Reykjavik: Ion City Hotel

Open only to foot traffic in the summer, the city's ‘main street' is a bustling mix of international adventurers, locals, and eclectic shoppers.

Further elevating this hotspot on the map, the North African-tinged restaurant Sumac is helmed by the country's culinary Olympic team director Thrainn Freyr Vigfusson, where an 86-seat restaurant and exclusive ‘speakeasy' Chef's table for 11 await the culinarily minded.

Hallways usher guests to the 18 rooms by a fractured landscape of lighting and panelling on the walls, creating an optical illusion of a narrowing corridor and again reinforcing the theme of incorporating Icelandic nature into contemporary design.