Casa Palopó, Guatemala(01 of06)
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\r\nSome of the best views are created by none other than Mother Nature. Tucked into the Guatemalan Highlands, Casa Palopó is a former private home-turned-seven-room boutique hotel (not including a two-bedroom villa perched above the rest) overlooking one dramatic landscape. Rooms showcase panoptic views of the 1,000-foot-deep Lake Atitlan, flanked by three 10,000-foot volcanic peaks (Toliman, Atitlán and San Pedro). Vibrant rooms feature eye-catching indigenous artwork, and terrace dining is exquisite, but it is the magnificent sunsets—with pink and orange light darting across the lake and framing the volcanoes—that are most memorable in this romantic retreat. Rooms start at $140; Carretera a San Antonio Palopó km 6.8; 502/7762-2270; casapalopo.com.\r\nPhoto: © Al Argueta
Monastero Santa Rosa Hotel and Spa, Italy(02 of06)
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\r\nFormerly a 17th-century monastery in which nuns baked legendary desserts, Monastero Santa Rosa has been transformed into a 20-room boutique hotel with sea views that have inspired poets and artists for centuries. The hotel is set on a promontory between Positano and Amalfi, with rooms that peer over the Tyrrhenian Sea (part of the Mediterranean) in the Gulf of Salerno. Terraced gardens—designed by the landscaper to the Vatican—and the vanishing-edge infinity pool sit between the rooms and the sea 1,000 feet below. Only yachts sailing by interrupt the serene scene. Rooms start at $525; Via Roma 2; 39-089/832-1199; monasterosantarosa.com.\r\nPhoto: © Monastero Santa Rosa Hotel & Spa
The New Hotel, Athens(03 of06)
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\r\nIn the heart of Athens, The New Hotel is an energetic 79-room boutique with an emphasis on design. Yet enter the seventh-floor penthouse and it is the expansive, uninterrupted view of the Acropolis—not the art installation–type decor—that first captures your attention. One of the great pleasures of this hotel is sitting down with a glass of wine on the penthouse’s massive terrace and witnessing the dramatic nightly theater of the lights surrounding the Acropolis flickering to life. When it’s time to retreat to the bedroom, the archaeological masterpiece is framed in the window of the master bedroom, so you never have to lose sight of it. Penthouse starts at $1,080; Filellinon 16; 30-21/0327-3000; yeshotels.gr.\r\nPhoto: © Andres Otero
The Wythe Hotel, New York(04 of06)
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\r\nFor the best views of the Manhattan skyline, you have to leave the borough behind. Located along the Williamsburg, Brooklyn, waterfront, the Wythe Hotel is a renovated cooperage that dates back to 1901. Since it opened in 2012, the hip, industrial-chic hotel has earned many awards for its local aesthetic and design. While the Brooklyn-made wallpaper is beautiful and the locally sourced minibar (Brooklyn Brewery beer and Mast Brothers chocolate) a delicious touch, it is the view of the city that never sleeps right across the river that makes for the most striking focal point of the Manhattan-facing rooms—especially at twilight, when the skyline wakes. From the rooftop bar, you must share the views; from the king or loft accommodations, the view is just for two. Rooms start at $300; 80 Wythe Ave.; 718-460-8000; wythehotel.com.\r\nPhoto: © Adrian Gaut
L’Auberge de Sedona(05 of06)
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\r\nArizona’s Red Rock Country is one of the pinnacles of natural American beauty. Located on the banks of Oak Creek, L’Auberge de Sedona is a luxurious retreat for admiring this fine example of Mother Nature’s handiwork. Vista Suites flaunt 180-degree views of geological landmarks Snoopy Rock, Giants Thumb and Elephant Rock from big redwood decks or floor-to-ceiling windows. Beneath the starry night sky of Sedona, guests can witness these jagged giants sleeping. Part of the pleasure of these rooms is watching the way light plays on the faces of the red rocks—an even more pleasurable experience when you take in the show from a bubble bath. Rooms start at $200; 301 Little Ln.; 928-282-1661; lauberge.com.\r\nPhoto: © L\'Auberge de Sedona
JW Marriott El Convento Cusco, Peru(06 of06)
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\r\nWith pre-Inca walls and an on-site archaeological exhibition, the JW Marriott El Convento Cusco—originally a 16th-century convent—impresses with its meticulously preserved history. Yet there is one side to this hotel that not all guests get to experience: the unforgettable views from the Imperial Suite. This 968-square-foot suite features an L-shaped terrace offering a 180-degree vantage point you can’t get from within Cusco itself. The view extends over the valley of Cusco, with its Spanish-style rooftops, and out to the surrounding stretch of the Andes mountains. Historical landmarks, such as the dome of the Convento de Santo Domingo, are seen, too. Imperial Suite starts at $1,800; Esquina de la Calle Ruinas 432 y San Agustin; 51-84/582-200; marriott.com.\r\nPhoto: © Luisana Suegart