Post Ranch Inn
Big Sur, Calif.

This 100-acre nature preserve is home to a number of indigenous species, including several that are rare and endangered, including the California condor, wood stork and Western Pond Turtle. Guests can hike, bird watch and play amateur astronomer, but that's just the starting point. At Post Ranch Inn, bed sheets in the 40 rooms are made from 100 percent organic cotton, and the resort vehicles are all hybrids. The inn also provides on-property housing to 90 of its employees in an effort to reduce traffic and carbon emissions.