You’re dreaming at…

MISOOL ECO RESORT

Indonesia - Islands

A private marine preserve where coral kingdoms rise and regenerative dreams dive deep

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WILDLY PLACED: Southern Raja Ampat, Indonesia – at the heart of a 1,220 km² No-Take Zone in one of Earth’s richest reefs.

EDITORIAL VIBE: Jacques Cousteau in Jacquemus.

CORE PILLARS: Radical reef regeneration, island minimalism, ancestral honouring.

MUSE MOOD: Rinses off salt in an open-air shower, snorkels with manta rays, writes reef poems on recycled paper.

BEST TIME TO GO: October – May (calm seas, whale sharks, and balmy monsoon whispers).

THE LOOK: Driftwood villas, woven textures, reef-toned palettes, barefoot pathways.

WHO’S IT FOR: Oceanic romantics, dive devotees, eco-dreamers, luxury travellers seeking sacred immersion.

INDULGENCE SPECTRUM: From USD$3,850 per person per week (all-inclusive dive packages).

There are islands you escape to - and then there’s Misool. A former shark-finning outpost resurrected as one of the world’s most celebrated marine sanctuaries, this private island in southern Raja Ampat isn’t just a luxury resort. It’s a movement. It’s a masterclass in environmental reclamation. It’s proof that regeneration is not only possible - but breathtaking.

Here, surrounded by kaleidoscopic reefs that defy imagination, your days begin with the hush of dawn tides and end under constellations mirrored in phosphorescent waters. Between those sacred brackets of sunrise and starlight, you’ll find a rhythm carved entirely by nature. The villas - crafted from reclaimed wood and crowned with alang-alang roofs - float like dreams above turquoise shallows or nestle into the lush jungle, whispering reverence for the land they honour. Every boardwalk and hammock speaks to a deeper wisdom - one that insists luxury should leave no scars.

Misool isn’t flashy. It’s sacred. Built by hand with local Papuan materials, and run by a majority Indonesian staff, it is a masterclass in low-impact living with high-impact vision. The house reef is so vibrant, it’s like snorkelling through a David Attenborough dreamscape.

Manta rays loop like underwater deities. Juvenile reef sharks patrol the shallows. The coral? Alive, kaleidoscopic, and painstakingly replanted by the Misool Foundation’s own reef restoration team. Every dive is a glimpse of tomorrow - a snapshot of what happens when people protect what matters.

Food is local, fresh, and quietly elegant - think line-caught tuna tartare, sun-dried cassava chips, garden-grown greens. Even the dining room feels sacred, like a cathedral to nature, open-air and open-hearted. The culinary philosophy mirrors the entire ethos of the island: seasonal, sustainable, and shared with reverence. Meals aren’t rushed. They’re remembered.

And the diving? Mythical. Fifteen minutes from your villa lies Fiabacet, a site so biologically rich it's become the stuff of legend. Underwater pinnacles explode in colour; reef walls tumble into abyssal blues alive with movement. But Misool’s greatest treasure is its mission: the resort funds a 300,000-acre No-Take Zone that has led to a 250% increase in fish biomass. In other words, when you stay here, you’re not just witnessing paradise - you’re preserving it. You become part of a living legacy. A guest, yes - but also a guardian.

MISOOL’S BEATING HEART

A sanctuary built from salvaged wood, powered by purpose, and protected by a community who turned poachers into guardians. This is slow travel as ecological uprising. It's the blueprint for what regenerative tourism can and should be.

The SLOJOURN spark

FIRST. Coral Resurrection - Their reef restoration programme is one of the most ambitious on Earth, with over 25,000 coral fragments transplanted to degraded zones.

SECOND. Indigenous Partnership - Misool is co-owned with local Papuan partners and hires from surrounding villages, uplifting community and culture.

THIRD. Private Marine Reserve - Their No-Take Zone is patrolled year-round, ensuring marine life is not only safe - but thriving. Expect daily reef miracles.

