Between the sea, sand and mountains, only one building is recognizable: a palatial grand hotel, the Copacabana Palace.

With 221 cream-colored rooms and simple, elegant décor, the Sofitel-managed Caesar Park Rio is slightly cozier than the group’s other property in Copacabana. Despite the rather large premises and an occasionally corporate feel, the Caesar Park, located in Ipanema, has a few thoughtful touches. Free bikes for guests and two energetic restaurants give the hotel a dose of personality. Galani restaurant specializes in Brazilian cuisine, as does the modern Agraz Bar, which makes a killer caipirinha.

São Paulo's first boutique hotel, opened in 2001, remains the city's best, navigating a subtle line between classic luxury and urban cool with reserved aplomb. It's housed in a tall, narrow tower hotel located on the continent's most fashionable street, Rua Oscar Freire, that is full of top-end boutiques, galleries, cafes and restaurants. But particularly winning are the hotel's personalized touches, delicate detail and scattered Asian influence throughout.

The understated lobby is small per the architecture, with limited lounge seating by the Campana Brothers under the nose of a hanging cocoon-like art installment by Siron Franco. An expansive glass-enclosed suspended orchid garden covers one wall in its entirety, announcing straightaway: Brazil. A narrow corridor houses the lobby bar before leading to the small Champagne and caviar bar, part of the very private Italian restaurant space, where another rainforest wall dominates.

The 904-square-foot suites, of which there are 18, are the way to go here, outfitted in masculine tones and rich wooden accents offset by funky contemporary furniture designs like golden cotton rope chairs by the Campana Brothers. Eames chairs and Italian leather sofas are here as well, helping to maintain the balance between timeless and trendy. Modcons like Japanese toilets with temperature-controlled seats share space in the Carrera marble bathrooms with claw-foot bathtubs; elsewhere, 40” LCD screen TVs keep the tech in check while a bottle of red and daily seasonal fruits are standard amenities. There's no pool, but a full-service spa rights your wrongs on the mezzanine.

Rumor has it the owners run a very tight ship so perfection is the norm from a service standpoint, executed by stylish staff decked out in café-colored Ocimar Versolato-designed attire – as smart as the street itself, São Paulo's most discerning.

Leonardo DiCaprio and Gisele Bündchen made this property famous years ago, which means, unfortunately, that if you are not a regular or have one who is willing to pull some strings, it can be nearly difficult to secure a room during the high period.

The main house was once the private residence of legendary Brazilian singer Gal Costa and now houses a dining room, living room and TV room. Its verandah, lined with rocking chairs, faces a fabulous pool and beyond it a twenty-mile long white sand beach. The décor is typical beach chic with lots of white linens, mosquito-net draped beds and Indian crafts or bright pillows to add a splash of color. The twenty-eight guestrooms are located in cottages fanning out around the property. Twenty of the rooms are doubles with small verandahs in the garden and eight are larger Master Suites some with private pools and one with a sweeping view of the ocean. Huge daybeds surround the pool area and a giant thatched hut on the dunes has comfortable seating for those who want to get out of the sun without leaving the beach scene. There’s a small gym and boutique and the concierge can arrange water sports and excursions. No children under eleven are permitted.

Tip: Whether you stay here or elsewhere, be sure to come for lunch at one of the tables between the pool and the dunes and to stop in at the small Richard’s outpost for some shopping.

This luxury hotel, opened in 2007, is the oceanfront offshoot of one of São Paulo’s most prestigious addresses. With eighty-nine rooms and suites, Fasano Rio has spectacular views of Ipanema Beach and one of the sexiest rooftop pools in South America.

A joint effort by Rojerio Fasano and Philippe Starck, the property features a design scheme that is contemporary-sleek with a funky twist. Accommodations are inherently masculine in feel, encapsulated in floor-to-ceiling dark wood with leather accent chairs and black-and-white photographs. Touches by Starck – a kidney-shaped mirror above the bed and two tree-stumps as side tables – add a bit of whimsy. Ocean-front accommodations above the fifth floor are highly recommended – the Fasano faces a noisy street – and include several deluxe rooms, seven suites and three open-plan deluxe suites with wrap-around terraces. A nice option for families or groups, the latter can be converted into mini apartments by adjoining a suite and superior room.

Amenities like Egyptian cotton linens and goose-down pillows, butler and limousine service, airport transfers and fully equipped workstations with broadband Internet bring 21st-century comfort to a late-’50s bossa-nova ambiance.

Restored to its original 1950s charm, this Portuguese-colonial residence is the sole hotel located inside the Brazilian area of Iguaçu National Park.

The Fasano family has been synonymous with top-end hospitality and gastronomy in Brazil since 1902, when Italian immigrant Vittorio Fasano opened his first restaurant, Brasserie Paulista, in São Paulo. The family's flagship hotel is saturated with archetypal Italian elegance in a 1930's style Modernist (yet discreet) building covered in an English red brick façade that hides travertine marble walls and antique furnishings that evoke a bygone era of post-Great Depression glamour.

