Beijing’s Peninsula property has finally received a makeover deserving of the luxury brand’s reputation. Designed by long-term collaborator, Henry Leung of CAP Atelier, the new look is inspired by the Great Wall of China and Summer Palace, with luxe materials that include gold leaf, zi tan wood, bronze, onyx, Chinese jade and marble. The restaurant, which opened in 2008, serves the best Cantonese fare in town.

Recognising the power of print in detaching the mind from the pressures of modern life, Beijing-based studio Office AIO centred Read and Rest Hotel – a 60-room boutique nestled in the winding alleys of the Xiang’Er Hutong – around an in-house library stocked with an intriguing assortment of print publications. The space is lined with oak and defined by a series of secluded alcoves – one is fitted with a cushioned bench where guests can lounge with a magazine, another has tables for study.

The hotel is located on the upper floors of WF CENTRAL, one of the city's premium lifestyle retail centres. It features 73 rooms and suites which are amongst the largest in city. The rooms are designed with a contemporary residential style combined with subtle traditional Chinese elements, an array of luxury amenities and expansive, spa-like bathrooms. Many rooms have superb views towards the Forbidden City.

Set in a building from the 1950s, VUE Hotel Houhai is a design hotel and offers a lakeside setting in the Hou Hai hutong. The hotels offers stylish guest rooms with several offering views of the park and lake, the Spanish Pink Rabbit restaurant set in a restored warehouse, the FAB cafe and rooftop MOON…

For a sense of what China might have been like a century ago, head to the Coté Cour hotel in Beijing. The 14 rooms are on the small side but very pretty, with wooden beds, silk printed lampshades and beautifully patterned porcelain basins in the bathrooms. Not surprisingly with this name, they surround a lovely courtyard in a 500 years old hutong. Restaurant serving authentic Chinese cuisine.

Aman draws on Qing dynasty pomp to offer a uniquely Chinese resort-style experience. Throughout, there's a symmetrical labyrinth of criss-crossing courtyards, covered walkways, neatly-tended gardens and wood-beamed halls. As you wander the polished tiles of the complex, a fitting soundtrack is provided by performers plucking the guzheng (a traditional Chinese instrument) in the high-beamed chambers.

Within the city's winding, traditional hutongs is a surprise: an enchanting collection of luxury residences. Giving visitors a glimpse of ancient China, Cours et Pavillons are brimming with character and wrapped up with exceptional service. With just seven rooms across the two separate traditional courtyards, this small luxury hotel has a truly exclusive ambience.

Designed by Tara Bernerd, The Hari is a luxury hotel located on the edge of the two vibrant districts of Causeway Bay and Wan Chai. Guestrooms maximise space by opening up the bathrooms and wardrobes, while a system of antique-brass Crittal doors enabling the bathrooms to be closed off when necessary. The palette is dominated by amber leathers, grey marble, and neutral textured linens. The hotel has a glamorous Italian restaurant and also offers a Japanese restaurant and terrace bar.

Despite being ready to swing into party mode at a minute's notice, this W hotel feels calmer than its counterparts around Asia. Glass lifts zoom new arrivals up to the sixth floor, where guests and locals mingle between the Woo Bar, The Kitchen restaurant and small reception area. Floor to ceiling windows, expansive sea and sky views and a flood of natural light make for a memorable welcome view.

According to Chinese mythology, there isn’t a man in the moon - there’s a rabbit. If you didn’t know this cultural fact before check-in, you’ll have grasped it by the time you’ve left. There are bunnies everywhere (including three pink ones flying over reception). There’s also a profusion of peonies – on carpets, curtains and mosaic floors - plus lots of lunar-themed style references. It’s done with such cheerful style, however, it manages to stay on the enjoyable side of kitsch.

The 492-room hotel received some unexpected publicity when Edward Snowden retreated there in 2013 and proceeded to spill the beans on America’s spy network. (If you want to assess room quality watch Oliver Stone’s Snowden, which was filmed in the hotel). It prides itself on its design elements. Some of these verge on the weirdly cinematic - you can easily imagine Snowden skulking around its dark maze of low-ceilinged, stripy-carpeted and mirrored corridors.

