Five Best: Far-flung beach houses

Paraty 3, Brazil

This private island hideaway is a short boat ride from the hip hangout of Paraty, between Rio and Sao Paulo. It encompasses a main house (with deck and home cinema) and two guest cottages down on the sand. One cottage has a Jacuzzi and steps into the water, the other has an outdoor terrace. There's also a 200m stretch of beach with direct access from the house.

Paraty 3, near Paraty, Brazil (info@brazilianbeachhouse.com). Sleeps eight. One week's rental starts at £14,000, including staff and speedboat but not meals.

Alinghi, Australia

This environmentally sensitive hangout on the southern tip of the Great Barrier Reef proves that eco-design doesn't have to be dowdy. It features state-of-the-art-facilities, a central terrace platform overhanging the ocean and sunset views from every room. Set within six hectares of bush, home to goannas and wallabies, there are two parts to the house - the main building and a separate bedroom pavilion - and a 30-metre pool, a tennis court and a beach shared with just three other properties.

Alinghi, Rocky Point, Agnes Water, Queensland, Australia (01637 881942; www.uniquehomestays.com). One week's rental of the main house, which sleeps up to 12, starts at £2,270 including L'Occitane toiletries and an arrival grocery pack.

Amapola, Sri Lanka

This is a stylish three-bedroom beach house set in Weligama, on Sri Lanka's southern coast. Amapola's rooms look out on to a quiet bay on the Indian Ocean (check out for the stilt fishermen for which the region is famous). The style is pure tropical chic, with colonnaded courtyards, breezy verandas, antique furniture and big coconut palm-scattered gardens. More modern touches include an 18-metre infinity pool. The house comes with its own cook, housekeeper, maid, gardener and security.

Amapola, Weligama, near Galle, Sri Lanka (00 94 41 22 50669; www.srilankainstyle.com). Rental of Amapola, which sleeps six, starts at US$550 (£306) per night, including staff.

The Blue Villa, Cambodia

Many of the properties in the seaside retreat of Kep were destroyed in the civil war, but some are now being restored. The pick of the bunch is the Blue Villa, originally designed by a student of Le Corbusier, Van Molivan. It is one of three houses in a small, Belgian-owned private resort on the south coast. The temples at Angkor Wat and the forests of Bokor National Park are within relatively easy reach, and it is close to the Vietnamese border. The beach is just a few steps from the door.

Knai Bang Chatt, Kep City, Cambodia (00 85 512 34 97 42; www.knaibangchatt.com). Two nights' rental of the Blue Villa, which sleeps eight, starts at US$2,700 (£1,500).

The Beach House, Kenya

The island of Lamu, just off the coast of Kenya, is known for its history (as a 14th-century Swahili settlement) and tropical glamour. The Beach House fulfils the latter quality: a large house with five en suite bedrooms (all with a terrace). You can look out over the Lamu channel and the beach below from the roof terrace. The USP, however, is a freshwater infinity pool on the first floor. Appearing to spill into the ocean, it's surrounded by a bar and sun-lounging space.

Beach House, Lamu, Kenya (00 254 20 444 2171; www.shelahouse.com). Rental of the Beach House, which sleeps 11, starts at US$600 (£333) per night. Full-board catering costs $60 (£33) per person per day.

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