There’s a reason why top resorts and hotels make their main pool the focal point of their property. It’s a place where guests can relax, socialise or strut their swim-suited stuff for social media. Of course, almost every luxury property on the planet offers their patrons a place to go for a dip, but numerous resorts and hotels around Asia have gone off the deep end in style.
From palatial Art Deco pools in classic colonial hotels to infinity stunners amidst tropical surrounds, here are some of the most impressive bodies of water in the region.
Trisara
At Trisara, one of Phuket’s most exclusive hideaways, every one of its pool rooms, suites and villas has a private pool. But the resort’s most seductive body of water is its fabulous main 45m saltwater lap pool, which stretches along the resort’s beachfront, surrounded by inviting day-beds and sun loungers.
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Angsana Lang Co
As part of the expansive Laguna Lang Co integrated property in Central Vietnam, Angsana Lang Co has long been well-regarded for its family-friendly qualities. At the heart of the action at the resort is its mega free-form pool – one of the country’s most extensive resort pools – that winds more than 300 metres around the entire property.
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Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi
Set within the iconic 120-year-old luxury hotel’s garden courtyard, the swimming pool at Metropole Hanoi evokes timeless elegance and sophistication, with comfortable sun loungers and stylish parasols. The poolside Bamboo Bar, with its thatched roof and wooden floor, adds a further touch of the tropical to the upscale surroundings.
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Raffles Grand Hotel d’Angkor
Raffles Grand Hotel d’Angkor originally opened in 1932 as a rest stop for archaeologists and adventurers seeking to explore the ancient kingdom of Angkor Wat. The luxury hotel’s famous swimming pool, set within lush tropical gardens, draws inspiration from ancient royal baths and harmonizes well with the terrace boundary wall that is patterned after Angkor’s temples.
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Avana Retreat
Tiered like the terraced rice fields that surround it, Avana’s cloud pool is really multiple pools in one. The heated swimming spot is aptly named for the layer of cloud that sometimes settles below, leaving swimmers to splash about above the clouds.
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Tanah Gajah, a Resort by Hadiprana
Towering Ganesh sculptures feed Tanah Gajah’s main pool, which is flanked by lush tropical greenery, lotus ponds, and Balinese stone carvings. More than just a place to cool off and relax, the picturesque spot is often the backdrop for floating breakfasts, poolside cocktails, and afternoon tea.
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Fusion Resort Cam Ranh
While Fusion Resort Cam Ranh’s oceanfront pool offers a stunning waterfront perch, the property’s second swimming spot in The Hideaway, Fusion’s resort within a resort, wins the award for the most spacious at 1,643 sqm.
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Alma Resort Cam Ranh
A dozen swimming pools cascade down to Long Beach at the Alma Resort, including a 75 metre-long infinity pool with submerged loungers (pictured).
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The Anam Cam Ranh
One thing is a constant at The Anam Cam Ranh; pool waters as brilliantly blue as the sea and sky. Whether plunging into the Anam’s stunning infinity pool (pictured) that meets Long Beach, two other capacious swimming pools for the whole family, or one of 27 private villa pools, pool-goers are spoilt for choice.
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The Anam Mui Ne
Perched on 1.2 hectares fronting Vietnam’s Mui Ne Beach, The Anam Mui Ne, that opened January 11 this year, features two spacious swimming pools – a capacious freshwater pool adjacent to the grand lobby and a stunning 266sqm saltwater pool by the sand that gives way to the East Sea.
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Meliá Chiang Mai
Situated in the heart of Thailand’s mountainous Chiang Mai, urban hotel Meliá Chiang Mai’s second floor is dominated by an outdoor swimming pool flanked by cabanas, sunbeds and Tien Pool Bar that serves tasty snacks with a Spanish flavour. In a nod to Chiang Mai’s culture, the striking tiling of the pool makes for a contemporary interpretation of textile patterns the locals call teen jok.
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TIA Wellness Resort
Since private pools complement every villa, guests don’t need to paddle far for a dip. The more dramatic plunger, however, is in the resort’s infinity pool, which reaches for the ocean and comes with a soundtrack of waves.
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Meliá Ho Tram Beach Resort
In addition to Meliá Ho Tram Beach Resort’s 1500sqm main pool replete with a swim-up bar, guests staying at the property’s ‘resort within a resort’, called The Level Villas, are afforded exclusive access to The Level Pool (pictured), surrounded by cabanas and outdoor daybeds.
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