Most bizarre places to stay in the world - International Traveller Magazine

From Fairytale castles to underwater aquariums, we have found the most bizarre hotels to stay in on the planet (seriously you won’t believe what we found).

10. The Ice Hotel

Sweden

Sweden’s Ice Hotel brings a whole new meaning to “ice, ice, baby!". As the name suggests it’s made entirely out of ice, making it one of Sweden’s seven wonders.

Building material aside, the location alone is incredible, allowing easy access to the spectacular Northern Lights.

This icy structure also boasts a rebuild every year, featuring a new interior design from competing artists.

However you can expect one thing to always remain the same – the iconic ice bar where even the glasses are made from, you guessed it, ice!

9. Crane Hotel

Holland

Dream big, literally, inside this repurposed crane, perched 17 feet off the ground.

Originally used in the 1960s to move shipping containers, the crane has since been converted into a snug dockside accommodation for two.

And if that’s not enough of a thrill, guests can harness their inner wild child and manually spin the crane to take in 360 degrees of the harbour views. We don’t recommend a boozy dinner beforehand!

8. Jules Undersea Lodge

Florida, America

This is one underwater experience like no other.

Situated 21 feet below the lagoon’s surface, the only way to get inside Jules Undersea Lodge is to scuba dive your way down.

Once a research lab in the 1970s, this underwater guest suite resembles more of a plush aquarium. But seriously, who needs your usual flat-screen TV when there’s colourful fish gliding by your window?

While the lodge requires all those who enter to be certified scuba divers, there are plenty of available courses for those wanting to learn.

This is one underwater experience like no other…

7. Propeller Island City Lodge

Germany

Alice in Wonderland meets Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas at this topsy turvy stay.

Upside down rooms and suspended beds are just a couple of the weird and wonderful designs Propeller Island City Lodge offers their guests.

While originally designed as an artwork, it was later transformed into a hotel taking experiential art to a whole new level.

The website claims it is a place for philosophers and creative individuals, but we think it’s also a must for any sight-seeing traveller with a penchant for quirk.

6. Bivacco Gervasutti

Italy

Talk about being stuck between a rock and a…er…2835 metre fall!The Bivacco Gervasutti is precariously positioned halfway off a rock ledge in the Frebouze Glacier mountain range.

Originally built in 1948 out of timber, it was given a futuristic metal makeover in 2011, complete with solar power and satellite internet.

Thanks to its unusual positioning, guests are asked to use the power restrictively and to take their waste downstream with them. This is probably to prevent anyone partying too hard and toppling the whole thing over.

Spend the night between a rock and a beautiful place…

5. The Fairy Chimney Inn

Turkey

Yes, the name might stop 8-year-old girls in their tracks but this 1500-year-old Byzantine cave is more suited to geologists, or historians interested in Turkey’s ancient Cappadocia region.

The Fairy Chimney Inn is carved out of a large tufa rock and is surrounded by spectacular lunar landscapes, and the famous tufa caves.

For those seeking a unique spin on the Full Moon Party, every month people in nearby villages organise their own open-air parties in the tufa rock cones.

Alternatively, if getting high is more your thing, hot air balloon rides are a spectacular way to see the Cappadocia’s landscape.

4. Jade Screen Hotel

China

Not for the feint hearted (or the unfit), this is one stay you’ll need to train for in order to climb the 60,000 steps to the entrance.

While a cable car or a porter with a bamboo wicker chair are also available to transport you up the mountain, we highly recommend the sweatier option.

The Jade Screen Hotel sits on top of one of China’s most famous landscapes, and walking up the Yupking Peak is the best way to immerse yourself in it.

Views in winter are the most spectacular, shrouding the peaks and ancient pines in mist.

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3. Karotsa Prison

Latvia

Ever wondered what prison life would be like for the night, minus the criminal record?

You can find out first hand at this old Latvian prison, which makes sure ‘guests’ truly are a glutton for punishment by signing an agreement upon entry.

‘Guests’ are then subject to sleeping in prison cells, being served prison food through iron bars and guards patrolling the corridors enforcing their strict rules.

Originally constructed between 1890-1906 for the Russian Tsar Alexander the third, during the rest of the 20th century it served as a Soviet and Nazi military prison.

Hey, it’s not our cup of tea but if feeling like a prisoner was ever on your ‘to do list’, this is your hotel.

2. Palacio De Sal

Bolivia

When faced with the world’s largest salt flat, the builders of the Palacio De Sal gave ‘excess salt intake’ a whole new meaning.

Palacio De Sal was first constructed in 1993 entirely out of salt blocks, and in 2007 was re-built in another location on the edge of the Great Salar De Uyuni, in Bolivia.

As well as the building, all the chairs, beds, tables and sculptures are constructed from salt. Therefore guests are politely instructed to ‘please refrain from licking’ during their stay.

The Palacio De Sal is constructed from salt blocks

1. Costa Verde

Costa Rica

You can join the mile-high club on ground in this vintage 1965 Boeing 727, nestled in the coastal rainforest of Costa Verde, overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

Originally used to fly passengers on the South Africa Air and the Columbian Avianca Airlines, the aeroplane has been refurnished and relocated 50 feet up in the trees. The view emulates a sense of flying and the interior consists of two air conditioned bedrooms decorated with hand-carved teak furniture.

Noisy hotel guests won’t be a problem unless you count the native sloths, toucans and monkeys who reside amongst the canopies above.

Wellbeing means different things to different travellers. Here’s how to pick a hotel that gets it right for you.

