Six Senses Yao Noi, Thailand resort review

Take a step back in time to a Thailand still less visited, seemingly far from the madding crowds and bright lights of Phuket, yet a mere 30-minute speedboat ride away. Settle into the jungle-clad luxury of your private pool villa at Six Senses Koh Yao Noi and switch off. But beware, you might find you’re reluctant to switch back on.

Traveller: Tina-Louise Jackson
Room: Ocean View Pool Villa
Address: 56, Ko Yao Noi, Ko Yao District, Phang Nga 82160, Thailand
Date: September 2024
Best for: a true getaway from it all stay, with a loved one, or your family

The Signature factor

Epic views at every turn, impeccable service and unwavering commitment to sustainability and the environment make this an outstanding eco-luxury stay.

The concept

Six Senses lives and breathes its sustainable values from the ground up. Six Senses Koh Yao Noi, the brand’s third property, is now in its 16th year and everything here has been designed and built in harmony with nature, with locally sourced natural materials and contemporary Thai styling. Arriving by night, it’s hard to make out the 56 hillside villas that snuggle into their lush tropical surrounds, spanning 10 hectares of natural beauty on a headland overlooking the iconic limestone karsts of Phang Nga Bay. A true hideaway from the faster ride available on the surrounding islands of Phuket or Krabi, the soothing sounds of your tropical surrounds are guaranteed to slow your pulse, as you relax into the slower pace of life that the resort offers.

First impressions of Six Senses Yao Noi

Just a half-hour by Six Senses’ private speedboat from Phuket’s Ao Po Grand Marina (or by luxury transfer if you’re already on the island), I’m greeted by my GEM(Guest Experience Maker), named Must. With no formal reception area, we jump into one of the resort’s electric buggies and drive through the bamboo-arched entrance, climbing towards the top of the resort along lush greenery-lined lanes, where a very relaxed check-in takes place in my villa whilst I sip on a smoked coconut water welcome drink.

Ocean View Pool Villa at Six Senses Yao Noi

My Ocean View Private Pool Villa is set high on the headland, positioned to maximise the view of Phang Nga Bay, which greets me as I step through the bamboo-clad front door and descend the steps into my private oasis – a roomy 154 square metres.

With dark wood floors and furnishings, a thatched roof, plenty of natural light through floor-to-ceiling windows and pops of yellow for the separate seating area, the villa is totally in tune with its surroundings. The large bed takes centre stage, a driftwood frame supporting a mosquito net giving the bed a decadent four-poster feel. The bathroom features a sunken bath (with a view, of course), double vanities, and an indoor shower, should you not prefer to shower alfresco in the timber-clad (and totally secluded) outdoor shower area.

Outside, an 18-meter private infinity pool overlooks the ocean. There are sunloungers for soaking up some Thai sunshine and a shady seating area and sala that allow you to enjoy the sea breezes shaded from the sun.

Top suite

The name might give this one away, however, step through the doors of The View, and a jaw-dropping 180-degree vista of the limestone karsts of Phang Nga Bay awaits. Soak up the rays and that view with a private infinity pool and sunken outside dining area. A spacious one-bedroom villa, The View has double-height vaulted ceilings and expansive windows that allow you to enjoy that incredible view also from the comfort of your villa. A private cinema room and workout area means you may never have to leave during your stay. A decadent-enough couples’ hideaway with an epic view, however, it’s the waterfall that runs from behind the villa and under the bed that mesmerises, viewed through a glass floor, making this villa truly unique.

Dining at Six Senses Koh Yao Noi

You’ll be spoilt for choice, with four dining options dotted around the resort. Where possible, Six Senses Yao Noi uses produce from the resort’s organic gardens, farm and mushroom hut.