Like the location, the hotel does a good job of combining local flavour with a cheerful slickness. The corridors have Wan Chai-related art works, most of the funky knick-knacks (colourful kung-fu figures, Hong Kong-themed cushions, fish-themed bath-mats and tea sets) are for sale and each room has a directory listing the history of Wan Chai, plus recommended places to visit. The theme is inclusion not exclusion. And for daredevils, there is the glass bottomed, cantilvered pool at the 28th…

TUVE is a cutting-edge design hotel boasting minimalist interiors. The hotel is located on Hong Kong Island, just east of Victoria Park well situated for forays into the hospitality-rich Tai Hang and Causeway Bay neighbourhoods.

Located in the heart of Hong Kong’s famous Wan Chai business and entertainment district, The Fleming is a stylishly designed boutique hotel. A recent renovation transformed the original ‘70s building combining an urban edge and a nautical decor inspired by Hong Kong’s iconic cross-harbour ferries.

Foster + Partners, appropriately enough, has refashioned the 1960s former government building – set between two major roads – into a surprisingly peaceful retreat. Conservation constraints, which included preserving a magnificent old tree in the forecourt, have certainly worked in guests’ favour. The combination of natural light, greenery and an unusual spaciousness showcase an imaginative use of heritage.

The Hong Kong debut of the Shangri-La group’s diffused Kerry Hotel line is located in Hung Hom, a charming old world neighbourhood of wet markets, old tea houses and temples. Architects Rocco Design have made the most of the Kerry’s location on Hung Hom Bay, and fronted the 16-storey convex pile with an elevated park, and 25m outdoor heated pool: the best views in the house are from the seventh floor bar and penthouse suite that overlook the grand sweep of Victoria Harbour.

Nestled in the heart of Hong Kong's vibrant and fast-gentrifying Yau Ma Tei neighbourhood, Tribute is a "select service" design hotel offering 24 stylish rooms. The illustrated Tribute map charts 24 of the area’s essential sites within a 15-minute walk of the property. Or hop onto the train at the MTR Station located a minute away to discover the city. The intelligently designed non-smoking rooms come in just two sizes "small" and "big".

Hotel Stage is an urban lifestyle boutique-style hotel located in the heart of Hong Kong's Yau Ma Tei district. The property pays homage to the city's artisans and community through its impressive "stage" of local artwork.

Tam, the Chinese, New York based fashion designer, has designed this 80m2, 27th floor suite which offers breathtaking views of Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour and skyline. The author of “China Chic” has create a one-off suite inspired by her New York flat and exuding a blend of chinoiserie and modernity, a signature of her style.

Designed by famous local architects, Hong Kong's luxury design Hotel ICON enjoys harbour views in bustling Tsim Sha Tsui. Contemporary classic rooms feature dark colours and warm lighting to create a cosy atmosphere. Free local calls and a ✅free minibar are included in the rate. The hotels has a rooftop outdoor heated pool, and offers pampering spa services and a 24-hour health club.

A rebranding of the VIC on the Harbour, the hotel’s social areas and food and beverage concepts were designed by Hong Kong-based architect and interior designer, Andre Fu while the 665 harbor-view guestrooms feature designs from Hirsch Bedner Associates.

The hotel's cobbled driveway and petite lobby has been designed for discreet arrivals, which means there's little in the way of arrival buzz. The "oohs" and "aahs" come later, as you come to realise how wonderfully indulgent and thoughtfully designed it all is – gleaming marble, hypnotic eight-point geometric motifs, high-backed chairs, check carpets and artworks that stop you in your tracks.

Designed by celebrated architect André Fu for entrepreneur Adrian Cheng, whose K11 art foundation (and retail operation) has made it its mission to integrate China into the international contemporary art world — a mission that’s met with a great deal of success. And K11 Artus will only advance the cause; it’s exquisitely crafted, with seemingly mundane details like lighting and furniture exhibiting the same care as the priceless artworks on display.

Design firm AvroKo stripped back the design of the 1970s-era former hotel to its bones “and left much of the structure exposed in certain areas,” says Bradshaw. To contrast the raw, industrial feel, ceramic tiles create vibrant color-blocking moments with red powdercoated steel details recalling the local architecture. Clad in linen and steel, the oversized atrium chandelier is another nod to the area’s design vernacular, taking cues from the local bamboo scaffolding.

