Winter’s been hard, cold and it’s gone on far too long. Salvation is at hand, however, because the next three months are the best time to visit destinations with clement temperatures. The time before the great summer exodus begins, before the hordes – and the hordes’ mothers’ aunts – descend. At any rate, before temperatures start to climb there’s often more happening in these places. This is a time for festivals, celebrations and old-world traditions. Plus, some stunning new urban landscapes are being unveiled. Here, MR PORTER brings you the best early-summer trips around the globe.

Sir Winston Churchill once said that Marrakech was “simply the nicest place on earth to spend an afternoon”. Especially in April, when the weather is warm, flowers are blooming and the Atlas Mountains are still snow-capped. One of the best ways to see the Moroccan city is on a 1930s Russian motorbike. Frenchman Mr Thomas Chabrieres combined his passion for vintage bikes and travelling, purchased a number of Ural motorbikes and converted these sturdy Soviet relics into sightseeing vehicles in Marrakech. Guests ride pillion or in the sidecar, while a driver navigates the often chaotic roads. It really is the most joyous way to experience the city. The bikes are the perfect way to negotiate the maze-like streets of the souks. People wave and smile and children excitedly mob the bikes at every chance.

The Mandarin Oriental Hotel Marrakech is a stunning place that pays homage to traditional Berber interiors and Moroccan architecture. There are three restaurants, indoor and outdoor pools, cooking classes and an enormous spa with beautiful marble hammams. And if two wheels aren’t your style, the hotel has access to a host of vintage cars, including a 1959 Ferrari 250GT Cabriolet, a 1927 Rolls-Royce Phantom and a 1969 Ford Mustang GT.

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Hong Kong has always been the undisputed leader in terms of Chinese tourists (a tax-free shopping haven not far from home), and Kowloon waterfront’s facelift will only add to its lustre. Victoria Dockside, a $2.6bn arts and design district that has been created with content-seeking millennials in mind, will shift the city’s cultural core across the harbour. A hundred artists were enlisted to help spruce up this neighbourhood. A key attraction will be the K11 Musea, with its rotating world-class art collection, one of the world’s largest green walls and an outdoor amphitheatre. Meanwhile, landscape architect Mr James Corner, the man behind the High Line in Manhattan, has also given the nearby Avenue of Stars an impressive makeover.

Head back across the harbour to the sleek Upper House. It sits on top of Pacific Place and the wow factor is instant. The wood, glass and limestone rooms are huge and fantastic. 

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Of all the Nordic nations, Iceland is the overachiever. It is a small, small country with big achievements, especially when it comes to music. This is the home of Björk, Of Monsters and Men and the epic soundscapes of Sigur Rós. Head here in April when the stars of electronica and hip-hop come together at Sónar Reykjavik, an offshoot of Barcelona’s Sónar festival. Coinciding with the period when the Northern Lights are at their most spectacular, the festival takes place at the Harpa concert hall. Look up through the building’s glass structure and you could see streaks of light bursting across the skies.

The 18-room Ion City Hotel is the sister property to the award-winning Ion Adventure Hotel. It is seriously hip. Think beautiful Nordic aesthetics, gun-metal greys and design objets bathed in light. Much of it, including the zig-zag motif on the external walls that kind of resembles the patterns of a traditional sweater, is inspired by Iceland itself. Book a junior suite, which comes with a private sauna and a large balcony that provides expansive views of Reykjavik.

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Formula 1 is often accused of being predictable, but the 2019 season marks a new era. After almost four decades under Mr Bernie Ecclestone’s control, its new owners plan to transform the motor sport into a multimedia entertainment extravaganza. A Netflix behind-the-scenes documentary series was released earlier this month, former F1 champion Mr Nico Rosberg hosts a post-race Twitter show and it’s the end of the road for the grid girls. This renewed energy will start translating to the track this season and the Spanish Grand Prix is one of the best. It’s held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya and is one of the oldest races in the world. Add in the fact that Barcelona is one of the most visited cities in Europe with world-class art, sandy beaches and fabulous tapas bars to refuel at, and it’s a clear winner.

Continue with the sporting theme and check in to the newly opened Almanac Barcelona, owned by former professional basketball player Mr Herbert Haselbacher. Located in the heart of Barcelona, the star attraction here is the multi-tiered rooftop terrace with panoramic views, swimming pool and rooftop bar. Almanac hotels in Zagreb, Vienna and Prague will follow soon.

