When hospitality rhymes with responsibility

When she settled in the Sacred Valley of the Incas in the 1990s, Marie-Hélène Miribel was struck by the poverty and lack of access to education that she encountered. Driven by a desire to act, she devised a unique project to create a hotel, Sol y Luna, and then use its profits to finance a foundation. Petit, as she is known to the locals, built a school to educate the children of underprivileged families, a center for disabled children, and an orphanage. Recently, scholarships have been inserted to encourage students to pursue higher education, even at the top universities in Lima. Travelers staying at Sol y Luna become a part of a virtuous constellation and sponsors for a brighter future.​

In the small town of Santa Catarina Palopó, Guatemala, blue is the color of hope. What started out as a simple act of repainting houses in this color and in colorful designs has become a magnet for visitors. Behind these changes, Pintando el Cambio (“Painting the Change”)—an association founded by owner Claudia Bosch—has the far greater ambition of encouraging families to send their children to school and improving their living conditions. For this to happen, local residents who want to transform their home into a work of art, in return, commit to enrolling their children in school and to keeping their immediate surroundings clean. The NGO provides a community garden to teach families how to grow nutritious food, installs more eco-friendly wood-burning stoves, and promotes education. The results speak for themselves: tourism is up by 70 percent, the exodus of the population has fallen by 56 percent, and residents are regaining pride and prospects. And the cherry on the cake: Travelers staying at Casa Palopó are the ones putting on aprons, picking up paintbrushes, and getting involved in painting the facades. ​

In the wooded expanse of the Vermont countryside, Twin Farms Resort is where nature meets nurture in an ongoing endeavor, rooted in the commitment of its leaders and staff. The genesis of this mission in the story of Ann Graham, wife of John Graham, Managing Director, whose survival from bone cancer led her to found MIB Agents Osteosarcoma (Make It Better). This organization is a vital ecosystem of care, funding critical research ($2.5 million in 32 research teams since 2017) and supporting kids and young adults with bone cancer through every phase of the disease. The work done by MIB Agents is elevated by a core of Twin Farms employees who actively volunteer throughout the year, offering their time, expertise, and compassion. They often accompany families through end-of-life experiences, making Twin Farms an institution where well-being is lovingly tethered to selfless service.​

On the edge of the Amboseli National Park, at the foot of Kilimanjaro, ol Donyo Lodge embodies a pioneering model of shared conservation. Located on the Mbirikani Group Ranch, an expanse of 270,000 acres/110,000 hectares owned by 4,600 Masai families, the lodge pays rent and a conservation fee that guarantees the preservation of the natural environment. Its social impact is just as strong: 90 members of the community work there, each supporting about 10 family members, or close to 900 beneficiaries. Founded by Dereck and Beverly Joubert (the owners and operators of ol Donyo Lodge), Great Plains is responsible for managing nearly 1,230,000 acres/500,000 hectares of protected land. With initiatives ranging from planting 60,165 trees to distributing nutritious meals to 14,362 school kids daily, Great Plains balance conservation efforts and community upliftment. According to Dereck Joubert, “The biggest threat isn’t hunters, poachers, or poison makers but human complacency.” ​

In Cáceres, owners José Polo and Toño Pérez not only offer an exceptional gastronomic experience but are also leading a project that is deeply rooted in culture, one in which travelers also take part. Through Fundación Atrio Cáceres, the two founders also wish “to give back to society part of what it has given us.” Their foundation uses art and music as instruments for social transformation and supports the conservation and restoration of local artistic, historic, and cultural heritage. Specifically, it provides free music lessons for children, music therapy workshops for older people, and even a music festival with venues that include monuments and heritage buildings within Cáceres, an old fortified town in Spain’s Extremadura region.​

On the sloping hillsides of the Douro Valley, wine has told the stories of the men and women who work these lands for centuries. Through Bagos d’Ouro, the foundation created by Luisa Amorim and Father Amadeu Castro, Quinta Nova Winery House is committed to supporting disadvantaged youth. Its aim is to break the poverty cycle through education by guiding children and their families to a brighter future. Since its creation, the foundation has supported more than 220 children and expanded its awareness and social inclusion projects in eight municipalities in the Douro region, in northern Portugal. Bagos d’Ouro methodically tracks the academic, family, and social journey of each beneficiary, offering academic support, material support, mentoring, and internships.​

In the wilds of Rajasthan, where leopards and tigers roam free, the SUJÁN camps are much more than opulent hideaways. Founded and led by Anjali and Jaisal Singh, SUJÁN has spent the past 25 years fostering harmony between rural communities and the natural world, investing every tourism revenue back into conservation and community development. Each guest staying at SUJÁN contributes 33 dollars per night directly toward its philanthropic initiatives. Among the foundation’s many achievements are​
13 schools under its care, impacting over 5,600 students, and a free medical service reaching over​
20,000 patients across seven villages. Initiatives providing clean drinking water, literacy training, weaving centers, and local employment with 83% of the camps team drawn from nearby communities. On the wildlife front, SUJÁN supports anti-poaching patrols, rewilding programs, land management, and biodiversity monitoring, safeguarding habitats for endangered species.​

Along the banks of the Zambezi River, as it meanders toward the Victoria Falls, Royal Chundu is deeply rooted in the local ecosystem. Here, all the on-site employees are Zambian, mostly residing in neighboring villages. Through the Royal Chundu Foundation, the lodge runs numerous projects, including a school and a fully sponsored music program for local children, sustainable fishing initiatives, seed donations, solar energy and water projects in the surrounding villages, and support for local gardeners. The foundation also trains staff in new skills and creates opportunities for income generation and greater gender equality, working with makers in the area. As an integral part of the community, Royal Chundu ensures that hospitality is a driver of pride and employment.​

Deep in the Umbrian countryside, within the walls of a medieval fortress, Borgo dei Conti is devoted to the preservation of Italian artisan skills, which are in danger of dying out. Through the Place of Wonders Foundation, created by the Babinis (the family who own the property), the hotel encourages the passing on of rare and precious skills by supporting craftspeople and young talent with scholarships and internships. The foundation has curated six artisanal “wonders” for preservation: ceramic, watercolor, iron, textile, glass and beeswax, which visitors can discover in workshops and living museums. In this way, travelers not only support an exceptional architectural and craft heritage but also play an active role in the preservation of a living but fragile legacy.​

At Ellerman House, an elegant Edwardian mansion overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, community engagement takes the form of solid support for education. On becoming aware that 81 percent of fourth-grade students could not read correctly, the Harris family founded Click Learning, an NGO that deploys digital literacy programs in disadvantaged elementary schools. More than 228,000 children in 314 schools throughout the country have already benefited from them. Note to art-loving travelers: Since 2011, the hotel has also organized “ArtAngels” charity auctions, with the proceeds going directly to the​
Click Learning NGO.​