Four Seasons Langkawi Hotel

Malaysia

Any jet lag will be salved as you step through the tall ochre entrance to Four Seasons Langkawi and skirt between sandy Alhambra-style courtyards to a tranquil check-in beside a lotus pond, ginger tea in hand. A world away from the hustle of Kuala Lumpur, and perfectly poised on Langkawi’s north-westerly tip between the blue hues of the Andaman Sea and the precipitous limestone cliffs that cradle the island’s luscious labyrinth of rainforest, the 48-acre resort is tailor-made for R&R.

Further balm is found amid the ylang ylang-perfumed foliage of tropical gardens in the form of a flurry of brand-spanking new beach villas. Stretching along the golden, mile-long Tanjung Rhu beach (one of Langkawi’s best), every inch of these outrageously oversized havens demands your attention. Masterful interiors courtesy of Bill Bensley take their cue from Malay design, expertly fused with Moorish flourishes. The aesthetic extends across the resort via geometric pattern, batiks, bright blue block-colour walls straight out of Morocco and lantern-festooned walkways. The result, a playground for bolshy leaf monkeys, is contemporary, thrilling and one of the finest we’ve encountered.

Spend days flitting between your open-air veranda, complete with a slinky plunge pool, and a hammock bolstered by palms on your own private patch of paradise and soak up views that stretch to Thailand’s southernmost isles. A raised terrazzo bathtub big enough for five (though better à deux) and an outdoor shower cloaked in vegetation that the resident hornbills are fond of overseeing, will refresh you come evening.

Elsewhere, three restaurants ensure you’re well fed – our favourite, Ikan-Ikan, serves classic Malay fare – and you’ll find a sumptuous spa and two indigo infinity pools, one featuring eight secluded cabanas. A boat trip to South East Asia’s first Unesco Geoforest Park, nearby Kilim Karst, is a must. Resident naturalist Aidi Abdullah, on top of being delightful company, is an expert at uncovering convocations of eagles, kingfishers, mudskippers and monitor lizards, all of whom call the tangle of mangroves home. Pavilions from £444. Villas from £1,065.