Bill Bensley By Design
The Harvard-educated, Bangkok-based interior designer describes how art, parties and nature inform his practice
Luxury design go-to Bill Bensley has been creating extraordinary hotels and resorts since 1989. With more than 200 completed projects and a 150-strong team which he heads with his partner Jirachai Rengthong Bensley has created one-of-a-kind spaces in India, Southeast Asia, and the Americas for major hoteliers, including Rosewood and One&Only.
The prolific U.S.-born, Bangkok, Thailand-based architect, who has lived and worked in Asia since his Harvard University days, boasts a highly original oeuvre. His otherworldly spaces include an edible golf course, a Malaysian sultan’s royal palace, the world’s longest, largest swimming pool, a thrilling zip-line ride over one of Asia’s most beautiful ecosystems, and his personal favorites: a boutique hotel and tented camp, created in collaboration with the Shinta Mani Hotel Group.
Best known as an architect, interior designer and landscape designer who has brought to life over 200 resorts, hotels and palaces in more than 30 countries, few may know that Bill Bensley is also an artist.
Even with travel largely on pause, hoteliers around the globe have had to keep things humming whether they were running a hotel or building one. Despite the pandemic, there has been a constant stream of new hotel openings this year, giving us more reason to dream of our next city getaway or beach holiday.
Case in point: Cap Karoso in Sumba, Indonesia a brand-new hotel with 47 rooms and 20 beachfront villas with social spaces including the Julang restaurant, Explorer’s beach club, a spa, main pool, open-air cinema and more.
The Indonesian archipelago may have over 17,000 islands but Sumba has captured the hearts and imagination of curious adventurers, including Fabrice and Evguenia Ivara, the first-time hoteliers behind Cap Karoso.