Hot Hotel Openings 2026: Asia & Africa

Crisp linen sheets, creative cuisine and expansive vistas. If your new year’s resolutions include seeking new horizons, a slew of ultra-luxury hotel openings promise to inspire and excite. With 2026 seeing new resorts and hotels opening from hospitality’s most revered and respected names, there’s bound to be something to capture the imagination, encouraging you to set foot on far flung shores. In the second of three destination spotlights from Tempus, discover Asia and Africa’s most anticipated hotel openings — from the boutique to the behemoth — to inspire your travels in 2026.

Asia

KAIA Koh Phangan, Thailand, launching summerOpening in Koh Phangan Thailand this summer, KAIA will be a new luxury outdoor resort co-created by Bound and Beyond — best known for its elegant, eco-conscious hotel offering Capella — and family-owned hospitality start-up, Cloud Collective. With grand ambitions, seeking to revolutionise hotel architecture in favour of a lighter touch approach, KAIA will shy away from traditional villas. Instead the resort will offer an array of 31 ocean-facing tented suites and four two-bedroom pool villas, designed to sit in harmony with nature. Epitomising Cloud Collective’s pioneering eco-approach, the resort will place considered craft and luxurious sustainability front of mind, with each suite crafted from upcycled teak and recycled materials. Conscientious design will feature passive cooling and solar energy, while guest experiences will embrace culture-led immersive workshops such as longtail boat ice bathing, and forest foraging. With a vibrant social hub, including a beachfront clubhouse and communal dining spaces intended to foster connection and creativity, KAIA Koh Phangan will be the first in a series of ambitious co-curated openings from this collaborative undertaking.

Uga Ghiri, Ella, Sri Lanka, launching April
Situated in the mist-kissed hills of Sri Lanka, Uga Ghiri will be unveiled in Ella this April 2026. The latest opening from specialist Sri Lankan, sustainable luxury resort group Uga, Uga Ghiri will celebrate its location in the historic grounds of the Sutherland Estate. With a philosophy of luxury in nature, each Uga destination seeks to showcase the indigenous culture, stunning scenery, and exceptional flora and fauna of the islands. With fourteen standalone villas, Uga Ghiri will also feature a carefully curated restaurant and bar, with drinking and dining offerings celebrating the flavours of Sri Lanka. From each villa, guests will be able to enjoy sweeping panoramas of emerald tea plantations and glimpses of the Nine Arch Bridge curving gracefully through the jungle below.

Africa

Anantara Kafue River, Zambia, launching 2026
Known for their immersive and considered cultural approach, Anantara’s latest hospitality vision is offered in partnership with Zambia’s own Agro Safari. The first ever luxury tented camp from Anantara, Anantara Kafue River brings an ultra-luxury guest experience to the banks of Zambia’s Kafue River. Intimate and exclusive, the spacious encampment will sit suspended above the ground — hung between two islands in a sensitive layout designed to grant wildlife unrestricted access to the bush and river they call home. For guests, this considered configuration creates an intimate and luxurious spa and wellness area at one end of the encampment, and a stylish restaurant, bar and traditional boma at the other. The undertaking promises Anantara’s exceptional hospitality experience combined with all the benefits Agro’s generous land holdings and legacy heritage bring.

Singita Elela Botswana, launching DecemberFor over 30 years, Singita has set the standard in African tourism, and now the brand is expanding its horizons with the opening of Singita Elela Lodge; an expansive one-of-a-kind lodge opening in Botswana’s Okavango Delta. Open year-round, Elela — meaning ‘to flow’ in setswana — will reflect the Delta’s seasonal rhythms. The lodge comprises eight circular camps, each ranging from one to four bedrooms, positioned on elevated walkways above the floodplains to accommodate the natural rise and fall of water. With the experience centered on the diverse flora and fauna of the region, guests will have exclusive access to the 175,000-hectare NG26 concession, one of the Delta’s most expansive private areas. A landscape of floodplains, islands, and waterways which supports more than 400 bird species and diverse wildlife, offering scale, privacy, and a strong sense of place.

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