While the thought to leaving behind a negative carbon footprint can stop you from traveling, the thought that there are some places on earth that actually promote eco-tourism will be more than enough to urge you to pack your bags and travel. Here are 6 such hotels and resorts that promote eco-tourism and are considered the greenest in the world.
Caye, a Restorative Island
Yet to be opened, this eco-resort is owned by Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio. The resort will be a perfect mix of luxury and eco-friendliness, with spacious villas and infinity pools as well as artificial reefs and a marine grass nursery. These developments helped the island recover from issues like eroding coastlines and overfishing.
Maho Bay Camp in St. John, Virgin Islands
Considered as one of the best eco-friendly retreats in the world for over 30 years now, the Maho Bay Camp offers travelers the ultimate green experience. The resort features over 114 beach side tent cottages that have been hand built to retain the natural environment. The cottages are connected to each other as well as the common areas via elevated walkways to prevent soil erosion. In place of air conditioners, trade winds help cool the rooms. Even the bathhouses house eco-friendly utilities like biodegradable soaps and pull chain showers to drain the shower water into the vegetation nearby. In addition to reliving the green experience, guests can opt for relaxing beach walks and hikes on this nature preserve.
Fiji Resort in Savusavu
Image Source : Fiji-Savusavu.Com
This mind blowing resort is a true ode to green resorts worldwide. Owned by Jean Michel, the resort and the island it sits on is dedicated to protecting the surrounding land and sea as well as the hospitality and culture of the people of Fiji. Some of the resort’s eco-friendly amenities include a full scale recycling program, organic gardens that source the foods to the restaurants, waste water management system via recycled bottles and coconuts, and marine life protection programs, etc. all aimed at preserving the natural ecosystem around the island.
Dreams Los Cabos Suites Golf Resort and Spa in the Sea of Cortez
Featuring traditional Mexican architecture, this eco-friendly reserve doubles as a turtle conservation habitat. The resort takes extreme care to maintain and preserve natural onsite turtle nests in addition to releasing the hatched turtles safely into the sea. The resort also houses several other eco-friendly amenities and utilities, including desalinization plants to reuse ocean water for its water supply, and a kitchen oil recycling program to prevent pollution.
Whitepod Resort in Switzerland
Image Source : WhitePod.Com
The Whitepod resort in Switzerland offers travelers a chance to enjoy the Swiss Alps in an eco-friendly manner. Tucked away into the mountainside, the resort can be reached only via hiking in summer and snowshoe in winter. Completely free of cars as well as crowds, the Whitepod resort features individual pods built on top of wooden platforms so as to make the process of assembling and reassembling these pods more eco-friendly. The pods are covered in green and white canvases in summer and winter respectively so as to blend in with the natural surroundings. The resort also relies completely on local, natural and renewable energy sources for its functioning.
URBN Hotel in Shanghai, China
Talk about China and you will only think of it as the world’s most polluted country. However, there are some hidden eco-friendly retreats in the country that can offer travelers a marvelous green experience. Take the URBN Hotel in Shanghai for example. Considered to be China’s first ever carbon-neutral hotel, the URBN has been constructed from a renovated ware house using locally sourced/recycled materials. The rooms of the hotel feature many green amenities like air purification systems, beds made of natural materials, organic cleaning products and energy efficient cooling/heating systems.
A lot of resorts around the world are taking the initiative to become eco-friendly destinations. From recycling their water and using eco-friendly amenities in the rooms to conserving the natural resources around them, these resorts can be considered as the greenest in the world.