The World's Most Spectacular Swimming Pools (Photo Essay)

Perhaps the most beautiful pool in the world is at the Perivolas Hotel in Santorini, Greece. Swimmers can enjoy the breathtaking views of the surrounding bay. It is an infinity pool with a 300 foot drop to the ocean below.

The world’s largest pool is at the San Alfonso del Mar Resort in Chile. It even comes with its own man made beach. Who needs the ocean?

San Alfonso del Mar in Algarrobo, Chile

A Holiday Inn in Shanghai has a pool with a glass bottom and extends over the side of the building. It makes you feel like you’re swimming in the sky with beautiful sights of the city below.

With over 75 species of tropical fish and rays, you might as well be in the real ocean at the Kings Pond in Hawaii.

The 10th floor swimming pool of the Joule Hotel in Dallas extends eight feet out over the city. One of the pool walls is actually clear, which gives any swimmer fantastic views of the city.

The Ubud Hanging Gardens pools in Bali are amazing. The multi-level infinity pool overlooking the jungle is designed to mimc the surrounding environment.

The Amangiri resort in Utah has a pool that is built around the natural rock formations. It is truly an oasis.

The world’s deepest pool is called Nemo 33 and is in Brussels, Belgium. At its deepest point it is 113 feet deep. It was designed primarily for divers and has several artificial underwater caves.

The Bondi Icebergs pool in Sydney, Australia is an Olympic sized pool that uses ocean water from waves which crash over the walls, so you are essentially swimming in the ocean.

The Marina Bay Sands in Singapore is the longest elevated swimming pool in the world. It is 492 feet long and actually stretches across the top of 3 separate buildings.

Nandana Villa, Grand Bahama, Bahamas, private and serene, the pool at Nandana seems to drop straight into the Atlantic and is the focal point of this Balinese-style property.

 

Alila Uluwatu, Bali, Indonesia, this spectacular cliff-top infinity pool appears to float in space.

 

 Paresa Phuket, Thailand: This infinity pool overlooking the Andaman Sea offers the ultimate in al fresco dining. It’s punctuated with tiny private man-made islands in the shadows bookable for a romantic tête-à-tête.

 

  The St. Regis, Lhasa, Tibet:  Tibet may be associated with monks and spirituality, but its newest resort boasts a gold-plated pool. It’s situated in The Iridium Room, designed for spiritual well-being.

The Park Hyderabad, India:  This startlingly modern hotel in the city of ancient Muslim royalty boasts a pool intended to give a sense of swimming into a 3-D movie, with its infinity edge overlooking Hussian Saggar Lake.The violet hue matches the furniture in a hotel which uses the regal color all over the place -- appropriately for a royal city.

The Library, Koh Samui, Thailand:  The Library’s pool gets its startling color from a base of mosaic glass tiles in orange, yellow and blood red. The effect is heightened by the red mattresses that line the perimeter, and at night underwater lights transform the swimming pool into a dazzling spectacle on the Chaweng seafront.

Hearst Castle, California, United States:  The newspaper magnate who inspired "Citizen Kane," William Randolph Hearst, built two spectacular Roman-inspired pools at his fairytale castle in the hills. Charlie Chaplin, Clark Gable and other legendary figures have splashed in the outdoor Neptune Pool, where a special ramp was installed to allow easy access for the pet dachshund of Hearst’s lover, Marion Davies.

Skye, São Paolo, Brazil:  Bizarrely named for the windswept Scottish island, Skye is actually the spectacular crimson rooftop pool of Hotel Unique, a luxury boutique hotel built in the gravity-defying shape of an inverted arc.With no other high buildings within a one-kilometer radius, it enjoys panoramic views, and its expansive deck is transformed into a cocktail venue by night.

The Transparent Pool in Melbourne, Australia

The Raleigh Hotel in Miami, Florida

 

 

Balcony Pools in Mumbai, India

The £200million Tropical Paradise Island Yacht Pool

Likuliku Resort, Malolo Island, Fiji

Natural Pool in Santorini, Greece

 Roman Pool at Hearst Castle in San Simeon, California

 

 

Hotel Catell dels Hams in Majorca, Balearic Islands

The Dream Pool in San Diego, California

  The Hemeroscopium House in Madrid, Spain

The Homestead Crater Pool at the Homestead Resort in Midway, Utah

Scorpion House Pool in Scottsdale, Arizona

Banyan tree Hotel pool, Intendance Bay, Seychelles

Alila Ubud  Resort Hotel, Bali. Indonesia

Anantara Golden Triangle Resort – Thailand

Astarte Suites Hotel, Santorini, Greece:  Pool mimics the the blue of the Santorini ocean

Maldives at Kuda Huraa Infinity Pool at night

Magic Lit Infinity Pool, Cavo Tagoo Hotel, Mykonos, Greece

 

Al Bustan Palace,  Muscat, Oman

 

 Manihi Pearl Beach Resort, Manihi, French Polynesia: The perfect match: Overwater Bungalows and Infinity Pool in French Polynesia

  

Maldives Luxury Resort Huvafen Fushi,  Maldives

 

Intercontinental Tahiti Resort, Tahiti

 Bimini Bay Resort, Bahamas

 

 The Naka Island Phuket  Resort, Thailand

 

 Hotel Villa Mahal, Turkey

 

 Tokoriki Island Resort, Fiji

 

Hotel Caruso, Italy

La Blanc Spa Resort, Cancun

Elounda Gulf Villas & Suites, Crete

 

Villa Balinese, Turks and Caicos

 

One & Only Resort, Reethi Rah, Maldives

Hotel Du Cap-Eden-Roc, Côte d'Azur

Le Burgundy, Paris

Shangri-La Hotel, Paris

The Grace Santorini is the perfect vantage point from which to view the famed Santorini sunsets that envelope the Aegean Sea and the Cyclades Islands.

 The St. Regis Lhasa Resort qith views of the resort's lake and the Himalaya Palace.

 

The Natural Pools of Pamukkale, Denizli, Turkey

The Fantasyland of Huanglong, China

Lijiang's Black Dragon Pool, China
 

InterContinental Hong Kong

Silavadee Resort, Koh Samui, Thailand

Bali

Which are your favourites?