More sustainable travel starts with better decisions—and sometimes simply with the right timing. While many destinations are overwhelmed with visitors during the traditional vacation months, countercyclical travel offers a sustainable alternative: consciously traveling outside of the high season.

The advantages of traveling in the off-season

Countercyclical travel means discovering destinations when they have room to breathe. Or to put it simply: when everyone else is flocking to the south, we discover the north. The advantages:

• Less crowds relieve pressure on nature, infrastructure, and local communities.
• At the same time, you often experience places that are more unspoiled, quieter, and more authentic—and (bonus!) cheaper.
• For hosts, too, this form of travel is an important lever for flattening seasonal peaks, securing jobs all year round, and making sustainable concepts viable in the long term.

Your countercyclical travel calendar for 2026

In our green travel calendar for 2026, we therefore show you twelve travel ideas – one inspiration for each month. All destinations follow a simple principle: travel sustainably, avoid overtourism, and experience special vacation moments when others are not even thinking about them yet.

1. January

Traveling to a region during the rainy season has two big advantages: fewer tourists and lush greenery! That’s why our tip for January is Peru. There is no classic dry season in the Amazon region anyway. However, it rains (even) more frequently and heavily until around April. And it is precisely this time of year that causes the rainforest to explode in lush greenery. (Sure, the paths can be muddy, but that’s just part of the jungle experience). You’ll stay right in the rainforest at the Inkaterra Reserva Amazónica. And if you want to enjoy the Andes during the rainy season, the highlight of Machu Picchu near the Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel is at least a little less crowded than during the high season.

2.February

February – neither winter nor spring. However, Freiburg doesn’t need spring to charm its visitors. The charming city center has a lot to offer, especially the historic architecture, the Freiburg Bächle (small streams) and the almost daily weekly market around Freiburg Cathedral, which are among the city’s landmarks. When the weather is bad, there is culture to discover in museums (Augustinermuseum, Natur und Mensch) and historic sites (Colombischlössle).

In Freiburg’s eco-friendly Vauban district, you will find particularly sustainable accommodation at the Green City Hotel Vauban after an eventful day. By the way: whether it’s the onset of winter or already spring-like temperatures, from here you can quickly reach the Black Forest countryside, which is beautiful in every season.

3. March

Skiing doesn’t have to take place in the middle of winter. In Switzerland, snow arrives later in many places, but it stays longer in the high mountains. March therefore often offers the best conditions – and that’s outside the high season. In Zermatt, the slopes are emptier, the temperatures milder, and the light particularly intense. Fabienne Anthamatten from Zermatt sums it up:

“Come skiing in March or April! You won’t be skiing on artificial snow – and that’s really fun.”

Naturally, we recommend the Hotel Bella Vista Zermatt. The Anthamatten family’s family-run hotel is located directly on the ski slope, is comfortably furnished with lots of wood, and offers a magnificent view of the Matterhorn – perfect for relaxed skiing days without too much hustle and bustle.

4. April

How about forest bathing instead of an Easter egg hunt this Easter? The Selfnesshotel SCHWALRZWALD PANORAMA is offers this relatively new treatment over the Easter holidays. “Black Forest bathing” with a private trainer.

Forest bathing (Shinrin Yoku) has health-promoting effects on your entire organism, strengthens the immune system, and soothes the soul. This meditative excursion into nature is particularly suitable for stress management. And forest bathing in Bad Herrenalb is especially worthwhile because the forest here is so wonderfully unspoiled!

5. May

A beach holiday on the Baltic Sea in May? Why not! The sun is already shining and the beaches are not very crowded at this time of year. Moreover, bathing in the (admittedly, still cold) sea promotes blood circulation and strengthens the immune system like a climate therapy. If you want to warm up afterwards, it’s best to enjoy the view of the rooftop sauna at the SANDnature on the Timmendorfer Strand.

6. June

Nepal is usually associated with the classic trekking season in autumn – but June is a particularly exciting time to travel. Shortly before the monsoon, the landscape is exceptionally green, the air is clear, and the trails are much quieter than in the busy months. Those who travel countercyclically will experience Nepal more intensely, more authentically, and more relaxed.

