Alila Ubud Hotel, Bali, Indonesia

Alila Ubud is a tranquil and secluded hillside retreat that sits high up on the edge of the rich green Ayung River valley in Bali’s central foothills. The resort is located just minutes from Ubud, the island’s cultural heart. Blending contemporary design and traditional Balinese architecture, the secluded courtyards, spacious terraces and private gardens create an intimate feeling like none other.

Located high above the Ayung River, Alila Ubud has been laid out as a Balinese hillside village complete with its own community centre and pedestrian lanes.

The resort’s fifty-four rooms and suite villas stand above a ravine on stilts like tree houses and are set into the banks of the river valley. The world-renowned architectural firm Kerry Hill Architects makes use of traditional Balinese design, but it is transformed into modern geometry. Smooth plaster walls and concrete meet thatched roofs; terrazzo tiles meet gravel or crushed rock; wood meets glass.

In front and at the bottom of a spreading flight of steps against tapering columns of river pebbles, the infinity edge pool area is the hotel's grandest space. Moving from the pool bar into the cool depths, the water’s surface seems to flow endlessly through the terraced jungle and reach up to the sky.