Hilltop Wellness Living

The rooms at Hilltop Wellness Living run from superior rooms to suites, and every room has a private bathroom with toiletries, towels and a hair dryer. Some rooms overlook the pool, others have a mountain view, and several include access to the hot spring bath.

Many rooms offer a choice of bed set-ups, and all of them sleep up to three guests. Some have a bathtub or a whirlpool bathtub, a few have a balcony, and one suite has a sauna of its own. Some rooms also have an electric kettle, a flat-screen TV, satellite channels, air conditioning and a telephone.

Guests can use an outdoor swimming pool, a children's swimming pool, a fitness center and a spa with massage beds, a steam room, a sauna, a hot tub and a yoga room. A hot spring bath, a library, a game room and a shared lounge with a TV area are also on site, and the grounds have a garden and a terrace for relaxing outdoors.

Food and drink include a restaurant serving breakfast, lunch and dinner, a bar and a poolside bar, plus room service and food delivery. The hotel also offers an airport transfer, a shuttle service and a taxi service, and laundry, ironing and dry cleaning services are available.

Hilltop Wellness Living sits in Phuket Town, the island's provincial capital, where daily markets and the old town's Sino-Portuguese shophouses give the area a local feel. The beaches are a drive away, and the setting keeps a local character rather than a resort one. Walking around the old town is a good way to see everyday life on the island, away from the beach crowds.

Thawisaman Market is 750 m away, and the Phuket Butterfly Garden & Insect World, with its butterfly garden and insect displays, is 1.2 km off. Big Buddha, a large seated statue on a hilltop, is 12 km away, and Patong Beach, one of the island's busiest beaches with restaurants and nightlife, is 7.9 km. Phuket International Airport is 22.2 km away.

A day out could start at Wat Chalong, one of the island's best-known Buddhist temples, then continue to Big Buddha and finish with an evening on the beach at Kata or Karon. Taxis are the simplest way to reach the beaches and temples, and the hotel offers a taxi service. The Phuket Butterfly Garden & Insect World also makes a relaxed stop between the markets and the hotel. Each stop is a separate trip, so it helps to choose two or three for one day.