National Geographic Traveller (UK)
DESIGN DEN
One for design aficionados, this category champions the most striking stays conjured up by architects and interiors experts
Hoshino Resorts KAI Poroto, Japan
The forests and lakes of southern Hokkaido are an evocative setting for this ryokan-style hot springs resort, but it’s the island’s indigenous Ainu culture that’s the main inspiration behind the 2022 opening, set outside the town of Shiraoi. The Ainu have long lived in harmony with nature, and so the outside is very much brought inside at the 42-room resort, with each room overlooking peaceful Lake Poroto and incorporating plenty of silver birch and fresh, stone hues. The most distinctive feature, however, is the striking, cone-shaped bathhouse (sankakuno-yu) inspired by the architectural principles of ketunni (houses of the Ainu people). With sunbeams streaming through apertures in the roofs, you can bask in the dark, healing thermal waters of the lake. It’s not the only hot spring facility, either: the maru-no-yu bath is set beneath a domed ceiling with a central oculus that creates an almost spiritual space, somewhere between ancient temple and underground cave. From JPY 31,000 (£190), B&B. hoshinoresorts.com
RUNNERS-UP
CHISA BUSANGA CAMP, ZAMBIA
Although utterly serious about the environment, Green Safaris has a quirky, playful side, too, and their latest off-grid wilderness camp, Chisa Busanga, in Kafue National Park, proves it. Its ragged-edged, ball-shaped, treehouse-style rooms are inspired by the weaver bird nests that dangle merrily from trees and reeds all over Africa. Inside, you’ll be snug as a baby bird, waking to views of the Busanga Plains. Lowcarbon adventures await: there are guided bushwalks, e-bikes and the chance to tour in Green Safaris’ electric safari vehicles, charged by the sun. One guest room also has improved accessibility, courtesy of an electric lift. From US$700 (£570), full board, including activities. Open June to mid-November. greensafaris.com
MAYBOURNE RIVIERA, FRANCE
Claridge’s long-awaited Côte d’Azur cousin is manna for aesthetes. Designed by luminaries including André Fu and Bryan O’Sullivan, interiors are playful and unpretentious: in cheery cobalt-blue, squishy chairs envelop diners at Riviera Restaurant; while poolside sunloungers evoke the colours of an Aperol spritz. Other design delights are strewn throughout — most notably, the hotel’s museum-worthy art collection, which includes pieces by the likes of Louise Bourgeois. Still, nothing rivals the view. Cloud-free days mean terraces face the impossibly blue Mediterranean, with dazzling superyachts delineating sky and sea. From €750 (£630), room only. maybourneriviera.com