King Cole Bar, New York
History seeps through the genteel King Cole Bar, where Monroe, Dali and other merry old souls sipped cocktails at the carved oak bar. An eye-catching mural of Old King Cole dominates the sumptuous setting. Try Fernand Petiot’s 1934 red snapper, a spicier version of the bloody Mary he created in Paris.
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From its giddy perch on the State Tower’s 63rd floor, the open-air Sky Bar seems to float above Bangkok’s sea of lights. The spacey, colour-changing bar is a striking place for a cocktail and a knockout view of the city illuminated.
See all hotels in Bangkok Hemingway Bar, Paris
Ernest Hemingway made history when he gallantly ordered a martini here during the liberation of Paris in 1944. With its rich wood panelling, leather armchairs and literary tradition, the Hemingway Bar is a fine spot to nurse a single malt.
See all hotels in Paris New York Bar, Tokyo
Tokyo’s glittering skyline stretches out before you from Park Hyatt hotel’s 52nd-floor, glass-walled New York Bar, the backdrop for the movie Lost in Translation. Live jazz singers croon in sophisticated wood-panelled surroundings.
See all hotels in Tokyo Dukes Hotel, London
It takes practice to not spill the brim-full martinis theatrically served at your table at this venerable Mayfair bar that was once the haunt of Ian Fleming. Its potent martinis inspired Bond’s classic line “shaken, not stirred”.
See all hotels in London Bar Marmont, Hollywood
For that celebrity feeling, dress to impress the doormen at Bar Marmont on Hollywood’s Sunset Boulevard. Stars like Johnny Depp hang out in the softly lit lounge for decadent cocktails under a butterfly-clad ceiling.
See all hotels in Los Angeles Kosybar Marrakech
Bag a front-row seat at Kosybar for a sundowner as storks swoop down to the ramparts and Koutoubia’s minaret begins to twinkle. Downstairs, you can sip Moroccan wine by the fireside and catch great jazz and blues singers at the weekend.
See all hotels in Marrakech De Witte Aap, Rotterdam
Bohemians, creatives, businessmen – all Rotterdamers love De Witte Aap (the white monkey). Great for people-watching on the terrace by day, by night the bar heaves with partygoers who squeeze in for good beer and first-rate DJs.
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Expect a frosty welcome at Stockholm’s Absolut Ice Bar. With a year-round temperature of -5°C, this is the world’s first bar sculpted entirely from ice. The famous vodka cocktails are served in ice glasses in Narnia-like surroundings.
See all hotels in Stockholm Rio Scenarium, Rio de Janeiro
An old curiosity shop of a bar, Rio Scenarium brims with antiques from marionettes to bicycles. Rio’s best samba bands fill this revamped warehouse with infectious rhythms.
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