The Last House

Geoffrey Bawa's final commission before his death, this six-room boutique stay on Sri Lanka's south coast sits close enough to the water that you hear the surf from bed. The wraparound verandas and market-fresh communal meals give it the feel of a borrowed beach house rather than a hotel, which is either a drawback or the entire point. Tangalle is five miles off and not exactly overrun, so the unspoiled part holds.