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Canal neighbourhood Issue 31 - Jun 07 The Let’s Sea Hua Hin Al Fresco Resort is designed and managed to ensure guests are offered a peaceful enclave concurrently private and yet part of a very close community. As designers, contractors and the owner met to celebrate the successful outcome of their project, guests of the newly completed Let’s Sea Hua Hin Al Fresco Resort were blissfully unaware. Instead they were viewing the new moon reflected in the sea from their private roof top, sitting at the pool bar sipping cocktails, relaxing in a specially prepared “mood bath” or just breathing the sea-breeze as they turn another page in their holiday novel, undisturbed by anything but the sound of waves on the shore, which is exactly what the designers had set out to achieve in this boutique resort three hours south of Thailand’s capital, Bangkok. The design creates a feeling of seclusion, albeit a close and intimate seclusion. It could almost be labelled exclusion as the view from every angle leads your attention inwards to the central pool that runs down this narrow strip of land rolling out towards the white sand and across to the expanse of sparkling blue sea. The bustle of the streets behind and the clamour from the many neighbouring resorts fade from memory as guests find themselves in a peaceful enclave concurrently private and yet part of a very close community. Owner and General Manager Srayut Ekahitanonda worked closely with the designers in developing the concept and actually avoids the use of the word “boutique” when describing his hotel, preferring instead the moniker “al fresco resort”. However, it does share characteristics with other boutique hotels such as through selling the specially designed products found in the guest rooms, restaurants and spa. It has only 40 rooms, much customised service (no buffets!) and it is not billed as a family-friendly environment. “Couples of any age” are Srayut’s archetypal guests. In fact some of the design features that enhance the regular guest’s experience, such as the un-gated deck that juts over the water on the ground floor rooms, might prove dangerous for children. Unlike regular resort and hotel design, the Let’s Sea does not isolate each guest room or wall off one guest’s experience from another’s. Instead the design is based around traditional Thai canal village life and creates a sense of community. For a resort populated by short-stay guests, primarily couples looking for a quick break, the sensation of sanctuary and intimacy generated from within minutes of arriving is testament to the designers’ talent. The basic concept of two rows of villas over a canal-like swimming pool was the key to creating the community effect. From any aspect, the 120 metre long by ten metre wide pool draws the eye inwards. Ten villas on either side are not staggered but face each other directly. Opening their shutters in the morning, guests might often find themselves face to face with someone doing the opposite ten metres across the pool. Given the tranquillity and idyllic surrounds the two cannot help but recognise they are both sharing the same experience and feel a bond. Overall the design leaves guests feeling very close to other strangers’ lives, though the sensation is less voyeuristic than like a family: a family about which there is much more to learn. Each of the 20 villas has one upstairs and one downstairs suite with an indoor floor area of around 40 sqm. The upper floor suites have grassy roof gardens with a double sun bed but minimal fencing, meaning whether they are having their lunch or practicing tai chi they are visible to all other neighbours also enjoying the roof space. Swimmers can look into all the downstairs bedrooms as they swim by and guests enjoying their jetty-like decks can greet bathers who are swimming by just inches from their toes. Options for greater privacy exist but are not taken.		The FMs “contributed a lot of valuable input and information on all areas, from cleaning, maintenance, housekeeping.”
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Let’s Sea is not affiliated with any large chain or hotel management group but that is not to say that years of experience didn’t contribute to the planning and design. Srayut was previously Director of Sales for the Four Seasons and knew what it would take to attract the right type of guests so as to deliver an appropriate level of return. Once the basic plan was determined, Srayut sat down with the architect to translate the concept into human space. Obviously there were also other factors that the architect could find solutions for, such as legal height restrictions. Basic cement villas in traditional designs finished to a high standard delivered this effect better than marble or glass facades. The interior furniture comes from traditional Thai designs, pared down for the peaceful design. Natural products such as sand, stone and wood have been used in simple, organic and creative ways throughout the project. Srayut says he wanted it to look like shop houses over a night market, though far more serene and with five star service. The resort’s al fresco toilets servicing the public areas offer privacy yet are outdoor with open ceilings and surrounded by an unwalled pond that finds users surrounded by waterlillies, and more often than not face to face with a frog sharing their experience. However, aspiring hotel developers should learn that successful development is more than well-executed design and service. Srayut attributes his success in marketing the hotel to the Let’s Sea beachfront restaurant that claimed status and a firm following two years before the launch of the resort. By publicising the hotel’s imminent arrival to guests who appreciated the style and service quality of the restaurant, he was reaching the exact demographic that he hoped to attract as hotel guests. The restaurant is at the front of the property overlooking long Hua Hin sandy coastline and is easily accessed by hotel guests if they choose to go out for breakfast each morning. However, a side access road running behind the villas means the public or function guests can still enjoy the setting while not disturbing the guests. Additionally, there are visual and physical barriers preventing casual diners entering the guests-only areas of the resort. behind, or rather, under the scenes There are aspects to the site that made the design and ongoing servicing a challenge. Some are obvious to guests, such as in the middle of the pool there is a wooden deckshaped island surrounding a large old tree. Closer inspection reveals that the pool was built around the tree, rather than this being just a large-scale potted plant. The deck, which guests can now swim out to and sunbathe on, covers the edge of the concrete and the hole around the treeAnother design feature, which Srayut says both solves the inherent problem of a narrow site while adding to the guest’s feeling of seclusion, is the location of the staff and service access areas. Guests walking to or from their rooms might notice that they almost never run into the 105 staff who service the property, he says. Staff facilities, service routes and equipment storage are all located in long corridors and rooms that run under the villas. Access points coming up from the underground hub of activity are dotted around the resort with maintenance and service staff appearing only at the closest point to where their services are required. So guests never see trolleys of cleaning equipment or run into wait-staff carrying room service, and like all effective design they probably only notice its absence through an increased sense of calm. As with the rest of the design and concept, this architectural feature adds to the feeling of community for guests as the only people they are aware of around them are other guests, who by now feel like friendly neighbours in a close-knit residential complex. From providing opportunities for romantic stargazing to being able to test the pool just steps from the bed, every well-finished angle and corner of the Let’s Sea resort was designed with the guests’ experience in mind. And not having lost sight of that, it has been a success..RFP

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Key title: RFP magazine
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