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ASIAN ESCAPES
LUXURIOUS OUTRIGGER
DAVID BOWDEN REDISCOVERED THE ATTRACTION OF PHUKET WHILE ENJOYING THE MANY FEATURES OF THE OUTRIGGER LAGUNA PHUKET BEACH RESORT.
LAGUNA PHUKET
I
t was a long walk, but one well worth taking. On the way to my room at The Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort I was contemplating GPS satellite tracking, a road map and a cut lunch for the return journey to the lobby, but as soon as the guest relations officer opened the room door, I realised that it was a rewarding walk as before me was one of Phuket’s best sights – golden sands, swaying palms and the beginnings of a spectacular sunset.
CLOSE TO NATURE From my verandah, I was mesmerised by the turquoise expanse of the Andaman Sea and inching towards the horizon was the big ball of orange sun. I’d forgotten just how good Phuket was and how close to nature it gets. This was further brought home later in the evening as I drifted off to the distance sounds of crashing waves along Bang Tao Beach just metres from where I dozed. Despite now looking all very natural, the Outrigger property of 255 rooms and suites is part of the larger Laguna complex that includes several properties that have risen in a location that was once left fallow following the extraction of tin from the sand dunes and swale some distance back from the beachfront. Now it looks like a real success story with a cluster of
resorts that harmonise with their natural surroundings.
RESTFUL ROOM Outrigger’s rooms are perfectly in tune with the surroundings with sand coloured walls plus mirrors to make them appear bigger than they already are. There is a real sense of space here including a functional, covered verandah with a table and two chairs plus, a window alcove the size of a double bed and big enough for two children to sleep there and I assumed that’s what holidaying families would do. The timber is also a honey coloured teak to add to the spaciousness. Tiles provide a functional seaside