The strangest hotel in the world in 2026 is Montaña Mágica Lodge in Chile, a volcano-shaped building with a waterfall pouring down its roof, followed by a hotel built from about one million salt blocks in Bolivia. This list covers 10 hotels you can still book (or at least check) today, ranked by how far they depart from a normal room, from the structure to the way you sleep. We also say which famous oddities from our older list have closed.
| Rank | Hotel | Place | What makes it strange |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Montaña Mágica Lodge | Chile | Volcano-shaped lodge with a waterfall on the roof |
| 2 | Palacio de Sal | Bolivia | Built from about 1 million salt blocks |
| 3 | Icehotel | Sweden | Rebuilt from ice and snow each winter |
| 4 | Kakslauttanen Glass Igloos | Finland | Glass-roof igloos for watching the aurora from bed |
| 5 | The Hobbit Motel, Woodlyn Park | New Zealand | Underground hobbit-style units |
| 6 | The Marmara Antalya | Turkey | Revolving rooftop lofts |
| 7 | Propeller Island City Lodge | Germany | Rooms built as art installations |
| 8 | Tianzi Hotel | China | A 10-story hotel shaped like three gods |
| 9 | V8 Hotel | Germany | Car-themed rooms inside a restored airfield |
| 10 | Wanderlust | Singapore | 29 designer rooms, from monochrome capsules to origami |
How we ranked them: we scored each hotel on how much the building or the stay itself differs from a conventional hotel, then checked each one on its own official page this October. Nightly prices change by date, so where an official page publishes no rate we say so instead of guessing.
1. Montaña Mágica Lodge, Huilo Huilo, Chile
The lodge sits inside the Huilo Huilo Biological Reserve in southern Chile and is shaped like a mountain. The official description calls it a volcano with a waterfall winding down from the summit, set in native forest in the Andes.
It has just 9 rooms, in Standard and Superior categories, and the resort sells bed-and-breakfast and fuller programs that include saunas, pools and excursions. The resort does not publish nightly rates on that page, so check its booking site. If you like remote stays, see our guide to luxury wilderness lodges.
How we valued it: the waterfall-over-the-building design has no direct equivalent in a hotel we could verify, so it takes the top spot.
2. Palacio de Sal, Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia
Palacio de Sal bills itself as the first salt hotel in the world. It stands on the edge of the Salar de Uyuni, the largest salt flat on Earth, about 25 km from the town of Uyuni, at roughly 3,656 meters (11,995 feet).
The current building dates from around 2007, after an earlier salt hotel was dismantled in 2002, and it uses about one million 35 cm salt blocks for floors, walls, ceilings and furniture. It has a dry sauna, a steam room, a saltwater pool and whirlpool baths, with four room types listed (Hanan Suite, Kay al Cielo, Kay VIP and Ukhu Standard). Rates are not published on the hotel’s site, and live third-party quotes vary widely by season, so book through the hotel.
How we valued it: a hotel where the furniture is made of the same material as the walls scores very high on departure from normal.
3. Icehotel, Jukkasjärvi, Sweden
The Icehotel is rebuilt every winter from ice taken from the Torne River, so no two seasons look the same. The official site lists Art Suites and Ice Rooms from December to April, and a year-round “365” building with Art Suite 365, Arctic Cabin and Deluxe Suites for guests who arrive outside winter.
The site shows the winter packages starting December 1, and sends visitors to its booking page for prices. Guests sleep on beds topped with reindeer hides, and the rooms are cold on purpose.
How we valued it: it replaces an older entry on our list because it is the only hotel here that melts and is built again each year.
4. Kakslauttanen Glass Igloos, Saariselkä, Finland
These are glass-roof igloos in Finnish Lapland where the idea is to lie in bed and watch the Arctic sky. The resort lists a Small Glass Igloo (25 m², up to 3 guests), a Large Glass Igloo (38 m², up to 5), a Kelo-Glass Igloo (90 m², up to 6) and a Luxury Kelo-Glass Igloo (310 m², up to 12).
Its northern lights season runs from about the third week of August to the end of April. At the time of our check, the resort listed winter offers with breakfast and dinner from €501 per night, a flexible autumn rate from €278 per night and a 3-night full-board package from €4,428. Igloo-specific nightly rates are not published on the page.
How we valued it: prices are the resort’s own “from” offers, which include meals, not room-only rates.
5. The Hobbit Motel, Woodlyn Park, Waitomo, New Zealand
Woodlyn Park, near the Waitomo caves, offers hobbit-style underground units. The park describes two “under hill cave” units with natural fiber curtains and timbers, private bathrooms and self-contained kitchens.
They are built for normal-sized people. The park does not list rates on its page and points to its reservation system or phone line (+64 7 878 6666), so we cannot quote a nightly price.