The unorthodox lobby is peppered with Art Deco-era chandeliers over vintage leather armchairs – handpicked one-by-one by owner Rogério Fasano and famed Brazilian architect Isay Weinfeld in antique shops across England and France. The bar is placed front and center; the reception, flanked by a startling vintage World War II world map used by the US Army, is completely out of view behind the bar's back wall as to shield guests from the more public lobby. Bareto, the intimate jazz bar, is hidden away to the left; Fasano, the award-winning signature restaurant, occupies similar real estate to the right.

Each of the hotel's 20 floors is home to just four rooms, all acoustically-retrofitted for soundproof solitude. The subdued décor provides an air of days gone by, with retro furnishings (Art Deco nightstands, Eames chairs) and Italian embellishment (white marble bathrooms, Venetian-framed paintings, Murano vases). Jardins Europa, the city's greenest and most lavish neighborhood, is exquisitely framed outside each of the hotel's 60 rooms and suites. A rooftop pool, fitness center and small spa claim similar points of view.

Throughout the hotel, no detail is left to chance – even the fire extinguisher signage comes across as fine art rather than obnoxious adherence to fire codes.

Opened in 2008, this property is located in a lovingly restored historic fazenda, or mansion, in the hip Santa Teresa neighborhood (akin to Brooklyn in New York). Set up a hill about twenty minutes inland from the beach, the Santa Teresa is a stylish enclave that offers a more intimate, boutique experience than that of the Fasano or Copacabana.

The forty-one hotel rooms showcase a gorgeous Brazilian contemporary design – the use of materials such as wild cotton, tropical wood, stone, and natural linens give the interiors an organic aesthetic. Each room showcases art pieces by a range of Brazilian designers, and is equipped with modern-day amenities such as LCD TVs and WIFI. Junior suites offer an adequate amount space, wooden four-poster beds and prime placement within the hotel for better views. The Loft Suite has a terrace with panoramic vistas over the city.

The Santa Teresa’s focus on food and wine is evident in the Térèze restaurant and bohemian bar/lounge. Where more attention should be paid is on service, which oftentimes is non-existent. The pool area is small and nothing special, but perfectly enjoyable with views of the city. The French owners are committed to sustainable tourism so are involved in a number of philanthropic community projects in Rio.

The moment Hotel Unique (pronounced Unique-y) comes into view, you quickly understand something different this way comes. Famed Brazilian-Japanese architect Ruy Ohtake wasn't going for subtlety when he built this ultra-trendy, 95-room boutique hotel shaped like a slice of watermelon in order to seize commanding 360° city views from higher floors.

Guests enter through an imposing 25-foot high, 650-pound double entrance door into a glass-framed, open-spaced lobby that certainly feels more MOMA than hotel. Minimalist Italian chairs by Fendi and trendy loungeware by Gaetano Pesce and Hugo Franca lead to a 300-bottle, 36 foot–high Lobby Bar and adjacent library, stocked full of books on architecture, design and fashion. Glance skyward the sky-lit atrium frames a top floor water mirror.

Criminally unlit, curved hallways lead to rooms which are iPod-white from top to bottom, save the slanted hardwood infinity flooring which curves up the side wall in the suites – it is here, a direct result of the curved nature of the building itself, that the TV is mounted. Bathrooms feature a collapsible window separating the bathtub with the bed, allowing for interesting viewing should one chose. As expected, modcons are ubiquitous, including newly introduced Apple TV consoles in every room.

On the roof, the real coup: Skye Bar, a hip lounge and restaurant, which gives way to the 25m-long open-air infinity pool – lipstick red and featuring an underwater soundtrack – that only stops when the astonishing views of downtown São Paulo come into focus across the green-swept Jardims Europa neighborhood.

Close to the business district and the Jardins neighborhood, L’Hotel Porto Bay offers a European boutique hotel experience in bustling São Paulo. The marble-floored lobby is decorated with refined gold accents and features a luxury-brand showroom and a valuable art collection.

Outfitted in luxurious Egyptian cotton sheets, L’Occitane bath products, and designed in a warm, classic style, the accommodations provide a serene base within the city. The rooms are comfortable and stylish, and the suites offer two bathrooms, making them feel very spacious.

There is a beautiful indoor pool area surrounded by large plants and stylish loungers, as well as a full-service spa and a fitness center. Trebbiano Ristorante features Mediterranean cuisine and serves a lavish breakfast buffet, and il Piano Bar opens in the late afternoon for cocktails.

