Wyndham Sea Pearl Resort Phuket

The hot tub on the balcony is the reason people book this place. It's a hillside property above Patong, so you get a bit of height and a bit of separation from the noise below, plus your own soak with a view rather than a shared plunge pool downstairs. Eight pools spread across the resort means you can usually find one that isn't full of other people's children, and there's a spa and a gym if you want more than lying down.

Two restaurants on site, which matters more than it sounds. Getting up and down that hill isn't nothing, and on a hot afternoon you'll be glad you don't have to. That said, Patong's restaurants and nightlife are close enough that you shouldn't treat this as an isolated retreat. It's a big resort with resort-scale service, not a boutique bolthole, and it reads that way. If you want quiet and character, look elsewhere on the island. If you want facilities, space and a hot tub, this does the job.