Sheraton Huzhou Hot Spring Resort  WHEN YOU PICTURE yourself on safari, you probably don't envision sleeping in a tent that has a fleeting resemblance to a UFO. The rocky coast of Newfoundland conjures images of rustic cabins, not sleek, glass-sided boxes. High-design hotels defy expectations, but the best are more than architectural spectacles—they manage to harmonize with their settings. This year has seen the launch of many notable examples in unexpected places, including the four shown here. Still to come: Jesolo Magica, a fantastical Zaha Hadid-designed complex set to open on the Venice Lagoon in 2014.  On the shores of Lake Taihu in eastern China, two 27-story towers arc toward each other to form the immense new Sheraton Huzhou Hot Spring Resort. The hotel was designed by Ma Yansong of Beijing-based MAD Architects, who said he was inspired by the water and light of the lake. The curves continue within the $1.5 billion arch: The 321 rooms, indoor pool, lobby lounge and Yue and Feast restaurants all have sinewy lines. In the lobby, waves of Swarovski crystal garlands are suspended above a 28-ton hunk of jade. Once the starting point of the Silk Route, historic Huzhou is on its way to becoming a must-stop design destination. From about $500 a night, starwoodhotels.com  Zita Cobb is a local who made good—after leaving Newfoundland she earned a fortune in fiber-optics, and came back to inject millions into the battered economy. Her 29-suite Fogo Island Inn is balanced on slender wooden stilts on a craggy bluff overlooking the North Atlantic Ocean. "I call it strange and familiar," said the architect, Todd Saunders, about its design. The pale, angular shape should look alien on tiny, wild Fogo Island, but the use of local materials makes the inn feel like an organic natural extension of the landscape. Everything from the rugs to the food served in the restaurant comes from the island. Guests can participate in art workshops, take guided tours of marine ecosystems or simply enjoy the quiet. From $550 a night, fogoislandinn.ca  This August, Richard Branson brought his intergalactic fixation to Kenya's Maasai Mara National Reserve with Mahali Mzuri, a safari lodge that includes 12 ultracontemporary tents. With their swooping peaks, these quarters resemble a battalion of spaceships. But the palette of terra-cotta and slate complements the landscape, and the porches offer panoramic views of animals gathering over the plains. Guests can go on twice-daily game drives to see elephants, zebras, lions, giraffes and other wildlife; venture on walking safaris or visit Maasai who live in the area. From $590 a night, mahalimzuri.virgin.com  Italians are known for innovative design, but Casa sull'Albero, whose sleek wood-and-stone blocks seem to tumble down to the edge of Lake Como, is an anomaly amid the area's gracious old estates. Floor-to-ceiling glass windows let lake and mountain views into the 12 loft suites. The hotel's name means "tree house;" if you're in an upper-level room gazing out over the water through evergreens, you may feel like you've decamped to a very 21st-century one. From about $160 a night, casa-sullalbero.it  A version of this article appeared September 28, 2013, on page D13 in the U.S. edition of The Wall Street Journal, with the headline: High-Design Hotels Go the Distance.
Richard Branson builds a space-age safari camp in Kenya, Sheraton creates a huge, glowing arc in China and more.