On the large island of Phuket – the main tourist destination that lies off the bottom of mainland Thailand – property prices are said to have doubled in value over the last three years – yet they remain good value for money. “It’s possible to pick up an apartment for around £50,000 on Phuket,” says Jay Walker for the developers at The Village Coconut Island, “but there’s also property for sale priced several million pounds on the island.”

The man behind the development, Chris Gordon, was the founder and managing director of Sunsail, an upmarket watersports holiday travel company. Naturally given the founder’s background and the resort’s location, The Village is primarily being developed as a watersports resort around a central village with a restaurant, beach bar, spa and fitness centre. Watersports activities available will include sailing, canoeing, and waterskiing.

“We may buy in a few motor boats that the owners will be permitted to take out on the water on their own,” says Walker. “The idea has worked well on other resorts I have worked at around the world. You can imagine here where the water is so perfect for sailing and there are so many islands to sail around in Phang Nga Bay and visit it would work very well.”