Spain's most sustainable stays
Finding memorable accommodation doesn’t have to cost the earth, thanks to eco-friendly options that also benefit local communities
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Words by Eddi Fiegel
Cabañitas del Bosque
Just as the world’s eyes have turned to Spanish cities for leadership on sustainable tourism, in recent years Spanish accommodation providers have been blazing a similarly impressive trail. From state-of-the-art new-build hotels with award-winning energy-efficiency systems to restored medieval monasteries and abbeys offering Green Michelin-starred fine dining, to ground-breaking initiatives that protect the local environment and communities, there’s no shortage of choice. Whichever region you’re visiting – from Asturias, Catalonia and Basque Country in the north to Galicia in the west, Castile-La Mancha in central Spain and Andalusia in the south – you’ll find stylish, sustainable places to stay. Here are ten top choices.
Mas Salagros
Cabañitas del Bosque, Galicia
Sustainability has been at the heart of this collection of eco- and pet-friendly cabins in Galicia from the outset. Clustered in seven sites about half an hour’s drive west of Santiago de Compostela, these collections of stylish, architect-designed cabins are made in part using recycled wood. Many sit amid the treetops in forests of pines, chestnuts and cork oaks; others have views of rivers or meadows. You’ll also find hydromassage baths on terraces as well as nestled snugly in well-appointed bathrooms. The location of each cabin has been carefully chosen to ensure that it integrates sensitively with the landscape, with reforestation undertaken where necessary.
Renewable energy sources are used where possible, such as solar panels and aerothermal heat pumps. You might gaze out at surrounding woods through huge picture windows, waking up to the sound of birdsong. You’ll certainly breakfast on homemade bread, honey, jam and freshly squeezed orange juice, delivered to your door in a wicker basket. Cabins are also equipped with kitchens to allow guests to self-cater, though dinners made with locally sourced produce can be provided on request. Cabins from £128 per night
Arima Hotel & Spa, Donostia-San Sebastián, Basque Country
Set in the Miramón forest district on the southern outskirts of Donostia-San Sebastián, the Arima Hotel & Spa is as impressive for its state-of-the-art green credentials as for its eye catching wood, glass and aluminium exterior. Since it opened in 2019, Arima – Basque for ‘soul’ – has become the first hotel in Spain to be awarded the internationally respected Passivhaus certification for energy efficiency and, with 69 rooms, the largest such property in Europe. Setting new standards in sustainability, 77% of its energy comes from aerothermal and geothermal sources; rainwater is recycled for cleaning; and excellent insulation, triple-glazed windows and aluminium tiles help regulate temperature.
Stylish and minimalist yet luxurious rooms feature fetching forest views as well as organic bed linens and bath products, plus a recycling drawer for separating used plastic, paper, glass and organic waste. There’s also an eco-friendly spa and Foresta wellness centre, plus a chlorine- free infinity pool. The bright, informal Tilia Deli & Café offers sustainably sourced food, including vegan and vegetarian options. Average room price £150 per night, room only.
La Torre del Visco
Hotel Empúries
La Torre del Visco, Aragon
There’s a real sense of getting away from it all at this luxurious yet supremely sustainable boutique hotel in the little-visited Matarraña area of far eastern Aragon, abutting Catalonia and Valencia. Built on an 89-hectare estate that encompasses certified organic farmland, olive and almond groves, rose gardens, forests and a lake, the hotel building – which dates back to the 15th century – seems a world away from modern life. No wonder that, thanks to the absence of light pollution and frequently clear skies in the area, this is the first Relais & Chateaux Hotel in Spain to be awarded UNESCO-backed Starlight Certification.
Ingredients at the award-winning, farm-to-table restaurant are sourced from the estate’s own fields and gardens, and from local cattle farmers and shepherds. A range of other sustainable measures includes waste recycling, vegan toiletries and electric car-charging facilities. Enjoy days swimming, walking, cycling or horseriding in the surrounding hills, with the Sistema Ibérico mountains looming in the distance. Guided tours, cookery courses, wine tastings and stargazing sessions round off the offer. Doubles from £279 per night, room only.
Hotel Empúries, Catalonia
Far from the madding crowds of Spain’s busier coastlines, yet just yards away from the waves on one of the Costa Brava’s wildest and most unspoilt beaches, stands the first hotel in Europe to win the internationally recognised LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold certification in 2010. Under an hour’s drive from Girona and its airport, the hotel flanks the ancient Greco-Roman ruins of Empúries and the spectacular Camí de Ronda coastal footpath along the Costa Brava.
The sleek, minimalist extensions to the original 20th century building feature bright, fresh rooms and vast picture windows looking out across a pine-fringed beach. Constructed using sustainable materials, the hotel’s eco-friendly measures range from chemical-free paints to water recycling systems. Ingredients in the hotel’s three eating areas, including fine dining options in the superb Villa Teresita restaurant, are sourced from the organic kitchen garden. There’s also a luxurious spa, yoga workshops and excursions to local organic wineries. Average room price £179 per night, room only.
Parador de El Saler, Albufera Natural Park, Valencia
Spacious, comfortable bedrooms are furnished with side tables refashioned from recycled fishing nets, and wastepaper baskets are made using plastic collected from the nearby beach. Two restaurants celebrate local ingredients and traditional regional dishes. The Parador is involved in projects protecting and reintroducing animals such as turtles, as well as a seedbed scheme nurturing endangered species for replanting along the Valencian coast. Average room price £202 per night, room only.
