Bringing a much-needed dose of avant-garde energy to the beach-town getaway.

There are various ways to ‘do’ Thailand. A weekend involving little sleep in the unending thrum of Bangkok is one; a discreet and unobtrusive wellness retreat on one of its many paradise islands another. We think somewhere in the middle is about right, with plenty of long, lazy, beachfront dinners thrown in.

Enter SO/ Hua Hin, a sleek, industrial-style structure with an impressive white marble staircase. Designed in collaboration with renowned Thai fashion designer, Polpat Asavaprapha, it shakes up the area’s classic fishing village resort charm - ocean views, white sands, and sun-soaked swimming pools - in classic avant-garde style. Rooms are a combination of earthy and modern, with a colour palette straight from the French aristocracy. Statuettes dotted around the grounds (spot the time-keeping rabbit) give it a fantasyland finish.