Enjoy breakfast or cocktails perched on one of these barstools. You’ll find that they’re the best seat in the house.

We visit far-flung places—and even some closer to home—for many reasons: to learn, rest, escape, indulge. Of course, the hotels we stay in give us access to some great destinations. And often they’re much more than places to rest our heads. They provide oodles of design ideas, not the least of which are fun wallcovers. Here, some examples from our travels…

A major renovation of an 1880s Victorian yielded a home perfectly suited to a modern family.

This Rumson home was built quite recently, but you’d never know it from the traditional look and feel of its stately library-cum family room.