Hmm…haven’t done a For The Weekenders like this in a while. Every now and then it’s always a good thing to get some travel under your belt. Cool thing about travel is you get to check out a lot of unique and fun places, making more memories and moments of “remember that time when…”
So let’s start globetrotting.
For The Weekenders: Strange Beds, Artistic Camping, Sustainable Surf…
Summer’s like…here. And if there’s one thing I know about summer, it’s better when you make the best of it. Few factors involved in order to do that though…good people, good places, good food.
But most importantly, a good night’s sleep is imperative on a trip….to be fair though, that can get pretty boring.
Where you sleep and what kind of place you lodge at should be equally as interesting as the place you’ll be exploring. The guys over at The Manta Resort in Tanzania understand this – and have gone above and beyond the call of duty in delivering.
Seriously. Next time instead of telling your friends about how comfortable the beds were at the hotel, now you can tell them that “oh, yeah the beds were comfortable and all, but was REALLY cool was seeing fish swim past us while we slept.”
Yeah. It’s that kind of resort.
The kind of resort that offers a two level “room” all to yourself/you and your S.O. – it’s the kind of place you go when you get tired of the typical resort style places – you know the type – A/C, sterile hallways, marble floors, concrete, doors….all the boring “man made” constructed stuff.
Not saying that your accommodation isn’t man made – but it’s all about the way it’s made. The resort calls it a “private floating island” and really, it is. Set out in the ocean with no one (too) near by, it’s a perfect, private little spot when you want to experience more than just swiping a key card and heading into your room while awkwardly greeting your next door neighbors…or hearing their awkward, horrible sex.
…and this guy’s just here for the photos. For the resort that is. Obviously. Duh.
Besides the pretty epic lodging, The Manta Resort also has some pretty cool (and of course the usual conventional) activities…like diving (or learning how to dive if you don’t know how to), and unique excursions, including hanging with the locals at Spice Island, checking out birds (not the human kind) in the Ngezi rain forest, or just sitting back, sailing, and chilling out with local fisherman.
What you do is up to you with an absolute plethora of choices…there’s really no way you’ll ever have time to be bored.
But let’s say you have some irrational fear of water, or maybe you can’t swim…or maybe you’re just more of a different kind of outdoorsy person. Maybe you just want something way more exciting and less laid back.
Like camping.
Hey – don’t give me that face. While I usually treat camping with great disdain, a little place in Amsterdam’s got me thinking about it in a completely different light.
Like…completely. Forget the canvas tents and stakes, classic camping just got a call from Urban Campsite Amsterdam – and was just informed it’s time to step up its game.
This is for those of us who always like the thought of camping – great outdoors, fresh air, fishing – but just couldn’t get used to the concept of sleeping on the ground.
No, instead these guys focus on integrating modern art into nature – while minimizing disturbing nature as much as possible. Think of it like an art gallery in the woods.
Yeah…way cooler.
Basically, a group of of architects and designers get together, brainstorm, and come up with some pretty awesome stuff to show off with the surroundings of mother nature – things so cool you can’t help but fill half a 2 gig SD card and make prints out of those captured moments.
So the next time your friends say “let’s go camping,” instead of ruining a cool chance at hanging out with even cooler friends, suggest hopping a plane over to The Netherlands instead. 😉
But let’s say instead of just co-existing with mother nature, you really wanna become one with her. Well, not to get right back around to sun and sand, but for anyone wanting to really connect, this next place is a must go to spot for any surfer.
The best part is, its main focus is sustainability – but go before it’s too late.
While a resort is being built in the Maldives, a pretty epic sustainable surfing project has been launched, where you have access to your own private yacht, and clean, uncrowded surf. Now I know what you’re thinking – “why on earth would I want to support a place where they’re taking land away from the locals to build a resort for a bunch or rude tourists to flock to?”
That’s the cool bit – even after the resort is built, the locals still have access to their own land – so the surf can be enjoyed by more than just whoever has the most money.
By keeping the surf uncrowded, that means less abuse to the beach and a better surfing experience…so you can actually enjoy your holiday compared to dealing with the same kind of crowded waves you could catch back home.
The lodging is ideal and ultra welcoming, with earth based tones and fantastic decor. A person can really feel like they’re taken care of in a place where an entirely new concept of the tourism industry is being born.
It’s the perfect spot for when you wanna get away from it all, enjoy a bit of luxury, yet still meet and hang with the locals. If every corporate resort company thought this way, there’d be a lot more business, and a lot more happy people…so good job Thanburudhoo Resort – keep up the good work.
As always…
Stay awesome. 😉
– Rego
Improve Your Lifestyle. Improve Yourself. This is Life. This is Rego’s Life.™
For The Weekenders: Strange Beds, Artistic Camping, Sustainable Surf… is a post from Rego’s Life
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