Asia is enormous and every corner of it has a completely different culture, food scene, and energy. The problem is not finding something interesting to do. The problem is knowing where to actually focus. These six destinations are the ones that deliver on culture in a way that stays with you long after you get home, each with a five star hotel that puts you right in the middle of it. And if any words sound unfamiliar, no worries, we have got you covered.

1. Kyoto, Japan: Aman Kyoto

Kyoto is the cultural heart of Japan. While Tokyo is loud and fast, Kyoto is the opposite, ancient temples, traditional tea houses, geisha districts, and bamboo forests that look like they were designed for a painting. The Gion district is the most famous, especially at dusk when the streets go quiet. The Fushimi Inari Shrine with its thousands of torii gates [the iconic orange archways you have definitely seen in photos] is one of those places that genuinely does not disappoint in person.

Aman Kyoto sits hidden inside a private forest near the city’s northern temples and feels completely removed from everything. The private onsen baths [natural hot spring soaks] and ryokan inspired design [Japan’s traditional inn style] make it one of the most considered cultural stays in Asia. Hotelusso members who want Japan done properly will find Kyoto through Aman is the right way to do it.

2. Luang Prabang, Laos: Rosewood Luang Prabang

Luang Prabang is one of the most underrated destinations in Southeast Asia. This small UNESCO World Heritage city sits where the Mekong and Nam Khan rivers meet and moves at a pace that feels completely detached from the modern world. The alms giving ceremony at dawn, where monks in saffron robes walk through the streets collecting food offerings from locals, is one of the most quietly powerful cultural experiences in Asia.

Rosewood Luang Prabang is set in the hills above the city in a collection of tented villas surrounded by jungle and waterfalls. The food programme draws from Laotian culinary traditions that most visitors never get close to and the hotel offers private excursions into the city and surrounding villages that go well beyond what a standard tour covers. This is the hidden gem on this list and it earns that title.

3. Mumbai, India: Taj Mahal Palace

Mumbai is India at full volume. The city has more layers of culture, history, food, and energy than almost anywhere else in Asia and the Taj Mahal Palace has been sitting at the centre of it since 1903. The hotel faces the Gateway of India and the Arabian Sea and is itself a cultural landmark. The Dhobi Ghat [a massive open air laundry where hundreds of workers wash clothes by hand] is one of those only in Mumbai experiences that sticks with you.

The Taj is the right base for all of it. The food at Masala Bay covers regional Indian cuisine at the highest level and the butler service can arrange private city tours that go to the places guidebooks skip. For Hotelusso members who want a city that challenges and excites in equal measure, Mumbai delivers.

4. Hanoi, Vietnam: Sofitel Legend Metropole

Hanoi is Vietnam’s cultural capital and it wears that title seriously. The Old Quarter is a maze of narrow streets each historically dedicated to a single trade, the Temple of Literature is one of the oldest universities in the world, and the street food scene is arguably the best in the country. Bun cha, pho, banh mi, and egg coffee. Every meal is a reason to be there.

The Sofitel Legend Metropole is a colonial era landmark that has hosted Charlie Chaplin and Graham Greene among many others. The historic wing rooms are the ones to book and the hotel runs a wartime bunker tour beneath the building, which is one of the most unique hotel experiences in Asia.

5. Seoul, South Korea: Park Hyatt Seoul

Seoul is one of the fastest moving cities in Asia and somehow also one of the most culturally rich. The Bukchon Hanok Village is a neighbourhood of traditional hanok houses [centuries old Korean homes with curved tiled roofs] sitting between royal palaces in the middle of a completely modern city. The food scene runs from late night street tteokbokki [chewy spicy rice cakes] to some of the most technically impressive fine dining in Asia.

Park Hyatt Seoul sits in the Gangnam district with floor to ceiling views across the city and one of the best rooftop bars in Korea. Hotelusso members who have not put Seoul on their list yet are genuinely missing one of the best cities in Asia.

Your Move

Asia rewards the traveller who goes beyond the obvious. Every destination on this list has layers that take more than one visit to fully understand and every hotel gives you the access that makes those layers easier to reach. Pick one. Then start planning the next.