As Wassily Kandinsky, the famed painter and art theorist, said, “Color is a power which directly influences the soul.” It’s time to live this quote and feed your soul, by traveling to the most colorful places around the world.
This wonderful earth of ours is filled with colorful places, including plenty of majestic outdoor spaces and beaches worthy of your vacation getaway time, but so too are a few bright, cheerful, and downright vivid places. Here are five super colorful destinations for you to explore on your next jaunt around the globe.
Cinque Terre, Italy
Cinque Terre, a small seaside town within Liguria, in the northwest corner of Italy, is as colorful a destination as they come. The fishing village sits high on a hill above the Italian Riviera. A stay here provides visitors with unforgettable glimpses of the azure waters below, though really, a swim in those waters is a must because looking back at the town is the best view. The homes here are painted in a lovely spectrum of pastels, including pinks, blues, greens, and more, providing the perfect backdrop for a few Instagram images. And if you do post, you won’t be alone, as there are more than 2.4 million mentions of the beautiful town on the ‘gram. Stay in the middle of it all by booking a room at La Casa del Gigante Luxury Collection Villa, which provides fantastic views of the coastline out its massive picture windows.
Rainbow Row, Charleston, South Carolina
Take a stroll down Rainbow Row in South Carolina. Though it’s a short stretch of just 13 homes, it will still leave you feeling happy at the end. The pastel-colored homes can be found on East Bay Street and are each historic gems. As Charleston.com explains, the homes were first constructed around 1740 and were used by merchants. The area became rundown following the civil war, but in 1931, Dorothy Porcher Legge and her husband, Judge Lionel Legge, purchased the section of houses on East Bay Street. They painted the first bright pink, and their neighbors followed one by one joining the upbeat trend. Stay close to Rainbow Row by booking a few nights at The Loutrel, an upscale boutique hotel just steps away.
Chefchaouen, Morocco
Get the blues, in the best way possible, by visiting Chefchaouen, a city in the Tangier-Tetouan region of Morocco. It’s not exactly a destination that’s easy to get to — it’s two hours from Tangier and more than three from Fez — but it’s worth it to take in its spectacularly blue-hued buildings. Though there’s no clear answer as to why the streets here are blue, but just because its history is unclear doesn’t mean it’s not worth a visit. Come here to walk the streets and buy plenty of souvenirs, including local pottery and art, along the way. Book a stay at a local ryad, like the Lina Ryad and Spa, which comes with plenty of blue decor to match its surroundings.
Old Havana, Cuba
Havana is a colorful place, from its blue waters crashing against the Malecón straight up the street to Old Havana, a place filled with 16th and 17th-century buildings painted in every color of the rainbow. The colonial buildings and homes are further highlighted by all the art deco styling inside, as well as the bright and colorful vintage cars that will happily pick up tourists for a (paid) ride. Stay in the neighborhood by booking a room at The Gran Hotel Manzana Kempinski La Habana, a luxury hotel in the historic Manzana de Gómez building, which also comes with a rooftop pool so you can see the colorful neighborhood from above.
Balat, Istanbul
Istanbul is filled with historic gems, but none quite as colorful as the neighborhood of Balat. Here, visitors will find old-school cobblestoned streets and 200-year-old wooden houses painted in every color you can imagine. The neighborhood is one of the city’s oldest, but it’s quickly becoming one of its hippest, with more than its fair share of sleek cafes that are ready to pour you a Turkish coffee and pair it with a sweet Turkish delight. Spend as much time in the neighborhood as possible with a stay at the Troya Hotel Balat, a boutique hotel that combines four, century-old homes into one old-school cool accommodation. (Note: If you’re a member of the SoHo House, you can also book a room at the nearby SoHo House Istanbul too.)
