Green is the colour of spring and as we usher in the new season and make plans for the summer holidays, perhaps it is time to think of green as more than just the colour of spring and take into account the ecological credentials of our luxury getaways. With world’s resources getting ever so preciously scarce, these eco-hotels will make your stay not only idyllic but also eco-conscious.
Laguna Lodge, Guatemala
Near Mayan ruins nestled amid the mountains and jungles of Guatemala and overlooking Lake Atitlan, built from local materials, almost self sufficient in energy, water and food and with excellent community links, Laguna Lodge boasts impressive ethical credentials.
Laguna Lodge offers stunning views from every room, fresh and organic cuisine in the Zotz restaurant (beware, this is a meat-free zone), unique pursuits for adventure seekers like volcano hiking or high altitude lake diving, and the ultimate in seclusion and serenitya 3-hour journey and 10-minute boat ride away from civilisation.
Alila Villas, Uluwatu, Bali
An architectural masterpiece, balanced on a Balinese cliff, Alila Villas were built using recycled materials, designed to blend into the surrounding hilltops, whilst in keeping with the natural flora and fauna. With sustainable design features including water recycling, renewable energy and passive solar design, Alila Villas is also the first resort in Indonesia to obtain the highest level of certification from Green Globe for Environmentally Sustainable Design.
Boasting 61 stylish villas each with its own swimming pool and a personal butler at your beck and call 24 hours a day, a stunning 50 metre infinity pool, its tranquil location away from the hustle and bustle of backpackers’ Bali, this resort is also the perfect romantic hideout.
Lefay Resort and Spa, Italy
Set high on a terraced hillside above the pretty lakeside village of Gargnano, Lefay Resort and Spa is perfect for a luxury European getaway, but one with a conscious. Armed with Green Globe and numerous other green credentials, the resort boasts huge reductions in energy use and carbon emissions.
Ceiling to floor windows across the property allow for breathtaking views of the lake, while all 90 suites blanketed by greenery will make you feel at one with surrounding olive groves. The main attraction has to be the luxurious adults-only spa with two pools – an indoor/outdoor saltwater and a heated 25m outdoor – five types of sauna and steam rooms, Kniepp stream, ice fountain, fitness centre and 21 treatment rooms. Here you can linger in the outdoor section of the indoor-outdoor swimming pool to watch the sunset over Lake Garda.
The Scarlet, UK
Imagine the ethical thinking that goes into carefully relocating reptiles from the site before digging even begins for the foundations for a new hotel. This is exactly the kind of thinking that drives The Scarlet completed in 2009, which strives to minimise impacts on the environment.
Incorporating renewable energy sources, a green roof, abundant insulation and many other energy-saving features, the hotel atop the north Cornish cliffs is truly energy efficient with one of the greenest spas in the world, with the indoor pool purified with bromine and heated using solar thermal panels, and the cold-water outdoor pool naturally filtered by reeds. If you like your resort with stunning sea views, ultimate luxury, and ethical credentials, The Scarlet is just perfect for you.
Garonga Safari Camp
Located just west of South Africa’s world-famous Kruger National Park in Greater Makalali Conservation, a private 24,000-hectare wildlife reserve, Garonga Safari Camp’s green credentials go hand in hand with its location, an area of former farmland which is being returned to a more natural habitat. Not only does the park support management of the Greater Makalali private game reserve but it is also involved in the elephant contraception work and research being undertaken with the Greater Makalali.
Out of the two sleeping options, the Safari Camp, with six raised tents, which are more like canvas-roofed villas, is more eco-friendly while Little Garonga, with three luxury villas offers more style.
If you like the sound of open-air massages, a night under the stars and over the animals on the open-air tree deck, game drives to spot four of the Big Five – lion, elephant, leopard, rhino – all the while keeping ethical, check into the Garonga Safari Camp.