Parador de Cangas de Onís, Asturias
You might not expect a medieval Benedictine monastery to be at the forefront of sustainability, but that’s the case at this Parador in the foothills of the Picos de Europa mountains. The San Pedro de Villanueva monastery, founded in the eighth century on the banks of the River Sella, is now an atmospheric hotel, all beamed ceilings, Romanesque arches and four-poster beds. Its pioneering Nature for the Senses programme immerses guests in the local environment and culture, encouraging them to delve into the region’s traditional lifestyles and heritage, supporting local craftspeople and conservation schemes.
Choose from a range of excursions including visits to nearby Romanesque churches, walks on trails along the Cantabrian coast, outings with local shepherd dogs, and sheep, cheese and cider tastings as well as workshops exploring the medieval monastery’s traditions of herbal medicine. Needless to say, food here highlights Asturian produce, notably its famed beans, ciders and cheeses. Average double price £172 per night, room only.
Parador Cangas de Onís
La Donaira (Clara Lozano)
Parador de El Saler, Albufera Natural Park, Valencia
High amid the idyllic meadows and mountains of Andalusia’s Serranía de Ronda region, Finca La Donaira is focused on helping visitors get back to nature. This stylish Andalusian farmhouse featuring nine guest rooms and suites – seven in the stone-built house, plus two luxury yurts – is set on an organic farm with vineyards, beehives and a stud breeding Lusitano horses. Guests are invited to savour their surroundings, whether simply relaxing in the outdoor pool or exploring the farm and its biodynamic vegetable garden, or ranging more widely through the hills.
The farm-to-table ethos takes centre stage here, with ingredients sourced from the hotel’s own gardens and local producers. Expect to savour ricotta cheese, yoghurt and butter made with local organic cow and goat milk, self-produced extra virgin olive oil, and free-range eggs from the farm’s own chickens. Freshly picked herbs are used in the restaurant’s cuisine as well as in healing infusions. There’s a yoga platform overlooking the surrounding countryside and a luxury spa with a large indoor pool, plus wine tastings and kombucha and natural cosmetics workshops. Average room price £853 per night (full-board only).
Mas Salagros, Vallromanes, Catalonia
Stretching north-east from Barcelona, just inland from the coast, is a rough-cut emerald – the Parc de la Serralada Litoral. This swathe of wooded peaks and ridges rising to 530m, a key stop-off for birds on their annual migrations, is littered with archaeological remains dating back some 5,000 years. And set into its heart is another green gem: the first 100% eco-friendly hotel in Spain – Mas Salagros EcoResort. The resort’s Green Globe certification reflects its total commitment to sustainability. That extends from building materials through amenities, the AIRE Ancient Baths spa, waste management and energy efficiency to cuisine.
Whichever one of the sleek but welcoming eating areas you choose, you’ll savour inventive dishes made with organic, seasonal, locally produced ingredients, accompanied by organic wines. Gazing out from your airy room or suite over the lush gardens or into the surrounding wooded hills, the urge to explore is irresistable. Fortunately, a range of activities encourage guests to spread their wings, including cycling into the park, wine tasting, sketching and cookery classes, yoga and mindfulness – even a spot of forest bathing. Doubles from around £190 per night, room only.
Parador de El Saler, Albufera Natural Park, Valencia
The countryside around Cuenca in central Castile-La Mancha is among Spain’s less-visited regions. One good reason to explore is this magnificent Parador housed in an imposing castle built by Moorish conquerors in the eighth century, expanded and reinforced after it was taken by the forces of Alfonso VIII in 1184. Set on a hilltop overlooking the River Júcar and its dramatic limestone gorges, the hotel provides a wonderful base for activities ranging from winery visits to country walks along river beaches, through forests and to fishing spots on the nearby reservoir.
The Parador has embraced sustainability, too, using 100% renewable energy sources, monitoring and managing water consumption, and eliminating single-use plastics. It also plays a key role in the local walled village of Alarcón, the population of which was long dwindling. By employing more than 10% of the village’s residents, the hotel brings much-needed economic opportunities, as well as helping residents maintain the local school. Average room price £202 per night, including breakfast.
Hotel Nafarrola, Bermeo, Basque Country
Less than an hour’s drive east of Bilbao and its show-stopping, Frank Gehry-designed Guggenheim Museum, this eco-friendly boutique hotel is ideally placed for exploring the cliffs, wetlands, forests, medieval towns and coastal villages of the Urdaibai Biosphere Reserve. With its Scandi-influenced, minimalist interiors, the hotel’s aim is that the gorgeous countryside takes centre stage, encouraging guests to retreat from modern life and explore the local surroundings at leisure.
Certified by Europarc (the European Charter for Sustainable Tourism of Protected Spaces), sustainability is at the heart of the hotel’s ethos. Initiatives range from installing solar panels and using water from the on-site natural spring to sourcing ingredients locally for the fine-dining restaurant – some from the hotel’s orchard. Around three hectares of land is being rewilded and a non-seasonal approach to recruiting local workers ensures stable employment. Activities available to guests include organic wine tastings, cooking workshops, forest massages and bike rides. Average room price £215 per night, room only.
Parador de Alarcón
Glossary
Sustainability
The quality of being able to continue over a period of time, or the avoidance of the depletion of natural resources in order to maintain an ecological balance (Camrbdige Dictionary).
