Art Hotels

Arrival can be by zip line. That tells you most of what you need to know about the tone.

The camp sits along a river valley between protected forests in southwest Cambodia. Tents are spread out along the water, each raised on a platform and furnished with an eye for theatre. Designer Bill Bensley drew the whole place, and it reads like one continuous sketch rather than a set of rooms.

Conservation is built into the running of the hotel. It works with a wildlife organisation on ranger patrols, and guests can join some of that work during a stay.

Bangkok is loud. This hotel is not.

It stands on the east bank of the Chao Phraya, near the old Charoen Krung road. The buildings are low for this city, and the rooms are arranged so that they look out towards the river. Interiors are calm and tailored, with deep colours, fine wood and a residential feel.

Riverside villas with their own plunge pools sit along the water's edge. From the terrace, long-tail boats and ferries pass all day.

The Taj Mahal is roughly six hundred metres away. The hotel is built to make the most of that.

Its architecture borrows from Mughal palaces: domed pavilions, arched walkways, terraced gardens, fountains and long reflecting pools. Rooms are oriented so guests can see the monument from inside.

Mornings are the reason people come. The white marble changes colour as the light rises, and the hotel is close enough for an early walk to the gate.