Who said all it takes for a good night’s sleep is a comfy bed? Irhal has put together the top 8 really, really cool hotels from around the world to inspire your adventurous side – and perhaps convince you to pay a visit this summer.
8. Taj Lake Palace, Udaipur
Located on the island of Jag Niwas in Lake Pichola, Udaipur, India, the Taj Lake Palace is one of the most romantic and luxurious hotels in the world.
Built between 1743- 1746 under the direction of the Maharana Jagat Singh II (62nd successor to the royal dynasty of Mewar) of Udaipur as a royal summer palace, the hotel is made out of white marble and features beautiful majestic architecture. The successive rulers used this cool haven as their summer resort, holding their regal durbars in its courtyards lined with columns, pillared terraces, fountains and gardens.
Taj Lake Palace features rooms with beautifully-carved wooden furniture and luxurious silk fabrics. Along with beautiful garden or lake views, each room comes with butler services.
Pontoon restaurant arranges for private meals on a floating platform, while Gangaur offers dining on small boats with meals prepared in a floating open kitchen. Mewar Terrace offers a dining experience overlooking the City Palace, Lake Pichola and the Monsoon Palace.
7. Treehotel, Sweden
If you are one of those people who always wanted a treehouse when you were younger, just to have a place of your own, you’ll definitely love this.
Treehotel, located in Harads near the Lule river, about 100 kilometers from Luleå airport, offers a unique hotel experience: treerooms with contemporary design in the middle of unspoiled nature. Here you can forget about the time constraints of everyday life, enjoy the serenity, and rejuvenate in a sophisticated yet familiar environment.
When you arrive at Treehotel, you check in at Britta’s Pensionat. Then it’s just a short stroll through the beautiful nature to your room up on a tree.
The most striking part of Harads is its magnificent surroundings. From Treehotel’s rooms you get a fantastic view of the Lule River valley, miles of forest and the river.
6. Attrap’Rêves Hotel, France
You know the saying. ‘you’re living in your own bubble’? Well, this hotel actually lets you experience it. The innovative Attrap’Reves Hotel consists of habitable plastic bubble domes and was built using recyclable materials.
These transparent bubbles are maintained by a silent blower which allows fresh air in continuously. It requires a power source which represents no more than 55-watt. At the end of the season, the bubble is deflated without any impact on Mother Nature.
There are only six bubbles available, and each bubble has its own identity and the decor that varies depending on the ambiance you want: Zen, Love Nature, Glamour, 1001 nights or Chic & Design. The Attrap’Rêves promises your intimacy is completely protected, by providing a coverup for the bubble, should you want to use it.
5. Icehotel, Sweden
The original Icehotel in Sweden, was founded in 1989. It’s an art exhibition and hotel made completely out of natural ice and snow from one of Europe’s last wild rivers, 200km north of the Arctic Circle.
The walls, floors and ceilings of this hotel is a canvas of designers from all creative disciplines. The artists and art work vary from year to year, each rendition of the hotel presenting an ephemeral collection.
Visitors can observe the Northern Lights during their stay at this unique and beautiful hotel. Keep in mind, the hotel melts completely in Spring.
4. Jade Screen tower Hotel, China
Book a stay at this hotel and you’re literally living at the top of the world.
To get to this mountain-top hotel you have to climb up 60,000 steps – or take the easy way out and cable car it. If you choose to climb the stairs, fair warning it might be the most daring thing you’ll ever do. You’ll begin by traveling through the cleft of the cliff known as the Thread of Sky, continuing on up the mountain to mere shoulder-width apart areas, and soon you’re surrounded by nothing but air – with two sheer drops either side.
But the views worth it. Get a 360 on China’s serene Huanhshan mountain range complete with the rising and setting sun. It’s an ancient site, thick with lore, and there’s a pine tree nearby believed to be 1,500 years old. There’s also a sauna and massage centre in the hotel, perfect for soothing those aches and pains picked up whilst trekking through this dramatic terrain.
3. Hotel Costa Verde, Costa Rica
This hotel is a refurbished vintage 1965 Boeing 727 airframe, which in its prior life shuttled globetrotters on South Africa Air and Avianca Airlines (Colombia). The fully outfitted, meticulously detailed, two bedroom Boeing 727 fuselage suite jets out from the jungle canopy, affording you views that will make you feel like you’re up in the air.
Furnishings are hand-carved, teak furniture from Java, Indonesia. The 727 home features two air conditioned bedrooms: one with two queen sized beds and the other with one queen sized bed, each with its own private bath, flat screen TV, a kitchenette, dining area foyer; an ocean view terrace; a private entrance up a river rock, spiral staircase; and 360 degrees of surrounding gardens.
Pretty crazy.
2. Giraffe Manor, Kenya
Giraffe Manor is one of Nairobi’s most iconic buildings: characterful, picturesque, and enveloped in history like the foliage creeping over its brickwork. Set in 12 acres of private land within 140 acres of indigenous forest in the Langata suburb of Nairobi, and with verdant green gardens, sunny terraces and delightful courtyards, it harks back to the 1930s when European visitors first flocked to East Africa to enjoy safaris. With its stately façade and elegant interior, Giraffe Manor has an extraordinary appeal.
The most fascinating thing about Giraffe Manor is not its beautiful façade or elegant interiors: it’s the herd of resident Rothschild giraffe. These beautiful creatures often visit morning and evening, poking their long necks into the windows in the hopes of a treat, before retreating to their forest sanctuary.
That’s right, you’re basically having dinner with a giraffe.
1. Adrère Amellal, Egypt
Adrere Amellal makes the top of our list because of how beautiful and unique it is. Situated at the foot of the White Mountain, this hotel is a secluded desert ecolodge made up of earth buildings that blend naturally and beautifully into the landscape, like a hidden gem. Its pristine location offers direct access to the salt lake as well as the Great Sand Sea.
Each one of the hand-built 43 rooms is unique, combining distinction and authenticity. All the furniture and crafts pay tribute to nature and to talented local artisanship. With no electricity, the rooms are softly lit with a dozen beeswax candles and the starry sky.
The hotel is located in the Siwa Oasis in Egypt, home to ancient historical ruins and unique cultural traditions that have been maintained for thousands of years. Famed as the location of the Oracle of Amon, whom Alexander the Great consulted before continuing his Persian conquest, Siwa exists today much as it always has; boasting majestic rock formations, lush groves and brilliant salt lakes throughout the oasis.
