Who's Going
London Elite, Fashion Travelers, VIP Weekenders
Reason to Stay
Private Villas, Architectual Property, Beachfront Location
Hotel Type
Boutique Beach Hotel
The average first-time luxury visitor to Koh Samui arrives via Bangkok and immediately checks-in to the prerequisite Banyon Tree or Four Seasons resort where 5-star luxury can put you thoroughly out of touch with local life. YL Residence is secluded but not separated, on Koh Samui’s chicest neighborhood on a beach of immaculate white sand overlooking the Gulf of Siam. Like the private Samui home of a fashionable friend, this 10-room resort oasis is located on a 12-acre compound housed within architectural white A-frame huts clad in panels of glass that maximize the indoor-outdoor experience.<br /><br /> At the center of the resort is a large grassy area that borders a black-bottom rectangular pool next to a wide sand beach. Guests converge at the clubhouse that acts as a hub for dinners and socializing amongst a post-and-beam space surrounded in glossy white retractable glass doors with 6-seat tables that becomes the in-house eatery with open-style communal kitchen presided over by former-Necker Island chefs. The menu includes locally sourced, organic products from produce to seafood with every dietary restriction accommodated. Around the dining room is a massive outdoor terrace as well as small billiards room with TV and games conducive to 2am bottles of wine with new found or rediscovered friends.
The Room
At around $3000 per night, visitors arrive with ample expectations that are immediately satiated with an architectural façade that could easily go the way of The Library or other trendy yet waning local hotels. Instead, private entryway with glass door and endless sea views are lined in limestone tiles and then concrete floors in living spaces composed fo stylish 10-person seating areas accented in rattan and straw caned furnishings under a gleaming white pitched roofline. Bedrooms are modern with an emphasis on comfort on chunky woven sleigh beds with teak armoires concealing the one flaw we found, namely aging tubed-TV. Luckily a massive terrace defined by deep green grass and wide blue sea is equipped with sun lounger and wildlife entertainment of birds and wildlife. Bathrooms offer peak-aboo ocean views through the main bedroom with freestanding oval tubs and pebble floors that ooze a spa-like vibe.
Preferred Room
Beach Villa
Special Features
Celebrity Clientele, Fashionable Crowd, Beachfront Location
Amenities
Restaurant, Lounge, Game Room, Beach Club, Pool
