Some of Asia’s favorite weekend resorts are gearing up for the perfect weather of the yr. Summer monsoons give strategy to drier and cooler temperatures in Southeast Asia and India, and autumn in Japan is a leaf-watcher’s dream.
The region’s excellent rail and air networks (and a growing fleet of personal jets) allow wealthy weekenders to flock to second homes which are just a couple of hours away from the office.
Here are five havens of rural wealth where the wealthy and famous can gather. Skyrocketing prices over the past decade mean ownership in prime areas is becoming increasingly tight, but many rent their properties not less than a part of the yr.
- Bali, Indonesia
Asia’s most famous holiday destination has been attracting celebrities since Mick Jagger married Jerry Hall in 1992, and the island’s unique culture, wave-lashed beaches and terraced rice fields have captivated travelers for over a century.
The Island of the Gods can be a favourite destination for those escaping the North Asian winter and an increasing variety of retirees who need to spend their sunset years watching the sun set over the Indian Ocean. The most desirable properties are positioned in tourist areas where foreign owners can rent their villas.
Land prices in Seminyak and Sanur, two of the preferred high-end beaches, go for as much as $2,700 per square meter. Local agent Harcourts Seven Stones is asking $4.95 million for a brand new 12-bedroom villa with 45 meters of beachfront, near the proposed Trump Hotels property.
2. Karuizawa, Japan
Just 80 minutes by train from Tokyo, the mountain retreat of Karuizawa is available in many forms: it offers golf and an escape from the sweltering capital in summer; forests are ablaze with colours in autumn; and hot springs, and skiing in winter. John Lennon and Yoko Ono were regular guests, and Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko first met there on the tennis court 61 years ago.
The city of 20,000 inhabitants is an affidavit of “hidden wealth”, where design and the need to mix into the natural surroundings outweigh size and ostentation. Here you’ll be able to see among the biggest avant-garde architectural structures within the country. The modest two-bedroom home, a brief walk from the Mampei Hotel where Lennon and Ono stayed, is in the marketplace for $1.3 million.
3. Alibaug, India
In the time it takes to travel five blocks in Mumbai’s notorious rush hour traffic, wealthy Mumbaikars can take a speedboat to Mandwa Pier to enjoy village life in Alibag.
Here, the country’s top industrialists, financiers and Bollywood stars, including Shah Rukh Khan, can traverse bumpy country roads to secluded villas that appear a world away from the bustling city.
Over the past 15 years, the world has attracted wealthy individuals “who want a way of life they will speak about,” said Shveta Jain, executive director of residential services at Cushman & Wakefield India.
Struggling with bureaucracy to accumulate land and construct villas has limited supply. Most sites range in size from 4,500 square feet to 21,000 square feet, and costs range from about 50 million rupees ($686,000) to 140 million rupees.
4. Tagaytay Highlands, Philippines
Surrounded by a sprawling urban sprawl of 25 million people, escaping the warmth and dirt of Manila shouldn’t be easy. The answer for the town’s elite is to go for the hills. Tagaytay, positioned about 600 meters (2,000 feet) above sea level in Cavite Province, offers comfortable temperatures year-round, and the two.5-hour trip from the capital could possibly be cut by greater than half once the planned highway is accomplished.
Compared to other weekend getaways in Asia, property prices are modest, with the costliest villa in the marketplace costing $1.5 million. The eight-bedroom home sits across from one among three golf courses within the Tagaytay Highlands gated community and, like many prime properties, overlooks Taal Lake.
5. Phuket, Thailand
Off the west coast of Thailand, within the Andaman Sea, the island of Phuket is a perennial favorite of rich Asians. A growing base for superyacht tours, its steep, forested slopes slope all the way down to dozens of beaches and bays dotted with the villas of expats, celebrities and billionaires.
Prices for more modest properties start at around $1 million, however the recent rise in popularity of the island as a second house is reducing modesty and increasing prices. The $24 million Iniali Beach House, built by Briton Mark Weingard, has been rented to jet setters including Usain Bolt and the Kardashians. Rates for all the complex, which consists of three villas and employs 101 staff, top $30,000 an evening, said Tim Skevington, managing director of Richmont’s Luxury Real Estate in Bangkok.
Source : South China Morning Mail
