Writer
1890
Torquay, Devon, England
English
Pera Palace carries the romance and intrigue of the Orient Express into modern Istanbul, with marble halls, a historic lift and rooms steeped in espionage lore. Mata Hari stayed here among diplomats, writers and royalty moving between Europe and the Ottoman capital.
$474
Old Cataract rises in rose granite above the Nile, its Moorish halls and sunset terraces preserving Aswan's golden age of travel. Tsar Nicholas II joined the royalty and statesmen who stayed at the landmark, while Lord Cromer made it a winter base during his years in Egypt.
Agatha Christie stayed at the Winter Palace in Luxor, placing the Victorian landmark within the travel world that fed her fascination with Egypt. The hotel's terraces, gardens and Nile setting still evoke the measured pace of that era. A stay here feels less like modern resort life than entering a chapter of literary travel, with the temples of Luxor just beyond the gates.