Six Sustainable Hotels Around Nature — The World’s Best Hotels for Restorative Escapes
A list of six sustainable hotels around the world, with prices, our editor’s reasons for recommending each one, and the highlights you can enjoy during your stay.
Six Sustainable Hotels around Nature — The World’s Best Hotels for Restorative Escapes in the Wild
A list of sustainable hotels that blend naturally into their surroundings for a truly restorative stay.
Words Parc Jinmyoung
Steeped in the Traditions and Landscape of Northern Italy’s Langhe
Casa di Langa
📍Location: Langhe region, Piedmont, northern Italy
🛏Rooms: Doubles to quads; extra beds available on request
✔️Key points: Solar and geothermal energy as main power sources, 100 percent recycled irrigation water, architecture inspired by traditional Piedmontese buildings
🏷Why we recommend it: Surrounded by forests, hills, and vineyards, it immerses guests in the Italian countryside. Local cultural experiences include cooking classes using produce from the hotel garden, a wine academy built around some 6,000 bottles in the cellar, and white truffle hunting with hunting dogs.
💰Price: From 455 euros per night
🗓Booking: www.casadilanga.com
Glamping in the Heart of a European Forest
Nuchel Alsace
📍Location: Alsace, France, and the Ardennes, Belgium
🛏Rooms: About 30 cozy cabins sized for two to six guests
✔️Key points: Candles and oil lamps so guests can enjoy the falling stars and the Milky Way; a private jacuzzi or shared bathtub for guests; activities such as cycling through the forest villages.
🏷Why we recommend it: Old buildings were renovated using more than 3,000 tons of recycled materials.
💰Price: From 95 euros per night
🗓Booking: www.nutchel.be
A Digital Detox in the Real Wild
Three Camel Lodge
📍Location: Southern Gobi Desert, Mongolia
🛏️Rooms: 40 gers in total
✔️Key points: 100 percent solar power; an in-house program that composts paper, bottles, cans, and other waste in an organic greenhouse; more than 50 percent of the food used at the lodge sourced within 80 kilometers; 100 percent local staff; support for Mongolian paleontology; partnerships with organizations protecting Bankhar dogs, snow leopards, and golden eagles.
🏷️Why we recommend it: A Wi-Fi-free digital detox; a night in an eco-friendly ger built without nails, using natural stone and local materials; a taste of Mongolian cultural heritage through traditional furniture made by local artisans; and ancient Mongolian dishes reinterpreted for today.
💰Price: From $1,770 for two nights
🗓️Booking: www.threecamellodge.com
A Symbol of Sustainable Luxury
Gaia Hotel and Reserve
📍 Location: Quepos, Costa Rica
🛏️ Rooms: A variety of room types, including studios and villas
✔️ Key points: Buildings constructed with locally sourced materials; energy savings through solar panels and energy-efficient appliances; active contributions to ecosystem conservation and restoration through a reforestation project and waste-reduction programs; named a nominee for ‘World’s Leading Green Hotel’ at the 2022 World Travel Awards.
🏷️ Why we recommend it: A setting with stunning views of the rainforest; rooms designed to make the most of natural light and ventilation; an on-site restaurant that delivers farm-to-table dining with local organic ingredients; free guided tours of Manuel Antonio National Park, a nature reserve.
💰 Price: From about $248
🗓️ Booking: www.gaiahr.com
A Hotel for Learning Ubud’s Way of Life and Great Natural Surroundings
Buahan, a Banyan Tree Escape
📍Location: Ubud, Bali, Indonesia
🛏Rooms: Private villas with one of three views: riverside, valley, or forest
✔️Key points: A ‘no-walls, no-doors’ concept amid rice paddies and lush jungle north of Ubud; activities include a 20-kilometer bike ride on Mount Batur and Tri Hita Karana, a tour of the village in a vintage car to experience Bali’s local philosophy.
🏷Why we recommend it: A sustainable open kitchen built on zero-waste and farm-to-table concepts, using local ingredients from small regional producers or grown on the resort’s own farm.
💰Price: From about $909 per night
🗓Booking: https://escape.banyantree.com/
Melting into the African Wilderness
Singita Lebombo Lodge
📍Location: Kruger National Park, South Africa
🛏️Accommodations: 2 lodges and 23 villas
✔️Key points: Built with natural materials that would leave no trace on the land if the structures were removed; single-use items banned throughout the lodge; more than 70 percent of the energy used on the property comes from renewable energy generated by a solar power plant installed in Kruger National Park; more than 90 percent of all staff are hired locally, creating jobs for the community.
🏷️Why we recommend it: A building design inspired by an eagle’s nest; a cliffside setting facing the river, with a layout that maximizes natural light so sunlight reaches deep inside the lodge; encounters with wildlife living in the national park, including lions, leopards, cheetahs, elephants, and rhinos; an on-site restaurant serving traditional local dishes made with ingredients grown in the lodge’s herb garden.
💰Price: From $1,900
🗓️Booking link: singita.com