Located directly on the Huangpu River front, the hotel features probably the best views of the city (both the historic Bund and dramatic Pudong skylines). These views, along with scenes from the local South Bund neighbourhood, have enabled Hotel Indigo to create a vibrant, contemporary and inspiring space in an upscale boutique hotel context.

This luxury design hotel is set in a curvy tower in the Xintiandi entertainment district. Contemporary interiors feauture shades of red with rich hardwood and complementary gold. Well-equipped gym, spa and pool. Modern Shanghainese restaurant and French patisserie.

Thirteen antique villas dating from the Ming and Qing dynasty form the core of this remarkable resort, designed by Kerry Hill Architects. To them have been added a further 24 Courtyard suites, a vast spa representative of Aman’s increasing emphasis on wellness, and a rich variety of restaurants.

After five years of renovations to a 100-year-old, heritage-listed mansion, Chinese lifestyle brand Beast and Danish design company Gubi have unveiled a boutique hotel and café on a quiet street in Shanghai’s former French Concession.

Located on the south part of The Bund, The Waterhouse is a cutting edge boutique design hotel set in a 1930s warehouse in Shanghai’s old docklands. It is a 2-minute stroll from the Old Wharf or the Artificial Beach. Singaporean lawyer-turned-hotelier Loh Lik Peng embarked on a total renovation, stocking the interiors with his trademark designer furniture (Arne Jacobsen, Finn Juhl, Hans Wegner, Antonio Citterio et al), which gives the property added polish.

Designed within an inch of its life, stepping into the lobby feels like gliding into a Tom Ford advert - all polished black stone floors, minimalist lines, spotlighted antiques and beautiful people. In the summer months, the outdoor terrace is the place to see and be seen, while in winter you’ll want to snag a space in front of the fireplace in the low-lit library.

This co-work space offers a small number of individually designed rooms on its top floor.

citizenM has landed in one of the most up-and-coming business areas of Shanghai, Hongqiao, in the Minhang District. Dutch studio Concrete has designed the interior of the freshly built 303-room citizenM hotel. citizenM is part of a larger area development at the Ziteng road metro station where offices, hotel and the MixC shopping mall are being built. The project is located in the west part of Shanghai between the Middle and Outer ring road near the Gubei district also known as Koreatown.

Perched 79 storeys high above Shanghai, in the upper floors of the Shanghai World Financial Center, the Park Hyatt is one of the tallest hotels in the world, and offers an incredible wow factor every time you look out the window. An ideal location at the heart of the Lujiazui financial district means you’ll make it to meetings without having to face any of Shanghai’s notorious traffic and the hotel’s indoor infinity pool is the ideal relaxation spot after a busy day.

Ian Schrager’s vision for multi-dimensional modern luxury melds familiar Shanghai touchpoints with global pizzazz and a few inspiring hospitality twists. A strong soundtrack and generous sprinkling of bars (nine in total) and pool tables gives the hotel an undercurrent of FashionTV cool, but beyond that, the spaces are sophisticated yet understated. Natural walnut and oak, vibrant velvets, and infusions of leafy greenery keep things relaxed and intimate throughout.

The fourth property from the insanely stylish House Collective group (behind the gorgeous Upper House in Hong Kong) is split between two curving, futuristic-feeling towers – said to echo the local shikumen architectural style. Enter the lobby and you'll find a warm, intimate, arty space, with forest-green bamboo wall tiles, a showstopping 3,760-piece Venetian chandelier, a collection of cutting-edge Chinese art and Shanghai's wealthy young professionals draped on low-slung sofas.

The W brings its playful clubby vibes to Shanghai, with colour-pop furnishings, flashy fittings and strong angular lines. Off-shooting the entranceway is an arty Shanghai alleyway hung with neon laundry, including a huge pair of fluorescent Y-fronts. From here, pink-tinted lifts whiz guests up to the W Floor check-in, part of a series of zig-zagging public spaces streaked with purple, turquoise, white and gold.

