You’re wrapped in a plush terry robe, reposing on thousand-thread-count sheets, listening to a custom-programmed iPod on the dock next to your bed, and feeling as though this is nothing more than the lifestyle you deserve. So who could blame you for wanting to take some of the accoutrements of your newfound bliss home from your luxury hotel? These are top three souvenirs we recommend you swipe.

While the domestic options are absolutely of international quality, sometimes staying in extra-special rooms can make a long trip that much more exciting. These incredible suites represent the best the world has to offer in luxury hotel suites.

Opened in March 2011, Ozone at the Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong is 118 floors up, overlooking all of Victoria Harbor. They serve pan-Asian tapas and signature cocktails in an exciting, weirdly futuristic setting that takes up most of the floor.

● Visitors to the Bay Area, rejoice: the historic Sir Francis Drake Hotel has reopened after a $30 million renovation. All 416 rooms have been renovated to bring to life the elegance of the 1920s (the hotel originally opened in 1928), and the lobby and 21st-floor Starlight Room have been revitalized as well. The boutique hotel’s location near Union Square has always drawn in locals as well as guests, but new restaurants, bars, and rooms will help ensure the Kimpton-owned hotel’s legacy in coming years. [Travel Weekly]

"Cultural speed-dating"

For those visiting China's marquee cities, the lodging options are often limited to the glaringly glitzy or blandly business-like. Shanghai has seen a few, shall we say, more sleek newcomers (The Indigo), but Andaz' first Asian entry could hardly be more exigent.

They say capsule, I say "captured." Also: "coffin," "crazy," and "claustrophobic." But China thinks otherwise, as the country introduced its first capsule hotel this past weekend, banking on the popularity of minuscule hotel rooms to reach the same height of popularity as they have Japan, the country that originally redefined efficiency living. What exactly is a capsule hotel? Think a panicked Uma Thurman in Kill BIll, six feet under.

Visiting Hangzhou is like killing two birds with one stone. You get to experience the Zen side of China while exploring one of the country's most popular destinations. Famous for its natural beauty, Hangzhou is a countryside paradise just an hour-and-half train ride away from Shanghai. It's chock-full of 1,000-year-old temples and an even more ancient pagodas. Tea fields sprawl for miles, as this is where Longjing (Dragon Well) tea, the most coveted variety due to its quality and rarity, is harvested. What truly makes Hangzhou special is the photogenic West Lake, where you can find locals practicing tai chi early in the morning and plenty of Chinese brides tugging their gowns for photo ops.

As suspected, the entrance to Chinatown Club Shanghai is an unmarked door on a residential street, the de rigueur clandestine touch of all such speakeasy-themed establishments. I'm ushered into a dark theater adorned with red velvet drapes, candle-lit tables, and a cast of scantily-clad characters amping up the crowd, a mix of ex-pats and locals. As soon as I order a cocktail, the host, "Chinatown Charlie," takes the stage. The lightly-choreographed dance pieces, one-act sketches, and self-aware camp transports me to post-Mao Shanghai, with Chinatown Dolls in corsets performing their hearts out to burlesque numbers.

Eating dumplings in Shanghai is like getting a slice in NYC. For days, I scoured the malls, plazas, gardens, and narrow alleys to find the perfect dumpling made by a local chef. I sampled everything from crab dumplings to beef soup dumplings, fried to steamed, the good and the bad. I didn't want to go by the critics—the New York Times, Time—and local food writers with their top dumpling restaurant choice, thinking I could prove them wrong. But ultimately, I had to agree with common consensus: the best dumplings in Shanghai are at Din Tai Fung. It's not super authentic (the owners are from Taiwan), but it's the best dumplings on offer in Shanghai. The Times voted Din Tai Fung one of the Top 10 restaurants in the world—in 1993—but it still has that magic.