On a visit to Amsterdam you obviously don’t want to miss the canals or the Anne Frank House.  But if your thinking of skipping the following lesser known inspiring places, don´t do it. You will regret it.

De Kas Restaurant: One of the most contemporary and exquisite gastro experiences I have enjoyed lately. It´s not simply a plain restaurant because it also boasts its own vegetable gardens. That means that the carrots you taste in the big dining room have just been collected a few meters from you. A real luxury.

Het Schip. Don´t be discouraged by the fact that it´s not downtown. Bus number 22 takes you 10 minutes to this interesting neighbourhood. The main symbol is Het Schip, a complex designed by De Klerk during World War 1, as part of the Amsterdam School. This bizarre but charming building is made by red brick and contains housing, a museum, a school and a meeting room. It still retains its atmosphere of a revolutionary place.

Hema: It´s cheap but it doesn´t look cheap. This huge store is great for real Dutch souvenirs. Food is beautifully packed and lamps could be from Ikea or Habitat. Plus its a great chance to mix with the locals.

LLoyd Hotel&Cultural Embassy: It used to be ( in chronological order)  an inmigrant hostal, a prison and artist’s residences…. Today it is an interesting hotel that includes rooms from 1 star to 5 star. The Lloyd also works as a Cultural Embassy, but a real one: a vibrant place for guests and the whole community. A great exercise of reinvention.

Westergasfabriek: Don´t stay downtown all the time. Grab a bike ( one of the almost half a million of the city) and go to the Westerpark area. There you will find this impressive and huge complex. It used to be a gas factory but now it´s a cultural center with a lot of things going on. A great example of how “dead” industrial sites can be resurrected with the right energy.

Paris meets Boston. That´s Montreal and that´s good news. Montreal is a vibrant, outspoken, and sort of Latin city that happens to be in the North of North American. When travelling there you will visit the Old Montreal and its Notre Dâme cathedral for sure, but you will skip some interesting spots:

Habitat 67. Even though it´s one of the landmarks of the city, most of the visitors only know this fascinating housing complex by picture. You can go by foot ( if weather accompanies) but I suggest to grab a cab and ask the taxi driver to stop by there. This groundbreaking project was built during the 67 Universal Expo by a 20-year-old architect named Moshe Safdie. This visionary intended to create a place where barriers between country life and urban life will blur. This is where I would  live if I had to pick a place in this city. Image: www.thecoolist.com

Memento. Montreal does not seem to be a vintage mecca but stores like this one are not easy to find. Located in the trend Plateau neighbourhood collects a huge range of garments, shoes and accessories.

Suite Yoko Ono and John Lennon. You have probably seen the images of the “Bed -in-for Peace” protest against Vietnam than Lennon and Yoko Ono starred in 1969. But you probably don’t know that these action took place at the Fairmon Queen Elizabeth Hotel. The suite is still there and can be rented. Either you are Beatlemaniac or not, you will feel something special. Image: www.fairmont.com

L´Arrivage: You will go positively to have dinner either to Crescent Street or to the Old Port. But you should dare to go to any museum restaurant, which usually offer good food in a nice setting. The Archeological Museum of the city has a more than decent restaurant where you can enjoy a mid French-mid Canadian menu at a great price. Views are a must. And the visit to the Museum is worthy too.

Scandinave Les Bains. This is another way to get to know how Montreal breath. A lovely building contains this amazing and stylish spa. This is not a common spa but a Scandinavian one. That means that you will need to dive into extremely cold water after enjoying a hot bath. This circuit is proofed to be healthy. Besides, the location of the spa, right in front of the river is perfect for having dinner after the baths in one of the cozy restaurants of St Paul Street. Image: http://www.scandinave.com/en/montreal/

I guess there are a lot of cities you consider to visit instead of Tel-Aviv. Prejudices are strong and the brand image of Israel is not the most positive in the world for travellers. However, if you overcome preconceptions and dare to travel to this amazing country you will be enlightened 24 hours per day.

