Amankila

The last king of Karangasem began his water palace at Taman Ujung in 1909, three large pools on the coast below Mount Agung, and in 1963 the mountain erupted and, with an earthquake after it, all but destroyed them. Ed Tuttle took East Bali's water palaces as his model for Amankila all the same, and in 1992 built it at Manggis, under the same volcano. His version climbs a hill above the Lombok Strait: thatched pavilions on stone terraces, joined by flights of pale steps, and in the middle the three-tier infinity pool, each tier shorter than the one above and nothing past the lowest but the strait. In the suites the ceiling is the underside of the thatch, over a carved four-poster, and the pool suites keep their own pools behind crazy-paved stone walls. At the foot of the hill is the Beach Club, with the second shared pool and a beach of black sand.

Recommended for couples who want Bali at its quieter end, and for families who can do without a kids' club: there is none, but babysitting is free for the first four hours and the Two-Bedroom Villa sleeps five. The hotel's two outriggers go out at sunrise to snorkel and dive at Manta Point and Crystal Bay. On land, a driver and guide give three hours to Tenganan, a walled Bali Aga village ten minutes away, and to the old royal palaces and temples. Dinner is Italian at Arva, beside the three-tier pool, and recent guests rate it the best of the four restaurants. Taman Ujung is 17.5 km away by road. It was restored between 1998 and 2001, so Tuttle's hill had been taking guests for six years before the restorers reached one of its models.