Infinity Pools
Infinity pools create an intriguing visual effect. Their crystalline water extends to the horizon and stretches to "infinity." Savor these pools that sweep your sights to Polynesian lagoons, the Pacific Ocean, the African plains and even the Himalayas.
Bilila Lodge Kempinski opened in 2009 in Tanzania's Serengeti National Park. The property features 74 guest rooms and suites, including the presidential villa (pictured) with its own infinity pool overlooking a wildlife watering hole. All rooms overlook the Serengeti plains, allowing guests to observe wild game from their private sun decks. The lodge provides private game drives, hot-air balloon rides and bush walks set against the backdrop of Africa’s wilderness. The Serengeti is home to lions, giraffes, gazelles, elephants and buffaloes.
Le Méridien Bora Bora, in French Polynesia, is on the southern point of Motu Piti Aau, a six-mile-long island on a coral reef. The hotel has 99 bungalows, including four lagoon bungalows, 14 beach bungalows and 81 over-water bungalows with glass flooring. Recent renovations added a new infinity pool beneath the Miki Miki bar. The pool is more than 2,000 square feet and has a Jacuzzi, waterfall and deck. The pool overlooks Otemanu Mountain and a lagoon containing more than 100 species, including the endangered hawksbill turtle.
The Marquis Los Cabos Resort and its sparkling infinity pool are perched on the southernmost tip of Mexico’s Baja peninsula, where the Sea of Cortes meets the Pacific Ocean. The resort has 237 suites, a spa and fitness center, a gourmet restaurant and a collection of Latin American sculptures and paintings. Marquis Los Cabos is a member of the prestigious Leading Hotels of the World and the only member of Leading Spas of the World in Los Cabos.
The Post Ranch Inn is a luxury hotel perched on California’s spectacular Big Sur coast. The infinity jade pool next to the Sierra Mar restaurant overlooks the blue Pacific Ocean. The pool is kept at a constant 104 degrees, making it the perfect place to soak in the view. The Post Ranch Inn also has a spa, guided nature hikes, astronomy nights, morning yoga classes and morning meditation classes.
The Grand Velas All Suites & Spa Resort is nestled in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico. Take a dip in its 23,600-square-foot infinity pool, where the horizon extends into Banderas Bay and the Pacific Ocean beyond. The resort is 15 minutes north of Puerto Vallarta and has 267 ocean-view suites, spa suites and two- and three-bedroom imperial suites. The resort has a spa, exercise programs including Pilates, yoga and meditation, and a dolphin encounter program that lets you swim with bottle-nosed dolphins.
The Gansevoort Miami Beach’s infinity pool sits within a pool plaza, which includes an outdoor restaurant and an oversized Jacuzzi. The pool provides the perfect vantage point to see the Atlantic Ocean. The resort has 340 rooms and suites, two restaurants, a nightclub and a rooftop pool and bar dotted with coconut palms and cabanas.
When you do the breaststroke in the main infinity pool at Ubud Hanging Gardens in Bali, you look up at a jungle filled with monkeys, butterflies and exotic birds. You will also have the perfect view of a Balinese temple among the trees. For a special treat, book a room in one of the 38 pool villas, and you’ll have your own private infinity pool a few steps from your dwelling.
The 38-story Trump International Hotel Waikiki Beach Walk opened last year in Honolulu. It has 462 rooms and suites. Visit the sixth floor for an infinity pool overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The pool sits on an expansive lanai fringed with palm trees and sun loungers. Refreshments are available at the poolside bistro.
Wildflower Hall-Shimla in the Himalayas, India, resembles a fairy-tale castle nestled in pine and cedar forests at 8,250 feet. The heated indoor swimming pool has mosaic floors and chandeliers and offers spectacular mountain views. Attached to the indoor pool is an outdoor deck with an infinity whirlpool. It’s the perfect place to relax with a drink and ponder the magnificence of the Himalayas.
The Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc, on the southern tip of the Cape of Antibes on the French Riviera, is a renowned refuge for royalty, celebrities and politicians from all corners of the world. It boasts a heated, salt-water infinity pool that encourages you to gaze out upon the Mediterranean. You’ll see Lérins Island and the hills of the Estérel encircling the bays of Cannes and Juan-les-Pins.