Our tip for this time of year is The Pavilions Himalayas – The Farm near Pokhara. This boutique resort is picturesquely situated amid organically farmed fields and rolling hills, with views of the Himalayas. In sustainable villas, you can experience traditional Nepalese life as well as modern, environmentally conscious comfort, yoga, meditation, and great excursion options, such as animal-friendly safaris.

7. July

When beaches and cities are crowded in July, the Tyrolean mountains offer a refreshing alternative. A cooler climate, green landscapes, and plenty of space to breathe deeply make summer in the Alps ideal for countercyclical travel.

In Seefeld, the Hotel Klosterbräu combines sustainable five-star wellness comfort with over 500 years of history. The sixth-generation family-run hotel offers peace, nature, and relaxation—far away from the heat and hustle and bustle.

If you’re looking for more space and privacy, the Summit Lodges Pfunds in the Tyrolean Oberland offer luxurious, sustainably managed vacation homes for up to six people. With a private sauna and close proximity to the mountains, you can enjoy a relaxing summer here.

8. August

The Dolomites are the best place to enjoy late summer! When the mountains are bathed in red and gold by the setting sun in the evening (the locals call this spectacle “Enrosadira”), you won’t want to be anywhere else. The location of the Paradiso Pure.Living Vegan Hotel is perfect for this and also ideal for exploring the countryside on mountain bikes or discovering the hiking trails on the Alp de Suisse.

9. September

According to a British travel study, September is considered the most popular month for travel – “Super September.” That’s precisely why it’s worth consciously choosing not to go where everyone else is going, but to rethink your travel destinations.

Sicily shows its relaxed side in September: the intense summer heat is over, the sea is still warm, and life on the island returns to its own rhythm. Instead of the hustle and bustle of the high season, you can expect wide open spaces, peace and quiet, and a genuine dolce vita.

Our accommodation tip here is the ADLER Spa Resort SICILIA, which is secluded on a WWF-protected wild beach that is almost exclusively accessible via the resort. Surrounded by nature, with plenty of space, sustainable standards, and comprehensive wellness facilities.

10. October

October is the ideal time to consciously extend summer—without the heat, holiday crowds, and crowded beaches. On the Croatian island of Iž, you can now enjoy peace and quiet. It is precisely this time of year that makes the island a popular destination for countercyclical travel.

The sustainable Hotel Korinjak is located directly by the sea, surrounded by the scent of pine trees and salty air. Minimalist rooms with sea views, vegetarian Mediterranean cuisine, and the immediate proximity to the beach invite you to leave everyday life behind. Morning yoga, gong sound baths, or retreats support this slower pace.

11. November

When Central Europe becomes gray and cold, many people seek out the sun in faraway places. A little closer to home is Tenerife. In November, this Canary Island offers a mild climate (around 23°C to 26°C) and plenty of nature – and that’s outside the peak season.

The OCEANO Health Spa Hotel is located directly on the Atlantic Ocean in the northeast of Tenerife (i.e., a little further away from the tourist hotspots). All rooms offer sea views, and there is also light, regional cuisine, thalassotherapy, a seawater infinity pool, and direct access to the natural Piscina Natural (seawater pool). Exercise, yoga, and health programs make November the ideal time for conscious relaxation. A hiking vacation in Tenerife is also ideal at this time of year.

12. December

Winter sports in December are a classic and therefore have less to do with countercyclical travel, but instead of skis and snowboards, you could enjoy the winter landscape on snowshoes and leave the hustle and bustle of the slopes behind you. At the Naturhotel Outside in Matrei, East Tyrol, you can hike across the snow-covered Hohe Tauern National Park.

Twelve months, twelve opportunities to travel consciously. Where can you find me? Where others are not. 🙂

This is an update from January 8, 2019.

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Today we present you eight hotels that are perfectly designed for families and make your holiday enjoyable relaxing for everyone.

