Meet Exploranter, a whole new concept in overland coach travel for those with a free spirit and the ability to sleep with bunk mates. Move aside Greyhound, Exploranter brings the cushy leather seats, the kitchen, the beds and the shower along for the journey. Think Winnebago meets tour bus.

Based in Sao Paulo Brazil, the moving hotel charts adventurous courses through Brazil, Chile and Argentina, visiting areas on and off the traditional tourist map. Journeys can last from 1 week to 22 days and offer a comfortable nomadic journey through some of the world’s most spectacular scenery. While living space is modest, some upscale adventures are offered along the way such as hot air ballooning, horseback riding, off road driving, quads, etc. The top deck is furnished like a railway car with reclining seats and tables, while the rear is divided into 28 sleeping platforms. Whenever the ‘hotel’ is parked, a huge canopy opens up on the side to form a congenial kitchen and dining area.

On the banks of Peru’s Madre de Dios River in the heart of a 29,000-acre private ecological reserve deep in the Amazon rainforest, you will find the Inkaterra Canopy Tree House. The humble thatch-roofed house sleeps just two people, and is accessed via a series of hanging bridges, almost 30 metres off the ground. The house is equipped with 2 single beds, a wooden table, chairs, wash basin, portable toilet, and windows with removable mosquito netting, providing natural light and 360-degree vistas of the surrounding flora and fauna. During the day, orchids, hummingbirds, toucans, monkeys and other wildlife are an arm’s length away, while at dusk, nocturnal species come to life for evening excursions and stargazing along Inkaterra’s hanging 1,130-foot-long canopy walkway. In the evenings guests can listen to the amazing jungle sounds whilst unwinding at the relaxing canopy bar. The tree house comes with its own canopy butler, contactable by walkie-talkie, and guests can enjoy an intimate dinner for two on the platform or a late-night Pisco Sour. If sleeping at a heart-stopping 90ft above the ground becomes too much to handle, guests can descend to pre-arranged ground-level accommodation.

What do you do with an abandoned military installation in the middle of the Panamanian jungle? For avid bird-watcher, businessman, and nature conservationist, Raul Arias de Para, the answer to this question was simple: turn it into a unique ecolodge and rainforest canopy observation post. His dream finally came true in January 1999 with the opening of the Canopy Tower Ecolodge and Nature Observatory in Soberania National Park, a 55,000-acre wilderness reserve bordering the Panama Canal.

An exhibit called “Parting of the Green Curtain” occupies the cylindrical structure’s ground floor. This permanent display, donated by the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, uses pictures, artefacts, and text to introduce visitors to the diversity of Panama’s rainforest and to trace the history of biological research in the Tropics.

Metal stairs lead to the tower’s second level, which harbours six comfortable, two-person bedrooms decorated with tropical plants and colourful molas made by Panama’s Kuna Indians. Each room has large windows opening into the canopy, so that overnight guests need only roll over in their beds to watch the forest come to life. The next floor has a large common area with hammocks, easy chairs, and a well-stocked reading nook.

The tower’s rooftop observation deck is built around a 30-foot-tall yellow geo-tangent dome, similar to Buckminster Fuller’s famous geodesic dome. Over 250 species of birds are present, along with four types of monkeys, jungle cats, and many other animals.

The Canopy Tower Ecolodge is probably the best perch in Panama for serious bird watchers and nature lovers.

Parrot Nest Lodge is a truly unique tropical experience. Spending the night under a 100 foot Guanacaste tree in a thatched tree house is like nothing else. The lodge is surrounded on three sides by the Mopan River, so a refreshing swim in clear water is never far away and the wildlife of the area abounds.

Yes, parrots are in great number here, along with hundreds of other types of birds, making this an ideal location for bird watching. Coati, agouti, otter, and the giant iguana are among the many animals which are regular visitors to their gardens which, though lush and exotic, are virtually mosquito free, a real bonus for those who love the great outdoors and a good night’s sleep.

The Parrot’s Nest is in Bullet Tree Falls, which is just three miles from downtown San Ignacio, so you don’t have to endure the city noise or light pollution while enjoying a great night’s rest.

This is a fun and quirky concept hotel: 7 ‘geodesic’ (spherical) domes with removable roofs set in the stunning Elqui Valley, famed for clear skies that attract astronomers from all over the world, as well as for its potent local liquor, pisco. Conceived in 2003 by local businessman and astronomer Esteban Zarate, who spotted a star-shaped gap in the market, Elqui Domos is a true retreat from the world. Its small size confers a feeling of exclusivity and intimacy, for a very reasonable price tag.

