Six Defining Movements in Contemporary Travel

Berlin - Looking to the year ahead, we’re diving deep into six mindful themes and placing a special focus on properties that follow suit. Specifically, we’re thinking about hotels that align themselves with the concepts of regenerative travel, cultural exchange, local experiences, conscious destinations, community wellbeing, and forward-thinking design and architecture. These six hotels—spread around the world, from a Maldivian atoll to a Finnish town to the jungles of the Mexican coast—embody these pillars.

Regenerative Travel at Patina Maldives

At Patina Maldives, Fari Islands in the North Malé Atoll, regenerative travel is about more than just resting one’s mind, body, and spirit: it’s also about circular thinking, stimulation, and growth. Here, such regeneration is present from the first night, when guests receive a personalized 3D-printed gummy vitamin designed by the British nutritional company Nourished. Sound therapy sessions are one of the standout treatments available at the spa, which also features a floatation tank, yoga pavilion, and hammam. Across all 12 dining options at the resort, an ethos of conscious cuisine is followed, compounded by the employment of a zero-waste approach and proactive carbon footprint reduction practices. An onsite organic garden provides much of the restaurants’ produce, and water is even filtered and bottled on-island. Visual stimulation comes in the form of a comprehensive art concept, including an artist-in-residence program, a site-specific installation by renowned artist James Turrell, and an island-wide collection of indoor and outdoor artworks curated by The Artling. Beyond the guest experience, a neighboring island known as the Fari Campus also hosts staff residences alongside an innovative program for employees focused on community, education, and engagement. Across all levels of operation, Patina Maldives is a place where travel is a force for good.

Cultural Exchange at Runo Hotel Porvoo

In Finland, Runo Hotel Porvoo revolves around the idea of teaching guests about local heritage and contemporary culture. In Finnish, the word runo itself translates to “poem” and sets the tone for the property, the façade of which dates to 1912 and depicts mythical figures from the “Kalevala,” the country’s national epic poem. Inside, much of the furniture was made by local craftspeople and also incorporates materials sourced from Original Erkka Hirvonen’s family estate in the nearby countryside: three-hundred-year-old pine flooring was repurposed to produce small bathroom benches and hundreds of old hay sticks were transformed into what are now towel ladders. Meanwhile, exemplary pieces of contemporary Nordic design were selected by Studio Joanna Laajisto and the country’s art scene is showcased in the ground-floor Living Room, which hosts rotating displays of artworks by young Finnish artists. The hotel’s food and beverage concepts also provide a journey into the local culture, as Hirvonen family recipes are used to make Karelian-style savory pies, decadent stews, and even an alcoholic spirit called Rutumin Ryyppy. With such offerings, guests experience a cultural exchange before even stepping foot outside.

Local Experiences at Vocabolo Moscatelli

Providing a deep engagement with the local environment, culture, and other travelers is Vocabolo Moscatelli in the quiet village of Calzolaro, Umbria. With a focus on rural tranquility and upscale regionality, Vocabolo is a place where one feels at home and can feel the great green heart of Italy beat,
 Original Frederik Kubierschky says. Guests can join Vocabolo friend Breon O’Farrell and his dog Wilma for an authentic truffle hunt, take pottery classes with a local ceramicist, or indulge in private wine tastings at the most interesting vineyards in the area. Directly onsite, at the center of the property’s village-like footprint, there is also a chapel that hosts vernissages, light installations, dance parties, and ceremonies. And a stroll through the one-hectare Mediterranean garden reveals a grove of ancient fruit trees native to the region and raised by agronomist Isabella Dalla Ragione and her nonprofit, the Arboreal Archaeology Foundation. The design and architecture concept also highlights a number of producers and artisans from the region, such as Lispi, Cotto Etrusco, and Eros the blacksmith, and the artworks adorning the spaces were created by more than 10 regional artists, including Louis Boujac and Domenica Regazzoni. Heightening the overarching sense of community, Kubierschky and his partner Catharina Lütjens place an emphasis on hiring locally. I’m interested in recruiting collaborators who come from the surrounding area, not just the usual hotel schools, Kubierschky says. Our staff is an integral part of this project. This approach to filling the property with locals and regionally produced products—in addition to offering locally tailored experiences—directly affects the guest experience, allowing visitors to, in turn, connect with and become an integral part of the Vocabolo and surrounding community.

