7 Women-Owned Hotels to Know Across the World

Women have long influenced hospitality behind the scenes but remain underrepresented in leadership. They make up a majority of the hospitality workforce yet hold a much smaller share of executive roles, a spot that persists whilst more women step into ownership and senior positions.

A growing cohort of founders is changing the industry from the highest down, constructing extraordinary hotels that concentrate on art, community, wellness, and more. This Women’s History Month, as a part of our Hotels We Love series, we’re spotlighting women-owned and women-led properties that reflect that shift.

Blue Apple Beach

Only 20 minutes by boat from Cartagena, Blue Apple Beach sits on the sandy shores of Tierra Bomba Island. Designed with local materials like thatched grass roofing, the hotel prioritizes sustainability through solar energy and waste-reduction practices, including recycling glass into sand for construction and latest glassware for the restaurant. The property has 11 rooms—each with its own plunge pool—together with two communal pools and a restaurant serving cuisine inspired by the Caribbean and the Mediterranean.

Blue Apple Beach is owned by British Trinidadian entrepreneur Portia Hart, founding father of Hart Hospitality. She also runs Cartagena’s Townhouse Art Hotel, constructing a small but distinctive portfolio of design-driven boutique properties within the region.

Joali Maldives

Situated on Muravandhoo Island in Raa Atoll, Joali Maldives blends striking architecture with hidden art installations, many by local women artists, scattered throughout tropical forests and along white-sand beaches. Seventy-three overwater and beach villas decorated with natural woods and blue hues dot the island. They’re complemented by five restaurants, wellness spaces, and marine conservation programs.

The resort was founded by Turkish entrepreneur Esin Güral Argat, who has launched initiatives supporting leadership training for ladies in local communities at each Joali Maldives and its sister property, Joali Being.

The Lodge at 58° North

Bristol Bay is a region of southwestern Alaska known for its vast wilderness and prolific wild salmon runs. Here, the distant Lodge at 58° North is inspired by Scandinavian architecture, with locally sourced wonderful dining, guided fishing excursions, and nature-driven wellness. The property was created by co-owner Kate Crump and operates on individually designed, four-night (or more) itineraries. Guests spend their days fishing in rivers, plunging into glacial streams, and returning to dinners highlighting produce from the lodge’s greenhouse and salmon caught nearby.

Crump, a seasoned fly-fishing guide, is a pioneer in an industry long dominated by men. As one in all the primary female guides in Bristol Bay, she continues to push for greater inclusion in outdoor recreation. Today, three of the lodge’s five guides are women—a high ratio for retreats in the realm.

Ode Toronto

Set in Toronto’s Dundas West neighborhood, Ode Toronto offers an alternative choice to town’s high-rise hotels: a 10-room, low-rise retreat designed to attach guests with the encircling community. There’s no restaurant or retail on site—an intentional alternative that encourages visitors to explore nearby vintage shops, independent restaurants, and bars, with the neighborhood’s mixture of cultures defining the experience.

Ode Toronto was founded in 2021 by Tobago-born, Toronto-raised Erica Herbert, who runs the hotel together with her family. The owners themselves steer guests toward neighborhood favorites through in-room tip sheets and texts. Art is on display throughout, with such notable works as a mural by Toronto artist Lauren Pirie.—Heather Greenwood Davis

Related: Toronto’s Only Black-Owned Hotel Sits in One among the City’s Most Creative Neighborhoods

Peacock Pavilions

Set amongst olive groves about 10 miles outside bustling Marrakech, Peacock Pavilions is a Moroccan craft-focused retreat created by American hotelier and designer Maryam Montague. The estate—which regularly hosts yoga and art weekends—has three pavilions and two bungalows crammed with Berber rugs and handmade furnishings sourced in Morocco and beyond. Lounge by the pool, stretch on the yoga deck, dine within the garden gazing over the Atlas Mountains, or settle in for a movie night on the outdoor theater.

Montague, who previously worked in humanitarian development, built and decorated the property together with her architect husband. She also runs a web based souk showcasing artisan home goods from Morocco and founded Project Soar, a nonprofit that supports girls in the area people.

The Pinnacle Kigali

Opened in January 2026, the Pinnacle is a latest nine-suite luxury hotel in Kigali’s leafy Rebero Hills neighborhood. Founded by Rwandan Ugandan entrepreneur Sheila Kyarisiima, the property consists of individually designed suites, each inspired by a member of the family or chapter of Kyarisiima’s life. Art plays a central role, with sculptures and paintings from across Africa—many from Kyarisiima’s private collection—throughout the hotel. Guests can even enjoy 4 restaurants, an infinity pool, spa, champagne bar, four-lane bowling alley, and cinema that may be booked for personal film showings.

Kyarisiima is amongst a small but growing group of Black women redefining Africa’s high-end hospitality landscape. With a background spanning finance, civil engineering, and real estate development across multiple continents, she plans to expand with additional properties in the long run.

Related: Traveling to Rwanda? “Don’t Skip Kigali,” Says Owner of City’s Newest Luxury Hotel

Violino d’Oro

Designed to feel just like the home of a Venetian artist, Violino d’Oro is a love letter to Venice past and present. Nearly all the things contained in the 32-room property was made in Venice, from glass lighting fixtures to Ginori porcelain on the tables. Each detail nods to a distinct chapter of Venetian history, while the nine-table restaurant Il Piccolo serves classic Venetian cuisine (resembling tortellini en brodo and a shifting collection of cicchetti, or small bites, resembling creamy cod paired with prosciutto).

Opened in 2023, Violino d’Oro is an element of the family-run Collezione Em hotel group. Creative director and co-owner Sara Maestrelli carries on the legacy began by her aunt, overseeing the aesthetic direction of the group’s properties, including the recently reopened Pensione America in Italy’s Forte dei Marmi town on the Tuscan coast.

Related: Women Make Up Many of the Hotel Workforce. These Leaders Are Making Sure They Run Them, Too.