Inspired by Wuzhen’s picturesque maze of quiet canals and ancient alleyways, Alila Wuzhen offers an extraordinarily peaceful escape for exploring the town’s rich cultural heritage of Ming and Qing era architecture. Designed around water features and stone walkways, the 125 suites and villas are stylishly simple, with private courtyards, light wood–paneled walls, and sleek furnishings (some villas come with their own pool).

This stylish boutique hotel, as the name suggest, combines a bookstore with accommodations - definitely a trend in China.

Atelier tao+c redesigned and regenerated this 232sqm old building by inserting a capsule hotel that can accommodate 20 people, a community bookstore and library into the 7.2-meter high two-stories space. The biggest challenge to the architects, and the key to the design, is to ensure the privacy of the accommodation area while giving openness and continuity to the public areas within such a compact space.

The Shanghai-based Ares Partners converted a cluster of 1950s granary buildings into a calm modern compound of white oblong volumes lined with deeply set eaves, low stone walls, and capped with classic Chinese clay roofs. Inside, old false ceilings were removed to reveal soaring timber roof rafters, whilst existing windows in the minimalist bedrooms have been widened to impressively frame the mountain-scape.

naked Stables is the first retreat in China to achieve LEED Platinum certification. Dotted along a secluded valley, the Tree Top Villas and Earth Huts provide a choice of 121 luxury rooms. The stables are situated at the heart of the retreat. Lounge in a private jacuzzi, explore tea picking or relax by the infinity pools, dine in one of three unique restaurants or pamper yourself at naked Leaf Spa.

Designed by Shanghai-based X+Living, the Wheat Youth Arts Hotel is located on the 7th floor of a shopping mall in Hangzhou. The hotel is almost TARDIS-like in the way the small lobby opens up into spacious public spaces and guest rooms. The latter are dominated by a glass bathroom, and kitted out with handsome customized furniture, graphic pop art screens by X+Living’s lead designer Li Xiang that slide aside to reveal flat screen TVs, geometric headboards and easels for afternoon doodles.

The PARKZOO Hotel is without a doubt a hotel about animals. Another masterpiece by Shanghai-based interior design studio X+Living, the Park Zoo Hotel is a departure from the typical family-friendly, animal-themed accommodation. In fact, the interior is designed to emulate an art exhibition, giving guests an elevated environment with minimal distractions to enjoy the animal-themed sculptures and installations.

Shanghai architecture studio Atelier XÜK has created a series of timber interventions to turn a former school in Qinyong, Zhejiang province, China into a hotel while leaving its original, solid masonry structure intact. The school, which was originally built in the 1970s when Qinyong was demolished and reconstructed as a strictly planned people’s commune, is now the Lost Villa Qinyong Hotel.

Arranged like a village along the shore of the Dong Qian Lake, the luxury Park Hyatt Ningbo is a sprawling cluster of pavilions and villas, erected in a classically influenced contemporary Chinese style.

The designers reinterpreted the Ming Dynasty and Jiangnan styles envisioning a Chinese merchant’s mansion up in the sky with the frequent use of grey-veined marble that reminds of traditional Chinese landscape paintings, wooden floors, floral motive carpets, and lacquered wooden screens.

Framed by the tree-cloaked Tianmu mountains, willowy bamboo forests and a bijou creek, the 15-room property fairly luxuriates in its sprawling sequence of stone-lined internal courtyards bordered with slatted screens, corkscrew stairwells, and a vast central reflecting pool whose mirror-flat surface amplifies the sensation of unending space.

If you have been following my blog and Pinterest a little, you know that I am very into the latest generation of Chinese design hotels. Here’s another stunner, the Mi Yuan Hotel set in a bamboo forest in the province of Anhui, East China. The 22-room boutique hotel is designed by Shanghai-based JAXDA.

Created by world-renowned designer JID - which was founded by the celebrated late Indonesian designer Jaya Ibrahim - Andaz Xiamen has been inspired by the city’s sobriquet as a ‘Garden by the Sea.’ The hotel has been conceived as a modern mansion inspired by tropical Nanyang style. As in typical local homes, Andaz Xiamen features high ceilings, repeated arched detailing and living spaces linked by walkways open to cooling tropical breezes.