How we valued it: it is a themed stay rather than a structural stunt, so it sits mid-list.
6. The Marmara Antalya, Antalya, Turkey
The Marmara Antalya in Turkey has a rotating top section. Its Revolving Loft rooms are 32 m² doubles for 2 guests, and the structure turns slowly so the view shifts between the Mediterranean and the Taurus mountains about every two hours, according to the hotel. The rotating section has 24 rooms and is credited as the first revolving hotel.
The hotel’s site shows no nightly price for the loft. We recommend checking dates directly.
How we valued it: the structure moves, but the rest of the property is a conventional hotel.
7. Propeller Island City Lodge, Berlin, Germany
The Propeller Island City Lodge in Berlin’s Wilmersdorf district was designed by artist Lars Storschen. He started in December 1997 with four themed rooms in his own home and later grew it to around 30 rooms, each a different installation: a bed hung from ropes between wooden posts, a room draped entirely in blue, a castle, and more.
Guests get a manual explaining how to care for fragile decor, and the rooms have no TV. Its website did not load when we tried it, so confirm the current rates before you go.
How we valued it: every room is a separate work of art, which makes the hotel itself strange, not one gimmick.
8. Tianzi Hotel, Langfang, Hebei, China
The Tianzi Hotel is a 10-story building shaped like three figures, the Chinese gods of fortune, prosperity and longevity (Fu, Lu and Shou). It was recognized in 2001 by Guinness World Records as the biggest image building. One recent hotel blog gives their height as 42 meters.
A November 2025 write-up still described it as a working hotel but suggested it could be at risk from China’s crackdown on oddly shaped architecture. We could not confirm its status today from an official page, so check a live booking site before planning a trip around it.
How we valued it: very high on shape, but we could not confirm current operation, which pulls it down the list.
9. V8 Hotel, Böblingen (near Stuttgart), Germany
The V8 Hotel is part of the Meilenwerk car complex on the former Böblingen airfield. The official site says it has 153 rooms and serviced apartments, including 16 car-themed rooms, which it calls the hotel’s most popular. Think a bed in a car, a petrol station or a workshop.
The site lists no prices without a date search. If you are building a trip around cars, our guide to the most unusual hotels in the world is a good next read.
How we valued it: only a fraction of the hotel is themed, so the strangeness is partial.
10. Wanderlust, Singapore
Wanderlust is a 29-room design hotel at 2 Dickson Road in Little India, now listed as part of The Unlimited Collection, managed by Ascott. Rooms range from monochrome capsule rooms to a floor with folded origami-style ceilings and pop-art rooms.
A travel-aggregator snapshot dated June 2026 showed Deluxe rooms from about £76 a night. This is a live search price for one sample date, so expect it to move.
How we valued it: the quirk is design, not structure, and the price is an aggregator snapshot, not an official rate.
Which strange hotels from our old list have closed?
Dog Bark Park Inn: the beagle-shaped bed and breakfast in Cottonwood, Idaho no longer takes guests. Its own site says it was a guesthouse until 2024 and that the owners retired in early 2025; the former gift shop is now a free museum open only sporadically or by appointment.
Hotel Everland: the one-room art hotel moved between Swiss, German and French sites in the 2000s. We could not find a current booking page, so we removed it.
Keep reading
- Luxury remote retreats: more stays far from everything.
- How much it really costs to live in a hotel: what a long stay costs.
FAQ
What is the strangest hotel in the world?
On our list it is Montaña Mágica Lodge in Chile, a volcano-shaped building with a waterfall on its roof, followed by Palacio de Sal in Bolivia, which is built from salt.
Is the Dog Bark Park Inn still open?
No. Its own website says the guesthouse operated until 2024 and the owners retired in early 2025. The former gift shop is a free museum open on a sporadic basis or by appointment.
Can you sleep in a hotel made of salt?
Yes. Palacio de Sal on the edge of the Salar de Uyuni uses about one million salt blocks for walls, floors and furniture, and has a steam room, dry sauna and saltwater pool.
Is there a hotel that rotates?
Yes. The Marmara Antalya in Turkey has 24 revolving loft rooms that turn slowly so the view changes through the day, about every two hours according to the hotel.
How much do these hotels cost?
Most do not publish nightly rates on their official pages. Kakslauttanen lists winter offers with meals from €501 per night, and Wanderlust showed rooms from about £76 on one sample date. Check live prices for your dates.
How did you rank them?
We ranked by how far the building or stay differs from a normal hotel, and we checked each hotel on its own official page where one worked.
How we put this list together
We ranked each hotel on how much the building or stay itself departs from a normal room. We checked descriptions and status on each property’s own pages where they were available, and we say plainly when a price or status could not be confirmed.
Last updated: October 2026.
