Stay for Good: the stories behind your stay
Every destination has stories beyond the sights. They might be found in a centuries-old craft, a family recipe passed down through generations, or a walk through the landscape with someone who knows it by heart.
Stay for Good brings these stories closer, with bookable experiences at our hotels and resorts that connect you with the people, traditions and natural world that make each place unique. From learning an ancient craft to discovering the hidden work behind a thriving ecosystem, these are some of the ways to see a destination from a different point of view.
Meet the people keeping traditions alive
A beautiful craft is often the result of years of practice, patience and techniques passed carefully from one generation to the next. The best way to understand it is to give it a try yourself.
Batik is everywhere in Penang, Malaysia, reflecting centuries of influence from Malay, Chinese, Indian and European traditions. Spend time at a local workshop with Angsana Teluk Bahang Penang and you can watch as artisans layer wax and colourful dye to transform a simple piece of fabric; some using carved wooden blocks to stamp repeating patterns, others working freehand, adding intricate details one brushstroke at a time. Before long, you will be creating your own design, with a new appreciation for one of Malaysia's most treasured traditions.
Near Dhawa Yura Kyoto, the mountain village of Miyama offers a glimpse of a Japan that has changed little over the centuries. Thick forest surrounds farmhouses topped with steep kayabuki roofs, still standing thanks to the residents who care for them, and to a new generation learning the craft of thatching. Arrange a visit and local guides will show you how they skilfully weave suzuki grass and tie it onto a roof, before inviting you to help lay the grass yourself. It is a small but genuine way to become part of a tradition that is still thriving.
Longtail boats, with their distinctive high bows designed to handle rough coastal waters, have been part of Thailand’s coastal culture for generations. On Ban Koh Klang island, just across the water from Banyan Tree Krabi, local artisans have turned these iconic vessels into miniature works of art, working carefully with locally-sourced wood. Join them to design, carve and assemble your own model boat, and discover how what began as a simple souvenir has become a proud symbol of Krabi's maritime heritage.
Discover how environment shapes communities
A place leaves its mark on those who live there, influencing what people grow, what they eat, the skills they learn and the traditions they pass on.
In Bali, Indonesia, the rice terraces are one of the island's defining images, but their story runs much deeper than the view. At twilight, the terraces around Buahan, a Banyan Tree Escape, take on an almost dreamlike quality: the perfect time for a discovery walk through the fields. You will be joined by a local farmer and a guide and learn more about the region’s ancient irrigation system. As daylight fades and fireflies begin to appear, conversations drift from rice cycles to constellations to the beliefs that continue to shape life here today.
It does not take long to notice that coconuts are everywhere on Koh Samui, Thailand. They line the roads, fill market stalls and appear in everything from local cooking to traditional crafts to beauty ingredients. At Homm Chura Samui, you can get right to the source, visiting a coconut farm where husks are woven into ropes and mats, and fresh flesh and milk are simmered slowly to make coconut oil. Back at the resort, join local chefs to prepare dishes such as tom kha goong, which uses fresh coconut to bring Thai flavours to life.
Follow the stories behind nature conservation
The natural world rarely stands still. Reefs grow, forests regenerate and ecosystems constantly adapt, often with a little help from the people who know them best.
Coral reefs are not just a beautiful backdrop; they are vital ecosystems that support marine life and island communities. Spend time with the resident marine biologists at Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru in the Maldives and you will soon find out that restoring a coral reef is less dramatic than it is painstaking. Tiny coral fragments are nurtured in underwater nurseries before being replanted onto damaged reefs, each one helping to rebuild a thriving marine ecosystem. It is quiet, careful work, and experiencing it first-hand makes the reef feel like something worth protecting.
In Yogyakarta, Indonesia the focus moves from the ocean to the forest floor. At Garrya Bianti Yogyakarta you can walk through a local mushroom plantation with the farmers who tend it and follow the journey from tiny spores to harvest. Afterwards, roll up your sleeves for a cultivation workshop before taking home your own mushroom baglog so you can continue growing at home. Along the way you will meet the people behind the process and see how sustainable farming can grow from something as small as a single mushroom spore.
For more travel advice see our stories including travelling with purpose and cultural connections.