Ananya Lipe Resort

Beachfront is the defining fact here. Ananya Lipe Resort puts you beside Pattaya Beach, with sea views, gardens, a swimming pool and the sort of facilities that let you keep the evening uncomplicated: shower, eat, cool down, and decide whether you have the energy for anything more ambitious than a drink.

The resort works for couples who want the sea close and a proper room to return to, while family rooms and interconnecting rooms give larger groups more room to organise themselves. A pool bar, coffee shop, room service and an on-site restaurant mean you can stay put when your legs have had enough for one day. That is not a small consideration after a boat trip.

Air conditioning, private balconies, WiFi, flat-screen televisions and minibars cover the practical side of the stay. The feel is resort-like rather than bare-bones island lodging, with an outdoor pool, sun terrace and garden providing places to sit when the beach is not the plan.

You are in Ko Lipe, Thailand, directly on Pattaya Beach. The sand is the immediate backdrop rather than a distant excursion, so moving between your room, the shore and the resort's facilities does not require a timetable or a vehicle. Handy, particularly when the only sensible item on your agenda is a horizontal one.

Sunrise Beach, also known as Chao Ley Beach, is about 0.5 miles away. Sunset Beach is roughly 0.7 miles away on foot, while Sanom Beach is about 1.5 miles away. That gives you several different stretches of coast to explore without turning a beach day into a transport operation.

The surrounding area is useful rather than remote. Reggae Bar is about 150 feet away; Gelato Galleria Lipe is about 200 feet away, and Bung Roon Halal Food is around 500 feet away. Cafes including Harmony and Bloom Cafe and Hostel Lipe are about 700 feet from the resort.

The room choice is mainly about how much space and pool access you want, not about finding somewhere merely large enough to put your bags. The Deluxe rooms offer a straightforward couple's setup with a super-king bed, private balcony, air conditioning and a minibar. Choose the pool-access version if stepping straight towards the water matters more to you than looking over it.

For a family group, the larger family suites give you more room to spread out, with options facing the garden, the pool or opening towards the pool. The Family Suite Pool Access is the practical choice when easy movement between room and water matters. Interconnecting rooms are also available, which can be more useful than trying to make one room do every job.

Couples marking a special trip have sea-view jacuzzi suites, including the honeymoon option. The Royal Jacuzzi Pool Suite is the largest accommodation choice, with a sea view and space for up to three guests. Across the room range, the useful post-dive details are consistent: air conditioning for cooling down, a balcony for sitting outside, a minibar for keeping drinks close, and WiFi and a flat-screen television for the slower part of the evening.

There are three restaurants, with American, Italian and Thai cooking on the menu. That is a sensible spread for a diving holiday: familiar food when you want something uncomplicated, Thai dishes when you want to eat locally, and Italian when the day calls for pasta or pizza rather than another decision. The restaurant setting is described as modern and romantic, so couples can make dinner part of the evening rather than treating it as a refuelling stop.

Breakfast is served as a buffet. After that, you have a pool bar, a coffee shop and a snack bar, alongside the main bar and restaurant. Coffee, fruit and lighter food are therefore within the resort, while wine and champagne are available when the day deserves a more deliberate finish.

Room service is available for the nights when you would rather eat on your balcony than put on proper clothes again. Live music and evening entertainment can carry the evening beyond dinner, with a happy hour also available at the resort.

The outdoor pool is the obvious place to spend the afternoon when you have had enough salt water, with sun loungers, beach chairs, umbrellas and pool or beach towels available. There is also a children's pool, while the garden and sun terrace offer quieter places to sit with a drink and let the day catch up with you.

For a more purposeful recovery session, the fitness centre is on site, as is a hot tub or jacuzzi. Massages are available too. None of this demands a full programme: you can stretch, soak, lie down and call it a successful afternoon, which is often the correct level of ambition after diving.

When you want to do something with the evening, the resort offers live music, evening entertainment and cooking classes. Canoeing and snorkelling are available as additional water-based activities, and the tour desk can help organise excursions. The indoor play area gives families somewhere to send younger travellers when the adults have reached their limit.

Langkawi International Airport is about 30 miles away. An airport shuttle is available, and the resort also offers a shuttle service; arrange the transfer with the hotel before travelling so the island connection is not left to improvisation. The tour desk and a 24-hour front desk are useful once you arrive, while currency exchange is available on site.

Check-in runs from 14:00 to 23:00, and check-out from 07:00 to 12:00. There is no age requirement for check-in, and children of any age are welcome. Cots can be requested for children aged 0 to 2, and extra beds can be requested for children aged four and over, depending on the accommodation selected.

Daily housekeeping, laundry, a safety deposit box and key-card access cover the less glamorous but useful parts of a longer stay. WiFi is available in the public areas and in the rooms, and cash is accepted for payment. Pets are not allowed.