A Conscious Destination: Hotel Terrestre

Just because a traveler is away from home doesn’t mean they can’t make informed and conscious choices on the go—and at Hotel Terrestre making such decisions is an inherent part of any stay. The hotel revels in its location in the Mexican jungle outside Puerto Escondido and adheres to a “raw materiality” mentality: it is 100% connected to the earth, sun, and sea, 100% powered by solar energy, and 100% locally rooted. Architect Alberto Kalach and his team at TAX Taller de Arquitectura X constructed the buildings entirely from materials sourced from within one kilometer of the hotel or created onsite and designed them in a way that allows to the hotel to operate fully on solar power. The 14 interconnected villas also blur the boundaries between inside and out: slotted wooden fixtures replace what would usually be glass in windows and doorways; innovative cooling methods and building techniques remove the need to rely upon air conditioning; and even the bathrooms are outside. A vibrant garden also surrounds an open-air restaurant, where Mexican gastronomic heritage is fused with the region’s rich ecology. Plus, despite the hotel’s remote location, awaiting discovery are nearby cultural spaces, such as Casa Wabi, a sprawling compound with a Tadao Ando–designed artist residency and exhibition center; a ceramic workshop with a 22-meter-tall chimney also designed by Kalach; and a permanent large-scale outdoor art installation by Mexican artist Bosco Sodi.

Community Wellbeing at Noūs Santorini

At Noūs Santorini tired are the ideals of individualistic spa experiences; rather, health is understood here as restoring the balance between human and nature. The property thus places a focus on slowness and space, with an overarching ethos of wellbeing and rejuvenation. Simple, geometric bungalows blend into the landscape, with shutters clad in willow, referencing the island’s many wineries; claustra that find inspiration in the porosity of the land; and lighting fixtures fashioned from volcanic stone, a direct nod to the island as a sunken caldera volcano. Smells of lavender and rosemary waft through the air from aromatic gardens, and organic dining options offer nourishment from the inside out. The wellness area adheres to the principles of Ef Zin, the Greek concept of wellbeing, and the property’s main pool area, known as “The Oasis,” is surrounded by a Nerium grove, palms, and local and exotic plantings—a landscape design that finds its roots in the ancient wall paintings of the nearby village of Akrotiri. All of this and more combines to create one of the island’s largest, most healing retreats, with both the earth and community at the center of the experience.

Exemplary Architecture and Design at Sense Hotel Sofia

Sense Hotel Sofia is known for being the first property to bring upscale design and architecture to the laidback Bulgarian capital. From the outside, Lazzarini Pickering Achitetti’s architectural plan resembles a grid of golden-organ rectangles, marked by thick black lines and set behind a glass curtain: a system of pivoting brass panels is hidden behind the façade to screen off the bedrooms, and when combined with Lutron mood lighting, they create continuously changing configurations that seem to shimmer and dance. Architectural Group Tzonkoy Ltd.’s interior design, meanwhile, creates a modern spatial concept that combines natural materials with clean lines and glass partitions. Guestrooms are further defined by an elegantly subdued color scheme, leather upholstery, and wooden floors. Seen as a whole, the property provides an elemental experience that aligns all of the senses—from the inside and out.

About Marriott International

Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ: MAR) is based in Bethesda, Maryland, USA, and encompasses a portfolio of more than 8,100 properties under 30 leading brands spanning 139 countries and territories. Marriott operates and franchises hotels and licenses vacation ownership resorts all around the world. The company offers Marriott Bonvoy^®, its highly awarded travel program. Connect with us on Facebook and @MarriottIntl on Twitter and Instagram.

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