Once the capital of the northern Song emperors, Kaifeng in China’s Henan province looms large once again, this time distilled through the lens of the 186-room Pullman.
What was once a wetland park now houses the two-storey building designed by H2 Architecture Design Group. The interiors by the Singapore-based LTW channel the city’s imperial past, particularly in the use of sloping white roofs, chrysanthemum motifs, ornate lattice dividers, and giant murals with stylized renditions of ancient buildings and urban landscapes.
High windows pull in views of lake and landscaped gardens, an evocative tableau probably best enjoyed while soaking in capacious Ofuro-styled marble bathtubs scented with C.O. Bigelow’s herbal toiletries, savouring teas brewed in a special tea ceremony at Xi Bar, or while tucking into a feisty menu prepped by executive chef Ken Sun. The latter’s Cantonese menu at the hotel’s in-house diner Lu Hua, which includes baked oatmeal sea urchin and lobster infused with duck egg yolks, is ably paired with Kaifeng standards such as mutton soup, and pork dumplings that spill open with hot broth.
Meanwhile, the hotel’s spa is swathed in soft natural limestone and stocked with traditional Chinese therapies, alongside a heated indoor swimming pool, a particular boon during Kaifeng’s snowy winters.
INFORMATION
Website
ADDRESS
No, 16 Longting North Road
Longting District 475000
Kaifeng
-
Sotheby’s is auctioning a rare Frank Lloyd Wright lamp – and it could fetch $5 millionThe architect's ‘Double-Pedestal’ lamp, which was designed for the Dana House in 1903, is hitting the auction block 13 May at Sotheby's.
-
Naoto Fukasawa sparks children’s imaginations with play sculpturesThe Japanese designer creates an intuitive series of bold play sculptures, designed to spark children’s desire to play without thinking
-
Japan in Milan! See the highlights of Japanese design at Milan Design Week 2025At Milan Design Week 2025 Japanese craftsmanship was a front runner with an array of projects in the spotlight. Here are some of our highlights
-
Tour the best contemporary tea houses around the worldCelebrate the world’s most unique tea houses, from Melbourne to Stockholm, with a new book by Wallpaper’s Léa Teuscher
-
Prada and Wong Kar-wai dream up a cinematic restaurant in ShanghaiPrada partners with Wong Kar-wai to bring Mi Shang Rong Zhai to life, a dining experience influenced by the arthouse director’s seminal oeuvre
-
Enjoy heritage views and contemporary brews at a new Beijing caféJM Café, White Pagoda Temple by B.L.U.E. Architecture Studio nods to the history of the Xicheng District while injecting a shot of vitality
-
Must-visit cinemas with award-worthy designThere’s more magic to the movies at these design-led cinemas, from Busan Cinema Centre’s ‘flying’ roof to The Gem Cinema Jaipur’s art deco allure
-
China’s Alila Shanghai hotel is a stylish hub of idle tranquillityAlila Shanghai, the brand's first urban resort in Greater China, is a serene bolthole amidst the pulse of the Jing'an district
-
2025 getaways: where Wallpaper* editors will be travelling to this yearFrom the Japanese art islands of Naoshima and Teshima to the Malaysian tropical paradise of Langkawi, here’s where Wallpaper* editors plan to travel to in 2025
-
Travel back to the Ming dynasty at Beijing’s new Mandarin Oriental hotelMandarin Oriental Qianmen merges traditional culture with contemporary needs in a 600-year-old historical building complex
-
Inside Palazzo Versace Macau, a lavish, mosaic-rich hotelPalazzo Versace Macau, the brand’s first hotel in Asia, continues to preserve Donatella Versace’s swanky hospitality vision
