Anantara Golden Triangle Resort & Spa sits just outside the historic town of Chiang Saen, in the heart of northern Thailand’s hill-tribe country. It overlooks the border of three countries: Thailand, Laos and Burma, a picture-perfect landscape of dense jungle and precious ecological habitat.

The facilities

There's a choice of restaurants, one serving rustic Italian and one regional Thai cuisine. There's also a lovely cocktail area, the Elephant Bar, that's perfect for evening drinks. These animals make up a big part of the resort's identity; guests are encouraged to ride and bathe the resident elephants and there's even a three-day course to learn the skills of a mahout.

The spa area is divine, and encompasses a steam room, sauna, Jacuzzi tub and various treatment rooms, all set amid landscaped gardens by the award-winning Bill Bensley. There's also a lovely outdoor pool area, plus cookery classes, a squash court and yoga.

The rooms

Each of Anantara Golden Triangle Resort & Spa's 77 guestrooms is sophisticated and refined, in keeping with its communal areas. All are finished in rich teak (all reconditioned; not a single branch of new teak was harvested over the entire resort), with private balconies, living space, signature terrazzo bathtubs and flat screen televisions (in Deluxe Countryview rooms).