Cutting-edge hotels are pioneering new ways to travel beautifully and sustainably. Two recent concepts prove that luxury travel can be eco-friendly and still offer one-of-a-kind experiences. Moliving is a nomadic luxury hotel, with modular dwellings (think: cute cabins) that move around, delivering extraordinary natural destinations while maintaining the highest standards of service. A lakeside lodge in August can become a tropical beach hideaway in November, then a Colorado ski resort in February, all without leaving a trace.

The Swedish Treehotel, on the other hand, has a new double room for their location high in the Harads pines. The Biosphere has been designed by architect Bjarke Ingels and ornithologist Ulf Ohman to provide deluxe accommodations for two human guests and 350 bird families. After crossing a small suspension bridge, the humans can enjoy a glass-clad, 365-square-foot interior decorated with organic materials in a rich, dark palette, while the birds fly in and out of a facade of nesting boxes. A rooftop terrace allows ample space to gaze out at the forest … and, of course, for birdwatching.

“Forestry has led to a reduced number of natural holes in trees where breeding birds nest,” Ohman says. “The installation of bird nests is, therefore, an important measure to take.”

More Inclusive Expeditions

Norwegian line Hurtigruten Expeditions is taking steps to make their brand of exploration open to travelers from any background. The new Black Traveler Advisory Board (BTAB) consists of six travel pros from the tourism, outdoor, and adventure industries who have agreed to help the line — and, eventually, the cruising industry as whole — be better at attracting, including, and having a good time with people of different races. The board includes entrepreneurs, travel advisors, and executives in charge of tourism organizations and government commissions. Along with their appointments, members will sail on select departures including Antarctica and the new West Africa cruises launching this fall.

Says BTAB founder Anders Lindström: “We are honored that these incredible leaders within their fields will work with us to drive visibility, identify opportunities within the Black travel movement, and help achieve some of our tangible goals. These include identifying Black scientists as potential lecturers onboard our ships, attracting more expedition leaders of color, learning more about unsung Black explorers that can be incorporated into the company’s expedition cruise itineraries, improving both our written and visual communications and marketing materials, and amplifying career opportunities through their networks.”

Sound Science Listens for Whales

For their inaugural season in Alaska, American Queen Voyages has announced an unusually deep partnership. They’ve teamed up with Sound Science Research Collective acoustic ecologist Dr. Michelle Fournet to give guests a new way to get close to humpback whales, by listening to their songs and translating what they’re saying to each other. As part of the arrangement, the ship Ocean Victory has become an extension of Fournet’s lab, providing a work space for researchers from California Polytechnic State University. Guests will help the….