Hotel WInd in a boutique design hotel in Xiamen set in an architecturally stunning complex.

With Shenzhen existing as a modern, bustling tech industry city, MeeHotel envelops guests in a tranquil, bamboo-filled setting—a key element that nods to the location’s Bamboo Forest moniker. To that end, Hong Kong-based studio Panorama Design Group maximized the urban resort’s footprint with an ingenious reinterpretation of traditional design elements.

Located on the top 39 floors of the 108-story CTF Finance Centre, the 7th tallest building in the world, the property has become an instant icon and a fitting symbol of Guangzhou’s ascent as an international economic hub and the Greater Bay Area’s emergence as a global economic powerhouse. Soaring to 530-meters at its highest point, Rosewood Guangzhou also earns the singular status as the world’s tallest 5-star hotel.

Situated in the heart of Shenzhen’s Futian business district, the Park Hyatt Shenzhen is located on the 15 upper most levels of a 48-story glass and steel tower, which was designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates (KPF). However, when Toronto- and New York-based design studio Yabu Pushelberg began imagining the project, they conceived a calm environment within the bustling and ever-growing modern metropolis.

The 66-story R&F Yingkai Square tower’s uppermost floors houses the 208-key Park Hyatt Guangzhou hotel. Featuring interiors from Tokyo-based design firm Super Potato, the hotel welcomes guests with a warm and neutral palette accented by sculptures. A 60th-floor infinity-edge pool spans the length of one side of the building, offering panoramic views of the city skyline. Similar views can also be enjoyed from the signature outdoor rooftop garden and dining venue on the 70th floor.

The luxury Sofitel is a joint effort of Accor Hotels and Louvre Furniture, which mall can be found at a 2-minute walk. All furniture its Modern, Post Modern, Chinese and French lines at the hotel can be purchased.

Situated amid the mountainous landscape of Yangshuo in China, architecture studio Fabersociety has designed a new boutique hotel called the ‘GEEMU Resort’. The project sees the transformation of an existing structure to create a welcoming and child-friendly space. The architect has also strived to form a building that resonates with the community by exploring the local culture of the burgeoning area.

Working hard to compete with the view, architects Co-Direction Design has softened the façade of a pre-existing building with a tableau of garden paths paved with white stones and pergolas, alongside a vast low-hanging pavilion lounge that’s fringed with bamboo and a reflection pool. It’s a beatific spot even in summer as cool mountain air is drawn in through high clerestories.

Paying homage to the local flora and fauna, and combining the brand’s signature approach to sustainable luxury, 1 Hotel Haitang Bay is the first Chinese resort from 1 Hotels. Housed within a dramatic building by Hong Kong-based Oval Partnership, with nature-informed interiors from Singapore design studio FARM, the 294-room property is firmly rooted in its context, encapsulating the biodiversity of Hainan island, an accessible location from the Chinese mainland.

The design plays on Sanya’s ancient moniker as the ‘end of land and sea’, with spaces that blur the lines between indoors and out. Concrete pavilions with glass walls and teak latticing appear to float alongside reflective ponds. Sharp edges are softened by huge potted plants and landscaped gardens that use more than 900 different tree species from the island ­and include a bamboo grove.

Taking its name from the natural steam that rises around it, The Mist Hot Spring Hotel seems to float above the landscape. But it isn’t just the hotel’s relationship to water that makes it special. A striking stained-glass exterior and futuristic inside spaces connect guests in a unique way to the qualities of light, colour and shade. The 14 outdoor and five indoor hot spring pools take centre stage and there’s also an indoor swimming pool, fitness centre and spa.

Beautiful design hotel by Neri&Hu.

Designed by international studio LTW, whose main philosophy was ‘to showcase the hotel’s sense of place’, Pullman Kaifeng Jianye evokes the majesty of this ancient walled town in the Hénán province — modern furniture, lighting and an earthy colour palette making it recognisable as part of the luxury hotel brand.

A previously ramshackle farmhouse snuggled amid the lush emerald green hills in China’s central Hubei province has been transformed by The Design Institute of Landscape & Architecture China Academy of Art into Nanchawan•Shiwu Tribe Homestay – a bijou, four-room guesthouse.

