Seemingly dropped from the skies into a wheat field near the Bardenas National Park, we’re having a lunar love affair with this architectural marvel. Consisting of 12 prefabricated cubes around a central courtyard, Hotel Aire de Bardenas balances the raw textures of the Navarre landscape with razor-sharp design, including huge window boxes from which to peer at the stark landscape and glowing ‘bubbles’ where you can camp out under the stars (minibar included).

If Alice tumbled down the rabbit hole and woke up in Hong Kong 200 years from now, TUVE is what she might find. A place to be disoriented and reoriented all at once, stepping past its dishevelled exterior into the low-lit lobby is like checking in to another state of mind. By playing with the dichotomy between light and dark, stark and comfortable, hidden and open, the hotel evokes a crisply utopian vibe which invites quietness and contemplation in this most hectic of cities.

This sultry stunner, snugly tucked among the canyons of the American southwest, is a modern tribute to Utah's Navajo spirit. Palaeontology and climbing excursions connect you to the story of the dramatic landscape and white stone walls and floors act as a canvas for the constantly metamorphosing colours of the desert skies, while outdoor fireplaces see you through moonlit nights. For real supervillain-secret-lair style, though, we'd angle for a stay at Mesa Home: a private four-bed with a 50ft infinity pool.

Undulating metal sheets ribboning out underneath the mountains; a concrete ‘lake’ studded with boulders; and sci-fi detailing including mannequin bedstands, velvet ballgown headboards and supersized supermodel wallpaper. At vineyard-slash-hotel Viña Vik, art and wine intertwine for a slightly tipsy fantasy bordering on the surreal, with each of its 22 suites designed around a specially commissioned piece of artwork. If the multi-sensory madness gets too much, hop along to the wine spa for a retox-detox using homegrown grapes.

The otherworldly eloquence of the Icelandic lava fields, all moss-green rocks and slate-grey skies, is amplified by the addition of the The Retreat. As part of the famous Blue Lagoon geothermal spa, guests have access to a private cloudy blue lake where they can slather on a mud mask, grab a green juice and float around in the state of existential bliss Iceland is prone to inducing.

A strong contender for most disorienting capital in the world, where altitude leaves you gasping for breath and chaotic crossways transform into a twinkling basin of lights from the hills above, La Paz is both an unlikely location and a natural fit for this primordial, progressive beacon. The striking, parallelogram-shaped Atix repurposes elements of Bolivia’s cultural heritage (a façade made of the same stone used to pave the city streets in the 1920s; contemporary indigenous art; a restaurant centred around the region’s biodiversity) alongside a cubic design sourced straight from the future.

Upon first glance, The Beaumont appears like any other Mayfair madam. However, contemporary artist Antony Gormley has spiked this British tea party with a shot of something stronger in the form of ROOM, a robotic installation attached to the building's façade like a beautiful parasite. Inside, guests are invited to disrobe before taking the marble staircase to the 10ft high cocoon, containing nothing but a bed, the stars and total blackness. As a society beauty with a twisted heart of darkness, it enthrals.

Tucked away in Shanghai’s docklands district, The Waterhouse’s post-apocalyptic exterior unfolds to reveal an underground den of high-concept industrial design. Part of the Design Hotels™ stable and channelling the mischievous, experimental soul of Unlisted Collection, this converted 1930s warehouse contains a series of clandestine meeting points, including a cavernous events space that regularly hosts fashion shows, restaurant by industry darling Jason Atherton, and rooftop bar overlooking the sparkling towers of the surrounding metropolis.

By day, Mar Adentro is a zen temple that treads the line between the Mexican desert and the ocean; a bone-white study in stillness where walkways navigate navy blue waters and every room yearns towards the horizon. Daybeds billow like sailboats around the eye of the oval pool, and a nest-like structure woven from recycled twigs skitters the surface. By night, a neon paintbrush of blues and purples transforms the hotel into a futuristic cityscape slicing through the inky darkness.