Leisure architecture features heavily on shortlist for World Building of the Year
Leisure architecture projects from the likes of Foster + Partners, Zaha Hadid Architects, BIG and Populous have made the 2015 shortlist for the World Building of the Year.
Organised by the World Architecture Festival, 338 projects in total have made the shortlist in a variety of categories, with both major international firms and smaller companies taking their place. There are entries included from 46 countries.
Aside from the overall World Building of the Year winner, to be announced during the festival taking place in Singapore between 4-6 November, each of the 31 categories will also have its own winner.
Designed by Perkins + Will, the Shanghai Natural History Museum has been shortlisted in the Culture category, along with Wilkinson Eyre’s renovated Weston Library at the University of Oxford in the UK.
BIG’s installation of a sports hall and arts building at founding partner Bjarke Ingels’ old high school in Copenhagen, Denmark made the shortlist in the Schools category, while Zaha Hadid Architects’ London Aquatics Centre was selected in the Sport category.
In the Hotel and Leisure category, Foster + Partners’ Yacht Club de Monaco joins EAA Emre Arolat Architects’ St Regis Istanbul in Turkey among the shortlisted candidates.
Among the finalists in the Leisure Led Development – Future Projects category are Populous’ transformation of the
London Olympic Stadium, the Vommuli Eco Awareness Resort in the Maldives, by WOW Architects Warner Wong Design, and Singapore’s Bedok Integrated Complex, by ONG & ONG.
Bjarke Ingels finishes project at his old high school with addition of a sunken arts building
Perkins + Will create new nature-inspired home for Shanghai Natural History Museum
Wilkinson Eyre’s revamped Oxford Weston Library opens to the public
World Architecture Festival coming to London
Emre Arolat-designed St Regis Istanbul to debut in March with an Iridium Spa
Leisure architecture celebrated at World Architecture Festival
London 2012 Aquatics Centre opens
London 2012 Aquatics Centre to reopen in March
Redevelopment work begins on London Olympic Stadium
London 2012 Aquatics Centre completed
OMA completes New Museum transformation with landmark expansion and Oberon restaurant
OMA has completed a major transformation of New York's New Museum, creating a larger cultural campus that combines expanded exhibition spaces with learning, performance, hospitality and public programming. The latest addition, Oberon, extends the visitor experience beyond the gallery, reflecting a growing trend for museums to become all-day destinations.
The New Museum in New York has entered a new chapter with the completion of a major
David Rockwell creates immersive magic destination, The Hand and The Eye
Montana Heritage Center by Cushing Terrell opens after US$107 million investment
Universal launches new theme park model with Kids Resort
'Minor wellness hotels' recorded the strongest growth across top KPIs in 2025, finds RLA Global
Great Barrier Reef attraction set for AU$180 million reinvention
Fairmont Cheshire, The Mere, has architecture by Leach Rhodes Walker and interiors by Bergman Design House.
Marriott International partners with Fitwel for wellness solutions across its residential portfolio
Preidlhof Luxury DolceVita Resort to unveil new spa in February 2027
Places Leisure is working with Roberts Limbrick to build £60m wellness flagship in Basingstoke
Hoshino Resorts opens Kai Kusatsu as it expands the Kai onsen ryokan brand
Qiddiya and Populous share details of Saudi Arabia’s National Tennis Centre
Disney confirms US$30 billion investment programme as it highlights its economic impact
Until combines multiple disciplines at new Canary Wharf club
Sea Lanes opens following a partnership between The Eden Project and Canary Wharf Group
Bas Smets brings water and wilderness to Vitra
Expo 2030 Riyadh will create a permanent global destination
Luxury resort coming to Hunter Valley will have longevity spa
'Data chocolate', dreams made real and artworks shaped by visitors’ emotions: Refik Anadol’s AI art museum launches in Los Angeles
London Museum reveals 2026 opening date for new Smithfield home
BIG unveils Eve Music Hall as Croatia venue nears completion
Bob Rogers hands BRC to long-serving leadership team
Palazzo di Varignana launches family wellbeing and longevity retreat in Emilia Romagna
Anasa Wellness and Spa debuts at Patmos Aktis as it joins Marriott
Design-led Koru Health Club combines high-performance training with recovery
Wellness care hospital opens in Vilnius with innovative spa and hospitality concept
Universal and Puy du Fou projects point to rise of Oxford–Cambridge corridor
A proposed Puy du Fou development near Bicester and Universal Destinations and Experiences’ planned resort in Bedford are emerging as part of a wider transformation of the Oxford–Cambridge Growth Corridor into a major centre for UK leisure and tourism investment.
For years, the corridor has been associated primarily with science, technology, housing and university-led economic growth. However, the clustering of large-scale visitor attraction projects along the
All-inclusive eco-wellness development Auko to open near Vietnam’s Son Doong caves
Shedd Aquarium upgrades its visitor experience with new Immersion Theater
Shedd Aquarium has opened the Immersion Theater developed in partnership with SimEx-Iwerks, as part of a wider strategy to enhance the guest experience and create additional revenue opportunities.
The attraction has transformed the aquarium’s Phelps Auditorium into a multi-sensory venue combining panoramic projection, environmental effects and interactive technology.
A new pre-show area allows visitors to engage with augmented reality marine animals before entering the
Mandarin Oriental announces standalone Mansions-branded residences for Abu Dhabi
Designed to restore neglected land and renew the identity of Iraq’s capital city, Baghdad Sustainable Forests promises a new way of living surrounded by nature. Gensler’s Ian Mulcahay tells us why he thinks the project could become a model for the repair and enhancement of urban centres























