Thailand has been a popular holiday for decades, not least for nearby Aussies. Just under eight hours away by plane, the much-loved destination has an abundance of options when it comes to accommodation.

With everything from tent to temple, Thailand certainly provides the goods when it comes to a luxury getaway.

The tent:

Walking on water may not be possible without a jetpack, but sleeping on water is. Elephant Hills is famed for its ethical elephant encounters and it has branched beyond the mainland camp to lodgings on water.

Bear with me – these tents float on buoyant platforms. And don’t let the tent fool you; this is more glamping than camping. There’s electricity, plumbing, hot water and an oversized bed in the flotilla of ten tents.

The canvas coating ensures that the noises of the jungle come through, the most noticeable of which is the football stadium cicada which harmonises a constant buzz with an intermittent crescendo. Set against a lapping lake it’s more serene than it sounds.

The lake runs deep through Khao Sak national park and has just enough motion to ensure a restful night’s sleep. There’s a kayak attached to each room’s deck so it is entirely possible to paddle to dinner if the fancy takes you.

Better yet, swim – the water is 24 degrees year round and is as absolutely untainted as you would expect from a pristine mountain environment.

The rainforest camp drifts on Cheow Larn Lake that was dammed 30 years ago for hydroelectric power. That flooding gives you a chance to see the limestone mountains so typical of South East Asia from a vantage point that is as close to the peaks as you can get without mountain climbing.

You can take the kayak for wildlife viewing and on an afternoon paddle I spot a family of charcoal coloured spectacled langurs and a neon orange orb that turns out to be the baby of the group. There are a few theories as to why they are such a lurid colour for their first nine months, which include colour-blind predators that confuse orange for green.

Sometimes these locals are obliging enough to feed and play in the trees directly behind the camp. As we are about to depart a family of gibbons descended on the most barren tree in the woods – perfect for an unobstructed sighting.

The bungalow:

Phang Nga Bay has a Listerine mint glow as wooden long boats with faded ribbons flap at the bow for luck. A half hour boat ride from Phuket will take you to Khao Yao Yai Village, which defines barefoot luxury and is as unpretentious as it is inviting.

It’s hard to pull off holiday accommodation that feels as close to nature as this, but Khao Yao Yai Village does just that. Guests are greeted with a bracelet with three dangling strands made of padana leaf and flowers.

Luxury embellishments such as an outdoor shower do not feel forced and small details such as rope towel racks, bamboo fences and window seats bring the beauty of Khao Yao Yai Island indoors. In a quirky touch there’s even a padana leaf fashioned into a rose in the toilet bowl – the only thing you would be pleased to find in there.

The infinity pool is consistent with the resort’s approach of streamlining man-made elements with the environment. While the pool’s blue water is deeper than the paler bay it overlooks, the effect is one of continuity.

Then there’s the convenience of a swim up bar that opens early each morning and does a trade in what you’d hope are healthy mocktails given the time of day.

This property has been considerate to its surroundings and flora and fauna flourishes in between the bungalows. The sunset is more alarming than calming, as it sets off a stadium of cicadas that trill to ever increasing decibel levels.

One cicada is so shrill that it provokes hotel guests to come running to reception report a fire alarm. They are smaller than Australian cicadas but they are noisier, which gives you an idea of the volume.

The food here is fresh and delicious, with an average of three chef stands whipping up meals-to-order such as Pad Thai, Tom Yum soup and satay chicken. Exit via the gift shop for a unique gifts, including the bright fabric used throughout the property.

The hotel:

The first thing you notice about Bangkok’s Kempinski hotel lobby is the perfume of flowers. This is the tropics, after all, and the high ceilings and excessive florals add up to one of the most glamorous arrivals in hotel history.

Flowers drape from woven baskets hung from the ceiling and are arranged in vases tall and small. The welcome extends to the lampshades, which are elaborately modelled on long fingernails, a symbol of a traditional welcome dance from the north of Thailand.

There are 303 rooms in the hotel complex, a lucky number according to staff. As a whole, the hotel is huge and yet feels intimate thanks to a triangular layout focused on a courtyard with shallow ponds, frangipani trees and swimming pools.

All the rooms face inward to the courtyard and yet if they were to face outward, guests would see the central hub of Bangkok, Siam Square, with its boutique shops and vibrant markets.

All the staff here address me by title and surname. The service is as refined as what you’d expect from the Kempinski brand but with an added Thai hospitality that is utterly charming.

The hotel restaurant defies the trend of in-hotel dining being bland. Named Sra Bua, which translates to lotus in Thai, the restaurant feels outdoors with its pagodas, green shoots and lotus floats. The setting is instantly relaxing and a chilled herbal drink ups the calm factor.

The meal begins with a salty sweet cashew nut meringue, a julienne of lotus root and a flavour intense prawn cracker with a sauce that tastes like a combination of Thousand Island dressing with the sourness of tom yum soup.

The next course is lobster with red curry. The bowl steams on arrival but it’s from the chill rather than heat; the red curry is an ice cream and the vapour is from liquid nitrogen. Added cashews, spring onion and purple petals make for a tingling tongue.

Then there’s the breakfast, which has to be one of the best. The service is personal; you can order from an a la carte menu that is served expediently. The buffet traverses the gulf between Arabic mezze to Asian noodles to tropical fruit and if the colour of the fuchsia dragon fruit doesn’t entice you to eat healthily, nothing will.