Capella Taipei wins Wallpaper* Design Award 2026

(Image credit: Courtesy of Capella)

Set next to the banyan tree-shaded Dunhua North Road, the Capella Taipei exudes the confidence of a long-overdue landmark. The 86-room property occupies several floors of a new glass tower by Mori Building Group, marking the Taiwanese capital’s first true luxury hotel debut in a decade. In a city of around 2.5 million that blends high ambition with day-to-day practicality – a mix that arguably influenced Taiwan’s title of ‘happiest place in Asia’ in the 2025 World Happiness Report – the opening feels well timed.

Capella Taipei wins Best New Opening at the Wallpaper* Design Awards 2026

The interiors, courtesy of designer André Fu, are shaped around the idea of a ‘modern mansion’. Monumental bronze doors open onto a marble vestibule lined with tapestries, a striking archway and the all-day dining restaurant Plume. Then comes the masterstroke: a spiral staircase with a sweeping hardwood handrail that curls around Mexican designer Joel Escalona’s sculptural piece Quiet Dynamics.

Rooms start at a generous 48 sq m, with blond-wood walls, hand-painted silk panels, floor-to-ceiling windows and marble bathrooms. The six 270 sq m pool terrace suites are the showstoppers, boasting vast private decks with plunge pools, jacuzzis and sunbeds, as well as outdoor dining areas. Meanwhile, the 30m-long pool is framed by bougainvillaea, and the spa attuned to lunar rhythms. Sustainability threads through the LEED Gold-certified building via energy-efficient ventilation, motion-sensor lighting and dual-layer automated louvres.

Five dining concepts sharpen the hotel’s profile. They include Ember 28, which glows with fire-cooking theatre beneath twin crystal chandeliers; Mizue, a hinoki counter embracing the omakase ritual; and The Glasshouse, a three-storey bar complex that crowns the ensemble.

Capella Taipei is located at No. 139, Dunhua North Road, Songshan District, Taipei City, 105021, Taiwan

This article appears in the February 2026 Design Awards Issue of Wallpaper*, available in print on newsstands, on the Wallpaper* app on Apple iOS, and to subscribers of Apple News +. Subscribe to Wallpaper* today.

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Sofia de la Cruz is the Travel Editor at Wallpaper*. A self-declared flâneuse, she feels most inspired when taking the role of a cultural observer – chronicling the essence of cities and remote corners through their nuances, rituals, and people. Her work lives at the intersection of art, design, and culture, often shaped by conversations with the photographers who capture these worlds through their lens.