Seven Eco Hideaways

Eco Travel Africa
East Africa Itinerary
Each of EcoTravel Africa’s itineraries is tailored to the client’s individual requirements, and guarantees responsible travel, a contribution to environmental conservation and improvements to the wellbeing of the local communities in the areas visited. On the 17-day East Africa itinerary you’ll visit mountain gorillas in Rwanda, Uganda’s Queen Elizabeth National Park, the Masai Mara and Lewa Wildlife Conservancy in Kenya, and luxury lodges in the Zanzibar archipelago. ecotravelafrica.co.uk

Jetwing Vil Uyana
Sigiriya , Sri Lanka

From its inception, Sri Lanka’s Jetwing Vil Uyana has housed an onsite ecological research station to monitor the resort’s own, private nature reserve, so guests can be a part of ongoing conservation efforts. The reserve – a wetland system constructed on land destroyed by slash and burn agriculture – is integrated into the resort, with some of the stilted luxury rooms built over paddy fields re-grown using traditional methods. Jetwing has also initiated an English-teaching programme for local communities.
jetwinghotels.com

Nature & Kind
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Nature & Kind’s high-end adventure and experiential holidays are all founded on a commitment to responsible and sustainable tourism. The ‘Renewing Rio in Style’ itinerary takes in the city’s whole, vibrant spectrum, from boutique eco-luxury accommodation in the bohemian Santa Teresa neighbourhood to an inspirational volunteering project in Rio’s favelas. Travellers will get to build and fund a new house for an impoverished Carioca family, and see remarkable sights off the traditional tourist route including hidden-away beaches, street markets and an authentic samba club. natureandkind.com

The Scarlet
Mawgan Porth, Cornwall

You don’t have to travel far from Newquay to find an oasis of calm, luxury and environmental sustainability. The Scarlet’s eco-sensibilities are born of a genuine desire to minimise impact on the surroundings. This is manifested in some things you can see – clever design, including curved walls and a green roof, that blends the building into the surrounding cliffs – and those you can’t, like the biomass boiler used to heat the hotel, electricity supplied solely from renewable energy sources and produce and services from the local area.
scarlethotel.co.uk

Shamwari Reserve
Eastern Cape, South Africa

The 25,000-hectare Shamwari Game Reserve in South Africa’s Eastern Cape was founded by Port Elizabeth businessman Adrian Gardiner in the early 1990s. When Gardiner learned that much of the Eastern Cape’s wealth of flora and fauna had been wiped out by the early 20th century thanks to farming, hunting and drought, he set about returning the land to its former glory. The reserve, which operates an extensive conservation programme, now has more than 5,000 animals, including the ‘big five’ of lion, African elephant, cape buffalo, leopard, and rhinoceros. Seven luxury lodges, each different, are offered.
shamwari.com

Explora Rapa Nui
Easter Island, Polynesia

The Explora Rapa Nui lodge, built in 2007, was the first hotel in South America to be LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) certified by the US Green Building Council. Built on a site deemed inappropriate for agricultural use, and with no archaeological remains, the ingenious and attractive buildings are intended to have minimal impact on the surrounding area. Easter Island (or Rapa Nui) is perhaps best known for its 1,000-year-old human monoliths carved from volcanic rock, called ‘moai’, and the lodge has partnered with the Archaeological Travel Service of Chile to offer cultural and historical itineraries. These focus as much on the Rapa Nui’s rich history as its future, and the impact of human activity on the ecosystems and population of the island today.
explora.com/explora-rapa-nui

Maison Blanche et Verte
Châtel, France

Tucked away in the extensive Portes du Soleil ski area, the picturesque village of Châtel sits right on the border of France and Switzerland. In a lofty position overlooking the town and slopes you’ll find Maison Blanche et Verte, a designer six-bedroom ski chalet built to refreshingly eco-concious specs. No oil, gas or electricity is needed for heating or hot water provision thanks to a wood-pellet boiler that uses pellets made from sawdust and offcuts from local timber yards. These same yards provided much of the fast-growing local pine used to construct this new-build chalet. maisonblancheetverte.com