City Guides for the Design-Savvy Traveler

Looking at Istanbul’s old city from the trendy neighborhood of Beyoğlu, one can see the Hagia Sophia at left (rebuilt for the last time in the 6th century) and the 17th-century Sultanahmet (or “Blue”) Mosque with its six minarets at right.

Marine Drive, also known as the Queen’s Necklace, is nearly two miles long, linking the tony South Mumbai to the northern suburbs. Its seafront position sees myriad Mumbai residents out for walks and fresh coconut vendors selling their goods.

Detour for Dwell Magazine

Montreal, QuebecDispassionate about his city's de rigueur "City of Design" designation, architect Gilles Saucier shows us there's more to Montreal than Expo 67. Photo by: Matthew Monteith

The New Acropolis Museum hovers over a working archeological site, a fitting metaphor for Athens, where antiquity still enjoys an outsize presence today.

Louis Kahn’s Salk Institute (top left) is a stunning building that looks directly out to the sea. Architectural tourists flock to the site, which still functions as a working laboratory.

The stretching skyline of Estonia's capital and energy efficient city sits along the Baltic Sea, offering a mixture of contemporary art nouveau and industrial architecture. Photo by: Jens Passoth

Philadelphia rises above the banks of the Schuylkill River.

The Water Mirror, a rectangle of half-inch-deep water created by landscape architects Claire and Michel Corajoud, expresses the modern face of a city known for its historic architecture.

In the shadow of Waikiki’s high-rises, a twilight soccer game unfolds at the Ala Wai Neighborhood Park. The now-polluted Ala Wai Canal was created in the 1920s to drain the swampland that would become Waikiki.

Federal-style architecture dominates much of Washington, particularly the city’s monumental core. The Ronald Reagan Building is one such example.

Built in 1956 for the World’s Fair, the Atomiumis an homage to the future. It recently reopened after a complete renovation.

The Plaza San Martin.

The Palacio des Bellas Artes, located west of the Zocalo, or Plaza de la Constitución, is home to an extravagant art nouveau lobby and murals by José Clemente Orozco and Diego Rivera.

The subterranean Centro Cultural Palacio La Moneda lies beneath an esplanade but is awash with natural light. The galleries display an array of Latin American art.

Phoenix locals take advantage of the sun near the Palo Verde Library, designed by Gould Evans Associates LC and Wendell Burnette Architects. The building utilizes visual concepts usually applied to retail environments and is connected to an identically scaled structure that serves as the Maryvale Community Center.

The 1969 Temppeliaukion Kirkko, or Rock Church as it is known, is one of the most popular places to visit in Helsinki. The dramatic interior space was created from a solid granite outcropping, and is often used as a concert hall because of its superior acoustics.

The Raleigh Hotel was originally designed and built in 1940 by Lawrence Murray Dixon. It is renowned for its Art Deco elegance and its pool just a short walk from the beach. André Balazs recently completed a thorough renovation, and the Raleigh is now a sister hotel to the Chateau Marmont in Hollywood and the Mercer in New York.

Jonas Lindvall enjoys the Malmö Konsthall for its dramatic treatment of light—and, of course, its Sunday brunches.