“The early bird catches the worm,” as the renowned idiom states. One of the true joys of life is watching the sun rise, slowly lightening the cool, dark dawn with the warm rays of the star that burns brightly in the centre of our solar system. This phenomenon has been the inspiration for many a legend, myth, story or song. Historically, the sunrise has been an important part of mankind, representing enlightenment.
Here are 5 hotels where you too can be enlightened in a number of ways if you wake up at the right time:
Mandarin Oriental, San Francisco, USA
The Silicon Valley is arguably one of the centres of enlightenment in modern history, hosting a slew of tech firms led by some of the most innovative entrepreneurs in today’s world. With the sun rising slowly above the hills, the Pyramid smack-bang in front and the Bay Bridge in the distance, this is a classic urban view with which to start the day from the Mandarin Oriental San Francisco, where yoga at sun rise (organised by the hotel), can only add a meditative calm to the phenomenon.
Grace Santorini, Greece
Sometimes, it’s best left to nature. Grace Santorini knows exactly how to do that. With its iconic whitewashed stone houses, the rising sun gloriously radiates the sky filling it with a streaking hue of orange, that in turn, contrasts beautifully with the pale blue of the surrounding waters. As the historical centre of Western civilisation, it is easy to see how the Ancient Greeks took much inspiration from sunrises so stunning.
W Retreat & Spa, Maldives
Sky meets sea meets the sun at W Retreat & Spa, Maldives. With no multistoried buildings or hills in sight, this very flat landscape is ideal for sunrise spotters, with the warm colours of the sun melding with the coral blue of the nearby waters and the deeper aquamarine blue of the further waters to create a beautiful fusion of colours. The corals that populate the waters in the vicinity in this beautiful landscape rely on the rays of the sun for growth.
Southern Sun Elangeni & Maharani Hotel, Durban, South Africa
As the photo from Mridula Dwivedi’s blog “Travel Tales from India” shows, the sunrise from Southern Sun Elangeni & Maharani Hotel in Durban is magnificent as it should be, rising almost stereotypically from the horizon as a big glowing fiery ball, before settling into the sky. Durban’s sunrise marks the start of the day of the myriad of creatures that form the delicate circle of life in the African wilderness.
EAST, Hong Kong
The financial centre of Asia wakes up to the world earlier than most other places. If you are staying at EAST, you are most probably on a business trip in this appropriately named hotel at the eastern part of Hong Kong Island, where major development is starting to occur to provide an alternative to the traditional business district on the west. Start your day early by catching the sunrise from a Harbour Corner room, before getting your daily caffeine boost from the complimentary coffee and Espresso maker in each room.
Chinmoy Lad is the CEO and Founder of The Suite Life.If you would like to be a guest blogger on A Luxury Travel Blog in order to raise your profile, please contact us.
Chinmoy Lad is a luxury travel consultant, helping clients plan their special getaways. Enjoy exclusive Virtuoso benefits and special amenities at the world’s best hotels and resorts. www.thesuitelife.com.hk
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6 Comments
So amazing sunsets ))
All photos are beautiful but I like sunset of the Grace Santorini in Greece. That’s wonderful !
Wow, all of those places are stunning, it would be hard to choose. There’s nothing like walking up early to great the day especially in an amazing hotel like these 5.
Really lovely places to watch the sun rise. I have been to Santorini a few times over the years, I remember the very first time coming off the boat to the island and going up the steep hill on a donkey.
What a gorgeous collection of both sunsets and hotels. Plus the diversity you have included here is what makes this so visually appealing. I can attest to the fact that sunsets and sun rises in San Francisco are gorgeous. We spent a few days there last year, staying at the Hilton Union Square downtown and we were treated to some amazing shots. But any time you can capture the bridge and/or bay area in the background from your hotel window, you are on to a winner.
I would also like to throw a different outlook on this and say that during the summer months, you would do well to find more appealing sunrises than Cornwall, England but of course you have the challenge of whether you will actually see the sun and not just dreary rain!!
