{"id":10899,"date":"2016-12-28T05:00:03","date_gmt":"2016-12-28T10:00:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mrnystyleandtravel.com\/?p=10899"},"modified":"2016-12-21T15:06:20","modified_gmt":"2016-12-21T20:06:20","slug":"some-of-the-best-of-the-best-for-2016","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mrnystyleandtravel.com\/?p=10899","title":{"rendered":"Some of the Best of the Best for 2016"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Walking<\/a>

Walking across the frozen Lake St. Moritz \u00a9MRNY<\/p><\/div>\n

During a year that commenced with an early morning Alpine snowshoe expedition to the peak of Muottas Muragl<\/a> in Engadin St. Moritz<\/a>, Switzerland<\/a> and ended with a (pre-election) Jazz Era, Gatsby-themed \u00a0weekend at Glenmere<\/a> in the Lower Hudson Valley, we wandered the planet from the West Coast of Sweden<\/a> to San Francisco and Martha\u2019s Vineyard, with stops in Copenhagen<\/a> and Amsterdam<\/a>, Montreux<\/a> and Punta Cana, as well as Stockholm<\/a>, Gothenburg<\/a>, Condado in Puerto Rico, and Santa Rosa in Sonoma<\/a>, all of which provided numerous opportunities for celebrating the many joys of travel.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a round-up of some of our favorite travel memories from 2016, which was prompted by our editor at OutTraveler<\/a>, where this feature was originally published.<\/p>\n

\"img_2817-copy\"<\/a>

The isle of Skeppsholmen beneath a summer rainbow \u00a9MRNY<\/p><\/div>\n

Best City You Visited:<\/strong> Stockholm<\/em><\/a>, Sweden<\/em><\/p>\n

Why you chose it: <\/strong>Because it feels like my home away from home. No matter how many times I return to Stockholm, I am awed by the archipelago\u2019s natural beauty and the social progressivism of the city, which has championed LGBT equality, not only in Sweden but around the world\u2014and all of this complemented by a citizenry with innate style and savoir vivre.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"img_4730-1\"<\/a>

Attention to service and detail is a hallmark of Kulm Hotel \u00a9MRNY<\/p><\/div>\n

Best Hotel: <\/strong>Kulm Hotel<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Location:<\/strong> St. Moritz<\/em><\/a>, Switzerland<\/em><\/p>\n

Why you chose it: <\/strong>Because the history of this glamorous alpine resort is inextricably bound to the five-star superior Kulm, St. Moritz\u2019s original luxury hotel, which dates to 1856\u2014and because the hotel\u2019s recent multi-million-dollar room renovation was overseen by French designer Pierre-Yves Rochon who created sumptuous <\/em>suites<\/em><\/a> notable for Swiss pine interiors, a hallmark of the Engadin.<\/em>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"img_1245-1\"<\/a>

The fabled mignardises trolley at Restaurant Bareiss \u00a9MRNY<\/p><\/div>\n

Best Meal: <\/strong>Restaurant Bareiss<\/em><\/a>, the 3* Michelin restaurant at <\/em>Hotel Bareiss<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Name of Restaurant and City:<\/strong> Restaurant Bareiss<\/em><\/a>, the 3* Michelin restaurant at <\/em>Hotel Bareiss<\/em><\/a> in the bucolic town of <\/em>Baiersbronn<\/em><\/a> in the Black Forest of Germany<\/em><\/p>\n

Why you chose it: <\/strong>Because this extraordinary eight-table restaurant is an exemplar of haute cuisine and the virtues of Germany\u2019s \u201cdual-training system,\u201d with a kitchen helmed by <\/em>Chef Claus-Peter Lumpp<\/em><\/a>, who received his third Michelin star in 2007, and ably supported by Thomas Brandt, Gault Millau\u2019s Ma\u00eetre of the Year and sommelier J\u00fcrgen Fendt, the three of whom are a formidable triumvirate of talent and taste\u2014and because I\u2019m still dreaming of that langoustine with imperial caviar and that trolley of post-prandial mignardises.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Artisanal<\/a>

