War on Graffiti.” During this time, the city’s subway system was creaking at the seams, barely functioning and covered in graffiti tags from the city’s burgeoning street art scene. Over the coming years, New York City Hall spent an estimated $300 million in an attempt to keep subway trains and stations free of graffiti, forcing artists to work under the cover of darkness while creating ever more elaborate works.

As 2016 draws to a close, there’s no better time of year for indulging in a little nostalgia. December is known for many things, but its the annual “best of” lists that make the month so enjoyable. It was a year in which some lesser known gems finally received widespread acclaim, while a smattering of old favorites came roaring back into vogue. Herein, 11 of 2016’s hottest vacation destinations, and some of the hotels that helped make them special.

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, it’s the perfect time for couples to stoke the fires away from the hustle and bustle of daily life. As big believers in the power of love (and not just the Frankie Goes to Hollywood jam), we’ve traversed the globe to find nine swoon-worthy sanctuaries located in seriously sexy locales.

Within the four walls of a cinema, films transport moviegoers to far off places, both past and present, real or imagined. To take it a step further, use this year’s Academy Awards’ nominees for Best Picture as a travel guide, experiencing the locations—characters in their own right—firsthand. But skip the stress of being say, the real frontiersman Hugh Glass depicted in The Revenant, and live cushier, like Leonardo DiCaprio on holiday (Victoria’s Secret models not included).

Some say, in the city it doesn’t matter where you stay, you’ll be out all day anyway. But that’s simply not true, especially with these 10 hotels herein that offer serene rooms, unique experiences, unrivaled locations or all of the above to make that next city break that much better.