Spring 2025

In January I traveled to Mexico City—a place I’ve visited often and love deeply—for a business trip. And while I did have meetings focused on long-term goals and strategic objectives, I also used the four days as an excuse to explore. (Though the term “bleisure” boils my grammarian blood, it is apt.) With several Afar colleagues, I ate tuna tostadas at Contramar and sipped natural wine at Ticuchi; gazed at David Alfaro Siqueiros murals at Chapultepec Castle; and soaked up the dynamic and intangible spirit of the sprawling city.

Afar readers yearn to experience culture wherever they are in the world. A country’s art, architecture, museums, music, design, food, and wine are rooted in history and heritage—and speak to its national identity. In this issue devoted to culture, we focus on the passion points that help travelers connect to the world more deeply.

Contributing writer Anya von Bremzen journeys to northern Mexico’s Valle de Guadalupe, where female winemakers are breaking rules all while helping the destination move forward more sustainably; Washington, D.C., resident Amy Alipio talks to three local luminaries about the district’s rich cultural past, present, and future; and contributing writer Bonnie Tsui visits Guangzhou, China, to gain a more nuanced understanding of her artist father. We also reveal our annual list of the world’s best new hotels, a wonderfully eclectic collection of properties that has already inspired my next trip. (See you soon, Santa Monica!)

As the world becomes increasingly homogenized, authentic cultural experiences matter even more when we travel, because they feed our curiosity and open our minds to new ways of thinking and seeing. “A nation’s culture resides in the hearts and in the soul of its people,” Mahatma Gandhi once said. I couldn’t agree more.

Travel well,

Julia Cosgrove

Editor in Chief