10 Destinations to Experience Regenerative Travel Now

Regenerative travel, a growing trend that takes eco-tourism to next level, is gaining traction among travelers and hospitality providers seeking to address the environmental and social challenges posed by mass tourism. 

While sustainable tourism usually focuses on conserving resources and reducing negative impacts, regenerative travel aims to restore and renew the natural and social environments affected by travel. This approach encourages both hospitality partners and tourists to engage in activities that contribute to the well-being of local environments and economies.

But it’s not about fixing big problems overnight—nor is it a showy but shallow nod at sustainability. This form of tourism emphasizes smaller-scale travel experiences in which travelers engage directly in efforts to enhance the places they visit, such as volunteering for an afternoon or signing up for educational projects that inform guests about local ecosystems, encouraging them to understand and support the destinations more deeply.

The focus on staying small and maintaining a low impact can constrain the scalability of regenerative tourism, raising questions about how widely it can be adopted across the travel industry.

“This issue lies at the heart of the debate around regenerative tourism—how can it work at scale, particularly if we are talking about a refocus on quality rather than quantity,” says Ben Martin, economics practice director, advisory and a principal at global architecture and design firm HKS. “It is inevitable that this lifts the lid on issues around carrying capacity and what levels of visitation are generally acceptable.”

Martin notes there are systems in place for destination management that recognize this challenge, such as the U.S. National Park Service, adding that apps and other enhanced technologies should make this sort of proactive visitor management much more achievable than it once was.

“In some ways, it is easier to see how the principles of regenerative tourism might be applied in the context of a destination that is just beginning to develop compared to one that is already mature and built out,” Martin says. “The challenges of each case must be considered within their contextual framework.”

Many hospitality properties, from Canada to New Zealand, are already implementing regenerative practices like restoring local habitats, and there are also a number of sites that encourage active guest participation. With that in mind, here are ten resorts and hotels offering regenerative travel programs that can enable you to positively impact local ecosystems and communities.

Baha Mar is already one of the top resorts in the Bahamas, known for its upscale accommodations, restaurants and beachfront property. With the Rosewood’s Ocean Guardian Experience, guests can enjoy top-tier snorkeling experiences while actively supporting efforts to preserve the Bahamas’ fragile marine ecosystem. 

Visitors can work with the concierge to plan out a half-day or day-long itinerary, but there are generally two options for excursions. A more intensive boating journey takes guests to the BREEF Underwater Sculpture Garden and a coral nursery, essentially an underwater classroom where guests learn about marine conservation efforts led by The Perry Institute and The Reef Rescue Network. Guests who are certified divers can sign up to become “reef rescue divers” through a day-long course in coral restoration techniques, including the identification of coral species and methods to mitigate reef degradation. Through hands-on experience, participants contribute to conservation efforts by maintaining coral nurseries and out-planting corals in designated restoration areas.

For a simpler but still educational experience, guests can opt for a half-day trip that includes two snorkeling stops, giving them another opportunity to explore Bahamian waters with views of tropical fish, sea turtles, stingrays and coral reefs. The package includes a sustainably packaged lunch— crafted by the onsite outpost of Café Boulud—made with locally sourced ingredients and packed with eco-conscious materials as the resort has banned single-use plastics.

A luxury boutique hotel on Costa Rica’s Nicoya Peninsula, Nantipa embraces regenerative tourism through initiatives that benefit both the environment and the local community. Meaning “blue” in the native Chorotega language, Nantipa spans 5.7 beachfront acres in Santa Teresa and offers 29 bungalows, suites, and villas crafted with repurposed materials to minimize environmental impact. 

Beyond sustainability, the hotel actively revitalizes the area through weekly beach cleanups and community support. Guests are encouraged to join these cleanups, spending just 10 minutes collecting microplastics and small debris washed ashore. This simple act educates participants on the impact of ocean waste on marine life and the global food chain. Guests are rewarded afterward with a complimentary smoothie or tropical fruit juice at the end of their experience.

This family-owned reserve and all-inclusive hotel sits at the entrance of Torres del Paine National Park in Patagonia, Chile. Its commitment to conservation is evident in its food and beverage program, where most of what guests consume is made on-site using ingredients from the hotel’s extensive gardens. Las Torres is home to Chile’s first sustainable bar, Pionero Bar, and the largest regenerative kitchen gardens in the region. These gardens are maintained with chemical-free fertilizer produced from the manure of the hotel’s horses, a process supporting a closed-loop system that minimizes waste and environmental impact.

At Pionero Bar, the staff creates their own vinegar for mocktails, as well as house-made vermouth and kombucha. The hotel’s beer is brewed in a small cabin beside the bar with glacier water and hops from the garden. The hotel also distills its own gin, Tierra Paine, using glacier water and 18 botanicals harvested on-site, incorporating an ancestral clay distillation method. Coirón Restaurant also serves produce that’s harvested directly from the garden, bringing fresh ingredients straight to guests’ plates and reinforcing Las Torres’s regenerative approach by limiting food transport and enhancing the freshness and quality of each dish.