Jumby Bay, a Rosewood Resort, is on a 300-acre private island just two miles off the coast of Antigua in the West Indies. The resort has undergone a $28 million renovation and added an infinity pool. With its infinity edge, this lagoon-shaped pool gives the illusion of blending with the Caribbean. It’s a great place to sunbathe or have a nosh at the Pool Grille. The resort also features a spa, tennis courts, guided snorkeling tours, sailing, Pilates and scuba diving instruction.
The Gansevoort Turks + Caicos, a 91-room resort, has an open-air lobby that overlooks a 7,000-square-foot infinity pool with a view of Grace Bay. The pool has four floating islands with umbrellas and lounge chairs that must be reserved in advance. The pool staff is standing by to bring you refreshments. The resort also features yoga and wellness classes, a fitness center and spa, snorkeling equipment, kayaks and Hobie Wave beach catamarans.
Castel Monastero, once a residence for nobility, is now a 75-room resort in a medieval Tuscan village surrounded by rolling hills of olive groves and vineyards. The infinity pool outside the spa has a perfect view of the honey-colored 11th century building. The resort, located not far from Siena, has a Gordon Ramsay restaurant and cooking school.
The Hotel Terra Jackson Hole is one mile from Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming and one hour from Yellowstone National Park. The hotel has an infinity hot tub overlooking Teton Village, which is a great place to relax and take in the ski village views after stomping around the national parks. Outdoor activities in the vicinity include hiking, mountain biking, hot-air ballooning, horseback riding and golf.
The Hotel Caesar Augustus perches 1,000 feet above the sea near Naples on the island of Capri, Italy. Its bi-level infinity pool overlooks the Bay of Naples and offers views of Mount Vesuvius, the famous volcano that buried Pompeii. The hotel can arrange a host of excursions, including those to Monte Solaro and Villa San Michele, through the narrow lanes and past the picturesque houses of Anacapri as far as Damecuta, the Carena Lighthouse and the Grotta Azzurra.
The Burj Al Arab, a hotel designed to resemble a mammoth sailboat, sits perched on the Dubai coastline. For an exquisite view of the Persian Gulf, guests can visit the infinity pool on the 18th floor of the hotel in the Assawan Spa & Health Club. If it’s luxury you seek, check into the spa for a caviar facial or body scrub.
The Radisson Blu Waterfront Cape Town in South Africa is a 177-room hotel towering over the Atlantic Ocean. Its waterfront bar, Tobago's, features tropical cocktails overlooking both the ocean and the hotel's infinity pool. Swimmers can cool off in the pool’s calm waters while seagulls cruise overhead. Contemplate the thousands of miles the ocean waves traveled before they crashed against the shoreline below you.
The Hotel Punta Tragara, originally a private villa, perches atop the cliffs of the island of Capri, Italy. During World War II it was used as the headquarters for the American command and hosted such famous guests as Gen. Dwight Eisenhower and Sir Winston Churchill. The hotel’s infinity pool sweeps your gaze out over the cobalt waters of the Bay of Naples.
Costa Careyes, Mexico, lies between Manzanillo and Puerto Vallarta. The Costa Careyes resort boasts villas known as “The Castles of Careyes.” Sol de Oriente, pictured, is a villa with six bedrooms encircled by a giant infinity pool. Swimmers can simply step outside of their rooms, plunge into the water, and take delight in a view that stretches to the great blue Pacific Ocean.
Laucala Island Resort is set on a 3,000-acre private island in Fiji. It has 25 villas, each with a private infinity pool, indoor and outdoor shower and outside bath. Each villa, constructed with local timber, thatch and stone, is adorned with traditional Fijian designs and overlooks sandy beaches and turquoise lagoons. Laucala Island also boasts five restaurants, an equestrian center, a fleet of luxury boats, an 18-hole championship golf course and a hilltop spa offering Fijian treatments.
The Al Maha Desert Resort and Spa, 40 miles from Dubai, has 42 individual suites. Each one has an infinity pool overlooking the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve. Arabian oryx and desert gazelles wander freely across the plains and dunes, often stooping to drink within this conservation-focused sanctuary resort. When you’re not soaking in the view, you can sample the resort spa, view more than 2,000 original Middle Eastern artifacts or set up a dune picnic or a camel trek.
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