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Most people don’t think luxury when it comes to backpacker-style lodgings, but Adler Hostel proves that you can go a little bit posh without the hefty price tag. Located in the bustling heart of Singapore’s Chinatown district, the hostel’s dorms are furnished in a range of elegant themes. Each capsule-style bed is surprisingly spacious and houses all the right creature comforts – think plump pillows, universal power points, clothes hangers, a personal locker and a curtain for privacy.
The tea and juice bar offers an ever-changing breakfast menu and leads to a cosy lounge area perfect for relaxing or meeting fellow travellers. If you can bring yourself to leave your cocoon of comfort, there’s a plethora of restaurants and shops just outside the door. You’ll be hard pressed to find better bang for your buck.
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Where to rest your head at night
Relax, it’s island time
Yes, the 4000 hectares of limestone karsts bursting from the ocean make it look like Krabi in Thailand, but you won’t find nearly the same number of gawkers in the Caramoans, about 500 kilometres south-east of Manila.
There are 10 principal islands with pristine white-sand beaches and lush peaks where you can snorkel, kayak, trek and rock climb far from the tourist hordes. There is one main spot, Gota Village Resort, where you can rent rustic cabanas and more upscale villas on a private cove, but there aren’t any discos to frequent when the sun goes down. If watching fireflies lights up your life, though, this could be your idea of heaven.
Crazy House
Get set for a kooky kip at the Crazy House in Dalat, the charming French-inspired mountain city popular with Vietnamese honeymooners. Described as a work Gaudi may have created if he’d dropped some acid, the Crazy House (its original name is Hang Nga Villa) stretches the boundaries of architectural creativity, then abandons them altogether.
Tunnels, walkways and ladders connect a labyrinth of rooms brought together using wire, wood and a generous coating of concrete to resemble a whimsical tree house. It all sounds a bit ramshackle, but has architectural credibility. Owner Dang Viet Nga, daughter of former Vietnamese president Truong Chinh, has a PhD from the University of Architecture in Moscow, and her guesthouse is a continually evolving labour of love.
Sleep under the stars in Oman
In the highest sand dunes of Oman’s Wahabi desert lies Desert Nights Camp, the ultimate Arabian glamping experience. Marvel at the majesty and isolation of the desert landscape as you take part in some of the activities, including sunset camel rides, dune boarding and visits to local souqs and ancient forts.
In the evening take your place on a pillow around the campfire, listen to traditional Omani music and delight in dates and local coffee.
Sleep under the desert stars in tents woven from Omani goat hair and forget about the worries of the modern world. This camp is not without its luxuries, as each of the deluxe tents has an ensuite bathroom, living room and outdoor sitting area. Dinner of authentic Omani cuisine is served beneath the sails in the restaurant.
This sand sojourn will leave you entranced by the wonders of the Arabian Desert and reluctant to get back to reality.
Sanctuary Gorilla Forest Camp
No nature experience is more primal and stirring that staring into the eyes of a gorilla and seeing your soul reflected back in the gaze of your ancient, primate ancestors.
Hidden deep within the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest of southern Uganda, the Sanctuary Gorilla Forest Camp is a pure jungle awakening. Get back to nature among the mountainous terrain of volcanoes and waterfalls, while residing within a natural, yet luxurious retreat.
Take a trek to seek out the marvellous mountain mammals; if you’re lucky, curious gorillas may even venture into the campgrounds for an up close and personal visit.
After a day of trekking, private bathtubs in the campsite overlooking the jungle canopy are perfect for soaking and wildlife spotting as you wind down for the night. The onsite spa uses natural South African indigenous plants and local produce, including avocadoes and bananas, for organic wellness in the wild.
Papatura Island Retreat
The owners of Papatura Island Retreat fell in love with the Solomons on a trip one year and then took 20 years to find the perfect location for their retreat. There are four types of rustic bungalows, including ones perfect for families and even honeymooners.
There’s great fishing and snorkelling, but the surfers really love it here. There are more than 10 reef breaks – the furthest is just a 20-minute boat ride away – and none of them is ever crowded. The resort has plenty of boards, including SUPs, available for use by guests. The locals also benefit from your stay, as the resort pays for the privilege of using the local waterways.
Ship in the ice
It seems pointless forking out a fortune for a night on a motionless ship. Not so with the Noorderlicht. From spring to autumn this 100-year-old Norwegian schooner sails the world, but in winter she returns to the fjords of Svalbard, north of the Arctic Circle, and the embrace of enclosing ice.
With Temple Mountain as a backdrop, the Ship in the Ice offers travellers a taste of life as a polar pioneer, without forgoing modern comforts like electricity, hot water and a bar. You will need them after your epic adventure to get here. From Longyearbyen, the northernmost town in the world, it’s a 60-kilometre slog on a snowmobile or dogsled through a wonderland of fjords and mountains in –30°C, plus wind chill. When you arrive, the Dutch couple living on board will welcome you into one of 10 cosy cabins, fill your belly with a three-course meal and bring you up to date on sightings of the King of the Arctic, the famed polar bear.
Sleep in the clouds
It looks like a discarded piece of space junk marooned beneath the face of Grandes Jorasses in the Italian Alps, but this funky fibreglass capsule overhanging the Mont Blanc mountain range is possibly the world’s coolest climbers’ shelter. A night at the futuristic Bivacco Gervasutti costs just 10 euros, but promises million-euro views of the Freboudze glacier. Trust us, if you make it here you’ve earned them.
The 30-square-metre pod replaced an old wooden hut in 2011 and was built in the Italian town of Torino before being choppered into place at 2835 metres. Just as impressive as the location are the capsule’s high-tech specs; a CO2 censor and extractor, bio-toilet, computer and wi-fi facilities fit snuggly inside, along with lights and hot plates charged by a solar panel.
Bunker down in the Arctic Snow Hotel
You’ve heard of ice hotels, frozen bars and frosted restaurants, but Finland’s Arctic Snow Hotel says a little prayer to the winter gods with its very own ice chapel. Before hitting the hay – a frozen slab covered in furs – unwind in the hot tub then take a turn in the snow sauna. The melting walls fill the room with soothing steam, but overstay the 15-minute limit and you’ll defrost a puddle of trouble.
Turn on the aurora alarm when you get to your room and sleep soundly knowing you won’t miss any night-sky action. If an evening on ice isn’t your jam, book one of the hotel’s new Arctic Glass Igloos and watch the northern lights snake through the sky from the comfort of your bed.
Alpine spa days
Way up in the mountains the words Aqua Dome must mean relaxation with a view, because that’s exactly what’s on offer here, near Oberlängengeld in the Austrian state of Tirol. This wellness hotel and thermal spa is brimming with saunas (there’s one with hay, and another in a loft), hot pools, a steam cathedral, saltwater grotto, herbal bath and indulgent pampering possibilities back at the spa, making it more than just a spot to catch some Zs after a long day on the slopes.
Take a dip under the cascading indoor waterfall before venturing through the canals leading to the bowl-shaped pools outside. Teetering on stilts up to 12 metres high, the pools appear suspended in the air, like a spaceship levitating through the Alps. Who would have thought floating in futuristic bowls could be so relaxing?
