thailand is not short of a marvellous beach or two it is, after all, a country with 2,000 miles of coastline there's the beach, of course, on the island of ko phi phi lee, as featured in the 2000 film based on the alex garland novel and starring leonardo dicaprio and there's the small sandy cove on khao phing kan in uber picturesque phang nga bay the khao sok national park is one of the oldest rainforests in the world, where you can meet elephants at one of the better camps  the island is now known as james bond island, upon which you and a chum can pose back to back with imaginary weapons, echoing the scene from the man with the golden gun of 007 (roger moore) and the evil scaramanga (christopher lee) but the problem is practically every other visitor who chooses thailand for their exotic sun, sea and sand holiday wants to sit and be seen in the country's most famous hotspots too it gets a little crowded, to say the least at the risk of sounding a bit of a beach snob, i want to be alone, or at least not swamped by hundreds of other sunbathers, when i'm on my holiday, at least until i've shaken off some stress if you do too, you'll adore the jw marriott khao lak and thanks to direct flights to phuket aboard thomson's dreamliner, you don't have to faff around catching a connecting flight from bangkok it's a real bonus if you have flown long haul before, you will notice the difference   more space, both seat wise and all around, dimmable windows, more oxygen and better lighting all make the journey more bearable and it's only an hour or so drive north from the airport to khao lak, or 90 minutes away from the busy and, er, colourful attractions of tourist trap patong the jw marriott khao lak is very classy and quiet and has a glorious beach whch is free from crowds  i'll be honest, i wasn't expecting such a tasteful resort distinctly oriental in design, the jw marriott khao lak is very classy and quiet, with 250 rooms and all the facilities you need for a proper rest and de stress, whether there's just two of you or the whole family there's a nice spa, quan, offering all the usual pamperings and treatments the range of dining options includes breakfast and international cuisine in the waterfront restaurant, thai food at ta krai, japanese at sakura, and mediterranean at olive there's a deli, too, and numerous bars and lounges it's easy not to step outside for the whole holiday, but i was persuaded to do a little sightseeing a trip to james bond island also included a look at a small rubber plantation, feeding monkeys beside a buddhist temple, cruising through mangrove swamps in a long tailed boat, and lunch in the muslim village at panyi island it's all well run and very commercialised roger more (right) and christopher lee on james bond island in the film the man with the golden gun  more off the beaten track is khao sok national park, one of the oldest rainforests in the world, where you can meet elephants at one of the better camps however, do be very careful to choose a well run establishment when selecting this kind of adventure we were taken by canoe   you don't even have to lift an oar yourself   down the sok river, admiring the trees and waterfalls as we went and, of course, there are dozens of snorkelling and diving sites to choose from the jw marriott khao lak itself offers numerous sports on site, a fitness centre, and there's golf galore nearby ko phi phi lee featured in the 2000 film based on the alex garland novel and starring leonardo dicaprio  naturally, it has plenty of places to sunbathe or take a dip, not least khuk khak beach, a marvellously empty stretch of white sand fringing the andaman sea the resort also claims to have south east asia's longest swimming pool   indeed, it winds around and in between the buildings like a huge lazy river, allowing some rooms to actually be swim up, which is great for families the best bit for me, though, was the very private hidey holes complete with loungers, cleverly sheltered with hedges, but still with easy access to the water paradise found getting there  thomson (thomsoncouk, 0871 230 2555) offers seven nights b&b at the jw marriott khao lak resort from £934pp, including return flights from gatwick departing april 10, and transfers
oriental james bond khao sok national park khao lak phuket khao phing kan   also
khao lak is an hour drive away from the airport at phuket  oriental in design, the jw marriott khao lak is classy and quiet  nearby khao sok national park is one of the oldest rainforests in the world  visit khao phing kan   also known as james bond island 