1. A trip to the mountains with the whole family: Eco Park Hotel Azalea

“Freedom and Childhood” is the motto for family vacations at Eco Park Hotel Azalea in the Italian region of Trentino. The family hotel offers your children an exciting adventure holiday in nature while you enjoy a few hours of relaxation for two. The offers for the little ones are varied: from night walks with a lantern, trampolining and slacklining, longboarding, gardening and baking to the treehouse where they can search for the goblins of the Fleimstals and the miniature studio for little artist just to name a few of their options! Here your little ones will find it difficult to get bored! During all activities, an emphasis is placed on understanding and learning about processes in nature: “Perceiving, understanding, and learning with all senses” is the motto of the excursions on offer.

The colorful eco-hotel is perfectly suited to the needs of families and ensures a relaxing holiday for young and old alike. Whether it’s yoga, a cozy chat with your hosts, a delicious cup of fair-trade coffee, hiking in the mountains or simply relaxing in the garden with a book – at the Eco Park Hotel Azalea, the whole family can recharge their batteries!

Read more: Three activity-holidays with children

2. Lakeside family holiday: Hotel Speicher

The location of the Hotel Speicher alone is perfect for an active family holiday: it is located directly on the banks of the Ziegelsee complete with its own jetty – and there are ten more lakes closeby! Water babies both big and small can jump directly into the lake in the morning and let off some steam. The diverse lake landscape is also perfect for canoeing, sailing and much more. A short 15-minute walk will take you to the old town of Schwerin and from April to October the ships of the “White Fleet” shuttle back and forth several times a day between the moorings of the hotel and the impressive Schwerin Castle.

But the Hotel Speicher is also an exciting eye-catcher in itself: behind the brick walls of the building, grain used to be stored! The rooms with connecting doors are perfect for families. And by the way, you can spend the night here in a climate-friendly way. To maintain this status, the hotel has taken many different measures. One of them is the renouncement of minibars in the rooms – instead of small power guzzlers, there is 24-hour room service! This is just one example of many of the hotel’s commitment to sustainability. 🙂

3. The Maldives for big and small: Gili Lankanfushi

In the Maldives, you can do much more than “just” honeymoon or spend some time together as – you can also spend a unique and exciting yet relaxing family holiday here. The activities at Gili Lankanfushi in the Kids Exploration or the Gili Youth Discovery Program, which are specially designed for children and teenagers, provide a lot of variety. While you relax and enjoy a couple of hours together, the kids will get to know the organic garden, cook with Chef Hari, and explore the underwater world with marine biologist Sarah Davies on a treasure hunt and learn about Maldivian art and culture. Starting to get green with envy? Don’t worry, many of the activities are also available for adults! 🙂

Besides the special programs, the crystal-clear sea invites everyone to swim and snorkel, the Gili Veshi Marine Research Center helps guests learn about the state of the sea and the corals and the daily Local Hour brings a different aspect of Maldivian culture each day.

4. Time together at the Baltic Sea: Bio Kinder- und Familienhotel Gut Nisdorf

Quality time together as a family, but also relaxing and spending a few hours apart now and then – that doesn’t work anywhere else as well as in Gut Nisdorf! As parents themselves, the owners Sabine and Jürg know exactly what is important on a family holiday and have therefore designed their bio-hotel to perfectly meet the needs of young and old. The twelve apartments with two to three rooms each provide enough privacy and are equipped with a small kitchen, but you shouldn’t miss the delicious organic food!

From Monday to Friday childcare is offered for all children over the age of one. The programs are age-specific, so there are not programs for every age every day – but that doesn’t matter, because there is more than enough to experience and discover here. The large garden with a playground, Kettcars and more, a natural swimming pool and the Baltic Sea coast with beach, pony riding or canoeing, which can be reached in a few minutes on foot – all this provides a lot of variety and fun in nature. And if the weather is bad, playrooms, foosball tables and more are waiting inside for the little bundles of energy. The wellness area with bio-sauna, steam bath and more provides for some relaxation in between. By the way, children can also have their first wellness experiences here 🙂

