Choose the city. Then choose the block.
Every guide compares three genuinely different bases, the nightly range you should expect and the honest reason to avoid each one.
- 38
- cities mapped
- 131
- neighbourhoods
- 523
- curated stays
- 25
- Country hubs
Regional hubs hold the country guides and every city we have mapped inside them.
Europe
One continent, many different ideas of a good holiday.
Asia
Neon, temples and very different rules of the road — sometimes in one trip.
North America
A continent where the city grid decides your day more than the guidebook does.
South America
Big, generous cities where the right few blocks change the whole trip.
Oceania
Space is the luxury. The right base saves you an hour of commuting a day.
Africa
Cities with enormous character — and a base choice that shapes safety and time.
38 city guides
No pay-to-play picksTokyo
The right base turns an enormous city into a walkable one.
Paris
Choose the Paris you came for — then let the city do the rest.
London
London is huge. Your postcode decides how much of it you actually feel.
New York
In New York, the neighbourhood is the personality. Choose yours.
Rome
In Rome, the right quarter saves you a bus ride and a bad dinner.
Barcelona
Beach, Gothic lanes or modernist grid — pick one to wake up in.
Madrid
A city that starts late, eats later and rewards the right neighbourhood.
Amsterdam
A small city with big crowds. The right neighbourhood buys you calm.
Berlin
A city of villages. The district you choose becomes your Berlin.
Vienna
A grand, orderly city where the right district decides your whole day.
Lisbon
Seven hills, one river and a tram that is always fuller than you expect.
Prague
A fairy-tale centre and a real city behind it. Choose which one to sleep in.
Milan
A working Italian city: fashion on the surface, aperitivo and trams underneath.
Venice
No cars, no shortcuts, and a neighbourhood that makes or breaks the trip.
Florence
A small city with enormous art, best enjoyed before the day-trippers arrive.
Munich
Beer gardens, museums and a compact, orderly city that still knows how to relax.
Athens
Ancient stone, rooftop bars and a city that rewards early mornings.
Istanbul
Two continents, one ferry ride, and a base that decides how much you see.
Dubai
A beach resort, a business city and an old creek town — often on the same day.
Singapore
A city you can cross by train in half an hour — so choose your evenings, not just your commute.
Hong Kong
Harbour views or street life — the two sides of the harbour give you different trips.
Seoul
Palaces in the morning, markets at noon, neon after dark — the base decides which Seoul you get.
Bangkok
A city that rewards staying near a train line — and punishes trying to be everywhere.
Kyoto
A city best seen early — so sleep within walking distance of the first temple.
Osaka
Eat first, plan second — Osaka is the easiest city in Japan to enjoy.
Beijing
Imperial scale, hutong intimacy and a modern city that never stops expanding.
Shanghai
A river divides old and new Shanghai; where you sleep decides which version you wake up to.
Kuala Lumpur
A tropical capital where towers, hawker stalls and rainforest sit a few train stops apart.
Los Angeles
A city of separate worlds — pick one base and stop commuting across the map.
San Francisco
Forty-nine square miles of hills, fog and very different neighbourhoods.
Chicago
A lakefront city of big architecture and honest food, with real winters.
Toronto
A lake city of neighbourhoods, built on a very practical grid.
Mexico City
A high-altitude capital of markets, museums and very distinct neighbourhoods.
Rio de Janeiro
Mountains, ocean and neighbourhoods that each have their own rules.
Buenos Aires
A late-night city of cafés, parrillas and neighbourhoods built for walking.
Sydney
A harbour city where the best days happen on the water.
Cape Town
A mountain, an ocean and a city that rewards choosing the right side of both.
Marrakech
A medina, a modern city and the Atlas beyond, all within half an hour.
Country hubs
Arrival notes and the guides we have mapped so far.
Japan
Neon and temple bells, usually in the same trip.
Tokyo · Kyoto · Osaka
3 guides
France
A country of villages, but Paris is best treated like a set of villages too.
Paris
1 guide
United Kingdom
A small country with very different cities. London is its own planet.
London
1 guide
United States
Big cities, big distances. The right block matters more than the right hotel.
New York · Los Angeles · San Francisco · Chicago
4 guides
Italy
Ancient streets, regional kitchens and a country that rewards slowing down.
