Three hours north-west of Quito, Mashpi Lodge occupies a narrow ridge within a protected cloud-forest reserve in Ecuador’s Western Andes. The glass-walled building uses dark steel, warm timber and broad windows to keep forest and mist present throughout its rooms and public spaces. A two-storey dining room, bar and spa are complemented by guided trails, waterfalls, observation platforms and the Dragonfly aerial gondola through the canopy. Resident naturalists and researchers shape daily excursions across terrain known for hummingbirds, orchids, frogs and remarkable biodiversity.