Setting foot in the main reception/restaurant dome, starry magic starts to rub off on you with the welcome message: ‘may the stars be with you, shining for your eyes along their celestial dance.’ A poolside astronomical tour will help novices to appreciate the wonder of the skies. While the stars are sleeping get out and explore the valley on foot, bike or horseback, and admire the contrast of the dusty brown mountains – which glow pink at sunset – and the verdant farmland at their feet. Fittingly for an astronomic hotel, the food is pretty stellar, too.

Ariau Amazon Towers Hotel is located 35 miles from Manuas, Brazil at the confluence of the Rio Negro and Ariau Creek. Built entirely at the level of the rainforest canopy, Ariau’s towers are linked together by 4 miles of sturdy wooden catwalks. This architectural wonder affords visitors a unique communion with the regions abundant flora and fauna while leaving the fragile eco-system completely undisturbed.

Regular rooms are located in gigantic round towers up to five stories tall. Rooms all look outward, their doors facing each other at the centre of each circular level. No mercy is spared in the decor: the stairwells and room walls are covered with Amazonian-themed paintings, and fake vines and palm thatch are everywhere. A huge fibreglass Indian shooting an arrow towers over the pool, while macaws and monkeys play along the banisters outside the restaurant tower. The property is made up of eight towers connected by raised walkways that often double as tree canopy walks.

This is definitely a unique way to experience the Amazon but is this a theme park or a hotel.

Located within the Huilo Huilo Private Natural Reserve, Chile, The Magic Mountain Hotel is without a doubt one of most unique hotels in South America. The architecture alone is sure to astound you with its unique beauty and location.

This hotel was made to look just like a volcano on the outside and has a waterfall which cascades down its windows and rocky walls. Wood and stone spiralled staircases as well as wooden walls and furniture are just some of the natural decorations you’ll see in and around the hotel.

The hotel rooms themselves have windows which overlook the forest and the wildlife; toucans, lizards, iguanas, eagles, condors, and pumas are just some of the animals frequenting the area. From the hotel you can also gaze upon one of Chile’s natural marvels – the breathtaking and enormous Arenal Volcano.

One of the world’s most unusual hotels, the Hotel Quinta Real Zacatecas encircles the 17th century San Pedro bullring. Blending the luxury of a modern, all-suite hotel with the splendour of original, colonial architecture, the hotel faces the city’s ancient arched viaduct. To dine in the restaurant, with the golden light blazing from the many archways and a million stars sparkling in the blackest sky, promotes a magical feeling of anticipation as though some grand spectacle is about to take place.

Situated on the edge of the Manuel Antonio National Park, the Costa Verde Resort features an incredible hotel suite set inside a 1965 Boeing 727 airplane. In its former life the airplane transported globetrotters on South Africa Air and Avianca Airlines, and it now serves as a two bedroom suite perched on the edge of the rainforest overlooking the beach and ocean.

The airplane was transported piece by piece from San Jose airport to its current resting place on a pedestal 50 feet above the beach. It looks a bit like a model airplane on a stand, and we can only imagine the spectacular views from the balcony and the airplane windows. Five big trucks were needed to get the plane out to the resort, and while the transportation certainly had a negative ecological impact, the finished project is a stunning example of adaptive reuse.

The two-bedroom, two-bathroom suite also includes a kitchenette, flat-screen TV, a dining room, and a terrace with an ocean view. We can’t really agree with their choice of furnishings, which are made from teak and shipped across the Pacific from Indonesia, but at least they were hand carved. The tip-to-tail panelling on the inside is also teak, but it was harvested locally in Costa Rica. Like the Jumbo Jet Hostel in Stockholm, this hotel suite is sure to offer jet-setting travellers a lovely location for an extended layover.

The Salt Hotel of Salar de Uyuni is sort of similar to the ice hotels in Norway and Sweden, only it’s never in any danger of melting. The hotel is built completely of blocks of salt cut out of the lake; similar to how Eskimo’s cut snow to make their igloos. The sun heats the massive blocks of salt so that while the surrounding temperatures drop massively during the night, the interior remains warm and cosy.

The hotel has 15 bedrooms, a dining room, a living room and a bar. Almost everything is made up of salt; you sit on the salt chairs, eat on salt tables, sleep on salt beds and enjoy your drinks in the salt bar. In the dining room of the hotel the salt is always on the table or rather it would apt to say the salt is the table. The toilets, lighting and pool table are the only things made of contemporary materials.

There is only one rule guests must adhere to when staying at the hotel: no licking the walls!