Where the Building Is Part of the Journey
Some hotels are memorable because of where they are. Others because of the building itself. Architectural Hotels celebrates places where architecture defines the experience—from bold contemporary structures created by leading architects to historic buildings given an entirely new life through imaginative adaptive reuse. These are hotels where form, materials, history and surroundings matter, and where staying the night means experiencing the architecture from the inside.
The Westin Xi’an | China Ancient Chinese courtyard architecture reimagined by Neri&Hu — with a museum hidden beneath. Why DNA Hotels Loves It ● Neri&Hu designed the hotel as a contemporary interpretation of Xi’an’s monumental architecture, courtyard houses and 3,100 years of history. ● Architecture does the storytelling: floating pitched roofs, deep red window reveals,…
read moreThe Sukhothai Shanghai | China An urban oasis where Neri&Hu translate Thai serenity into contemporary Shanghai. Why DNA Hotels Loves It ● Neri&Hu created a distinctly Shanghai interpretation of the legendary Sukhothai Bangkok, replacing resort grandeur with intimacy, texture and calm. ● The monumental terrazzo-and-bronze staircase is one of the hotel’s defining architectural moments, wrapped…
read moreAlila Bangsar | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia An urban oasis in the sky, shaped by Neri&Hu’s rigorous architectural grid. Why DNA Hotels Loves It ● Neri&Hu designed both architecture and interiors, turning the upper levels of a city tower into a coherent architectural world. ● A dramatic three-storey courtyard and open-air pool blur the boundary between…
read moreLe Méridien Zhengzhou | China Where Neri&Hu turns Henan’s history into a monumental architectural archive. Why DNA Hotels Loves It ● One of Neri&Hu’s most ambitious hotel projects, combining architecture, interiors, furniture, signage, landscape and art into a single narrative. ● The 25-storey building is conceived as an “archive” of Henan’s culture, translating literature, nature,…
read moreThe Shàng by Artyzen | Shanghai, China Where Neri&Hu turns compact hotel rooms into contemporary curio boxes inspired by Shanghai, Qing dynasty collections and ingenious modernist design. Why DNA Hotels Loves It ● Neri&Hu transforms an unusually compact 20 m² room footprint into the hotel’s defining idea rather than treating it as a limitation. ●…
read moreTsingpu Yangzhou Retreat | China An extraordinary architectural retreat where Neri&Hu turns the traditional Chinese courtyard into a labyrinth of reclaimed brick, water and landscape. Why DNA Hotels Loves It ● Neri&Hu reinterprets Yangzhou’s traditional courtyard-house typology as an entire hotel, using walls and pathways to connect old buildings, new architecture and landscape. ● Reclaimed…
read moreMandarin Oriental The Landmark, Hong Kong | Central, Hong Kong, China Hong Kong heritage, contemporary residential luxury and one of Asia’s most formidable culinary collections, reimagined by Joyce Wang Studio. Why DNA Hotels Loves It ● Joyce Wang Studio has transformed the 109-room hotel into a sophisticated Hong Kong pied-à-terre inspired by the city’s historic…
read moreHotel & Swimclub Zenden | Maastricht, The Netherlands Wiel Arets turns three historic townhouses and a medieval vaulted cellar into a study in radical white minimalism. Why DNA Hotels Loves It ● A striking intervention by Wiel Arets Architects, where three monumental Maastricht townhouses are stitched together into one continuous, almost abstract interior. ● The…
read moreKruisherenhotel | Maastricht, Netherlands Late-medieval Gothic architecture meets uncompromising contemporary design inside a 15th-century monastery. Why DNA Hotels Loves It ● One of the Netherlands’ most convincing examples of adaptive reuse: a Gothic monastery and church transformed into a contemporary hotel without disguising the original architecture. ● Henk Vos’ interiors and Ingo Maurer’s lighting installations…
read moreUrban Nature Bad Gastein - Austria Bad Gastein’s historic bathing culture reborn with a playful new attitude — and an extraordinary pool above the Alps. Why DNA Hotels Loves It ● BWM Designers & Architects transformed the historic Badeschloss of 1791 and a bold 35-metre contemporary tower into one architectural composition built around Bad Gastein’s…
read moreInterno Marche Design Experience Hotel - Tolentino, Marche, Italy A living museum of Italian design, where 60 years of creative history become part of the stay Why DNA Hotels Loves It ● A former leather factory and Poltrona Frau headquarters transformed into a 30-room casa-museo, with more than 400 pieces tracing six decades of Italian…
read moreW Sardinia – Poltu Quatu, Italy W grows up on the Costa Smeralda, trading glossy excess for Sardinian craft, coastal textures and a hidden harbour Why DNA Hotels Loves It ● Meyer Davis gives the W formula a distinctly Sardinian identity, replacing the brand’s old high-gloss aesthetic with tactile materials, organic forms, local stone and…
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