What exactly is a slow hotel? Well, in short, they are hotels that strive to achieve sustainability by allowing their guests to enjoy a peaceful holiday destination, come into contact with local people and the culture, and consume local produce. Here are five of Connection By Finsa’s favourites:
Eco-resort Playa Viva (Mexico)
Located in Ixtapa Zihuatenejo on Mexico’s west coast, this eco-resort managed by a husband-and-wife team is described on its website as the place “where your vacation meets your values”. Sustainability and regenerative practices are the defining characteristics of Playa Viva, which has just twelve rooms and an organic vegetable patch from which guests can choose their own salad ingredients.
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All cheese, milk, fruit, and eggs used at the hotel are sourced from local farmers. Playa Viva is also completely solar-powered, and guests have the option of signing up for a yoga retreat, volunteering at a marine turtle sanctuary, or visiting the farm of a local family that produces coffee beans and cacao.
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Silence is golden: Thyme (England)
Thyme is a restored manor in the Cotswolds, Gloucestershire, in the English countryside. What was once a maze of agricultural buildings has been turned into an 11-room hotel spread out over the farm’s different structures, with each room featuring floral wallpaper.
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The country house is run by the Hibbert family and for them, noise reduction is essential to maintaining tranquillity. They offer electric car chargers, bikes, a vegetable garden, cooking school, a spa, and a shop that sells handmade ceramics as well as unique vintage pieces.
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Sustainability at Cieloastur (Spain)
Cieloastur is a sustainable complex located in Proaza, Spain, near Las Ubiñas nature park in Asturias. It is made entirely from sustainable materials including timber, stone, and cork, and is powered by solar panels. The villas feature aerothermal climate control.
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Water is sourced from a local spring and is then filtered by osmosis before being stored in reusable glass bottles. The hotel also offers an electric bike rental service and features a slow kitchen that uses authentic Asturian ingredients purchased from small local businesses.
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The whole town can be your hotel: Hanare (Japan)
You won’t find this hotel in the tranquil countryside. Rather, it’s right in the centre of Tokyo. Its slogan – “the whole town can your hotel” – makes it very clear that it’s not just a single building. But nevertheless, it is a slow hotel. Hanare’s reception is located in a building where you can also find a café frequented by locals.
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The rooms are located in a refurbished building that can only be reached on foot. Hanare uses an information map to share bar and restaurant recommendations, where to find a bike or camera rental shop, where to take bamboo flute classes, and even where to find traditional Japanese public baths or sento.
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The Self-Sufficiency of Borgo Pignano (Italy)
This hotel in Tuscany has been restored using sustainable materials, local stone, and environmentally friendly paint. Borgo Pignano is the perfect example of a self-sufficient establishment: they use a natural system to store rainwater and prevent soil erosion, the first in the region to do so. Their heating and hot water systems are powered by solar panels and boilers that use wood chips sourced from local forests.
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There also many other environmentally friendly features: two electric car charging stations, flowers to maintain bee colonies and seasonal vegetable patches used by the restaurant kitchen. They even produce their own wine. Guests can take Pilates or painting classes, indulge in a wine tasting, or enjoy a hiking trail.
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