At the Iglesia y
Santuario de San Pedro
Claver, in Cartagena’s
Centro Historico.10 TRAVEL+LEISURE | OCTOBER 2019
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@jacquigiff
[email protected]FROM MY TRAVELS
I’m a sucker for grand, old-world
hotels like Zurich’s Baur au Lac
(bauraulac.ch; doubles from $750),
which opened in 1844 and is still
family-owned. I recently spent one
night there, and reveled in the details:
the grand staircase, the magnificent
private park facing the lake, the retro-
without-trying-to-be-retro newsstand
right in the heart of the lobby.
To celebrate its 175th anniversary,
the hotel is bringing back its original
19th-century coach, so that guests
can take a horse-drawn carriage
ride through Zurich.
On the other side of the world,
I checked in to the Sofitel Legend
Santa Clara (sofitel.accorhotels.com;
doubles from $360), set in Cartagena’s
walled old city, in a former convent
that dates from 1621. Many friends
wrote to me after seeing my pictures on
Instagram to say how much they love
this hotel, and I could see why: the pool
is a scene, the mojitos are potent, and
the promise of even more drinks and
nightlife is right outside the front door.
a bucolic region in the southwestern
corner of Germany with outstanding
Pinot Noir. (Pinot, in Germany—who
knew?) Closer to home, Kate Donnelly
heads to the Broadmoor, the fabled
Colorado resort, to try her hand at
falconry, a sport that is having a
renaissance, thanks in no small part
to a new wave of female participants.
And farther afield, Sophy Roberts
travels to São Tomé and Príncipe,
a West African island nation that is
slowly awakening to tourism even as
it grapples with the past, especially
the legacy of slavery, and the future—
namely, how can we protect one of the
most biodiverse places on the planet?
Our special section, titled the
Romance of Travel, focuses on going
away somewhere with someone you
love. I’ve taken many trips with my
husband, too many to count, and while
we may not always agree on what
entrée to order or which is the fastest
lane for getting through security (I do
always pick the wrong one), there’s
no doubt in my mind that we both feel
happier, and certainly less sleep-
deprived, when we’re on the road
together. Room service probably has
a lot to do with it.HEN YOU GROW UP in the
Northeast, fall is a part of
your DNA. I swear there’s
a change and a charge in the air come
the Tuesday after Labor Day: the lazy
days of summer are behind you, the
temperature begins to dip, and
everyone seems to wake up. They’ve
broken away from the beach houses
and kids’ summer camps and weekend
routines, and are ready for the new—
people, places, and things. That thrill
of possibility, I feel, makes fall one
of the best times of the year to travel.
In this issue, several destinations
tick all the boxes for a perfect fall
getaway. Claire Dederer checks out
Vancouver, a city long famous for its
immaculate parks and waterfront—
and now a cutting-edge arts and dining
destination. Ray Isle eats and sips
his way through Baden-Württemberg,W
LETTER rom e i or