Cross Chiang Mai Riverside Resort

When the first Cross resort opened in the mainland coastal town of Kui Buri, it was a low-key Tablet favorite — humble in ambition and, thanks to its splendid setting and its forward-looking architecture, impressive beyond all expectation. With the new Cross Chiang Mai Riverside Resort, we find something a bit more polished, a similarly high-end urban resort in Thailand’s capital of culture, whose location at the edge of the Ping River nevertheless lends it a tranquility that’s reminiscent of its more far-flung siblings.

The 29 rooms all include balconies, some with views of the river, as well as all the latest luxury-boutique must-haves: 42-inch 4K televisions, high-end sound systems, and lavish, spa-like bathrooms. Pool suites feature all of the above, plus private plunge pools and outdoor sunbeds. But for all this, it’s an experience that never feels needlessly ostentatious — such is the intangible but nevertheless powerful value of a hotelier’s good taste. Add to all this a restaurant, the open-air Oxygen Dining Room, with a menu that artfully marries French techniques and Thai flavors — as well as a couple of peripheral bars, including one by the side of the rooftop pool — and you’ve got something very special indeed.