From its inception, Clayoquot has aimed not only to preserve but to enhance the natural environment. This commitment deepened in 2021 when, under new ownership by KSL Capital Partners, the lodge embarked on a three-year, $1.6 million renovation led by Australian hotel group Baillie Lodges, emphasizing eco-friendly upgrades and conservation-focused practices. Through these efforts, Clayoquot seeks to leave a lasting positive impact on Clayoquot Sound, ensuring that its natural beauty and wildlife thrive for future generations. 

Clayoquot Wilderness Lodge’s half-day Sights of the Sound excursion is a wildlife-spotting experience designed with regenerative tourism principles in mind. This marine safari introduces guests to the region’s rich biodiversity, from black bears along the coast to whales, porpoises, seals, sea lions, and the occasional bald eagle soaring overhead. By keeping tours concise and focused, the lodge minimizes environmental disruption while allowing guests to connect meaningfully with the ecosystem.

This beach resort in Vietnam’s archipelago recently completed The Marine Turtle Pavilion, a green sea turtle incubation center. The green sea turtle population in the Pacific Ocean has been impacted by habitat loss and illegal hunting. Designed to look like a giant sea turtle, the pavilion uses sustainable methods to support the species’s population. Its structure regulates incubation temperatures, which helps maintain a balanced gender ratio for genetic diversity in the wild. 

So far, Six Senses Con Dao has released over 30,000 green sea turtles into the Pacific Ocean to aid this declining species. For guests, this means an opportunity to learn about marine conservation efforts firsthand, with a chance to witness or even participate in turtle releases—a small way to contribute to the protection of these vital marine animals.

Desa Potato Head is a creative village in Bali that touts itself as more than a beach club and resort. It’s also known for its regenerative programs, recently placing 21st in The World’s 50 Best Hotels. With a focus on carbon neutrality and zero waste, the hotel runs initiatives like the Waste Lab, an on-site recycling facility turning hotel waste into home goods used throughout the property, and the Sweet Potato Project, which began as a food relief effort during the pandemic and now provides regular meals to local Balinese communities. Desa Potato Head also offers tours and workshops, where guests can see waste management in action and learn about upcycling.

The Hotel Britomart in Auckland has introduced New Zealand’s first hotel-led regenerative travel experience, “Nourishing Nature.” This immersive half-day tour takes guests into the country’s native bush, where they learn about local flora, foraging, and traditional uses of native plants. Participants also have the opportunity to plant a native tree, contributing to the restoration of New Zealand’s biodiversity and carbon sequestration efforts. The experience was developed in partnership with the Velskov regenerative forest farm.

In the summer, visitors can explore Blue Sky’s female-led regenerative farm, Gracie’s Farm, where they learn about sustainable, no-till farming practices that prioritize soil health and biodiversity. The farm operates without modern machinery, instead relying on handwork and rotational grazing. Additionally, a geothermal greenhouse reduces the farm’s carbon footprint while supplying fresh produce, herbs and honey to the resort’s restaurant, Yuta. Here, food waste is composted and returned to the farm as fertilizer, creating a closed-loop system that minimizes waste and supports soil regeneration. Guests can also participate in guided activities such as wildlife hikes led by a biologist and snowshoeing excursions in winter, to experience the vast, preserved landscapes firsthand.

This Montana-based eco-travel hospitality group has three locations in Montana (including spots near Yellowstone and Glacier National Park) and has recently expanded to Kauai, Hawaii. Starry Night’s visitor volunteer programs  include beach cleanups in Kauai and embracing the Kamp Green Program at Butte KOA Journey in Montana. 

Kamp Green consists of a three-pronged approach (reducing, reusing and recycling) to waste diversion taught to guests. The campground has also collaborated with Montana Tech faculty, students, and researchers to study water quality in Black Tail Creek, which runs alongside the property. Starry Night’s educational initiative includes  programs like Project Wet activities and supporting the Pick Up America program in partnership with local scouts.

Recent renovations at Hawaii’s only all-suite and villa resort were completed in collaboration with local cultural leaders, ensuring that updates reflect Hawaiian values across guest rooms and shared spaces. A full-time cultural manager, skilled in Native Hawaiian arts and education, oversees these cultural initiatives, helping guests connect meaningfully with local traditions. The resort’s cultural center, centrally located in the lobby, underscores Fairmont Kea Lani’s commitment to community-focused hospitality, making cultural preservation a central element rather than a secondary attraction.

The resort also emphasizes regenerative tourism through its food and beverage offerings, particularly at Pilina, a sustainably sourced bar and lounge. Designed to celebrate Hawaii-grown ingredients, Pilina sources 90 percent of its menu from local farmers, ranchers, fishers, distillers, and brewers. The culinary approach extends to the kitchen, where ingredients are prepared fresh, raw, or cooked tableside on hot stones. This local sourcing reduces the resort’s environmental footprint and supports Hawaii’s agricultural community.