These Lodges Make Normal Hotels Look Boring

The Bolder Sky Lodge is about as close as you can get to sleeping a cloud.

Prior to 2010, people looked at the majestic Skjerafjell Mountain at Lysefjord in Norway’s southwest and probably thought, “how beautiful.” Fortunately for us, a man named Tom Norland looked at it and thought, “let’s put a cabin there.”

And now we have the Bolder Sky Lodge, perched 70 metres in the air, on the edge of a cliff, in between rocky mountains. With that in mind we think the Bolder Sky Lodge’s name is in reference to both its location and its daring.

There are two cabins, each 22 square metres of typically contemporary scandi-furnished living, that includes a kitchen, two bedrooms and a bathroom.

But it’s the wall to floor windows showcasing the most breathtaking views you are ever likely to get from somewhere you can stay that is the highlight here. Unbelievable.

From AU$610 per night.

At first glance, Skinopi Lodge could be a mirage. A blip on the horizon of an ancient, rocky landscape with the crystal blue waters of the Aegean in the distance.

Built into the slope above a tiny fishing village on Milos, this is quickly emerging as one of the most exotic and extraordinary islands in all of the Cyclades. The volcanic rocks used to construct the Skinopi turn this place into a modest, unassuming retreat offering absolute privacy and unparalleled cliff-edge tranquillity.

Milos is a Greek Island slowly gaining global attention, with its protected archaeological heritage and local coastal settlements of Klima and Mandrakia, where there are unbeatable (and undiscovered) local seafood and restaurants.

From AU$361 per night.

When get lost stayed at Freycinet Lodge, we got a knock on the door at 5pm on our first night for housekeeping. The ‘housekeeping’ turned out to be a complimentary shot of local whiskey, and some chocolate. We knew we were in our place.

This touch is one of several small details that takes Freycinet beyond any average nature lodge.

From the balcony of a gorgeous array of secluded rooms, you can see Freycinet’s jagged peaks, called The Hazards, and Richardson’s Beach, a quiet bay which backs onto the Tasman Sea that never seems to have more than about 10 people on it at one time.

You’re surrounded by gumtrees and the call of kookaburras, and the luxuriously-sized bath that backs onto a floor to roof window allows you to bask in all of that while completely starkers.

From AU$479 per night.

Ok, this one probably leans more toward ‘Wonderful’ than ‘Weird’. They don’t mince their words in Iceland, Panorama Glass Lodge is exactly what it sounds like: three glass lodges with panoramic views of epic, pristine Icelandic wilderness.

Like the Vikings hundreds of years before you, you get sunrises, sunsets, stars and the Northern Lights. Unlike the Vikings though, you get these from your bed… and you also get a hot tub, which we’re pretty sure they didn’t have.

From AU$790 per night.

Typing Yasawa into a search engine is enough to work out that this remote archipelago in the west of Fiji is an absolutely stunning patchwork of beaches, coral and dormant volcanos.

What a Google search won’t do is satisfy your quench for the ultimate beach holiday. For that you’ll need to head to Oarsman’s Bay Lodge on the northern tip of the islands, an impossibly attractive resort with recently renovated, simplistic ‘Bures’ and the happiest of Fijian smiles.

Turquoise waters and white sand beaches back up against volcanic peaks, with the tough decision of swimming, snorkelling, diving or laying in a hammock with a book.

For about AU$160 you can even rent out your own island for the day – ideal for honeymooners and lovebirds, or extreme introverts.

From AU$280 per night.

Mountain Lodge Telluride is like a sanctuary for adventurers, with a bunch of luxury log cabins, condos and suites literally tailored for gnar shredders of all kinds.

It’s out in true Western alpine-style amongst the towering San Juan Mountains, with fireplaces to share stoke and a beer around at days’ end.

The Lodge can help you organise pretty much every adrenaline-inducing activity that exists, from skiing and snowboarding, to snowmobiling and heli-skiing, sledding, fat-biking and more.

This place is hella pretty in the warmer months too, when there’s plenty of mountain biking, and the dining (in a massive, mountain-facing arched dining room with wall-to-floor windows) is exquisite all year round.

From AU$399 per day.

This national park isn’t like all the other national parks.

Why? Because you can find elephants swimming the waters here. Then there’s the local Vedda community, the earliest known inhabitants of Sri Lanka, who still stroll the forests as they have for thousands of years, climbing trees for food and living in harmony with crocodiles, turtles, monkeys and other animals.

There’s only nine humble bungalows at Gal Oya, so you’re not jostling with hordes of tourists in an attempt to get ‘the shot’. Wildlife geeks will rejoice at the wildlife research centre on-site, and people who eat food will rejoice at the local dishes served up on banana leaves every day. Living.

From AU$410 per night.