Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa

Only in Singapore could there be a place like Sentosa Island, a government-established tropical paradise, just fifteen minutes from the financial district. At worst it could be (and in times past has been) a sort of Disneyland version of the Southeast Asia island getaway. These days, though, it’s looking pretty smart, thanks in no small part to The Singapore Resort & Spa Sentosa.

You’d never know you were in Singapore. It’s a luxury resort, villas and low buildings scattered across 27 acres of tropical greenery opposite the Sentosa Golf Course (home of the Singapore Open). Clean-lined, contemporary rooms and suites look out into courtyards and water-gardens — they’re not over-large but are plenty stylish, paneled in wood and supplied with all the necessities (massive plasma screen, torrential showers, the works).

The Sentosa, for all its charms, isn’t small; the up side of this is an encyclopedic list of luxe-resort services, and plenty of activity — there’s privacy to be had, if you’re thinking of a quiet couples’ escape, as well as a great vast pool deck, the sort of place you can turn the kids loose for an afternoon.