Where you dwell

LOVED UP COUPLES or LONE RANGERS
Tabisasu Villa

Each villa at Misool is a handcrafted ode to reef and rainforest. Raised on stilts over crystalline lagoons or nestled into limestone cliffs, they blur the line between shelter and sanctuary. Expect open-air bathrooms, mosquito-netted daybeds, and handcrafted furnishings made from reclaimed driftwood.

Think: sunrise overwater decks for yoga or coffee, jungle lullabies, and hammocks swinging just above the sea. This is barefoot elegance, wrapped in reef serenity.

DON’T SLEEP ON THESE ROOMS (BUT DO SLEEP IN THEM)

GROUPS OF FRIENDS
Nasnoos Villa

LA FAMILIA
Utara Villa

The art of living

Wake with reef light flickering through your thatched ceiling. Paddleboard into the sunrise. Drift into a dive where pygmy seahorses share coral real estate with nudibranchs in haute couture hues.

Later, feast on spice-laced curries beneath the stars. Book a chakra-balancing massage using oils infused with native herbs. Or simply float - mind uncoiled, soul rinsed clean.

Every ritual here is a love letter to water, land, and life.

The forever lens

WATER: Rain-harvested, filtered, and honoured—with every drop treated as sacred. Misool captures tropical rainfall through a sophisticated system of catchment roofs and UV filtration, delivering clean, mineral-rich water straight to your glass without plastic ever touching the process.
WASTE: Zero single-use plastics. All compostables returned to the earth, and waste is meticulously sorted at source. Organic matter becomes nutrient-rich compost, while glass, metal, and paper are repurposed or recycled through local and on-site systems—turning trash into tools, or even art.
ARCHITECTURE: Built from reclaimed hardwoods and local materials, no concrete, no compromise. The design respects both the island’s topography and its traditions, with elevated platforms allowing for natural water flow and minimal environmental disruption.
ENERGY: Solar-powered with eco-conscious systems throughout. Energy storage ensures power flows even on cloudy days, and every appliance used on the island is selected for maximum efficiency and minimal impact. Here, the sun doesn’t just light your villa—it powers your entire stay.

The together lens

Misool is community-led, from reef rangers to kitchen staff. They’ve converted ex-poachers into marine stewards, built schools with conservation curricula, and channel profits into the Misool Foundation, which funds everything from turtle hatcheries to youth education. Their mission doesn’t stop at economic opportunity - it extends to deep-rooted empowerment, fostering a generation of conservationists, educators, and eco-leaders within the local Papuan communities. Training programmes provide locals with diving skills, environmental science literacy, and leadership mentorship, ensuring that the guardianship of this marine paradise is locally rooted and resilient for years to come. Misool has also implemented scholarship initiatives and cultural preservation efforts, reinforcing the value of indigenous knowledge alongside marine biology.
"We don’t just offer jobs," says co-founder Marit Miners, *"we offer futures - and we build them together, hand in hand with the community."

The take it with you

• Reef-safe coconut lime sunscreen handmade in Sorong
• Jewellery from local artisans using reclaimed driftwood and sea glass
• A feeling of awe you’ll struggle to explain but never want to forget

WE SLOJOURNED HERE

"Misool rewired us. It's not just a resort - it’s a lesson in how to love the planet better. It reminded us that the truest form of luxury is rooted in respect - for the oceans, for the communities who protect them, and for the balance we so often forget to honour. Every coral bloom, every quiet policy of care, every barefoot step taken on this island changes something within you. It isn’t just a getaway - it’s a gentle, powerful awakening."

The ways you can move

SLOJOURN is a members-only platform for the new vanguard of conscious travellers. That’s you.

In that vein, we support a multitude of ways to book your travel.

Book directly with SLOJOURN’S travel team (we just don’t book flights, friend).
Book via our preferred travel partners that we can connect you with.
Use this as your guide and DIY your way through the world (love that for you, just take note of the destinations that prohibit this such as Bhutan, Socotra… etc.)