Conran and Partners has completed the design of Park Hyatt’s new outpost in the vibrant city of Changsha, China. The hotel occupies the top floors of a tower originally built as office space, and it features 230 guestrooms across 11 different typologies, as well as communal areas including a restaurant, tearoom, bar, library, function rooms and wellness facilities with a 25-metre pool perched on the 48th floor.
Guests are welcomed via a courtyard sitting on a podium on the fourth floor, where Conran and Partners created a definite boundary that signifies the beginning of the Park Hyatt experience – a natural oasis in the heart of Changsha. Leveraging its extensive experience working across design and architecture, alongside the full interior design, Conran and Partners was also tasked with creating new cladding and a canopy for the tower as well as designing an elegant extension connecting the main building to the Garden Room – an external pavilion for indoor and outdoor functions. The architectural elements are tightly interwoven with the landscape developed in collaboration with landscape designers ADI.
As guests transition into the internal spaces, the soaring ceiling heights, magnified by linear slats and large-scale art installations, are sectioned into a more intimate series of spaces leading guests to lifts and function areas. Ascending to the 62nd floor, a green leather-clad ante-space creates a feeling of intimacy before emerging into the contrasting scale of the check-in area. The double-height space with detailed timber panelling features a dramatic chandelier by Lasvit inspired by the famous local fireworks and a woven metal paravent screen that reflects the welcoming and celebratory nature of the city.
The communal spaces are designed as an enfilade of flexible rooms called ‘Lilan’, set around a central service area. Central to these spaces is the Sun Room, another double-height space celebrating the juxtaposition of grandeur set against more intimate spaces which surround it. The Tea Room and Library, which sit on opposite sides of the Sun Room, have their own distinct personality but also double as overflow for Lilan’s bar and restaurant respectively. Opposite the communal areas is a series of eight private dining rooms, a one-of-a-kind restaurant where every seat is the best seat in the house. Each of the eight rooms has a different colour scheme to give a sense of variation and to ensure a unique dining experience.
The communal spaces culminate on the 63rd floor with three large function rooms designed to evoke the feeling of stepping into a grand residential penthouse with a Sky Kitchen designed to subtly reflect the details found in Chinese joinery.
On the 48th floor, Conran and Partners created a spacious wellness area complete with a gym, wet spa, sauna, pool and an intimate members’ lounge. The arrival into the wellness area is designed to create an immediate feeling of calm, with a simple natural palette and plentiful references to the beauty of natural material as an homage to the Hunan region. Continuing the theme of serenity in nature, the dramatic pool uses natural stone and timber finishes offset with large-scale indoor planting.
The guestrooms are the ultimate sanctuary perched high above the city sights below. Staying true to the overall design concept, the palette is restrained with residential-inspired elements including elegant green silk screens around the bed and custom-designed pendant lighting, juxtaposed by the bold colours of the furniture. The jewel in the crown, the Presidential Suite, spans 270sqm with views over Xiangjiang River and includes a private living room, dining room and powder room.
The overall design is inspired by the vibrancy of Changsha and the fashionable IFS mall which the hotel sits on, whilst capturing the spirit of the stunning Hunan landscape with soaring volumes, organic forms and a raw expression of nature through natural materials and local craft.
Tina Norden, Principal at Conran and Partners, said: “Having previously collaborated with Park Hyatt in Jakarta and Auckland, our goal for the new Changsha outpost was to craft its own true ‘sense of place’—a home that is both fashionable and reflective of the city’s dynamic essence, as well as a celebration of the natural wonders of the Hunan region. By blending clean architectural lines, both in the interiors and in the courtyard architecture, with eclectic elements, we’ve created a destination where modern luxury meets the rich tapestry of Changsha’s local culture.”
