Located in Dubailand, Al Yufra, Terra Solis is a chic desert oasis with extravagant decor. The soon-to-be-opened hotel is inspired by star constellations, with three types of accommodation styles named after stars, meteor showers and constellations. Pick from Polaris bell tents, Perseid lodges and Orion pool lodges. Eating options are superb – the Mesa restaurant dishes up Mediterranean fare with tables overlooking the pool, while Sala is a shisha lounge with cosy corners for watching the sunset.
Set at the foot of San Jacinto Peak in downtown Palm Springs, this boutique hotel has panoramic desert views and canyon hiking trails on its doorstep. The design is unpretentious – rooms feature whitewashed walls, padded quilts and retro-style sofas. Some even come with record players and guitars. There’s a laid-back Californian vibe at the hotel’s pool and its two dining spaces, with open-mic nights and sunset yoga sessions (bring your own mat) among the regular goings on.
For a dramatic, secluded desert setting, the Amangiri is hard to beat. Poised on the border between Arizona and Utah, it is spread over 900 acres of 'wild west' red-rock country, within striking distance of Lake Powell. The design was inspired by the rugged nature of the surrounding landscape and accommodation options range from one-bedroom pavilions with private plunge pools (perfect for couples) to family-friendly 'homes'. All feature pared-back style and muted colours that accentuate the views. Wellness is on tap – think spa treatments and yoga.
A brilliant choice for both adventure-seekers and spa-lovers, the Qasr Al Sarab Desert Resort by Anantara offers everything from dune bashing and fat biking through the sands to alfresco Thai massages and rhassoul body wraps in the sublime spa. The resort looks like a fortress, with turrets rising out of the flame-coloured Liwa Desert. Inside, plush rooms come complete with oriental rugs, marble en suites and pillow menus. Family pool villas overlook the desert and have gardens studded with palm trees.
Longitude 131˚ is the ultimate glamping getaway in the Australian outback. The 16 'tented pavilions' overlook Ayers Rock (Uluru) and Kata Tjuta, and feature proper beds, en suite bathrooms and floor-to-ceiling windows. Canopy roofs and private plunge pools come as standard in the upmarket structures. In the evenings, guests relax by the fire with a sundowner. It’s a good choice for eco-conscious travellers – the lodge is sustainable, relies on renewable energy and has the ability to be removed entirely to return the red sand dunes to their original state.
Surrounded by sand dunes in the Inland Sea, The Outpost places an emphasis on getting guests back to nature while not compromising on comfort. The 21 lodges feature private pools and a slick design with lots of glass, clean white colour schemes, rainfall showers and terraces with swings. Everyone from honeymooners to families is catered for, and experiences include hot air ballooning, stargazing and guided nature walks in the desert.
Wildlife watching and stargazing get an extraordinary twist at Camp Sossus in the Namib Desert. The remote camp comprises six tented rooms, each with sweeping views across the vast flat plains, home to their resident animals. From the large west-facing windows, guests can watch wandering zebras, giraffes, oryx, springboks, bat-eared foxes and leopards. The open-air 'star beds' are perfect for admiring the twinkling night skies, and children aged 12 and older are welcome.
The adults-only Casa Cook is a beachfront hotel in Egypt’s El Gouna desert town with tranquility and simplistic luxury in spades. There’s a pared-back feel, with earthy tones, rustic wooden features and minimalist furnishings. Accommodation ranges from standard twin rooms to villas with private pools. After a day exploring the local diving or kitesurfing, the spa is just the place to unwind, offering an array of treatments like deep-release massages and healing hammams.
Fancy staying at a palatial hotel that looks like an exquisite fairy-tale sandcastle? Enter Suryagarh, whose beautiful sandstone walls rise above the desert city of Jaisalmer, nicknamed the 'Golden City' due to the abundance of yellow sandstone architecture. The hotel is a good place to relax, with yoga classes and guided chanting and meditation, plus a spa and rooftop pool. Peacocks roam free in the pretty gardens, while the ornate restaurant serves traditional Marwari (an ethnic group in Rajasthan) recipes using local ingredients.
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There’s luxury galore at this tented hotel in the heart of the Omani desert. Spread over 17 acres, it’s made up of 50 individual tents featuring plush interiors and panoramic vistas over golden sands. Expect elaborate lighting, intricately carved furniture and sumptuous bedspreads. The unique sand spa offers a treatment in which you have a massage and then lie in a bath of warm, mineral-rich sand before emerging rejuvenated and revived.
King-sized beds can be rolled out onto private decks for a night under the stars at Onduli Ridge, a six-suite property in the Namibian desert. The location is stellar, and guests can gaze at the country’s highest mountain, the Brandberg, alongside spectacular granite inselbergs (a type of isolated rock formation). Run with solar power, the hotel has its own watering hole for wildlife viewing, plus open-air bathrooms with rain showers. Children will love the fun pizza evenings and the pool.
The personalised service is standout at this cosy hotel, located in one of the world's most arid places, the immense Atacama Desert. Guests staying here get their own guide and 4x4 vehicle for tailored excursions. This could be anything from breakfast at the foot of the Andean mountains to a guided astronomy trip (look out for the rings of Saturn). The fine-dining restaurant emphasises local cuisine, such as the sweet fruit of the Chilean chañar tree.
For a desert experience with a cowboy slant, the Mustang Monument ranch in Nevada has you covered. It’s an eco-resort with a conservation agenda – to protect mustangs and ensure that they remain wild. Guests stay in safari cottages and high-end tipis, decked out with handmade tapestries, hardwood floors and custom-made furniture. Activities include picnicking on the mountaintops and guided hikes to meet the wild mustang horses that roam the hotel's plains.