Read more: A hotel for everyone: Arrive and unwind at Gut Nisdorf

5. Surrounded by the nature of South Tyrol: Hotel Rinner

The Hotel Rinner is situated on the Ritten in Oberbozen and is perfect for an exciting family holiday in and with nature. Besides exciting activities such as a ride on the Ritten cable car and the cable car, swimming in the Wolfsgruben lake, romping on the huge playground with trampoline, swing, foosball and table tennis, skiing and tobogganing in winter and mountain biking and hiking in summer, there is something really extraordinary to experience here: An absolute highlight for all ages is a visit to Hotel Rinner’s own organic beekeeping.

The family has been keeping bees for over half a century – today, hotel owner and passionate beekeeper Paul Rinner is responsible for this pastime. On the bee nature trail, you will learn more about the indispensable insects, during Api-wellness treatments you will benefit from the health advantages of the beehive air and at breakfast, you will enjoy the delicious organic honey. Important note for all bee lovers: The bees of the Hotel Rinner are left with enough honey for their winter supply!

Read more: Relaxing under the sign of the bees: Api-wellness in South Tyrol

6. For little adventurers and big explorers: Inkaterra

The Inkaterra hotels are scattered throughout southern Peru: from Cusco to Machu Picchu, through the rainforest around the Madre de Dios River. In all hotels, there are special programs for the little explorers to introduce them to the extraordinary and diverse Peruvian nature.

On the trail with an Inkaterra Explorer Guide, they will follow the tracks of native plants, animals and insects, meet spectacled bears (Paddington says hello :-)) in the reception center of the Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel, learn about traditional farming methods at the Earth-to-Table initiative of the Inkaterra Hacienda Urubamba, and are woken up in the morning by howler monkeys in the Inkaterra Reserva Amazónica or can make their own chocolate. The incredible biodiversity of Peruvian nature amazes adults and children alike and makes for an exciting journey and long-lasting memories.

Read more: From the rainforest to the cloud forest and Machu Picchu

7. Vacations in the countryside: Okelmann’s

The Okelmann family has been welcoming guests to their eco-hotel Okelmann’s for four generations! Situated in the small community of Warpe in Lower Saxony, it is the perfect starting point for cycling tours through the picturesque natural landscape – make sure to ask for the snack to go, which will renew your strength on your journey. There are rooms with connecting doors especially for families as well as a playroom where the little ones can easily bake many delicious cakes and pastries while outside the adventure playground is just waiting to be explored. 🙂

8. Eco-family holiday in Tyrol: Biohotel Grafenast

Whether winter or summer: at the Biohotel Grafenast in Tyrol it is always family time. “Time for me – time for you” is the motto of the hotel, which focuses on the balance between shared experiences and the “every man for himself”. For the little ones, in particular, exciting adventures in nature are on the agenda – with a professional to accompany them on their excursions and activities as well as with peers on the playground.

Read more: Sustainability pioneers: Peter Unterlechner from Biohotel Grafenast

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On the top of the list of things making us happy are most likely good food, inner balance and time with our loved ones. Do you feel the same way? If yes, you can find here a few tips for special moments of happiness 🙂

Soul Food for a good mood

A German saying states, food and drink keep body and soul together. Today, Soul Food is the epitome of food satisfying us! Of course, the chefs at our partner hotels know how to get you good mood and happy faces with their dishes 😉

• Marcel Laversa’s culinary creations bring joy to the restaurant Twist. He is the chef at the Swiss Valsana Hotel & Apartments and pampers you with vegan, vegetarian or classic dishes. Needless to say, the ingredients are either regionally sourced or from organic farming.

• From the snack garden to the breakfast buffet: Biohotel Sturm incarnates culinary delights – and is a Slow Food member since 2006. Jams, chutneys and bread are homemade (even with home-grown ingredients), everything else comes from organic and regional agriculture! With his individual creations, chef Hartwig Buß always puts a smile on his guests’ faces when they dine at the hotel restaurant SCHULZE|S.

