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ILUXURYTRAVELS

Asia destination guide

The Asia destination guide.

Asia rewards planning more than most regions: the same fortnight that is perfect in Kyoto is the wettest of the year in Bali, and a Thai island in October is a different holiday from the same island in February. This guide sets out how we time trips, what the practicalities actually look like on the ground, and the places we send people first.

Travel tips

Fly into the region, then move slowly

Long-haul into Tokyo, Bangkok, Singapore or Denpasar, then treat each country as its own trip. Two bases over ten days beats four; internal flights are cheap and frequent, but transfer days eat a holiday quickly.

Book transfers with the house, not on arrival

Bali, Phuket and the Maldives all involve a road, boat or seaplane leg after landing, and seaplane transfers to the atolls only run in daylight. Every house we list arranges the transfer alongside the booking.

Carry cash in Japan, card everywhere else

Japan's smaller ryokan, taxis and rural restaurants still prefer cash; Thailand, Singapore and Indonesian resort areas are effectively cashless. Notify your bank before you travel and keep a second card apart from the first.

Check visas a month out

Most Western passports enter Japan, Thailand, Indonesia and Singapore visa-free or on arrival, but rules move and several countries now require an online arrival card. Confirm with your own foreign office, not a blog.

Staff are included more often than not

A private villa in Bali or Phuket usually comes with housekeeping, a cook and a driver in the rate. Japan is the exception: ryokan service is exceptional but tipping is not the custom, and machiya houses are self-catering.

The best months to go

January – February
Niseko and Hakuba powder, dry season in Thailand and the Maldives, and Bali's wettest weeks.
March – May
Cherry blossom through Japan late March to mid-April; hot before the rains in Thailand; Bali drying out.
June – August
Japan's rainy season then heat, Bali at its best and busiest, the Maldives cheaper with more wind.
September – October
Quiet, warm and good value across Japan and Bali; Thailand still wet on the west coast.
November – December
The regional sweet spot: Japanese autumn colour, Thai dry season opening, and festive weeks selling out early.

Local culture and etiquette

Japan: precision as courtesy

Shoes off at the threshold, quiet in public transport, and punctuality treated as a form of respect. Tattoos still bar entry to some onsen — private-onsen rooms sidestep the issue entirely, which is why we favour them.

Bali: the household temple comes first

Villas keep daily offerings and staff observe ceremony days, Nyepi above all — the island's day of silence closes the airport and confines everyone, guests included, to the property.

Thailand: temples, feet and the royal family

Cover shoulders and knees at temples, never point your feet at a person or an image of the Buddha, and treat the monarchy as off-limits in conversation.

Eating is the itinerary

Kaiseki in Kyoto, a warung lunch in Ubud, a boat-caught dinner in Phuket: book the restaurants that matter before you fly, especially anything Michelin-listed in Tokyo or Kyoto.

Must-visit places

  • Kyoto

    Temples, kaiseki and machiya houses; the blossom and autumn fortnights are the two hardest weeks to book all year.

  • Tokyo

    The best restaurant city on earth and the natural first or last night of any Japan trip.

  • Hakone

    An hour and a half from Tokyo, for ryokan with private onsen and Fuji on a clear morning.

  • Ubud

    Rice terraces, temples and staffed villas in the hills; pair it with a coast base for the second half.

  • Phuket

    Beachfront estates with cooks and boat crews, and island days out to Phang Nga Bay.

  • Bangkok

    River hotels, markets and the best domestic flight hub in the region.

  • The Maldives

    Overwater villas and house-reef diving, an hour's seaplane from Malé — best December to April.

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