Bauhaus Center: Tel Aviv is the epicenter of Bauhaus in the world. This statement is not over-the-top. You can find more than 4000 Bauhaus-Internation buildings; more than 1000 of them has been perfectly preserved and restored. This not-that-big store is the perfect place to know more about this movement and also to get that souvenir that will make your artsy friends fall in love with the city.

Center Hotel: Bauhaus is still alive in this small and no-frills hotel. It´s in front of the overexposed Cinema Hotel since they both belong to the same company. You will probably miss the Center cause you will be busy tasting the pop-corns that Cinema offer to visitants and travelleres.

Benedict: Have you ever tried to have breakfast at 5 pm?. Or at 3 am? It´s usually hard to find a place to taste a delicious breakfast whenever you like. Breakfast are supposed to be in the morning. Benedict restaurant doesn´t agree with that because it´s dedicated to breakfast during all day.

Abulafia Bakery: This bakery is more than a bakery. It works as a symbol of the desirable encounter between Israel and Arabian people. It has been in Jaffa for almost 200 hundred years and has many stories to tell. Hummus is great.

Shablul Jazz Club. Tel Aviv is a city that almost never sleep. Nightlife is quite vibrant in this corner of the Mediterranean. If you travel there you wil probably go out around the Port or Neve Tzedek. However, I am sure you don´t plan to go to listen to jazz. You should do it, though. This club, located in a hangar, is the best spot in Tel Aviv to attend a good session.

Madrid is full of people, full of noise, full of bars, full of traffic…full of life. That´s why we love it. That´s the sort of city that you probably thing to skip ( Paris is much more beautiful and Rome much more impressive). Big mistake. Once you arrive to Madrid,  you hopelessly fall in love with it.

La Latina on Sundays. That´s what locals do. People from their 20´s until their mid 40´s spend Sundays afternoon hanging around this “castizo” neighbourhood.  They start having a beer in one of the hundreds bars around, then they being to taste “pinchos” (tapas) and finally they end up sipping mojitos. That´s a great place also to see and be seen.

Temple of Debod. This is one of the most romantic (and less visited places from travelers) of the entire city. The temple is a real Egyptian temple that was given to Spain by the Egypt Givernment in the late 60´s. Today, this is a place where lovers, runners, dog walkers gather. One of the most beautiful views of Madrid can be seen from its observation deck.

The Costume Museum (Museo del Traje). I know, you don´t consider the fact  of visiting this Museum. I wonder why. Everything is great in it. It is located in one of the most extraordinary buildings of Madrid. This sort of rationalist skyscraper was honored with the National Architecture Prize in 1969.  Resides, the gardens that surrounds it are lovely. The Museum collection is just amazing (including Mariano Fortuny and Balenciaga pieces) and even the restaurant deserves a visit. Pick the reason you like but go to visit it.

La Sanabresa. It is packed, it is sort of tacky, TV is always on, it´s not possible to make a reservation…all these drawbacks vanish as soon as you taste the menu of this humble restaurant. What they serve here is pure, tradicional Spanish food. Price is as unbelievable as the quality of the dishes.

Lhardy. I adore to go there before lunch to have a cup of broth and a glass of Sherry. This place has been here forever and it concentrates the Madrid essence: half aristocratic, half provincial. The restaurant upstairs is well-known by its “cocido”. However, my advise is that you stay downstairs, surrounded by silver bottles and mahogany furniture.

Image: madridpedia.com

Don´t be scared by the zillions of tourists who visit Prague every single day. They also deserve to know this astonishing city but please, don´t follow their steps. And despite what you can hear, Prague is more than the Charles Bridge. As a matter of fact: you don´t need to cross it to feel the city´s essence.

Café Louvre. You cannot visit Prague without spending an hour minimum sitting in a Café. Any place works but if you don´t pay attention you will miss this truly amazing one. It´s in the first floor of a great building and every single retail is charming, from the WC signals to the furniture.

Galerie Rudolfinum. It should be named “Museum” instead of gallery. Not only  its size is huge but also its agenda includes a series of top level exhibition. It´s usually empty, which is half sad and half wonderful and extremely interesting.