Situated on a 100-acre private estate, The Serai is a true oasis in the desert, with a tranquil pool, relaxing spa and palatial rooms. The hotel also has eco-friendly credentials – its organic farm and dairy have a 'no plastic' policy and staff run conservation initiatives in the local community. Royal tented suites feature polished wood floors and colourful throws, and spa treatments take place in enclosed gardens. Guests can dine alfresco to the sound of Manganiyar (a Muslim community in Rajasthan) musicians.
With a 400-foot (122m) swimming pool flanked by palm trees, a contemporary spa overlooking Camelback Mountain and 215 'oxygen-enriched' guest rooms, The Ritz-Carlton Paradise Valley resort will be something to behold when it opens in 2023. Located in Scottsdale, Arizona, the 20-acre desert escape will also feature multiple restaurants with food sourced from the on-site orchard and garden. Rooms have neutral colour schemes, large windows and natural wood furnishings – plus bipolar ionisation technology to remove any nasties from the air.
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Willow House is a luxury desert retreat, six miles (9.6km) from the picturesque Big Bend National Park in remote west Texas. The 12 single-storey casitas are positioned in a semicircle around a social main house, designed to give a sense of community. Each casita has unobstructed views of the Chisos Mountains and a modern, sophisticated style that blends into the desert landscape. Guests can hike through the Chisos Basin, then return in time for dinner and sunset cocktails.
Set within the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve, Al Maha is a secluded getaway with beautiful views over the sand dunes. Those wishing to look even further into the nature reserve can use the binoculars that come as standard with every room, or enjoy a spot of painting with the easel and art materials provided. The decor is traditional, with dark wooden Arabian furnishings and fine carpets. The one-bedroom Bedouin suites also have private pools and custom-made beds, and children aged over ten are welcome.
Traditional Moroccan style gets a modern makeover at this camp in the Agafay Desert. It’s an easy one-hour transfer from the bustle of Marrakech yet feels a world away with its private tents and serene lagoon pool. The tents make you feel as though you’re in touch with the Berbers' nomadic way of life – yet they come with electricity, rattan light shades and en suite bathrooms with flushing toilets. Activities on offer include quad biking, camel trekking and dune buggying.
Vintage trailers, Mongolian yurts and Native American-style tipis take centre stage at this 21-acre nomadic hotel in Marfa, Texas. The camp is located in the high desert plains with expansive views over wide open spaces. Hikers and adventure-seekers tend barbecues in the communal outdoor kitchen, relax in the hammock grove or ease their muscles in wood-fired hot tubs. There’s an emphasis on culture – Marfa town is an international arts Mecca and guests can borrow bikes to cycle to its galleries.
Located along the original pilgrimage route to Mecca, the 96 minimalist villas at Habitas AlUla are scattered through a canyon beneath honey-coloured cliffs. The hotel has a glorious infinity pool and a restaurant serving dishes made with locally-sourced ingredients, such as roasted fish with olive tapenade and seasonal veg. This being Saudi Arabia, the bar menu features mocktails instead of cocktails – perfect for a desert detox. Complete your stay with yoga beneath the cliffs or a spa treatment using oils blended in-house.
Foodies will love this 200-room, desert-meets-beach hotel in Cabo San Lucas, one of Mexico's most popular luxury destinations. The world-famous Nobu cuisine is served in five restaurants and six bars – don’t miss the signature dishes rock shrimp tempura and miso black cod. Hollywood star Robert De Niro helped design the hotel, which blends Japanese minimalism with Mexican materials and features four pools, a spa and a nearby golf course designed by Tiger Woods.
This impressive hotel in the Al Wadi Desert offers undiluted Arabian luxury, from the Bedouin-inspired villas to the pampering services. Rooms all feature private pools, but the best is the Al Sarab Tented Villa, which has sumptuous living spaces, an outdoor fire pit with desert views, a private butler and complimentary cocktails. The spa offers treatments, including HydraFacials, plus yoga classes. Other activities range from falconry, archery and fishing to desert biking, horseback riding and stargazing.
Ideal for couples and families alike, this secluded tented camp sits in Oman’s Wahiba Sands, just a two-hour drive from the capital Muscat, and immerses guests in its ochre dunes, craggy mountains and tranquil wadis. The colour scheme is bold – scarlet cushions and curtains here, teal ceiling canopies there. It’s a brilliant base for exploring the desert, particularly for dune bashing and sand boarding trips, which the hotel can organise. The Two Dune Restaurant serves Arabic cuisine, best eaten alfresco under the stars.
Wellness sits at the heart of a break at the adults-only Two Bunch Palms in Desert Hot Springs. Its location helps – the on-site hot springs flow in and out of the hotel's pools, rich in minerals (but thankfully low in stinky sulphur). This oasis in an otherwise arid desert was discovered in 1857 – and now its individually designed rooms and suites help guests have a digital detox, with sunrise yoga, breakfast açaí bowls, deep-tissue massages and stargazing thrown in.
On a cliff edge overlooking the Negev Desert, the Six Senses Shaharut has one of the most dramatic locations of any spa hotel. The resort is built from local sandstone and adorned with cacti and desert flowers, offering an immersive desert experience complete with camel rides, Jeep safaris and Bedouin dining experiences. Low-slung villas have plunge pools while the sprawling spa offers yoga classes, male and female hammams, indoor and outdoor pools, a gym and a juice bar.