Give your conscience a break as well with a stay at a luxury but low-impact destination.

Here, JILL STARLEY-GRAINGER, editor of the newly launched website EcoLuxHotels.com, selects her best...

 

WOODSY WONDERLAND

Treehotel, Sweden Floating above a forest floor in northern Sweden, Treehotel's five treehouses are suspended from trunks and branches.

Each varies wildly in design (one is even a UFO) but all are beautifully styled and wonderfully bizarre. Hydropower supplies the electricity and the hotel has done much to protect the forest.

Treehotel (dialling from the UK: 00 46 928 10403/treehotel.se) offers doubles from £380 per night (two sharing) or £460 (two adults, two children), B&B.

Norwegian (020 8099 7254/norwegian.com) offers return flights from Gatwick to Lule¥, via Stockholm, from £175.

BAREFOOT LUXURY

Nikoi Island, Indonesia Kick off your shoes and dig your toes in the sand at this laid-back island retreat.

Three hours from Singapore, Nikoi has just 15 beach houses scattered along a pristine seashore.

Hanging out is the done thing here, around the pools, bars and restaurant of the main house, but you can always sail, snorkel, swim or explore the island, which Nikoi has done much to preserve?

Original Travel (020 7978 7333/ originaltravel.co.uk) offers seven nights at Nikoi Island from £1,920pp (two sharing), full board, including return flights from Heathrow to Singapore and transfers.

CITY SLICKER

Crosby Street Hotel, New York In New York's SoHo, this 86-room boutique hotel ticks all the boxes.

It is perfectly located for sightseeing and nightlife, has individually designed rooms, bar and restaurant and a courtyard garden.

A rooftop vegetable garden and menagerie of chickens supply the kitchen and the hotel is certified for sustainable construction?

Crosby Street Hotel (dialling from the UK: 001 212 226 6400/firmdale.com) offers doubles from £335 per night (two sharing), room only.

British Airways (0844 493 0787/ba.com) offers return flights from Heathrow to Newark from £398.

CARIBBEAN CALLING

Hermitage Bay, Antigua Sailing, snorkelling and rum cocktails on the beach will fill your time at Hermitage Bay.

You'll sleep in one of 25 Caribbeanchic cottages, built with sustainably sourced wood and solar water heaters.

These tumble down a lush hillside to the beach.

Meals are open-air, using organic produce from the resort's garden and served by locals.

Tropical Sky (0844 332 9369/tropicalsky.co.uk) offers seven nights from £2,149pp (two sharing), all inclusive, including return flights from Gatwick to Antigua and transfers.

BRITISH BOUTIQUE

The Green House, Bournemouth This Victorian house near the beach claims to be Britain's greenest hotel.

Wood and recycled tile floors and free-standing baths give a boutique feel to the 32-room hotel, while the restaurant dishes up fine British food, sourced within 30 miles.

The hotel is super-insulated and generates much of its own energy as well as recycling extensively.

The Green House (01202 498900/thegreenhousehotel.co.uk) offers doubles from £99 per night (two sharing a small double), B&B.

LA DOLCE VITALIT€

Lefay Resort & Spa, Italy Overlooking Lake Garda in northern Italy and with flora-covered roofs and walls, the low-carbon Lefay Resort & Spa blends into the terraced hillside above a quaint village.

The gorgeous eco-spa has an indoor/outdoor saltwater pool, five types of sauna and sunset room, which are all heated by green technologies.

The hotel's 90 guestrooms exude Milanese elegance, with Italian marble, olive and walnut flooring and furniture and organic textiles.

Scott Dunn (020 8682 5400/scottdunn.com) offers three nights from £850pp (two sharing), half board, including return flights from Gatwick to Verona and car hire.

FAMILY SKI

Bohinj Park Eco Hotel, Slovenia Hit the (cheap) ski slopes near the 102-room Bohinj Hotel in the Julian Alps.

Rated by Green Globe as one of the most environmentally friendly hotels in the world, it has its own deep-water well and wooden roof.

It looks a bit business-like but families and couples love it for its Alpine setting, in-house bowling alley, adjacent waterpark and tranquil rooftop spa.

Bohinj Park Eco Hotel (dialling from the UK: 00 386 8 200 4140/bohinj-parkhotel.si) offers doubles from £160 (two sharing), room only.

easyJet (0843 104 5000/easyjet.com) offers return flights Stansted to Ljubljana from £58.

INDIAN BEAUTY ITC

Gardenia, Bangalore buzzes with millionaires and the five-star ITC Gardenia, a sumptuous 292-room hotel built to high standards of sustainable design, fits right in.

Retreat to this wind-powered hotel for beer and tapas in the grass-roofed pavilion or enjoy gourmet meals in its five restaurants.

Ampersand Travel (020 7289 6100/ ampersandtravel.com) offers seven nights from £1,295pp (two sharing), B&B, including return flights from Heathrow to Bangalore and transfers.

GOING DUTCH

Mint Hotel, Amsterdam Walk two minutes from Amsterdam's train station and you arrive at this sleek new 553-room hotel, with five-star service and iMacs in every room.

From the rooftop bar, you can see the city's historic centre and its famed canals.

Mint Hotel is warmed and cooled with biomass heating and operates projects with the community.

Mint Hotel (dialling from the UK: 0031 20 530 0800/minthotel.com) offers doubles from £160 (two sharing), room only.

Eurostar (0843 218 6186/eurostar.com) offers return rail from London to Amsterdam from £99.