Kutna Hora. Don´t be afraid of leaving Prague for one day. You will be glad to be far from hords of Americans and Spaniards. Get a bus and scape to Kutha Hora. It´s just one hour from the capital and it´s plenty of Gothic and Baroque churches and palaces. It´s a small ( and more user-friendly) Prague.

Museum of Communism: Although Prague people are looking forward to forget their communist phase, that time deserves an attentive look. This tiny museum was launched by an American scholar and explores the communist iconography . It´s not a huge highlight, but if you want to understand what Prague is, you should stop by it.

Stairs at the Czech Cubist Museum. You will probably miss the own Museum  which is just Ok, but if you miss its wonderful set of stairs you will be making a big mistake. Misterious, elegante and unique, this architectural exercise projected by Gocar is hidden but waiting for you. The Museum store is also fantastic.

Paris receives more than 45 millions travellers every year. You are one of them. But, being infatuated by the highlights of the city, we are sure you are missing some fascinating places.

Deyrolle. No one links Paris with dead animals. However, one of the coolest and chicest Parisian stores is devoted to taxidermy. Skip the luxury landmarks ( come on, there is a Vuitton store in every single corner of the world) and spend your precious time in this Rive Gauche weird boutique.

Quai Branly. If I had to pick between the Pompidou and this relatively new museum., I would definitely avoid the Beaubourg crowds. It might sounds as a boutade but the Quay Branly promotes one of the most daring museum experiences I ever had.

La Grande Epicerie de Le Bon Marché. You are positively buying some cheese as a souvenir. Do it as a Parisienne. Grab your organic shopping bag and go to this amazing supermarket. Everything is lovable, yummy and desirable. You will leave it with a heavy bag plenty of delicacies and a bunch of euros less. But you will be incredibly happy.

Chez Omar. You have been eating soup d´oignon for 4 days in a row. Escape from French cuisine for a while and go for Arabian dishes. This place is in the edge of Le Marais, it has comunal tables and does not accept reservations. Chez Omar is a low-profile, fantastic restaurant. Even Sofia Coppola loves it.

Maison Guerlain. I know, Champs Elysses have become a thematic park but they hide a gem. Guerlain (one of the oldest perfume houses in the world) has a tiny, free museum in the first flight of its store. Dont hesitate and go up. It is a beautiful multisensorial visit within your reach. After this: you will love “La France” forever.

…if you don´t pay attention or if you devote too much time to scan counterfeits at Canal Street.

The High Line: One wonderful example of sustainable use of public spaces. One of these projects that make me worship this city. These old railways have been transformed into a cool, contemporary garden thanks to the energy of Chelsea´s community. I love the idea, the aim, the execution and, above all, the underlying spirit of the High Line

Museum of Chinese in the America (MOCA). This is an amazing way of negotiating with the History. This brand-new museum has been projected by Maya Lin and explores the presence of Chinese people in the country. It´s one of these small and secondary museums that you usually skip in a visit to NYC. And that´s a pity since they totally illustrate the essence of New York.

Restaurant Four Season. This place has been named the most beautiful dining room in the world and I am sure you were going to miss it, right? You shouldn´t by intimidated ever by its extreme luxurious ambiance, not in the US. It was designed by Mies van der Rohe and Phillip Johnson and it´s one of the landmarks of American architecture.  By less than 60 $ you can live an mesmerizing experience, half aesthetical, half gastronomical.

Café Habana. One of the best corners in New York. If I were a writer, I would consider to sit here for hours and even to start a novel!. This eatery become famous in the late 90´s, when gentrification arrived to Nolita. Now, the area is definitely a posh area and I am surprised of how this place has kept its down-to-earth yet cool atmosphere

Decibel. Tired of ordering 14 dollars glasses of red wine? This is your place. Decibel is packed with young ( and not so young) people willing to spend their time in a dark basement drinking sake. Just sake. Warning: hangover is a nightmare but this bar is more than worthy. Like the entire city.