Watching the sunrise and listening to the world awake is always a wonderful thing and any of these great locations could only add to the experience. The last sunrise I saw was in the Arctic one night when I couldn’t sleep. I peeped out the window and saw the most beautiful light hitting the view in front of me. I quickly got dressed and grabbed my camera, very pleased that I had been a wake to witness a fabulous sunrise (it doesn’t happen often!).
All hotels are best to watch sun rice…. I wish I could visit one of them to have the wonderful scene. :)
Thanks for sharing..
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Grace Santorini, Greece
Sometimes, it’s best left to nature. Grace Santorini knows exactly how to do that. With its iconic whitewashed stone houses, the rising sun gloriously radiates the sky filling it with a streaking hue of orange, that in turn, contrasts beautifully with the pale blue of the surrounding waters. As the historical centre of Western civilisation, it is easy to see how the Ancient Greeks took much inspiration from sunrises so stunning.
Grace Santorini, Greece
Sometimes, it’s best left to nature. Grace Santorini knows exactly how to do that. With its iconic whitewashed stone houses, the rising sun gloriously radiates the sky filling it with a streaking hue of orange, that in turn, contrasts beautifully with the pale blue of the surrounding waters. As the historical centre of Western civilisation, it is easy to see how the Ancient Greeks took much inspiration from sunrises so stunning.
W Retreat & Spa, Maldives
Sky meets sea meets the sun at W Retreat & Spa, Maldives. With no multistoried buildings or hills in sight, this very flat landscape is ideal for sunrise spotters, with the warm colours of the sun melding with the coral blue of the nearby waters and the deeper aquamarine blue of the further waters to create a beautiful fusion of colours. The corals that populate the waters in the vicinity in this beautiful landscape rely on the rays of the sun for growth.
Southern Sun Elangeni & Maharani Hotel, Durban, South Africa
As the photo from Mridula Dwivedi’s blog “Travel Tales from India” shows, the sunrise from Southern Sun Elangeni & Maharani Hotel in Durban is magnificent as it should be, rising almost stereotypically from the horizon as a big glowing fiery ball, before settling into the sky. Durban’s sunrise marks the start of the day of the myriad of creatures that form the delicate circle of life in the African wilderness.
EAST, Hong Kong
The financial centre of Asia wakes up to the world earlier than most other places. If you are staying at EAST, you are most probably on a business trip in this appropriately named hotel at the eastern part of Hong Kong Island, where major development is starting to occur to provide an alternative to the traditional business district on the west. Start your day early by catching the sunrise from a Harbour Corner room, before getting your daily caffeine boost from the complimentary coffee and Espresso maker in each room.
Chinmoy Lad is the CEO and Founder of The Suite Life.
If you would like to be a guest blogger on A Luxury Travel Blog in order to raise your profile, please contact us.
So amazing sunsets ))
All photos are beautiful but I like sunset of the Grace Santorini in Greece. That’s wonderful !
Wow, all of those places are stunning, it would be hard to choose. There’s nothing like walking up early to great the day especially in an amazing hotel like these 5.
Really lovely places to watch the sun rise. I have been to Santorini a few times over the years, I remember the very first time coming off the boat to the island and going up the steep hill on a donkey.
What a gorgeous collection of both sunsets and hotels. Plus the diversity you have included here is what makes this so visually appealing. I can attest to the fact that sunsets and sun rises in San Francisco are gorgeous. We spent a few days there last year, staying at the Hilton Union Square downtown and we were treated to some amazing shots. But any time you can capture the bridge and/or bay area in the background from your hotel window, you are on to a winner.
I would also like to throw a different outlook on this and say that during the summer months, you would do well to find more appealing sunrises than Cornwall, England but of course you have the challenge of whether you will actually see the sun and not just dreary rain!!
Watching the sunrise and listening to the world awake is always a wonderful thing and any of these great locations could only add to the experience. The last sunrise I saw was in the Arctic one night when I couldn’t sleep. I peeped out the window and saw the most beautiful light hitting the view in front of me. I quickly got dressed and grabbed my camera, very pleased that I had been a wake to witness a fabulous sunrise (it doesn’t happen often!).
All hotels are best to watch sun rice…. I wish I could visit one of them to have the wonderful scene. :)
Thanks for sharing..