COMO Uma Punakha

Set above the Mo Chhu river in western Bhutan, this lodge is small — closer to a dozen rooms and villas than to a resort. The valley does most of the visual work and the architecture steps back to let it.

Bhutanese craft runs through the building without being staged: painted timber detailing, woven textiles, carved window surrounds made by regional workshops. The register is quieter than a gallery hotel, but the instinct is the same one.

Days tend to organise themselves around walking, rafting the river below, or the drive to Punakha Dzong. Evenings are short on distraction, which appears to be the design.