Trave l | D e tox d e s t i n at i o n s

This page: Kamalaya is inspired by Cambodia’s Angkor Wat temple

A FULL MOON PARTY IN THAILAND Kamalaya, Koh Samui, Thailand

Photography: Kamalaya Koh Samui

So many of Thailand’s tourist sites have been oversaturated these days that it’s refreshing to encounter somewhere trying to stay hidden. That was the ethos architect Robert Powell embraced when creating Kamalaya, a resort inspired by Cambodia’s Angkor Wat temple complex that is flung deep among the rainforests of Koh Samui, one of the country’s natural treasures. So bucolic are Kamalaya’s surroundings that its manmade buildings appear like sudden apparitions. It is nestled in a valley split by a stream whose quiet air is punctured only by the rustling of trees and exotic birdsong. Club 18-30 it most certainly isn’t. Neither is Kamalaya a full moon party: the resort is renowned for its holistic healing packages, which include a comprehensive menu of detox programmes and treatments to send you back to everyday life with a lot more physical and spiritual punch. Each guest will enjoy a morning meditation with co-founder Karina Stewart, an expert in Chinese medicine who set up Kamalaya with her husband John, who lived in a Himalayan yogi monk community for 18 years. Also on hand is Rajesh, a former monk whose wisdom is expressly sought by some attendees, and Simon Low is one of the world’s foremost experts in Yin And Yang Yoga, a form of the discipline stressing balance and the invocation of hatha: sun and moon; masculine and feminine; physical and mental; action and stillness. Kamalaya’s overriding atmosphere is one of intimacy and personal touches. But its rooms and suites are also drop-dead gorgeous, and a wide selection of special-made detox soups, salads and smoothies ensure you’ll top up the good stuff your body desperately craves after a Christmas season on the bread sauce. Fly there Fly to Samui International daily via Bangkok with Thai Airways. thaiairways.com

30

DUBAI VOYAGER