The world's best floating hotels

Taj Lake Palace on Lake Pichola in Udaipur, India.

The 'spectral' white mansion of the Taj Lake Palace in the middle of Lake Pichola in Udaipur

(Image credit: Shutterstock / Mark Stephens)

published 23 July 2024

Spending time by water all but guarantees a relaxing break. Whether you're being buffeted by wind on a bracing seaside walk or watching waves ripple on a tranquil lake, there's something inherently calming about blue expanses. If you want to go one step further and leave dry land behind (at least temporarily) here are five floating hotels located in some of the world's most beautiful destinations.

Taj Lake Palace, India

It's easy to see why this "huge spectral white mansion" in the middle of India's Lake Pichola was chosen as the backdrop for the 1983 James Bond film "Octopussy", said Nosmot Gbadamosi on CNN. Built in 1746 as a pleasure palace for Prince Maharana Jagat Singh II, it was "restored to its opulent former glory" in the 1970s. You can only reach the swanky hotel by boat; guests are greeted at the private jetty by "attendants with embroidered umbrellas". There are just 65 rooms and 18 suites, many of which offer spectacular panoramic views across the lake.

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Located off the east coast of Tanzania on Pemba Island, this resort boasts many "eye-popping details", said CNN, "but none more breathtaking than its underwater room". Seven years in the making, the Swedish-engineered watertight chamber floats around 250 metres offshore. Guests can lie in bed watching local marine life glide by; expect to see everything from octopus to colourful sea slugs and tropical fish.

If you're keen to "really go off the grid", said Chelsea Bengier in Architectural Digest, it's worth making the somewhat tricky journey to King Pacific Lodge. Situated in the Great Bear Rainforest on a secluded archipelago in British Columbia, it means a 90-minute flight from Vancouver to Bella Bella before boarding a chartered boat, seaplane or helicopter. Overlooking Milbanke Sound, the "massive floating adventure lodge" is the perfect base for exploring; from hiking to fly-in fishing there is plenty to do nearby.

Permanently berthed on Edinburgh's waterfront, this 237-foot floating hotel is the former royal yacht of Queen Elizabeth II. Following a hefty £5 million renovation, it opened to guests in January 2019. There are just 23 "posh cabins" on board, said Architectural Digest, each with a sleek, art deco feel: expect dark wooden panelling, brass accents and soft lambswool throws. The hotel is also home to an elegant cocktail bar and restaurant on the top deck.

Despite being moored on the Left Bank just a stone's throw from Austerlitz station, "once you board this floating sanctuary, you'll feel far removed from central Paris", said Condé Nast Traveller. Parisian nautical architect Gerard Ronzatti designed the purpose-built barge which spans an impressive 263 feet, evoking an "oversized catamaran wrapped in glass and steel". Rooms are "sophisticated" and stylish: "this isn't your parents' cruise ship". On sunny afternoons head to the plunge pool on the upper deck for cocktails, tapas and "selfies on inflatable gold swans".

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Irenie Forshaw is a features writer at The Week, covering arts, culture and travel. She began her career in journalism at Leeds University, where she wrote for the student newspaper, The Gryphon, before working at The Guardian and The New Statesman Group. Irenie then became a senior writer at Elite Traveler, where she oversaw The Experts column.