Set on the wild western coast of Sumba in Indonesia, NIHI couldn't feel further removed from the polished resorts of Bali or the overwater villas of the Maldives. That's a huge part of its appeal. This is somewhere you go when you genuinely want to escape for a while, surrounded by huge stretches of coastline, rolling grasslands and an island that still feels wonderfully untamed.
What has always drawn me to NIHI, though, is that the hotel doesn't feel separate from Sumba. Long before sustainability became something every luxury hotel wanted to talk about, NIHI was demonstrating that an extraordinary guest experience could exist alongside a genuine commitment to the place and people around it.
Through the Sumba Foundation, work on the island has supported access to clean water, healthcare, education and economic opportunities within local communities. For me, the most memorable places aren't the ones talking about plastic straws or reusing towels. They're the ones where your stay leaves something positive behind for the people and place around it
NIHI is probably one of the best examples of that philosophy.
It's also somewhere where I'd struggle to imagine being bored. You could start the morning watching horses galloping along the beach, surf the legendary wave that originally put NIHI on the map, ride through the Sumbanese countryside or spend time discovering more of the island and its villages. Equally, you could spend most of the day beside your pool, looking at the Indian Ocean and doing very little at all.
I think the fact that both versions of a day feel completely right is part of what makes the place so special.
The experience I'd be most excited about is the Spa Safari. Rather than simply heading downstairs for a massage, the journey to the spa becomes part of the day, taking you through the landscape to a secluded spot overlooking the ocean where you can spend several hours having treatments, swimming and completely switching off. It's extravagant, but not in the traditional sense. The luxury is having the time and space to disappear for an afternoon.
The villas follow much the same philosophy. They're beautiful, of course, but they aren't designed to make you stand back and admire them. Local materials, open living spaces and private pools make everything feel relaxed and very connected to what's outside. You get the sense that the room is there to help you experience Sumba rather than distract you from it.
And perhaps that's the thing I find most interesting about NIHI. There are plenty of hotels in the world with extraordinary rooms, brilliant restaurants and impeccable service. Far fewer could only exist in the exact place where they have been built.
NIHI feels inseparable from Sumba.
It's somewhere I think would work particularly well for the kind of traveller who has already experienced a lot of the more traditional luxury destinations and wants something different. You need to be willing to embrace the journey, the landscape and the fact that this isn't going to feel like a polished international resort. But for the right person, that's precisely why I'd choose it.
Why it’s a Canopy Icon
For me, NIHI represents so much of what I want The Canopy Collection to stand for. It's luxurious without feeling showy, adventurous without making you sacrifice comfort, and its relationship with the local community feels like a genuine part of the story rather than something added afterwards.
I also love that it challenges the idea that travelling somewhere remote means choosing between an incredible experience and an incredible hotel. Here, the two are completely intertwined.
NIHI isn't somewhere I'd recommend simply because it's famous or has won awards. I'd recommend it because there really isn't anywhere else quite like it, and that's exactly what makes a hotel interesting to me.
