This December, Guerlain’s spa at Cheval Blanc St-Barth has celebrated its 10th anniversary and unveiled the results of a comprehensive design refresh. Nestled in the 61-key resort’s tropical gardens, the spa features five Gharieni-equipped treatment rooms – including a VIP double suite, an outdoor relaxation pavilion and a tropical terrace. The facility has been completely reimagined by Guerlain with the input of renowned architect Isabelle Stanislas. The refreshed interiors draw

Rosewood Hotels & Resorts has partnered with Miami-based private investment company Yntegra Group to realise a brand new private island resort on Exuma, an archipelago of 365 islands in the Bahamas. Launching in 2028, Rosewood Exuma will be situated on a 124-acre private island referred to as East Sampson Cay. The tropical retreat will feature 33 beachfront suites and a signature Rosewood Asaya spa designed to immerse guests in Bahamian

Luxury fragrance, beauty and spa brand Guerlain is gearing up to open its first spa in the Seychelles at Cheval Blanc’s new 52-key beachfront retreat, launching 1 December. This will mark Guerlain’s 29th spa worldwide and continue its partnership with Cheval Blanc, luxury goods conglomerate LVMH’s ultra-premium hotel brand managed by LVMH Hotel Management. Guerlain already powers wellness offerings in Cheval Blanc’s locations in Saint Tropez, St. Barts, the Maldives

Luxury hotel and spa operator Anantara Hotels & Resorts has signed an agreement to manage a new-build resort, spa and branded residences on the black volcanic shores of Bali’s Seseh Beach. Opening in 2027, Anantara Dragon Seseh Bali Resort will have a striking design created by British architect John Dawes and inspired by the Barong of Bali – a dragon-like guardian from Balinese mythology. The 216-key oceanfront destination is being

Marriott is set to bolster its exclusive Ritz-Carlton Reserve portfolio with a brand new property in South America in Costa do Sol, Rio de Janeiro. The eco-luxury resort will open as part of the ambitious Maraey project, an 844-hectare sustainably-minded urban development designed to harmonise with the local ecosystem and champion economic development. By integrating environmental conservation with economic growth, the vision behind the tourist and residential project is to

Saudi Entertainment Ventures (SEVEN), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Kingdom's Public Investment Fund (PIF), is to invest SAR50bn (US$13.3bn) to develop 21 integrated entertainment destinations across 14 cities in Saudi Arabia. Developed in partnership with a range of international brands, the destinations are set to feature more than 150 "innovative attractions". SEVEN has so far signed deals with Warner Bros., Discovery, Clip ‘n Climb and toy giants Mattel (for its

Multi-Grammy award-winning musician and entrepreneur Pharrell Williams is creating a beachfront resort in The Bahamas in partnership with Miami Beach-based hospitality entrepreneur David Grutman. Named Somewhere Else, the project marks the duo’s third hospitality project. Their portfolio already includes an indoor-outdoor dining concept, called Swan, as well as the Goodtime Hotel, both of which are based in Miami. The upcoming beachfront resort will open in January 2024 on the Bahamas’

Wutopia Lab have created a bookstore on the 52nd floor of Shanghai's tallest building, Shanghai Tower, that incorporates a lecture room, an exhibition space, a coffee shop, a dessert café and a snack outlet. Covering 2,200sq m (23,700sq ft), the store has been designed to accommodate 60,000 books and 2,000 products. It is wrapped in floor-to-ceiling windows that draw the sky and the cityscape into the space, making the views

Wutopia Lab have transformed a former church in China into a 388sq m (4,176sq ft) poetry bookstore by installing a large freestanding steel frame that provides shelving and creates a space within a space. The St. Nicholas Church in Shanghai was built in 1932 and has variously been used as an office, a factory, a warehouse, a canteen, a residential space, a club and a restaurant. Its historic status meant

Anantara has debuted in Malaysia with a resort featuring traditional low-rise Malay-style buildings with ocean-views and a signature Anantara Spa. The 108-key Anantara Desaru Coast and Villas resort is located in Johor and surrounded by tropical gardens. Among the accommodation options are 13 stand-alone villas inspired by traditional kampong houses that are situated around a lagoon, five family residences with private infinity pools and 15 private beachfront residences – the

Hou de Sousa have created a playful, colourful installation for New York's Flatiron Public Plaza that filters its surroundings with shifting patterns, colour and light as people move around it. Ziggy was created for the annual Flatiron Public Plaza Holiday Design Competition, which has been running since 2014. The call for proposals sought a "highly visible temporary landmark" for what is a relatively small triangular site. The lightweight installation, described

German architecture group von Gerkan, Marg, und Partner (gmp) have created a 41,000-seat stadium on the tropical island of Hainan in China. Situated minutes from the coast, Wuyuanhe Stadium is shaped to resemble ocean waves and features a 400-metre running track, lounge areas, and a top floor walkway with panoramic views of the sea. According to the architects, the sports complex – the first part of a district-wide urban regeneration

The Andaz Hotel Munich Tor Schwabinger – Germany's first Andaz-branded hospitality venue – has opened its doors. Designed by Dutch architecture studio Concrete Architectural Associates to reflect what the group have called the "kaleidoscopic" cultural and artistic diversity of Bavaria, the hotel boasts 234 rooms and 43 suites, as well as a spa, two bars, a pool deck, a gym, and a restaurant. The Andaz Spa – said to be

A major artwork by Mark Wallinger and architects Studio Octopi has been launched in the English district of Runnymede, celebrating the legacy of Magna Carta. Called Writ in Water, the architectural piece is a historic monument, remembering the time and place, over 800 years ago, that feudal barons forced King John to seal the charter – a founding moment in shaping the basis of common law across the world. The

A dramatic drone video released by international design studio Ennead Architects has offered a glimpse at their planetarium for the Shanghai Science and Technology Museum taking shape in the Chinese city. The footage provides a sweeping overview of the 38,000sq m (409,000sq ft) structure as it rises from the ground in the city’s Lingang district. Construction began on the project in November 2016, and completion is scheduled by 2020.

