These unique hotels are the result of boundless creativity. You won’t find these creative hotel rooms near a highway interchange — they’re built in retired port cranes, abandoned sea forts and even the deep jungle canopy of Costa Rica. They are some of the most unusual hotel rooms in the world, each one providing a once-in-a-lifetime experience for their visitors. Grab your passport and come along for the ride, as Seamus Payne guides us through 10 of the most unique hotel rooms in the world.
10 of the World’s Most Unique Hotels | Video Transcript
Take everything you know about hotels and get rid of it. These 10 hotels break the mold by creating something truly different. From a sea fort hotel to a ski jump penthouse to a floating cube of mirrors in the forest. Yeah, that actually exists. I’m Seamus Payne of TheCoolist.com, the encyclopedia of cool since 2009, and I’d like you to join me to explore 10 of the most amazing, unusual hotels in the world. Stick around!
Faralda Crane Hotel
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This retired shipyard in Amsterdam has been repurposed into a creative hub for Dutch entertainment. Instead of removing the old shipping cranes, one entrepreneur turned a crane into a three-suite boutique hotel with rooms as high as 150 feet above ground. The Faralda Crane Hotel is one-of-a-kind, a luxury hotel with unmatched views of Amsterdam’s industrial history. Two amenities stand out. There’s a hot tub over 100 feet up in the tower, and guests are invited to try bunjee jumping off of its peak. Yes please!
Airbnb Ski Jump Vacation Rental
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This right here might be the coolest listing Airbnb has ever offered. The Holmenkollen ski jump hosted Olympic events in 1952, and it was recently converted into a vacation rental for Airbnb. This ski jump penthouse featured two floors, the main bedroom atop the ski jump and a patio overlook above. Sadly, this was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, as the penthouse was only available for one weekend. It was in pretty high demand, so I can’t imagine a hotel room this cool won’t be back for more.
Spitbank Sea Fort Hotel
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150 years ago, this concrete sea fort was built to protect the southern coast of England. Today, it’s a 9-suite luxury hotel that is miles away from the worries of modern London. The Spitbank Fort Hotel welcomes guests to a unique historic experience with one hell of a view of Portsmouth Harbour. At $750 a night, it’s a bit on the pricey side, but bragging rights are included at no extra charge.
Reddingsboot Lifeboat Hotel
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This vintage lifeboat used to perform rescues in the North Sea, now it’s one of the most exclusive floating hotel rooms in the world. Reddingsboot is a boat-and-breakfast in the intercoastal waters north of Amsterdam. It features a private tour of the seaside villages of The Netherlands, welcoming its guests to retire below deck at the end of the night.
Sleeping Around Shipping Container Hotel
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This converted shipping container hotel is rarely in the same place twice. When you book a stay with Sleeping Around Hotel, you don’t get a room number, you get GPS coordinates. Sleeping Around places its shipping container hotel rooms in cool locations around the city of Antwerp. While the shipping containers are freshly designed and inviting, the real excitement comes from the discovery of new locations in the city.
Treehotel Mirror Cube
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This hotel just doesn’t seem real. The Tree Hotel of Sweden features this floating mirror cube, a futuristic treehouse covered in reflective glass and aluminum. It is built with a pine tree extending through its interior, which is otherwise covered with Birch plywood walls. It looks like a dream, an unforgettable hotel experience in the forests of Northern Sweden.
Tube Hotel – Mexico
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A collection of concrete tubes have been constructed as a camping-style hotel in one of Mexico’s great national parks. The Tubohotel of Tepoztlan features 20 concrete tubes that each include a bed, a lamp, a curtain and a door. There’s not much to them, but that’s part of the allure. These tubes are built for sleeping, and the rest of the guest’s experience is focused on the nature and history of one of Mexico’s Magic Cities.
Icehotel Sweden
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Each winter, a group of architects and designers are selected to build Sweden’s Icehotel, a fully-functional hotel that has operated since 1989. Icehotel features 65 rooms built with 30,000 cubic meters of snow and about 1,000 tons of ice. It’s part sculpture, part architecture, part travel destination– and it serves nearly 60,000 people each season. If you want to experience Icehotel for yourself, book early– as each winter season usually fills up in advance.
747 Hotel – Jumbostay
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This Boeing 747 saw new life after retirement. It is now home to JumboStay, a travel hostel located near the entrance to Stockholm’s Arlanda international airport. JumboStay offers 27 rooms starting at $70 USD a night, with one special suite located in the original cockpit. JumboStay doesn’t fly any more, but it’s a great opportunity for guests to mark the meter high club off their personal bucket lists.
Finca Bellavista
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A modern day Swiss Family Robinson experience is happening right now in Costa Rica. Finca Bellavista is a treehouse hotel and community on 600 acres of rainforest land. It’s a growing collection of treehouse units that are connected by sky bridges and zip lines from one end to the other. It is a magical experience, providing deep jungle exploration and a relaxed community in the trees.
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Thanks for watching, as always I’m Seamus Payne, and if you enjoyed this video, be sure to subscribe and share it with your fellow travelers. In the mean time, if you’ve had an unique travel experience that we didn’t include here, let us know about it in the comments. We’re always hungry for more. See ya next time!