Santa Teresa is Rio’s Montmartre—a funky, colorful hillside neighborhood with fabulous views of central Rio, interesting bars and restaurants (including a local favorite, chef Ana Castilho’s Aprazível) and a lively community of artists and musicians. No wonder French-born owner Jean-Michel Ruis felt right at home here and turned a lovingly restored 19th-century bourgeois mansion into a seven-room bed and breakfast with 360-degree views of Guanabara Bay. A personalized airport transfer service can be arranged for a small fee. Rooms are basic, but each offers funky design elements and are large given the size of the property. A small courtyard and pool enjoys picturesque views of the city and ocean.

When Ponta dos Ganchos opened in 2002, Brazilian couples flocked from São Paulo and Rio in search of the ultimate romantic escape. Located twenty miles north of the surf capital of Florianopolis, the resort has been the essence of relaxed elegance from the start.

All this has been achieved by the visionary brother-and-sister hoteliers Nicolas and Virginia Peluffo. The siblings collaborated with their father to orchestrate the construction of the original fifteen Superior and Deluxe bangalos overlooking the ocean, spread across a spectacular peninsula with a small private beach. Since then, they have added a total of ten uberluxe Villas and Emerald Villas in 2004 and 2008 respectively. Villas and Emerald Villas (the rooms to get) are decadent open-plan suites, equipped with fireplaces, indoor Jacuzzis, wood-paneled saunas and outdoor plunge pools with stunning vistas of the surrounding green and turquoise water.

The pace of the resort is very slow and beguiling, which draws a lot of couples and honeymooners. Hike to the nearby fishing village, boat out to get fresh oysters and mussels, relax on the beach or have an open-air massage in one of three water-side treatment rooms. In fact, many guests never leave the sanctity of their bungalows, except to enjoy a world-class meal by the property’s star chef Luis Salvajoli. Ponta dos Ganchos deserves its position high on the lists of those seeking a relaxing retreat for two.

For those who don’t have to be right next to the beach, Pousada Etnia is a small hotel near Trancoso’s Quadrado. The palm shaded property features eight themed bungalows, most of which are named after exotic locales; and all of which have mosquito net-draped beds. The Marrocos room has white-washed walls and Arabic design elements. In the Tribal cottage, wooden African spears hang over stools with leopard-pattern upholstery. The pousada, or main house, fronts a small pool and is known for its stylish boutique (now located on the Quadrado), and hammocks are strategically hung from palms in serene spots. Children under 14 years are not allowed.

With sweeping black onyx beams in the spacious lobby, Tivoli Mofarrej is a sleek and modern hotel consisting 220 rooms and three restaurants, as well as a spa, gym and pool. Located in the fashionable Jardins district and overlooking the lush Trianon Park and the cityscape, Tivoli is a luxe spot favored by business travelers.

The rooms are comfortable and spacious, designed in the black and neutral tones found throughout the hotel. The top accommodation at Tivoli is the enormous and luxurious Mofarrej presidential suite, which has three bedrooms and bathrooms, a dining area, gym, kitchen and private elevator and offers spectacular views over São Paulo.

The hotel also offers a stylish pool area complete with a circular orange pool and large cabana tents, a glass-enclosed fitness center and a Banyan Tree spa. Three restaurants live within the hotel: dinner is served at the fine-dining choice Arola Vintetres and a more relaxed French-inspired breakfast and lunch is available at Bistro Tivoli. Nara Lounge, a cool spot for drinks and cocktails, offers views of the pool and gardens.

The brainchild of Diesel Creative Director, Wilbert Das, UXUA is made up of nine one-, two-, and three- bedroom casas, over half of which date back to the 16th century Jesuit settlement of the region. After a careful and loving restoration of these units, four additional ones were constructed and all subsequently outfitted with reclaimed materials, local handicrafts as well as Bahian antiques and art.

The resulting décor and ambiance is whimsical, barefoot-beach chic, with a strong and indigenous sense of place. Each casa is a private abode and all are equipped with a dining area, private garden or patio, indoor and outdoor bathrooms, kitchens or kitchenettes and King-sized beds with 600 thread-count Egyptian cotton linens most of which are draped in dreamy mosquito netting. LCD Flatscreens are surreptitiously hidden in each, though doubtfully are ever sought out or switched on.

Four units front the main square, awash in colors like mint green and magenta, while three surround the main restaurant and aventurine crystal-encrusted swimming pool. An additional two are located near the main entrance, where the property boasts a three-treatment room spa, dance studio and small fitness center.

A seven- to ten-minute walk down a dirt road leads guests to UXUA’s rustic beach lounge, the UXUA Praia Bar, housed within a shipwrecked fisherman’s boat under a thatched palapa.

Offering the very epitome of Trancoso – the pulsing rhythm of its Quadrado and access to world-renowned white-sand praias – UXUA is arguably the best address in Bahia.

Many wealthy South Americans have weekend or vacation houses on the islands of Angra. We have access to an interesting portfolio of properties that vary in their availability. Indagare members should contact our Bookings Team for help finding the property that is right for them.