SI Swimsuit Issue locales

Yeah, yeah. I know. No one reads the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue for travel advice.

But in case you want to look beyond Mrs. Andy Roddick (cover model Brooklyn Decker), Bar Refaeli (Leonardo DiCaprio’s squeeze) and others, here are the hotels where the sexy photos were shot, according to the Sports Illustrated website (full, um, story is here). Consider it hotel porn for the rest of us.

Maldives (cover shot with Brooklyn Decker): The Anantara Dhigu Resort & Spa and the Naladhu Maldives on the South Male Atoll looks like everything that Maldives getaways are known for. Over-the-water bungalows. White sand, turquoise waters. No wonder it’s the cover – a place like this is bound to keep the A-listers happy (because, with rooms starting at $880 per night, they may be the only ones who can afford it).

Whistler, British Columbia: Pity the poor models who were assigned here instead of the Maldives. Still, they got great digs in the impressive Fairmont Chateau Whistler. With prices starting at $150 Canadian, this is probably the most accessible hotel on this list.

Atacama, Chile: A press release sent out by Alto Atacama Lodge says that it took two days of acclimatization before shooting could begin at Salar de Tara and the Tatio Geysers, high above the lodge. Models such as Irina Shayk went up 14,000 feet and were nuzzled by llamas. Hm. Again, not as good as the Maldives, but I’d love love love to visit this area of Chile (which was also featured in the last James Bond movie Quantum of Solace).

Lisbon, Portugal:  Portugal is considered a hot destination these days, with tons of quality budget accomodation. But that’s not where the swimsuit models stayed, of course. They were put up at the Four Seasons Lisbon.

Rajasthan, India: This area in northwest India is known for its two national tiger reserves, as well as Jaipur, the Pink City. The models did it up right here, staying at an Aman resort, the Amanbagh. Rooms start at $550 per night - and that’s not for one of the gorgeous pool pavillions.

Palm Springs, Calif.: The only location in the shoot that doesn’t involve a hotel, the models here are at the Palm Springs Air Museum. The museum has one of the world’s largest collection of WWII aircraft (which I’m sure the models were interested in).

UPDATED: I’m not the first person to write about this, nor will I be the last. After I posted, I noticed that one of my fave sites, Jaunted, has a story up (read it here) as does their sister site, HotelChatter (read that story here).

Of the locations above, where would you most like to stay? I’m dying to go to the Maldives, but would easily settle for Chile, so I could see those amazing desert rocks.