Luxuriating in the island life

Enjoy 7 restful nights at Indigo Pearl for under 10,000 yuan by choosing its 'Art of Sleep' package. [Photo provided to Shanghai Star]

Summer time, the living should be easy. What better way to get away from the maddening crowds than to retreat to a place where eating and sleeping are the main items on the agenda. Matt Hodges in Phuket and Judith Huang in Bali share their island experiences.

Sleep, sleep...my racing heart

Sometime insomniac Matt Hodges discovers a blissful way to unwind in Phuket and revel in nature's balm for hurt minds.

Actress, athlete and beauty queen Miss China 2007 emerges from her massage chamber at the same time as I emerge from mine. This is not conducive to calming my pulse. Zhang Zilin, a tall, willowy stunner, sets hearts racing, not resting.

It was not an auspicious start to my weekend lessons on how to enjoy a good, peaceful night's sleep.

With eyes as big as saucers I was due to embark on a program that would teach Rip Van Winkle a thing or two about removing the wrinkles of today's stresses. And here I was, swooning in the shadow of the first East Asia Miss World.

Nonetheless, I was on a mission and Zhang was out of bounds, celebrating her first wedding anniversary in the resort where she married Neil Nie last year - Indigo Pearl, a surprisingly spacious but beautifully formed hotel at Naiyang Beach Resort, Phuket, Thailand.

Set beside the island's only national park, it comprises 177 villas and suites and boasts eight restaurants and three pools, a sports bar, beach club, children's club, tennis courts, conference facilities, Thai cooking school, possibly the coolest hotel shop ever and a touchingly professional massage and beauty center.

Indigo Pearl's latest wheeze is a concept called "The Art of Sleep". It includes eight days and seven nights in one of several luxurious suites. Some are actually self-contained compounds with electric gates, private swimming pool, sauna, steam room, twin massage tables and separate bedroom cabin set in a lush, private garden. It was very much an Adam and Eve experience.