Travel news and deals with Kate Springer
How Does Your Garden Grow?
The retro-chic Witt Istanbul Hotel recently unveiled a beautiful new rooftop garden restaurant as an example of micro-agriculture. Guests at the 18-room property and travelers alike soak up the sun on the 160-square-meter rooftop terrace, which includes a permaculture garden overlooking the Bosphorus. All the homegrown bounty goes into the roof-to-plate menu, so expect just-plucked lavender in your tea, arugula in the salads and raisins for the granola for a truly fresh dining experience.
26 Defterdar Yokusu, Istanbul, Turkey, (+90) 212-293-1500, www.wittistanbul.com.
Chengdu, How D’you Do?
One of my favorite wellness hotel brands, the Six Senses, recently touched down in Chengdu, bringing its eco-chic designs and awesome service to the Chinese countryside. About an hour outside the city, the Six Senses Qing Cheng Mountain has planted its flag in the UNESCO World Heritage & Natural Cultural site of Dujiangyan, which was once part of the Silk Road and is now home to giant panda populations. Of course, rustic doesn’t have to mean disconnected – the hotel comes with plenty of modern amenities. For health-conscious travelers, there’s a smoothie bar as well as Farm2Fork restaurant, which serves western and Chinese classics made with fresh-from-the-garden ingredients. And of course the property’s crown jewel, the Six Senses Spa is not to be missed: it’s hidden across a bridge and behind a waterfall, so prepare for an indulgent adventure.
Dong Ruan Road, Qingcheng Mountain Town, Chengdu, China,
(+86) 28-8728-9871, www.sixsenses.com.
Trusty Tours
When you’re traveling around Southeast Asia, sometimes “green” and “sustainable” don’t exactly mean what you’d hope. I’ve been to “eco-friendly” resorts that have paved over a jungle to make a road and dined at “sustainable” restaurants that throw out heaps of untouched leftovers. For travelers who want to be truly sustainable, tour operator marketplace Responsible Travel has ranked national tourist boards according to their commitment to sustainable tourism as communicated on their websites. Responsible Travel rated 50 popular destinations based on several criteria—policies, local community support, cultural initiatives, evidence-based reports and readily available educational information. The big winners? Bhutan, South Africa and Sweden all scored top marks. And the biggest losers? China, Ethiopia and – surprisingly – Finland and the US. So… see you in South Africa?
Read more at www.responsibletravel.com.
