By: Greg Melville
Photographs by: Greg Borris

Squatting in an outhouse while furry creatures lie in wait is not everyone's idea of a luxury vacation. But a new breed of green resort has sprung up, where long hot showers and eating food with faces are no longer karmic no-no's. "There is nothing antithetical, travelers find, to engaging with authentic cultures and living in pristine nature and doing it in a serene and beautiful setting," says Lisa Lindblad, a top Manhattan-based travel agent. At these seven ecoresorts, you too can help save the world, one luxury vacation at a time.

Lapa Rios Rainforest Ecolodge Costa Rica
Not even a sapling was injured when two former Peace Corps volunteers built the 16-bungalow compound on a ridge above the Golfo Dulce. The resort is the perfect blend of creature comforts-flushing toilets in tile bathrooms-and comforting creatures. The owners helped create a 1,000-acre rain-forest preserve around the property that's teeming with monkeys, reptiles, and birds. Must-do activities include touring the Corcovado National Park and lazing on the beach.
$222 per person per night
011-506-735-5130
laparios.com