THE HYPE TRAVEL / WINTER 2025/26
Places
WINTER WINNER
Just one look at the circular building with an outdoor pool in the center is all it takes to convince us to travel to South Tyrol and spend a few relaxing days at the Olm Nature Escape Hotel. For those who still need reasons: In addition to the bold architecture, the culinary concept by top chef Berni Aichner beckons. He focuses on regional ingredients and intercultural ideas, such as Alpine-Mediterranean tapas. The oasis is also energy self-sufficient. Thanks to 3,000 square meters of photovoltaic modules, most of the green electricity is generated on-site. And one final reason: Gault Millau recently named the Olm “Hotel of the Year 2026.” Our suitcases have long been packed.
Olm Nature Escape, Unterwalburgen, 21, 39032 Campo Tures, Autonomous Province of Bolzano, South Tyrol, Italy, olm.it
We Love
BUILT TO RESIST
Unless you accidentally dent your suitcase yourself by bumping into all sorts of obstacles on narrow streets, it’s the airport staff who toss your luggage around with full force, adding to the collection of scratches. If you don’t want to deal with damaged luggage, your best bet is to invest in an Eastpak Resist’r Case. Thanks to its sturdy yet lightweight polycarbonate and aluminum frame, it can withstand being tossed and thrown to your heart’s content. Eastpak’s 30-year warranty shows that you can count on these suitcases for a long-lasting, reliable relationship.
New Opening
APARTMENT HUNTING
Sometimes, when you’re in a foreign city, you don’t want to feel like a tourist—you want to feel like you’ve come home. Architect Carrilho da Graça certainly had this in mind when designing the newly opened boutique hotel The Verse in Lisbon. Instead of transforming the historic, five-story building into a traditional hotel, the result is 15 unique apartments that you’d love to move into permanently. Each small apartment has its own unique design. Yet you still enjoy the benefits of a hotel: a bar invites you to linger, and the staff will fulfill your every wish—from babysitting to organizing a sightseeing tour.
The Verse, Rua de São Bento 39, 1200 109 Lisbon, Portugal, theverse.com
Book
FIRE AND ICE
Is Iceland—that volcanic island with endless daylight in the summer and more horses and sheep than people—really real? It’s the birthplace of the magnificent artist Björk and is considered the most feminist country in the world. It sounds way too good to be true. In “Iceland Epic,” travel writer Erika Owen shows that Iceland isn’t just a real place—it’s an incredibly diverse one. From folklore to geysers to Reykjavík’s vibrant creative scene, it has it all. And we find ourselves wondering: Should we move there?
Erika Owen, *Iceland Epic*, Assouline, 304 pages, approx. 120.–, assouline.com
Exhibition
GIRLS GIRLS GIRLS
“It’s so confusing sometimes to be a girl,” sings Charli xcx alongside Lorde on their hit “Girl, so confusing.” But being a girl isn’t just confusing—it’s often devalued in art and portrayed as a fleeting transitional phase, with girls depicted as naive, well-behaved, and innocent beings. At the Antwerp Fashion Museum, the exhibition “GIRLS. On Boredom, Rebellion, and Being In-Between” shows just how complex, exciting, and culturally relevant the phase of being a girl is—in art, culture, and real life. From Louise Bourgeois to Sofia Coppola to Chopova Lowena, and from designers and photographers to filmmakers, the exhibition gives visibility to a demographic that has all too often been dismissed with a smirk. After all, girls around the world are deprived of opportunities due to gender inequality, poverty, and deep-rooted discrimination. The exhibition aims to counteract this as well. Teenagers were involved in the project—so for once, it’s not the adults speaking on behalf of the young people.
MoMu – Antwerp Fashion Museum, “GIRLS. On Boredom, Rebellion, and Being In-Between,” through February 1, 2026, momu.be
