Were you to spot the plane from the beach below you could be forgiven for believing it had crash-landed there, like a scene from some Costa Rican version of 'Lost'
At the Stockholm airport there’s a hotel in a refurbished Boeing 747. An airplane hotel at an airport—we can see some logic in that. But what’s a Boeing 727 surrounded by thick jungle, overlooking the Pacific in Costa Rica, doing doubling as a hotel?
When in Harlingen, on the Dutch coast an hour’s drive from Amsterdam, you’ll need to crane your neck upwards to spot two of the three coolest hotels in town. One of those hotels is atop an actual working crane. The other is in a lighthouse. And the town’s third cool hotel? That’s on street level—or, more accurately, water level—inside a lifeboat.
Our reviews of each . . .
Staying at the Hotel Everland feels like spending the night in a 1970s shagadelic bachelor pad.
There aren’t many hotels that might have traveled more around Europe than its guests. Then again there’s no hotel like the one-room Everland.
This pre-fab capsule, designed by a pair of Swiss artists who cryptically go by L/B (Sabina Lang and Daniel Baumann), was built to be mobile. After stints at Zurich’s Expo.02, on the Shores of Lake Neuchatel in Switzerland, and at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Leipzig, Germany the Everland is now atop the Palais de Tokyo in Paris. At its current location this hotel might have the best Eiffel Tower view of any in the city.
If you aren’t a rock star (yet) but can afford to live in rock star digs for a night or two, then the Mooghotel in Sydney, Australia, is for you.
The Mooghotel is one of the world’s great single room hotels. Though, at the Mooghotel, your “room” is a huge suite complete with your own sundeck, his-and-hers bathrooms, fully-equipped gym and two pools—a plunge pool with underwater speakers and a chill pool from which you can view flicks on your private movie screen. You can also opt for use of the hotel’s 24-hour butler service, personal assistant and chauffeured Jaguar XJR 100. Of course, being an aspiring rock star isn’t all play. And for the “work” part there’s an attached professional music recording studio.
Note that the once-next door MoogBar is now, sadly, closed.
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From the shores of Lake Malaren in Sweden, the Utter Inn looks like a bright red gardening shack stuck improbably in the middle of the lake. That visible section of the Inn includes a kitchenette and little dining area surrounded by an outdoor terrace. But what makes the Utter Inn really cool is part you can’t see from shore: the bedroom is down a ladder below the water! The sleeping quarters, submerged 3 meters (10 feet) underwater has windows with fish views on all sides.
The Utter staff brings guests to the Inn by boat from the port of Vasteras (about a 90 minute drive west of Stockholm) and then leaves you to enjoy it privately. Not that you’d be totally stranded: There’s a small row boat you could use to explore the lake and the Utter staff is always a phone call away. As for food, you can prepare your own (there’s a little fridge and stove top) or have meals boated out to you. Either way, a stay at the Utter comes with blissful, and romantic, solitude. Rates vary but average around Kr. 1200 (US$160, €120).
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Wow. This two-chamber hotel 30 feet (10 meters) underwater off the coast of Key Largo, Florida truly feels like you are spending the night in a different world. Guests are surrounded by views of tropical fish and lagoon water. But the vibe of this place is what makes it truly memorable — the lighting and sounds here are different than they are living on land. And since no hotel staff stays overnights below you’ll be free to explore around this underwater space station in privacy. To make the dive down to the lodge guests are required to take a three hour course if they are not already scuba certified. “Mer-chefs” are available to cook dinner. One guess what sort of food is on the menu.
Some lighthouse hotels are a little gritty. (Or, at least cramped). The Phare de Kerbel, on France’s Brittany coast, is spacious and modern. There’s a full kitchen, gorgeously appointed bedrooms and a swimming pool. Better still, there’s the view of the Atlantic from a perch 25 meters (82 feet) above Port Louis.
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