The last two years have taught us many things – the importance of good health, freedom and human connection, what a privilege it is to be able to travel whenever and wherever we like. It is also an opportunity to rethink how we travel – valuing quality over quantity, slowing down and savouring the moment, and thinking about what we leave behind in the destinations we visit. Here are a few steps we can take give a little back as we explore the world.

Stay a Little Longer

Basing yourself in one location and exploring the surroundings – rather than moving hotels every night – cuts down on your environmental impact. Less housekeeping means less water and electricity use. And if you choose a compact and happening town, you can even explore on foot or bicycle and further cut your environmental footprint.

Chiang Mai in the north of Thailand is a favourite destination for long stays. With hundreds of cafes, art galleries, boutiques, and Buddhist temples interspersed between, you can explore for weeks and never get bored. Add to that a vibrant yet affordable dining scene and friendly locals. Just outside of Chiang Mai lie handicraft cooperatives, hilltribe villages, coffee plantations, elephant sanctuaries and misty mountaintops. Trek through the countryside in search of adventure, breathing in the fresh air.

Anantara Chiang Mai Resort on the Mae Ping River offers special rates for stays of three nights or more.

Immerse in Nature

When you visit a national park or sanctuary, you support the often critical work of wildlife conservation. One of the most remarkable projects in the Middle East is Sir Bani Yas Island, established off the coast of Abu Dhabi on a private island by the late ruler and founder of the United Arab Emirates, His Highness Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

Sir Bani Yas Island is home to once almost extinct but now thriving herds of Arabian oryxes, sand gazelles, blackbuck antelope, urial and barbary sheep. And when you stay at Desert Islands Resort & Spa by Anantara (formerly the summer residence of the royal family), Al Sahel Villa Resort or Al Yamm Villa Resort, you can interact with the free-roaming animals every day, whether on a wildlife drive through the wadi or soaking in your private pool surrounded by lush grasslands that naturally invite grazing.

Keep Your Feet on the Ground

It's easy to forget how rewarding by road, rail or boat can be, and it's significantly more sustainable by air travel. It is a great way to really get to know a country, its landscape and inhabitants. Long a favourite way to traverse Vietnam, train travel now reaches peak style with the introduction of The Vietage.

The Vietage pays homage to the romance of bygone travel, with a vintage-style carriage for only 12 passengers offering old world elegance and supreme comfort. Take a seat for the six-hour journey through spectacular as a three-course lunch or dinner is served by the chef, complete with wines from the private cellar. Cocktails can be enjoyed at the bar, and head and shoulder massages in the spa suite, meaning you arrive at your destination refreshed and rearing to go.

The Vietage runs between Hoi An and Quy Nhon, the former a charming UNESCO-listed heritage town, the second a hidden gem of beachfront paradise shielded from the world by mountains on three sides. Base yourself at Anantara Hoi An Resort to explore the town's historic wonders and its famous lantern festival, then travel by train to the ultra-exclusive Anantara Quy Nhon Villas, where only 26 villas dotting a private cove offer the height of luxury, with butler service and in-villa culinary and spa journeys.

Nurture Marine Life

The Maldives is one of the most uniquely stunning places on earth. Atolls dot the most brilliant turquoise and sapphire ocean imaginable, and islands are surrounded by shallow lagoons and colourful coral reefs. These reefs play host to marine life such as sea turtles, clownfish and baby sharks. But their beauty is fragile, with corals susceptible to even the slightest change in water temperature.

At Anantara Dhigu Maldives Resort, Anantara Veli Maldives Resort and Naladhu Private Island Maldives, we have partnered with conservation group Coral Reef Protection to replant corals destroyed by recent bleaching events. An integral part of the guest experience, residents are invited to join the resident marine biologist in splicing coral fragments onto frames and “planting” them in nurseries, to be nurtured before being transferred to open ocean. The house reef at Anantara Kihavah Maldives Villas is a living example of the success of such efforts, being one of the most beautiful reefs in the Maldives and home to five species of sea turtle.

Turtle lovers can also help with conservation efforts in Sri Lanka, at Anantara Peace Haven Tangalle Resort, with regular patrols of the beach during nesting season to guard the eggs from predators and ensure the baby turtles make it back to the water to begin their journey of life.

Celebrate Local Culture and Communities

An integral part of the Anantara experience is an authentic immersion in local culture. This benefits both our guests and the communities we operate in, sustaining traditional practices and livelihoods. At Anantara New York Palace Budapest Hotel, the palatial architecture is an homage to Hungary’s Golden Age, the world-famous New York Café has played host to the nation’s leading intellectuals and artists for over a century, and the current Executive Chef is one of the vanguards of modern Hungarian gastronomy.

One of the hotel’s signature guest experiences is a workshop with Matyo folk artists. Matyo embroidery is perhaps best known for adorning Hungary’s national costume. The colourful technique originated in north-eastern Hungary, and in 2012 was inscribed on UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list. During the workshop, guests are invited to repurpose old clothing by giving it new life with embroidery taught by Matyo artists, all the while helping to support the next generation of practitioners.

Find out more about our sustainability and conservation efforts here.