Nithan

The Living Room, the all-day dining venue close to the beach, is having a few changes when I stay, so Nithan, the resort’s authentic Thai restaurant, doubles as a breakfast venue. Set amongst lush greenery, with private dining pavilions overlooking the jungle and a stream babbling below, it’s the perfect place to start the day, listening to the birdsong whilst breakfasting on a choice of buffet and a la carte menu options, from traditional western favourites to local flavours. You can even head to the resort’s organic egg farm before breakfast to select your eggs and have them cooked to your preference. By night, Nithan serves up authentic Thai cuisine in traditional dark wood surrounds, the yellow crab curry my pick from the menu.

The Den

The Den is the perfect place for sundowner cocktails. It is set amidst lotus ponds, with suspended daybeds, private pavillions and incredible sunset views over Phang Nga Bay.

The Hilltop

Perched atop the resort, The Hilltop was once a vast private villa, now housing the main infinity pool, bar and lounging areas, serving light lunches by day and by night, transforming into an elegant dining venue. If the view isn’t enough to make the climb up here, a taste of the complimentary all-day ice cream served up here might.

Can’t tear yourself away from your villa? Arrange a private dining experience, from a floating breakfast to an evening barbecue or candlelit dinner, complete with private chef and waiter.

The Family Factor

Families are welcomed at Six Senses Koh Yao Noi, with a range of flexible accommodation options, from two- or three-bedroom villas, to connecting villas that allow families to stay and play together. Whilst there’s no traditional kids club, children over four can join the Junior Eco Warrior programme, a three-day rotating daily programme of activities that engage our mini changemakers and future environmental caretakers through a range of fun activities around the resort and the resort’s farm. Teens enjoy a range of age-appropriate activities, such as Muay Thai Boxing classes, Teen Tennis Hour and a twice-a-week Teen Mocktail Hour.

I wish I could take home…

The Six Senses Koh Yao Noi team. Nothing is too much trouble, every smile is genuine, from the moment I arrive to the moment I (very reluctantly and a little behind schedule) leave.

The spa at Six Senses Koh Yao Noi

In keeping with its lush surrounds, the spa at Six Senses Koh Yao Noi nestles deep into the hillside, modelled on a northern Thai village house, with four wellness spaces and 10 treatment rooms connected by elevated dark wood walkways. Six Senses’ holistic approach to wellness connects mind and body, with traditional and locally-inspired practices ranging from a one-hour massage to a multi-day immersive wellness program fine-tuned to meet your personal wellness needs or goals.

Total relaxation is what’s on my mind, so I avoid the 24-hour gym (not uncommon for me at home or away) and start my day with a facial yoga session in the Wellness Pavillion to a backing track of morning birdsong and soft rain, snooze my way through a soothing sound healing journey in the Meditation Room, and treat my body to a luxurious oil massage. Bliss.

Staying in

You can do as much or as little as you want during your stay, and I opt for somewhere in between. The resort offers an extensive daily programme of activities, some complimentary, some for a fee. For the active, there’s morning yoga in the Wellness Pavillion, kayaking through the mangroves or to a nearby island, a Muay Thai boxing ring and a tennis court, along with a fully equipped 24-hour gym. At Alchemy Bar, get a hands-on wellness experience, mixing up your own skincare, body scrubs and aromatherapy blends.

Earth Lab, launched in every Six Senses property in 2017, showcases the resort’s sustainability ethos of refuse, reuse and recycle in action, running classes to repurpose waste and reduce the use of plastics and other waste materials. Making recycled paper from used office supplies and beeswax food wraps using material from old resort uniforms is strangely therapeutic as well as eco-conscious.

Stepping out

Oh, you want to leave? The resort can arrange tours of the island and boat trips to nearby islands in Phang Nga Bay. Koh Yao Noi is relatively small, around 47 square kilometres, with a well-paved road offering a 20 kilometre circular route, so grab one of the resort’s complimentary bicycles from the main entrance and take a leisurely tour to get a view of local life on the island.

We opt for a signature Castaway Experience, the perfect combination of staying in and stepping out. We jump onboard a traditional longtail boat to the small island Koh Nok, where the Six Senses experiences team set up a table on the beach to enjoy an epic sunset grazing on canapes and sipping chilled white wine on our own private island.