Eco-friendly, luxury ‘nest’ hospitality project opening in the desert

Dubai’s Nara Desert Escapes, the team behind the luxury dining brand Sonara Camp, has launched a new eco-friendly desert hospitality offering known as ‘The Nest’ by Sonara. The company is already looking at expansion overseas ahead of its opening later this year.

Designed by Italian architect and designer Gianni Ranaulo, the high-end project consists of just 14 nests designed to blend into the Arabian sand dunes. Located close to the Dubai Conservation Reserve, ‘The Nest’ by Sonara will open in late September 2022.

Each nest, which will be priced from dhs3000 ($816) per night, sleep up to four people in a bedroom area, and include a private en-suite bathroom, and an outdoor majlis area. Guests will be offered welcome drinks on arrival, followed by a curated tapas menu from chef Franck Sanna.

“It’s 100 percent eco-friendly because the big difficulty for us constructing the nest is that we’re [using] 100 percent solar panels… we don’t even have a generator,” Stephanie Reichenbach, founder of Nara Desert Escapes, told AGBI.

A former private banker, Reichenbach said the funding for the project came from her own savings and earnings from the popular Nara and Sonara brands, but she already has big plans for expansion outside the UAE.

“I just came back from Egypt last week to perhaps consider something in front of the pyramids, but we’re not there yet. I’m still exploring, taking my time. I don’t want to grow too fast either… I would love to explore Qatar, Oman, and Jordan. I’m open to really looking at different options,” she said.