• How about a romantic candlelight dinner in the restaurant aurum at the Hotel Speicher am Ziegelsee? With a view of the lake Ziegelsee you can enjoy the excellent organic food and some quality time – and end the night with a walk around the lake.

Inner balance

Wellness, Selfness, stress reduction: serenity and health become more and more important and contribute to happiness. Whether forest bathing, Yoga or Ayurveda – with our partners you will find a variety of offers promoting your inner balance.

• The Selfnesshotel SCHWARZWALD PANORAMA offers a wide range of services to enhance your well-being: from a generous spa area to yoga, TCM, looked after fasting cures, basic meals and forest bathing in Bad Herrenalb – it’s all about your inner balance.

• Are you looking for a holistic wellness vacation? In the heart of Sri Lanka, Amaya Lake Resort is the perfect setting for outdoor yoga. If you prefer, you can enjoy certified Ayurveda treatments and the silence of the vast landscape.

• Letting go, the motto when joining selected therapies and treatments at Keemala: The Purify Retreat will help you to reduce stress – physically and mentally alike. Enjoy meditation, yoga, saunas, massages, herbal packs (and much more!) as well as cleansing menus and drinks during the relaxation and detoxification cure.

Me, you, us

According to two long-term studies conducted by Robert Waldinger, a formula for happiness seems to exist. His results show that good relationships make us happy, because the better our friendships and relationships are, the healthier and older we get. Be it with your partner or your best friend, some hotels will give you shared time:

• Cuddling days for two are available at the Hotel Lamm in the Black Forest, for example, including a cozy bath in a wooden barrel, use of the sauna landscape, a foot or neck massage – and plenty of quality time of course 😉

• How about a girls’ night in East Tyrol? At Naturhotel Outside you can book “Mädls Time” (girls time) with your best friends, including a suite, breakfast, afternoon buffet, dinner, full use of the spa area and fantastic mountain scenery for extended hikes!

• Have you always wanted to sail towards the sunset? An unforgettable experience like this awaits you at Reethi Faru Resort on the Maldives. Enjoy dinner for two, a flower bath and of course romantic walks along the beach with the romantic package!

We hope you can draw some inspiration from our tips! Either for mindfulness, time for two (or three) and once again a really tasty meal! Probably you can think of many more things that make you happy 😉

Der Beitrag Happy moments on the Day of Happiness erschien zuerst auf GREEN TRAVEL BLOG.

Underground spa

Outdoor fans regularly lose their hearts here! Far and wide there’s nothing but mountains, forests and valleys around the small eco-village Sagna Rotonda in the Piedmont. The 17^th century hamlet was passionately rebuilt preserving a piece of history. You can find a small pool and Finnish sauna in the vaulted cellar of the sustainable and energy self-sufficient hamlet.

History of Schwerin 2.0

Once grains were stowed here to be later processed to bread, now, Hotel Speicher am Ziegelsee is located in the historic building. Built in 1939, the listed granary was renovated regarding sustainable standards, and offers guests climate-free stays and rooms with view of the lake.

Vivid cobblestoned streets

Cusco is not only picturesquely situated in the Peruvian Andes, but also has a charming, vibrant old town. Inkaterra La Casona is located in a traditional 16^th century manor house, thus, preserving the characteristic historic townscape. Today, Inkaterra La Casona merges the Incan history and Spanish conquerors’ influences.

Bathing culture reloaded

Since 1898, Strandhotel Kurhaus Juist sits enthroned on a dune above the city of Juist. During the turn of the century, the elegant building was constructed as a luxurious spa hotel. It still is a place for unwinding, recovering, and having thalassic therapies. Our tip: Enjoy the impressive view over the whole island Juist from the (new) glass dome!

Between vines and olive groves

Experience a hint of the Italian Renaissance at i pini in Tuscany. The walls of the 16^th century Agrivilla have been renovated in a sustainable way. Only natural, organically sourced, and non-animal materials were used such as lime, clay, and rice.

Der Beitrag 5 accommodations for sustainable sleep in ancient masonry erschien zuerst auf GREEN TRAVEL BLOG.