5 luxuriously chic eco-friendly hotels

Happy Earth Day! While we know you’re going to spend the day composting, recycling and switching to energy-efficient light bulbs, you’ll probably also be dreaming of your next exotic vacation. Guess, what? You don’t have to sacrifice luxury to be environmentally sound. Here are six eco-friendly hotels and other lodgings that will pamper you silly while simultaneously hugging the planet.

Plus: Check out eight destinations that totally own spring.

1. Bardessono, California
LEED platinum is a rare certification among U.S. hotels (only three have them) and the Bardessono, in California’s bucolic Napa Valley, has earned it and for just reason: The hotel uses solar panels, woods milled from salvaged trees, organic linens and cleaning supplies, recycling and composting programs throughout and the restaurant and spa source their products primarily from local organic or sustainable producers. Plus the “Drive the Day Away” package includes complimentary use of a Lexus—hybrid of course. Fast, furious and eco-chic!

2. Rafayel on the Left Bank, London:
It sounds so Parisian doesn’t it? And yet this eco-chic hotel and spa on the banks of the Thames River places visitors squarely in London’s Battersea neighborhood. Putting its green money where its mouth is, the Rafayel has an entire program called Planet Care devoted to the hotel’s eco-consciousness including low-consumption air conditioning systems, LED lighting schemes, captured rainwater used as plant irrigation, organic and fair trade mini-bar products and more. Carve out some “you” time using the hotel’s jet lag recovery system or wading in the hydrotherapy pool.

Hotel Rafayel, London

3. Gaia Hotel and Reserve, Costa Rica
The villas at this luxury eco-lodge sparkle, not that they can compete with the stunning views of surrounding Manuel Antonio National Park and its diverse wildlife (monkeys, anyone?). The Gaia Hotel maintains a steadfast commitment to sustainable tourism as evidenced by its programs of intelligent consumption of water and energy, the reutilization of waste, composting and participation in programs like the rescue of local species and regeneration of forests and protection of the national park. There’s also an onsite spa, swimming pool and fitness center. But seriously, just get a load of those hilltop views.

Gaia Hotel and Reserve, Costa Rica

4. ITC Maurya, India
Is this the greenest luxury hotel in the world? The upscale ITC Maurya in New Delhi seems to think so. Not that we’re arguing with its commitment to “responsible luxury” given the fact that it was handed the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) award in 2010 and also locally sources much of the food served in its restaurant. The dizzyingly large ITC includes 438 guestrooms and suites, five restaurants, two bars, a tea lounge, spa and garden. We wonder, does anyone ever find a reason to leave?

ITC Maurya, New Delhi

5. Six Senses Hideaway, Thailand
Seaside tropical adventure in Thailand’s Phang Nga Bay? Check. Upscale accommodations, dining and spa all in one place? Check. Environmental integrity? Check. Six Senses Hideaway in southwest Thailand has carefully tiptoed around the former rubber plantation on which it was built by leaving many of the preexisting trees intact, regenerating the tropical flora as it would have been before the plantation existed and the planting of 3,000 mangrove seedlings for educational purposes. The hotel also favors locally sourced and environmentally sound products wherever possible. And just wait until you see the open-air villa-style accommodations and their accompanying views. Holy cow.

Six Senses, Thailand

Tagged: California, Europe, Family time, Hotels