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Everyone flocks to Venice in May for the start of the Biennale, but wait a month longer and you’ll avoid high season and catch the Vogalonga regatta as well. One of the best regattas in Venice, Vogalonga is a carnival procession crossed with a sporting event and has been held every year since 1974. The 18.5-mile rowing marathon, which is open to professionals and amateurs, takes in some of the best locations, including the Grand Canal, so bag a canalside spot and wait for the race to reach you.

Il Palazzo Experimental is set to open in June. The latest hotel from the Experimental Group, which brought craft cocktail bars and hotels to Paris, Ibiza, Verbier and New York, it is a suitably stylish outpost in Venice. Minutes from St Mark’s Square and set in a 17th-century palazzo in the Dorsoduro area, Il Palazzo retains a local Venetian vibe and is close to the city’s art galleries, including the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. It overlooks the Giudecca Canal and boasts a sweeping terrace, restaurant and a private garden.

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After the snow melts, Bike Republic Sölden turns one of the Austrian Tyrol’s best ski areas into a hotspot for free riders, mountain bikers and endurance riders. As well as having 59 miles of the the greatest biking tracks in Europe, including flow trails and a jump line, the opening weekend will host BMX shows, a single trail paperchase and many parties. Mr Danny MacAskill, one of the most popular mountain bike athletes, whose stunts have racked up more than 250 million views on YouTube, will be making an appearance. Away from the trials, head to nearby Area 47, one of the biggest outdoor playgrounds in the world, which has facilities for multiple sports, including canyoning, rafting and caving, and a 20,000sq m water park.

The five-star Das Central hotel. It’s minutes from the scenic Giggijoch cable car, which transports skiers in winter and bikers in the summer, and there’s free use of public transport to Area 47. It has two excellent restaurants, lays on the best breakfasts and has a welcoming wellness centre. Das Central is also behind Ice Q, a glass-walled restaurant at an altitude of more than 3,000m, which featured in the James Bond movie Spectre.

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Fifty years ago on 28 June 1969, people in the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in Greenwich Village, fought back against police conducting a raid. It was an act of resistance that became a defining moment in the gay rights movement. This June, New Yorkers won’t be so much painting the town red as every colour of the rainbow. Not only is it the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising, but the biennial WorldPride, which promises to be the largest LGBTQIA+ celebration in the world, comes to town. A month of parties, talks, screenings and more parties will culminate in the NYC Pride March on the last Sunday of the month. Although the original Stonewall Inn went out of business shortly after the riots, a bar that opened under the same name and in the same spot in the 1990s is still there today. People from around the world continue to visit and recognise it as a major symbol of civil rights, solidarity and remembrance.

The Equinox Hotel, from the eponymous fitness brand, is located in the new Hudson Yards in Manhattan. Built over the old railway tracks, Hudson Yards is one of the most ambitious city developments and is unmissable, if only for Mr Thomas Heatherwick’s Vessel, a giant staircase that has already taken over Instagram. The Equinox Hotel has 48 suites and a large Equinox fitness club and spa where you’ll find Pilates classes, personal trainers, an indoor salt-water pool and a SoulCycle studio.

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Harvest time in the autumn always brings a flock of wine enthusiasts to the vineyards outside Rome. Go in May, though, and the weather will be good and the crowds smaller. Some of Italy’s most prestigious vineyards can be easily reached from the capital city, especially if you are travelling by helicopter. Stay at The Grand House and they can arrange for a driver to take you by limousine to a nearby helipad to fly to Bolgheri. The 50-minute journey, over Cypress-lined avenues, pine forests and the small city of Orvieto perched on its rock cliff, is extraordinarily beautiful. On arrival, guests are taken to the vineyards of Castello di Bolgheri, set in the grounds of the 13th-century Bolgheri Castle. Wine tasting, a family reception and a lunch of local dishes follow. When you return, you’ll have the rest Rome to explore. The classic ruins, the neighbourhood trattorias and buzzing aperitivo scene all await.

The Grand House is a newly launched concept that turns historic homes in the heart of Rome into luxurious suites for travellers. One of the most quintessentially Italian is the magnificent Grand Emperor Suite, where Emperor Napoleon III lived in 1830. Today, the walls are still furnished with elegant oil paintings and original 16th-century tapestries and the traditional parquet floors are intact. For a more modern space, book The Grand Penthouse, which has magnificent views across central Rome. The Grand House also puts guests in touch with Italy’s leading protagonists of culture, art and literature, wine experts, chefs and designers.

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