Rome · Milan · Venice · Florence
4 guides
Spain
Late dinners, strong neighbourhoods and a day that runs on its own clock.
Barcelona · Madrid
2 guides
Netherlands
A small, flat country where the bicycle is the local language.
Amsterdam
1 guide
Germany
Big, affordable cities with hard-edged creativity and a serious café culture.
Berlin · Munich
2 guides
Portugal
Tiles, hills and a coastline that is never far away.
Lisbon
1 guide
Czechia
A compact old city, serious beer and a growing food scene.
Prague
1 guide
Türkiye
Two continents, ferries and a food culture that spans the day.
Istanbul
1 guide
United Arab Emirates
Desert and skyline, with a very high level of service.
Dubai
1 guide
South Korea
A dense, fast, deeply social country with mountains at the edge of the city.
Seoul
1 guide
Thailand
Street food, temples and a capital that never fully sleeps.
Bangkok
1 guide
Canada
Big, orderly cities where the neighbourhood matters more than downtown.
Toronto
1 guide
Mexico
Markets, colour and a food culture with deep regional roots.
Mexico City
1 guide
Brazil
Beaches, music and a country that is its own continent.
Rio de Janeiro
1 guide
Argentina
Late nights, beef and a café culture that stays up with you.
Buenos Aires
1 guide
Australia
A continent-sized country best seen city by city, coast by coast.
Sydney
1 guide
South Africa
Mountains, oceans and cities with a complicated, generous heart.
Cape Town
1 guide
Morocco
Medinas, mountains and food scented with cumin and orange blossom.
Marrakech
1 guide
Austria
Imperial squares, coffee houses and mountains within a day of the capital.
Vienna
1 guide
Greece
Ancient stone, long lunches and a ferry map that rewards patience.
Athens
1 guide
China
Fast trains, enormous cities and a food map that changes every province.
Beijing · Shanghai
2 guides
Malaysia
One city of towers and hawker centres, plus islands and rainforest beyond it.
Kuala Lumpur
1 guide
Next on the desk
Where we’re researching next. Want one sooner? Tell us — requests genuinely set the order.
Request a cityResearch queue
50 in research
- 01
Kanazawa
Japan
- 02
Hiroshima
Japan
- 03
Lyon
France
- 04
Bordeaux
France
- 05
Edinburgh
United Kingdom
- 06
Bath
United Kingdom
- 07
Miami
United States
- 08
Boston
United States
View all 50 citiesShow fewer
- 09
Turin
Italy
- 10
Naples
Italy
- 11
Seville
Spain
- 12
Valencia
Spain
- 13
Rotterdam
Netherlands
- 14
Utrecht
Netherlands
- 15
Hamburg
Germany
- 16
Cologne
Germany
- 17
Porto
Portugal
- 18
Madeira
Portugal
- 19
Brno
Czechia
- 20
Český Krumlov
Czechia
- 21
Antalya
Türkiye
- 22
Cappadocia
Türkiye
- 23
Abu Dhabi
United Arab Emirates
- 24
Sharjah
United Arab Emirates
- 25
Busan
South Korea
- 26
Jeju
South Korea
- 27
Chiang Mai
Thailand
- 28
Phuket
Thailand
- 29
Vancouver
Canada
- 30
Montreal
Canada
- 31
Oaxaca
Mexico
- 32
Guadalajara
Mexico
- 33
São Paulo
Brazil
- 34
Salvador
Brazil
- 35
Mendoza
Argentina
- 36
Córdoba
Argentina
- 37
Melbourne
Australia
- 38
Brisbane
Australia
- 39
Johannesburg
South Africa
- 40
Stellenbosch
South Africa
- 41
Fes
Morocco
- 42
Essaouira
Morocco
- 43
Salzburg
Austria
- 44
Innsbruck
Austria
- 45
Thessaloniki
Greece
- 46
Heraklion
Greece
- 47
Chengdu
China
- 48
Xi'an
China
- 49
George Town
Malaysia
- 50
Kota Kinabalu
Malaysia
Still torn between two areas?
Send the dates, the budget and who’s travelling. I’ll tell you which base I’d choose — and why.
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Ask me directly“I’d rather tell you which area to skip than sell you another list of ‘best hotels’.”
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