From the editors of Condé Nast Traveler:

Featuring the same pan-Asian decorative exoticism as the original Buddha-Bar restaurant, in Paris, the first Buddha-Bar hotel brings its dramatic flair to the Old Town. The 39-room property, in a renovated Art Nouveau building, got off to a whiz-bang start when it opened in January, becoming a one-stop shop for jet set weekenders with its trendy restaurant, bar, and café. The 13 Superior Rooms, like the pricier Premier Rooms and suites, have immense mosaic-encrusted bathtubs, Bang & Olufsen TVs, seductive scarlet-on-black decor, and a TV hidden behind a bathroom mirror. The fitness center, Jacuzzi, and hammam/steam room are all small, but no one appears to use them: This is a place to eat and sleep, and to sip a cucumber-sake cocktail in the two-story bar/restaurant. —2009 Hot List

When to go: Anytime—weather and crowds are not an issue.

Which room to book: Try Room 35 for a nice view of St. Jakob Church; big budgets try No. 11, a corner suite with windows across two walls of the bedroom.