The leader of a Californian golf club claims to “have walked through the threshold of the future” by overseeing the construction of a luxurious new Clubhouse that provides a “tableau for a new lifestyle experience.” R D. Hubbard, chair of the Bighorn Golf Club in Palm Desert, said the site's former clubhouse was torn down in 2016 in order to be replaced by a building “that is as much about

Australian architecture studio Group GSA have won a design competition to create an information hub for the ski resort hosting events during the 2022 Winter Olympics. The Four Seasons Town Reception Center will welcome spectators to Fulong Four Seasons Resort – the Olympic venue located 90km (56 miles) northwest of Beijing in the city of Chongli, Hebei province. Fulong is a master-planned, year-round community featuring 37 ski trails – the

A new luxury spa has opened at the Portopiccolo Resort in Sistiana, Northern Italy, designed by Italian architect Alberto Apostoli. The facility is spread across three floors and covers a total floor area of 3,600sq ft (38,800sq ft). The ground floor houses the reception, hairstyling studio, a training pool and changing rooms, while on the first floor there is a relaxation area dominated by an indoor-outdoor pool, offering views of

Zanzibar’s accelerating development boom has taken yet another step forward, with the announcement of a new resort billed by its backers as “the largest premium hospitality investment and resort in East Africa” and featuring its own dedicated private airport. The Zanzibar Amber Resort has been conceived by real estate firm Pennyroyal Gibraltar Ltd. Development and South Africa’s Pam Golding Property group as a “luxury tropical community”, traversing 411 hectares developed

Global spa management company Resense is developing several new spas for hotel brand Kempinski in Asia, including locations in Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand and South Korea. The Spa & Wellness Membership Club at Kempinski Hotel & Residences in Busan, South Korea, will include a 4,000sq m (43,056sq ft) health and wellness facility designed by HBA Singapore and spread over two floors. Designed as a ‘best in class’ private club, the facility

Hospitality firm Artistry Hotels Partners has partnered with Urban Architecture Studio and design firm WATG to launch an independent boutique hotel brand that “will deliver distinctively luxurious, artful and imaginative experiences” throughout the US. In a statement, the company said it wants to create “art through architecture” by creating distinctive, vibrant and multi-sensory hotel experiences. Each hotel will be designed to be individual and reflective of the personality of its

The first ever London Design Biennale will open to the public on 7 September, with participants from 37 nations using the event to explore the concept of utopia. Brand new work by leading architects, designers, scientists, writers and artists will explore how good design can respond to challenges such as pollution, growing and aging populations and mass migration to create perfect societies. The exhibition will include large-scale kinetic sculptures, immersive

Spa and wellness consultancy and management company GOCO Hospitality is developing a GOCO Retreat on the dramatic German island of Rügen. Located on the Baltic Sea coast and known for its sandy beaches, quiet lagoons and dramatic peninsulas, Rügen is Germany’s largest island. The GOCO Retreat Kaiserhof Rügen will be located on a hill in the southeastern part of the island, on a site originally owned by the Prussian statesman

Waterpark supplier Polin will handle development of Russia’s largest indoor waterpark, with the planned all-season facility in Tyumen designed to handle a sub-zero Siberian winter. The waterpark will include large translucent domes overhead to allow sunlight in while keeping the -16.7ºC (1.94ºF) temperatures out. Within the domes, palm trees will decorate the landscape, while a number of Polin slides will offer thrill-seekers a number of experiences within the 10,000sq m

NFL quarterback Andrew Luck is playing a part in creating a US$35m (€31.5m, £26m) hands-on indoor/outdoor sports exhibit for The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis. The Indianapolis Colts star, who majored in architectural design, has been working with the museum and Ratio Architects to create the Riley Children’s Health Sports Legends Experience, which he called a “sports utopia” that every child would want when it opens in Q2 2018. “For me,

The developers of Dubai Healthcare City – a health and wellness destination occupying over four million square feet – have announced plans create “the world’s largest wellness village.” The Dubai Healthcare City Authority are expanding the city, which launched in 2002, to feature a WorldCare Wellness Village which will occupy an area equivalent in size to 16 football fields. Located on a waterfront site in Al Jadaf Dubai, the village

A former sand extraction station in the Bahamas is to be transformed into a luxury private island featuring bars, restaurants, sports facilities and an exclusive spa and wellness sanctuary. The Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve – located 65 miles (104.5 km) east of Miami, Florida – has been launched by MSC Cruises, who have partnered with ecologists and the government of the Bahamas to create a US$200m (€182.7m, £139m) “flourishing