The best wellness holidays aren’t necessarily spent wrapped in a spa robe. Sometimes they’re found around a dinner table in Cambodia, on a hiking trail in New Zealand or after finally beating jet lag on the other side of the world. The hotel you choose is what makes them happen.

1. Easy access to good food

meals from Novotel Bangkok Sukhumvit 20 — Taste delicious meals at Novotel Bangkok Sukhumvit 20.

One of the quickest ways to derail healthy habits on holiday is to spend half of it working out where to eat instead of digging into the culture around you. Thankfully, Novotel has done much of the hard work already, with chefs building menus that lean into the flavours, ingredients and traditions of each destination.

In Sihanoukville, Cambodia, Korkor soup – often dubbed ‘Cambodian ratatouille’ – sits alongside raw blue crab dressed with lime and chilli, best enjoyed with views across the Gulf of Thailand.

In the lovingly chaotic city of Bangkok, the presence of food cranks up the sociability. At Novotel Bangkok Sukhumvit 20, you can settle in with mango sticky rice and stranger-turned-friends beside the pool at Sky on 20 rooftop bar, or bring them along to tackle river prawns and stir-fried crab with holy basil at the buzzing Crab Paradise Dinner Buffet.

Then Novotel Dubai Al Barsha welcomes you with a laidback twist on the level of indulgence the Middle Eastern city is best known for up on Deck Se7en. Looking towards Burj Al Arab, the rooftop lounge has everything from Mediterranean-style dishes like seabass ceviche to Italian prosecco sundowners.

At the other end of the scale, in the hills that surround the Novotel Bali Ubud Resort, calm comes from nature. At Siralada restaurant, Balinese traditions shape the menu while thunder rumbles over the surrounding jungle – proving the setting is as nourishing as the food itself.

While at Novotel Nha Trang, chef Kieu Thi My Hanh and her team showcase Vietnam’s knack for balancing freshness, texture and fragrant herbs. Pho remains a favourite, while seafood salad with pomelo and mango brings those flavours together in one bright dish.

It’s all an approach backed by partnerships with expert food creators such as Alfie Steiner, whose plant-forward recipes prove healthy food should never taste plain.

2. Better sleep options

Novotel Bali Ubud Resort room — Sleep deeply with Novotel.

There are few travel experiences more disappointing than arriving in a new country, determined to seize the day, only to fall asleep fully clothed by 3pm.

For Australian travellers, jet lag is often an unavoidable part of the journey. That’s one reason Novotel runs sleep-focused initiatives that help guests adjust quickly without compromising on health. We’re talking partnerships with Sydney-based sleep specialist Olivia Arezzolo, known for her advice on everything from better sleep habits to beating jet lag, alongside features like pillow menus, in-room yoga content and tailored sleep guidance.

The sooner you’re operating on local time, the sooner you can get back to more pressing matters – like deciding which spa treatment to book.

3. More ways to move

woman hiking around queenstown new zealand — Stay at Novotel Queenstown Lakeside and explore local hiking trails. (Credit: GettyI mages/ naruedom)

Every place in the world has its own way of getting you moving: whether that’s hiking up ice-bitten mountains before a sauna or gentle stretching by the pool before a facial. From fitness centres to spas, Novotel recognises that wellbeing rarely looks the same.

At Novotel Queenstown Lakeside, activity is inescapable. Here, hiking trails, ski fields, bungee jumps, and white-water rafting have made the region famous. The hotel’s location on the shores of Lake Wakatipu means less time spent organising yourself and more time out there experiencing them. To top it all off, you can book a private hot tub for the evening before heading back into the wilderness tomorrow.

Bali, of course, takes a softer approach. At Novotel Bali Ubud Resort or Novotel Bali Nusa Dua, movement is less about conquering a mountain and more about a dance class between the tropical gardens and lagoon pools. Afterwards, the spa takes over, with traditional treatments like a Lulur body scrub: a combination of rice, turmeric, sandalwood, ginger and jasmine that’ll soothe muscles already relaxed by the Balinese heat.

4. Better connections

Kids will love a stay at Novotel Sharm El Sheikh.

One of the best things about travel is that it gives your family stories you’ll be telling for years. Novotel helps create them with activities that bring everyone together, whether that’s trying something new, learning a local skill, or simply spending more time together.

Go for a distinctly Thai twist at Novotel Phuket Vintage Park, where many of the family activities draw on local culture. Kids can try everything from beginner Thai boxing and language lessons to umbrella painting and – a pastime beloved by children the world over – pool foam parties. Everyone is welcome to join in, whether that’s getting splashed, covered in paint, or simply watching their children discover a new side of Thailand during the dedicated Family & Kids Day.

A different adventure awaits at Novotel Sharm El Sheikh. Kids could be perfectly content with discos, drawing classes and new holiday friends, but the Red Sea has other ideas. Sitting on the edge of Naama Bay, days here might involve snorkelling colourful reefs, taking a boat trip to Ras Mohammed National Park or heading into the desert by quad bike or camel for a Bedouin-style dinner beneath the stars.

5. Location is everything

Surin Beach, Choeng Thale, Thalang District, Phuket, Thaiföld — Explore Phuket’s gorgeous beaches. (Credit: Bence Biczo)

Everyone’s idea of wellness looks a little different. With more than 600 hotels across 65 countries, Novotel gives guests the freedom to choose the destination that suits them best. Whether that’s a beachside escape in Phuket, an alpine expedition in Queenstown or a city break in Bangkok, there’s a good chance a Novotel isn’t far away.

All that’s left? Choosing your version of wellbeing.

Discover stays to inspire your everyday at novotel.accor.com.

Top 10 most bizarre hotels in the world