Artisanal liqueurs with suggestive names such as \u201cHansel in the Cellar\u201d and \u201cThe Longer the Better\u201d can be enjoyed in the historic tasting room of Wynand Fockink. \u00a9MRNY<\/p><\/div>\n

Best Bar (gay, mixed or otherwise): <\/strong>Wynand Fockink<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Location: <\/strong>Amsterdam, Netherlands<\/em><\/p>\n

Why you chose it: <\/strong>Because this ribald gin mill (with its suggestive name) was founded in 1679 as a liqueur distillery and specializes in artisanal liqueurs such as \u201cHansel in the Cellar\u201d and \u201cThe Longer the Better,\u201d which can be enjoyed in the historic tasting room or the authentic 17th<\/sup>-century tavern that spills out into the arcade just off the Dam. <\/em><\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The view from atop Muottas Muragl \u00a9MRNY<\/p><\/div>\n

Best Experience: <\/strong>Snow-shoeing atop the 8,058-foot summit of <\/em>Muottas Muragl<\/em><\/a> on the southern slopes of the Swiss Alps<\/em><\/p>\n

Location: <\/strong>Pontresina, Switzerland<\/em><\/p>\n

Why you chose it:<\/strong> Because the views above the clouds are spectacular, particularly if you are fortunate enough to witness the unique cloud formation known as the \u201cMaloja Snake\u201d (depicted in the Kristen Stewart film \u201cClouds of Sils Maria\u201d (2015), which wends through the mountain pass)\u2014and most of all because being atop a mountain surrounded by nothing but snow is my idea of heaven.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"M\/S<\/a>

M\/S Maritime Museum Denmark with Kronborg Castle in the distance \u00a9Visit Copenhagen<\/p><\/div>\n

Best Surprise: <\/strong>\u00a0M\/S Maritime Museum of Denmark<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Location: <\/strong>Just north of Copenhagen, in nearby Helsingor, home to <\/em>Hamlet’s castle<\/em><\/a> (also known as Kronborg)<\/em><\/p>\n

Why you chose it: <\/strong>Built in a former dry dock, this extraordinary subterranean structure designed by <\/em>BIG<\/em><\/a> (Bjarke Ingels Group) opened in 2013 and has been the recipient of numerous awards for its innovative design that mirrors maritime life. Furthermore, exhibitions such as \u201cSex & the Sea,\u201d co-created by film director Peter Greenaway, investigate the sexuality of sailors. Need I say more?<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

During a year that commenced with an early morning Alpine snowshoe expedition to the peak of Muottas Muragl in Engadin St. Moritz, Switzerland and ended with a (pre-election) Jazz Era, Gatsby-themed \u00a0weekend at Glenmere in the Lower Hudson Valley, we … Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":10908,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[6,11,8,4],"tags":[2439,2806,2807,2805,28,2509,2803,2758,2449,2585,2541,2507,2542,1782,2510,2804,2586,2352,59,2486,2475],"class_list":["post-10899","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food-dining","category-hotels","category-restaurant","category-travel-destinations","tag-amsterdam","tag-big","tag-bjarke-ingels-group","tag-chef-claus-peter-lumpp","tag-copenhagen","tag-engadin","tag-engadin-st-moritz","tag-glenmere","tag-gothenburg","tag-hotel-bareiss","tag-kronborg-castle","tag-kulm-hotel","tag-ms-maritime-museum","tag-montreux","tag-muottas-muragl","tag-outtraveler","tag-restaurant-bareiss","tag-st-moritz","tag-stockholm","tag-west-sweden","tag-wynand-fockink"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.mrnystyleandtravel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/IMG_4736-copy.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p31sdB-2PN","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mrnystyleandtravel.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10899","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mrnystyleandtravel.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mrnystyleandtravel.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrnystyleandtravel.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrnystyleandtravel.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10899"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrnystyleandtravel.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10899\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10909,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrnystyleandtravel.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10899\/revisions\/10909"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrnystyleandtravel.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/10908"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mrnystyleandtravel.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10899"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrnystyleandtravel.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10899"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrnystyleandtravel.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10899"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}