Imagine a vacation spot just an hour from an international airport, with beautiful soft sand beaches, a good selection of places to stay, from cheap bungalows to family-friendly resorts, enough bars and restaurants to keep from getting bored for a week and not too much development. It’s not a fantasy, it’s Khao Lak, just north of the popular island of Phuket (it's the first province over the bridge to Phuket). The only drawback to it being a perfect beach destination is that it's not an island, but you won’t really notice that when you’re on the beach since Khao Lak's beaches are far more tranquil than Phuket’s.