Callaway's Lodge Conference Center is filled with natural light.

Owned by the nonprofit Ida Cason Callaway Foundation, the 13,000-acre Callaway Gardens has had a mission for more than five decades: connecting humans with nature. The new, upscale Lodge and Spa at Callaway Gardens furthers that goal, creating a woodland retreat where groups can meet in tranquil surroundings. At the 150-room lodge, southwest of Atlanta in Pine Mountain, Ga., the inviting lobby is dominated by a massive stone fireplace; and comfortable, well-appointed guest rooms overlook garden and woods. Spa Prunifolia offers 13 treatment rooms, and spa treatments incorporate fresh herbs, fruits, and flowers, many grown in Callaway's own gardens.

The on-site Lodge Conference Center was the first U.S. Green Building Council LEED-certified business conference center in the world. Its 54,000 square feet of meeting space (including two ballrooms) is filled with natural light and stunning woodland and garden views. Most rooms provide direct access to the outdoors.

As of December 2007, Callaway Gardens has purchased Wind Power Credit Offsets to replace 100 percent of the power it uses. Among Callaway's long list of green initiatives: extensive recycling. (In 2007, it recycled 72 tons of materials.)