Words by Shari Mycek, Ann Abel, Becca Hensley, and Jake Emen. Each hotel is being equally honored in no particular order.
Blue water, blue mind. That’s the consensus of scientist and author Wallace J. Nichols who, in his book, Blue Mind, writes about the connection between water and the human psyche. Water — be it the sea or the most exquisite hotel pool — induces, almost immediately, a state of tranquility, according to Nichols. Just being near a body of water reduces stress, boosts mood, and elevates happiness. To keep minds blue year round, we have curated the most exemplary, stunningly beautiful, simply extraordinary hotel pools (and swims) in the world. It helps they also come with butlers and attendants to set up comfy sun loungers and umbrellas, serve poolside cocktails and light bites, and even spritz your face with mineral water. Among our favorite poolscapes.
Mandarin Oriental Costa Navarino, Pilos, Greece
The heart and soul of Mandarin Oriental’s first resort in Greece is the enormous, sinuous swimming pool at the edge of the property, just above a long stretch of beach. The pool and its many lounge areas, beautiful views, and attentive service make up a big part of the Ornos Beach Club, which also includes the lounge chairs in front of the sea and one of the hotel’s very good all-day restaurants. At lunchtime, it serves a menu of sunny-day classics like mezze platters with baba ghanoush and hummus, and farmer’s salads with heirloom tomatoes and big hunks of salty feta. By night, as the moonlight reflects off the water’s surface, the restaurant takes on a more refined persona, serving Levantine (eastern Mediterranean) fare and inventive cocktails.
Wild Coast Tented Lodge, Sri Lanka
It’s not a swim-up bar, but it’s something even better. The large, freeform swimming pool at Sri Lanka’s only beachside tented lodge is a stunner, with an infinity edge on one side and a view of the Relais & Châteaux’s striking architecture on the other. While you can’t belly-up to the bar — this isn’t Cabo, and you are not on spring break — you can duck into shaded alcoves to escape the South Asian sun, or wander out toward the far end to watch the Indian Ocean beyond.
Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills
Beverly Hills has no shortage of pools. Or swanky hotels for that matter. But one of our favorites comes in the exclusive-to-guests heated rooftop pool at Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills. Surrounded by lush greenery, the rooftop pool offers unparalleled views of the city. Take in the famed Hollywood sign from the VIP wellness and recovery cabana featuring its own infrared sauna and cold plunge. Fancy a bite? Your personal butler will serve one of Chef Peleg Miron’s authentic Asian-inspired (Thai, Japanese, Korean) dishes poolside.
Savoy Palace, Funchal, Portugal
On the 17th floor of the lavish Savoy Palace hotel in downtown Funchal, the infinite-edge pool offers a birds-eye view over the entire urban heart of the island’s capital, as well as the mountains and ocean beyond. In fact, it has two mirror-image rooftop pools, one for the main hotel’s 300 or so rooms, and a second, more exclusive pool for the 40 rooms of the over-the-top Reserve hotel within the hotel. Word has it that Cristiano Ronaldo rang in the New Year for 2024 watching the city’s famous fireworks beside this one.
Four Seasons Safari Lodge Serengeti, Tanzania
This resort on the verges of the Serengeti’s inexpressibly, golden, animal-brimming boundlessness provides phenomenal game drives and free-standing villa options, replete with personal pools. But nothing compares to bobbing in the Tanzanian retreat’s infinity pool, which faces an ample watering hole amongst the glittering grassland. Close enough to touch, animals from giraffes to elephants come to drink, providing an ongoing show. We call it a swimsuit safari!
Hotel Arts Barcelona, Spain
There’s no other property in Barcelona that can match the pool view of Hotel Arts. You’re not only atop the beach, you’re also looking right at Frank Gehry’s famed Escultura el Peix d’Or, a 52-meter golden fish sculpture that was unveiled for the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. There are two main pools as well as additional lounge seating across a grassy courtyard. The pinnacle is surely the adults-only infinity pool, a prime perch to soak up a scene unlike any other in the city.
Malliouhana, Anguilla
Now 40 years strong and counting, the iconic Malliouhana in Anguilla attracts a crowd of long-time, in-the-know guests who continue returning season after season. The top reason why? It may just be its sexy two-level infinity pool deck and lounge. The upper tier is an adults-only escape flanked by cabanas and featuring lounge chairs built into the pool’s shallow reaches. From sunrise to sunset, the bluff-top views aren’t to be missed; the people watching sure isn’t bad, either.
Casa De La Playa, Playa del Carmen, Mexico
A hideaway hotel within the gigantic Xcaret complex in Mexico’s Riviera Maya, La Casa De La Playa offers an elevated all-inclusive experience. Its most elevated feature may be its architecture itself. Scope out the pool to see for yourself: an elongated infinity pool is positioned high over the beach and extends over the ocean, connecting at a perpendicular angle to a main pool with a swim-up bar and sultry daybeds and loungers.
Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok at Chao Phraya River, Thailand
Bangkok can be chaotic. It’s part of the city’s very nature, and part of its appeal. But you can escape the hubbub in style while indulging at the riverfront pool deck of the Four Seasons Bangkok. Two sleek infinity pools offer unmatched views of the Chao Phraya River as part of an all-encompassing outdoor space showcasing the hotel’s stunning design. When it’s time to switch from R&R to a more active approach to wellness, consider taking a few turns in a separate 115-foot lap pool.
Feature image courtesy of Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills
