Hangzhou, in China’s east coast Zhejiang province, is something of an insider’s secret, long prized by lovelorn romantics, photographers and naturalists for its scenic bounty.
In recent years, savvy hoteliers have been lured to the man-made Qiandao Lake for its photogenic collection of over a thousand islands and water-sports. For the 27-room Ripple Hotel, Shanghai-based firm X+Living has taken its design cues from the aquatic setting, filling the minimalist white-washed spaces with furniture shaped like fantastical boats that seem to float in mid-air, and oversized, elliptically shaped sofas that that recall ripples in the water.
Giant oars and bundles of reeds become art installations and dropped ceilings are sheathed in a geometrically precise basket-weave, while pendant and floor lamps are encased in stylised bamboo fishing cages. In the restaurant where locally sourced, organic ingredients are de rigueur, twigs are embedded into tables. The effect is a whimsical fantasy of a lakeside forest.
Address
No.18 Jixian Road, Hangzhou City
PHOTOGRAPHY
Yijie Hu
-
London Design Festival 2025: live updates from the Wallpaper* teamFrom 11-21 September, London is celebrating design in all its forms. Here's the latest news, launches and other goings-on from London Design Festival 2025, as seen by Wallpaper* editors
-
Inside Ardbeg House, the whimsical Islay hotel from the Scotch distillery‘Luxury with a laugh’ is how Russell Sage describes his designs for the new hotel, where each room draws on island and whisky lore
-
Luxury cruise line Explora Journeys will set sail in Asia for the first time28 voyages across Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore will mark the luxury travel brand’s debut in the region
-
Discover a futuristic bar in Shanghai with mad-scientist energyPenicillin opens in Shanghai with a clinical steel and concrete design by LC Studio alongside trailblazing, sustainable cocktails
-
A colossal ‘ship’ in Shanghai honours Louis Vuitton’s travel legacyLouis Vuitton’s The Louis is an OMA-designed hub combining retail, culture and dining in the heart of Nanjing West Road
-
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
