Brown Hotels Group added a stunning new property to its luxury portfolio in Israel. The Villa Brown Jerusalem is a 24-room home-away-from-home located a quick, five-minute stroll to Old City, close to the hip and bustling Mahane Yehuda food market. Once a private villa, the space now offers an underground bar, restaurant, outdoor terraces and opulently appointed rooms and suites. The hotel’s contemporary interior décor is defined by lush jewel tones, while the 19^th-century building blends Neoclassical, Ottoman and eclectic design elements and exposed stone from the original walls, reimagined by Jerusalem-based architects Galit Shifman Bar-Natan and Michal Cohen Magen.

Nearby sites include a collection of art galleries and museums, fashionable cafés, notable restaurants and stylish bars. Daily breakfast and brunch are served on the open-air veranda, while high tea can be enjoyed each day at 5 p.m. in the leafy garden. Besides meeting facilities and the brand’s signature lobby library, there’s a rooftop terrace and lounge where guests can also enjoy spa therapies and a Jacuzzi open to the sky. Classic regional dishes with an international edge fill the menu at Garden Bistro-Café, while the subterranean Cave Bar fills a space once a cistern. Guests can forego water; however, and enjoy a wide selection of seasonal cocktails, Israeli and international wines, and a menu of beers.