Image courtesy Hoshinoya Karuizawa.

7. Hoshinoya Karuizawa, Japan

The property: At the foot of the active volcano, just an hour outside of Tokyo, 77 chic villas stretch across the natural landscape, with many nestled along the Yukawa river.

Eco-friendly highlights: This resort has its own power plant that generates 75% of its own electricity, obtains its water from the nearby natural hot spring, and even sorts trash into 33 recyclable categories (who knew there were that many!). For food the hotel sources locally or where the affect of Fukushima is said to be benign.