Nayara Resorts is confronting one of tourism's most overlooked problems—the housing crisis that forces local workers out of their communities in remote areas—by building homes for its most vulnerable employees.

In this ILTM episode, recorded live in Cannes, Leo Ghitis, CEO of Nayara Resorts, joins Afar editor in chief Julia Cosgrove to discuss how the luxury resort group is addressing both environmental devastation and social inequality in Latin America's rural communities.

Leo shares Nayara's 15-year evolution from "improvising" regenerative travel to implementing a 10-year strategic plan with environmental consultants. The results include planting 40,000 trees to restore a barren mountain in Costa Rica, creating the only carbon-neutral luxury hotel in Chile, and operating a 100 percent off-grid island resort in Panama powered entirely by solar energy.

But it's Nayara's housing project that represents its most ambitious social initiative—subdividing land near its Costa Rica properties to provide subsidized lots and mortgages to female-headed households, with no requirement that recipients continue working at the resort.

As Leo explains, meaningful luxury today isn't about escaping the world but engaging with it in a safe, sensitive way—and younger travelers increasingly choose hotels based on their positive impact rather than their amenities.

What You'll Learn

• Nayara eliminated plastics 15 years ago and now operates carbon-neutral properties across Costa Rica, with its Chilean property earning the country's highest ecological certification


• The resort's reforestation project transformed a barren mountain into a thriving ecosystem with birds, monkeys, and sloths after 10 years and 40,000 planted trees


• Short-term rentals like Airbnb have created a housing crisis in rural tourism areas by pricing out local workers from traditional rental housing


• Younger travelers ask Nayara's reservation team about environmental and community impact before asking about rates or amenities

Key Moments
[3:11 ] Leo reveals how hiring environmental consultants transformed Nayara from "improvising" sustainability to following a strategic 10-year plan with measurable goals
[10:36 ] Discussion of tourism's dark side: how fathers leave rural communities for city work and never return, leaving vulnerable families behind
[13:00 ] The housing project details: providing subsidized land and mortgages to female-headed households with no strings attached to employment
[21:09 ] Leo's observation that meaningful luxury has shifted from "extravagance and hedonistic luxury" to guests wanting to connect with nature, place, and themselves

Resources

• Visit the Nayara Resorts website for property information


• Read an in-depth, first-person review of Nayara Bocas del Toro in Panama on afar.com.

• Discover ILTM Cannes where this conversation was recorded


• Explore Nayara's sustainability initiatives and community programs

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This ILTM special series was recorded live in Cannes, France. View From Afar is a production of Afar. The podcast is produced by Aislyn Greene and Nikki Galteland.

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