Ciragan Palace Hotel Kempinski

Staying at this former Imperial Ottoman Palace—an elaborate, Arabian-style compound that the empire’s last sultans called home—may easily give you delusions of grandeur. It’s hard not to feel like royalty as you stroll through the expansive property, where palms, pools, landscaped gardens, and hammock-dotted paths front the Bosporus. Retiring to your quarters may present the same problem—especially if you’ve booked one of the 22 suites, decked out with opulent, jewel-toned silk fabrics, rich wood paneling, marble baths, and private straight-view terraces. Most troublesome of all, though, is the fact that every member of the Çırağan Palace’s staff appears to have been bred (or perhaps genetically modified) for overwhelming solicitousness; they give the impression that all of human history has culminated in this, their moment of perfect fulfillment: the chance to make you happier. Of course, it costs money to buy this kind of love—but, well, hasn’t it always?