Baan Samlarn

The living pavilion at Baan Samlarn is the room people remember: a soaring, Ayutthaya-inspired space with a high vaulted ceiling, tall cathedral windows and French doors that flood it with light and frame the lawn, the pool and the sea beyond. Traditional Thai rooflines outside, cool contemporary interiors within, it is a house that feels both grand and genuinely relaxed.

The pool runs the length of the garden towards the beach, with gentle waterfall spouts, a built-in jacuzzi and a shallow end for children, flanked by a dozen sunbeds under parasols. Lunch is served in the alfresco dining pavilion with direct access to the sand, where the barbecue fires up and ten can sit down together, while the indoor table seats twelve beside a modern kitchen. Mahjong sets and board games come out after dark. Upstairs, the master suite has a four-poster king bed, a sunset balcony and a sunken bathtub, and a second balcony room has twin beds that convert to a king.

Baan Samlarn is one of three villas on the Dhevatara Cove estate, at the sheltered southern end of Lipa Noi on Samui’s quiet west coast, where evenings mean sunsets over the Ang Thong islands. Start the morning in the estate’s gym, follow it with the sauna, then take a kayak out across the calm, swimmable bay.