In The Lap Of Luxury

An indulgent holiday with friends or family, or a secluded hideaway for a couple— a stay at the Layan Residences by Anantara in Phuket can be customised to make your vacation exactly what you want it to be.

- Preetika Mathew

The road leading up to the Layan Residences by Anantara at night is relatively lonely, meandering and lush on either side. It’s off season in Phuket, so I don’t see the usual crowd of revelers heading to or coming from a party. We drive by stores that are shut, and a few bars playing low music and attending to locals. “It’s been raining, and it will rain tomorrow as well,” the chauffeur pipes in. We pass the sea to my left, dark and loud. “It looks beautiful when the clouds roll in. You’ll see tomorrow,” he adds.

True enough, the next morning I wake up early to light showers, and step out of my room to see the azure Andaman Sea and the faintly grey sky meet at the horizon. From the vantage point of my sprawling 8-room residence (perfectly named Pansea) perched on a hill, everywhere I turn there are unending, Instagram-worthy vistas of the pristine Sirinath National Park and the secluded Layan Beach. It’s quiet, save the sound of the falling rain and the water lapping gently in the infinity pool. To my right, there is the breakfast spread, set up under a cosy cabana.