Located on the shores of Yangcheng Lake, Sangha Retreat by Octave Institute is a holistic health and wellness sanctuary designed by Fred Tsao. Combining Eastern philosophy and Western science, the 47-acre retreat encourages guests to embark on a personal wellness journey from the on-site clinic, healing spa and meditation dome to the custom food and beverage experiences. There are 68 lakefront suites and private villas incorporate unique touches, such as healing crystals in every room.

The luxury hotel, located near freshwater Jinji Lake in the heart of Suzhou Industrial Park, was designed by New York architectural firm, Kohn Pedersen Fox, and features interiors by Hirsch Bedner Associates. It features 178 rooms and suites range from 50 to 173m2 "inspired by the sleeping chambers of Ancient Suzhou mansions". There are three restaurants and bars, a fitness centre, a spa and a swimming pool.

This beautifully designed guesthouse has 16 rooms and a restaurant set around three courtyards.

The hotel features just 14 rooms and suites on a modest plot surrounded by green, rolling mountains and the sinewy Beihe River. It is a restoration of a 300-year-old Huizhou-style mansion, which, like the sugar mill restored by Alila Yangshuo, had been left in ruin for decades. Today, it stands as a spectacular display of Chinese heritage restored through the magic of contemporary design.

Red and gold predominate in many Macau hotels – colours considered lucky by Chinese gamblers. But there's none of that at the Roosevelt, whose design was overseen by Iceland-born, Los Angeles-based Gulla Jónsdóttir. The exterior takes its cue from the racecourse, with roomy balconies overlooking the track, while inside a pared-down modernism predominates. The faux garden which works its way up the wall and across the ceiling in the lobby is a good clue as to the treats in store.

This stylish luxury hotel is set in a stunning low-rise modern building set around several courtyards, which gives it a distinctive Chinese feel. There is even an on-site museum.

JW Marriott Hotel Qufu, birthplace of Confucius, is located in the old city. The brainchild of Kai Cui, the academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, the building is a masterpiece of design that celebrates Chinese architecture, while taking its ancient contexts into the 21st century. The spectacular lobby features a stylized moon gate and a statue of Confucius under a graceful ginkgo tree, in commemoration of the lectures "The Great Teacher" gave.

Chengdu is transforming. A melting pot that fuses rich traditions with a dynamic modern lifestyle, Chengdu-inspired international design firm Glyph Design Studio playfully named the hotel's design narrative 'Du'titude'. The design tells the city's transformation by combining its history and innovation with nods to Chengdu's most famous attractions rendered with unexpected contemporary twists.

Interiors by Cheng Chung Design (CCD). “The design revolves around the story of ‘the scholar goes to the city to take the imperial exam’,” explained designer Joe Cheng. “Traversing the memory corridor of the imperial city (Chengdu), capturing the auspicious details hidden in the green brick wall, on the street view of the market, in the peddler stall and the courtyard.”

The pared-back interiors are a well thought-out reflection of rural life: a cluster of black clay lights handmade in the nearby village of Nixi hang in the lobby; in the library there are original wicker baskets and horse bells once used by the muleteers to take tea to Lhasa. The 30 open-plan bedrooms - many of which overlook the outdoor pool and the River Yangtze and beyond - have furniture and floors made of local pine, oil paintings of the surrounding countryside and a round copper sink.

The pieces of multi-tonal stone used to construct this spa resort give the complex a pixelated appearance. Designed by Kengo Kuma and his Tokyo-based firm, the grounds terraces down a mountain outside the city of Tengchong in China's Yunnan Province. The resort is constructed from varieties of locally quarried stone, which are fitted together like a mosaic to form the walls and pitched roofs of each of the spa complex's buildings.

World-famous Japanese architect Kengo Kuma designed the all-villa resort as an ideal harmony of nature and contemporary architecture. The resort blends seamlessly into the folds of the mountain thanks to various types of natural local stone throughout the property, including white marble and lava stone. Renowned hotel interiors specialist LTW Studio from Singapore designed the interiors to reflect the rich cultures of the ethnic minorities that inhabit the region.