Going against the grain of old Beijing, Japanese architect Kengo Kuma has designed something that looks so impossibly from the future. Green was chosen to colour the glass that clads the box-like hotel exterior as a vision of calm. Inside, however it is hard to keep your cool - the design is too exciting. At ground level there is a sculpture gallery exhibiting the works of 10 of the best Chinese artists based around the world. The clean bamboo lines of the room, or rather, 98 studios, that range from 484 square feet (45 square metres) to 1238 square feet (155 square metres) and the two storey, 2153 square feet (200 square metres) penthouse provide the necessary retreats of calm. The 66 feet (20 metres) pool is lined in stainless steel, above you a grid of tiny lights hang from the ceiling, creating intense effects as you swim. Set in the new Sanlitun Village, you won't have to go looking for action - you're already in it. Be prepared to share it with non-hotel guests. Yes, the three restaurants, nightclub and bar are that cool. One of The Luxury Travel Bible Insiders recently returned from a night visiting the bar muttering dreamily: "Mmmmm...Mesh". That is indeed the bar's name, and exactly the steel fabrication that drips in looping folds from the ceiling as effortlessly as Shangtung silk. Cool...
Luxury Loves
Soak in the deep box-shaped oak bathtub - sensorial heaven.