15 Best Hotels in Phuket, Thailand | Condé Nast Traveler

"Ease of access makes this resort classic fly-and-flop territory, with a location just a 20-minute drive from Phuket International Airport that lets you be stretched out on a padded lounger within an hour of landing. The appeal goes beyond convenience, though: much of the property is given over to a lilypad-dotted lagoon filled with monitor lizards and flowers, and a long golden-sand beach lapped by fun-sized waves adds to the sense of being immersed in nature. Privacy is a major draw, as each of the 83 huge villas is enclosed by tall walls and contains a sizable outdoor pool, shaded sala, and stone outdoor bathtub big enough for two, with elegant, pared-back interiors enhancing the calm. Treatment rooms strung out across the lagoon make the spa especially serene, families gravitate to relaxed beachside dining, and for a more grown-up evening there’s a treehouse Japanese omakase restaurant where the fish is freshly flown in from Japan." - Chris Schalkx, Hannah Summers