Chiang Mai, Thailand

Set on the leafy outskirts of the city, the Four Seasons surveys a bucolic vision of swirling rice terraces, orchards and tropical forest, against a backdrop of mist-shrouded mountains. Inside, the style of the 98 suites and villas, whose covered verandas open on to lotus ponds, is best described as ‘royal Thai’ (lacquered wardrobes, embroidered silk wall-hangings and decadent bathrooms). The pool villas are as indulgent as you’d imagine, but the main pool is equally irresistible, especially at night when the staff place flickering oil lamps around it. Lovers of floating flower arrangements will also be in seventh heaven here.