Choosing between the two can be difficult, as both are superbly located and offer lovely accommodation, good service and facilities, and a relaxing ambience. The big difference between the two resorts is that the Koh Yao Island resort lies near the beach road that rings the island, so putting it within easy reach of the few amenities the island offers. The Paradise Resort, by contrast, lies at the end of a dirt track, 7 km from the rest of the island.

Whether the resort’s location at the end of the dirt track is a joy or a pain depends on the traveler. If you are comfortable and safe riding a motorbike on a dirt track up and down steep high hills, then you will probably love it, but otherwise you are not advised to rent a motorbike and learn off-road bike-riding here – better to do it back home, where it won’t spoil your holiday if you fall off.

You can also get from the Paradise Resort to the rest of the island by boat, but this can become a pain if you just want to pop out for a meal in one of the island’s few but good restaurants, as most of the restaurants can only be reached by road, meaning that you will need to organize a taxi as well as a boat ride – both ways.

So, for many people, a week at the Paradise is enough, as after that long they begin to feel a bit cut off.

The resort may be rather isolated, but it has to be one of the best spots in Thailand to be marooned. It has its own private beach, nestling beneath lofty crags which contain the best new beach rock-climbing routes in Thailand. As well as great climbing, we can organize superb diving, kayaking, snorkeling and deep water soloing trips, with the pick-ups direct from the beach and the day-trips’ destinations not too far from the resort.

The Paradise Resort’s location at the northern tip of Koh Yao Noi island make it the nearest resort on Koh Yao Noi to the world-famous kayaking sites in Phang Nga bay. This is a very real benefit, as if you stay here you will be able to visit the sites and then leave before they are inundated, in high season, by hordes of Phuket-based visitors. It is a much, much more enjoyable experience to have the fabulous kayaking lagoons pretty much to yourself, rather than to have to share them with up to a hundred or so kayak-fulls of other visitors.

With a back-drop of towering jungle-clad cliffs, the 5 year-old Paradise Resort is fronted by a broad vista of the karst islands of Phang Nga archipelago rearing sheer from the deep-blue depths of the Andaman Sea. The only thing separating the resort from its private beach is a broad swathe of fine sand shaded by lofty palms, which provide welcome shade for visitors playing boule, or lounging in the comfortable hammocks strung between the palms.

An archetypical beach resort, the Paradise’s thatched buildings are built in a back-to-nature style that blends harmoniously with the sea and beach landscape, and are impressively appointed and equipped within. Nestling in its own secluded bay, the Paradise resort is embraced but not enveloped by the lush jungle foliage all around.

Paradise Resort - Food

The weight of opinion among contributors on www.tripadvisor.com is that the food here is very good

Paradise Resort - Accommodation

All the room types at the Paradise Resort are immaculately presented and tastefully furnished and decorated.

Top-View Villa

The upstairs floor of the building atop the hill contains one villa, the downstairs another.

Beach-front Pool Villa

These are very special bungalows, located right on the Paradise Resort’s private beach.

The décor is tasteful and complements the natural scene beautifully.

After waking up, maybe toss a coin with your other half to see who should get out of bed, open the curtains and put on the kettle, then jump back into bed again to enjoy the magnificent view of the Andaman Sea. Behind a light screen of lush foliage and coconut trees lies the sea, lapping the shores of the sun-kissed beach and forming a scene that will enchant all but the most blasé of eyes.

Jacuzzi Deluxe

These rooms are a bit of a climb to get to, but provide a view that, for many people, will be worth the walk.

Jacuzzi

These rooms require quite a climb to reach, and are not recommended for people who are averse to hills.