Starhotels E.c.ho.

Milan is a city that could use a bit of green. In a former life this was the Splendido, a fairly standard luxury hotel across from the central rail station, just northwest of the city center. In its current incarnation it keeps this location, of course, but it makes the most of the thin sliver of parkland between it and the station; today it’s the Starhotels E.c.ho., a bit of clever punctuation that’s meant to underline the Echo’s credentials as an eco-hotel — or, as they prefer, an “eco-contemporary hotel.”

The shoe certainly fits. The earth tones and natural wood textures of the Echo’s interiors are a world apart from the marble and gold of the typical Milanese luxury hotel. Energy efficiency is the watchword in the rooms, from the smart thermostats to low-flow bathrooms and solar-generated electricity. And when it comes to lighting, nothing’s more efficient than natural sunlight — which, lucky for everyone involved, is also the most attractive lighting scheme yet invented.

A restaurant and bar carry on in a similar style and eco-friendly theme, and they introduce another one of the Echo’s green details — they open onto the green courtyard with its vegetable garden, the sort of pastoral touch that’s by no means a given in Milan.