Epic Villas
Phuket has come a long way from the tropical island bungalow on a secluded beach with freshly caught squid frying over a rudimentary barbeque. Most of us have traded seclusion for the convenience of 4 or 5-star comforts, great food, a view shared with many other guests, and a pool that you get up early to reserve your place with a beach towel.
However, sometimes you just don’t want to share your view; sometimes that seventh bedroom just needs to be added next to the massage room; sometimes the Warhol just wouldn’t be right overlooking less than a 12 person dining table. While few of us have faced these difficult choices and still fewer have had the means to realize them, Phuket has attracted a significant cadre of people that can and indeed have.
Villa Kiana, part of the super high-end Sri Panwa development, offers some of the most magnificent views over Chalong Bay on the entire island. Perched high on the ocean headlands with nothing high enough to obscure the view, you have a nearly 180 degree view of the bay beneath you. The sunrises are, quit simply, epic. The infinity pool, 3 bedrooms, and open bar are nice additions, and its affiliation with Sri Panwa ensures top-notch service.
Baan Loom Talay is a 5 bedroom villa in another style alltogether. Located on the northern end of Kamala Beach, it floats above the bay on the cliff face just meters above the water. Built on three levels, each room has a view over the water through ancient trees preserved during the building process. A central pool with underwater glass panels gives you a touch of James Bond style. Multiple jacuzzis, a huge kitchen, and live in staff let you enjoy the natural surroundings and exclusive luxury of the tropical living without having to worry about how to clean the sprawling wood decks.
Some of the flashiest villas are, surprisingly enough, located along the aptly named millionaire’s mile on the southern end of Kamala Beach. The cape with its high cliffs and lush forests offers the perfect setting for unbelievable views, which hasn’t been lost on the multitude of developers that have gobbled up the land atop the cliffs.
Still at prices that some of us can dream of paying, the 3 or 4 bedroom villas at Cape Sienna take full advantage of their oceanfront setting. Large windows all around the front of the villa and a large pool deck and infinity pool give great views over the water right below the villa. The modern styling and nearly all white color scheme make the units feel very chic.
As you move further down the coast, the walls surrounding the villas get higher, the security guards smile less, and the nightly prices climb from normal to yearly school tuition levels. Toward the end of the road, you’ll come to Paresa, which has some of the fanciest rental villas on the island. Their Grand Villa makes “grand” seem a bit of an understatement. Built on three levels, each of which is a self contained unit, the entire villa has 3 bedrooms, each with a private pool. The top level houses the master bedroom along with the kitchen, dining room, and huge living room, all of which share a draw dropping view of the ocean beyond.
Still, when you need something truly spectacular, the Villa Amanzi is an unbeatable choice. In villa spa? Sure. Butler and live-in chef? Of course. Entertainment center and incredible sea views? Indubitably. Those are all de rigueur for a certain level of accommodation, but Villa Amanzi goes a few steps further. An ultra modern design allows the entire midlevel floor to open up on both sides by sliding back huge glass panels, essentially making it an outdoor lounge. The style extends to the main bedrooms on the upper floor with nearly ever sea facing wall a floor to ceiling glass panel that can be retracted. All three front walls in the master bedroom are glass, and, as it’s extended out over the cliff beyond the other rooms, the incredible view does not come at the expense of privacy. The centerpiece of the villa, though, is the massive pool that actually extends out from the main villa into the air over the sea. This is one of the few pools I have seen that deserves to be called an infinity pool—if only because of how much it must have cost to build.