A huge "film city" and visitor attraction project in Nigeria has reached a major milestone, following the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between marketing and development agency Del York International Group and The Lagos State Government. The two partners signed what they described as a "monumental agreement to transform the face of the creative industry on the continent of Africa". The deal will see the state government officially

The iconic Orient Express luxury train is set to return to Italy following a hiatus of 46 years. The new Orient Express La Dolce Vita service will welcome passengers from 2023, with six trains embarking through itineraries across 14 regions – including three international journeys from Rome to Paris, Istanbul and Split (Croatia). Orient Express – which is owned by French hotel giant Accor Group – will work in partnership

Bulgari Hotels & Resorts will open a luxury resort in Los Angeles in 2025. The foundation of the development – a property formerly known as The Retreat – will be upgraded and expanded with the addition of new structures, all built to LEED Platinum standards. Located in the Santa Monica Mountains, less than five miles from Rodeo Drive, the property is surrounded by 33 acres of hillside parkland, with striking views.

New images have been released of what will become the first new public park in Manchester, UK, in more than 100 years. Called Mayfield Park, the new urban green space has been designed by landscape architects Studio Egret West. It will be part of the £1.4bn Mayfield regeneration scheme – one of the largest in the UK – led by the Mayfield Partnership, a public-private venture comprising regeneration specialist U+I,

The Jumeirah Group has reopened the 186-room The Carlton Tower hotel, in the heart of London’s Knightsbridge following an 18-month closure for refurbishment. The 17-story building has been redesigned, with an extensive makeover costing £100m (€116.3m, US$141.1m). The five-star Carlton Tower originally opened in 1961 as London’s first tower hotel and was celebrated for being the tallest in the city at that time. Originally designed by Henry End – who

Los Angeles is to get a new leisure and mixed-use district called Fourth & Central, with masterplanning by LA-based Studio One Eleven. Denver-based developer, Continuum Partners and site owner, LA Cold Storage, have lodged a planning application with the City of Los Angeles for the redevelopment of the land which has been owned by LA Cold Storage for over 50 years.   The downtown gateway site will be reimagined with the

Global spa, hotel and wellness consultancy The E77 Company is realising a new thermal spa resort and hotel among a historic pine forest in Lithuania’s coastal region of Klaipėda, Lithuania. E77 is working alongside project owner and developer Releven to create the destination, as well as Lithuanian architecture studio Arches and professor of architecture Dr Edgaras Neniskis to sensitively integrate the resort within the forest habitat. In his work, Neniskis

The Skydeck attraction at the Willis Tower in Chicago – which held the title of the world's tallest building for 25 years – has reopened following an extensive redevelopment. Designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), Thinc Design, and Chicago Scenic Studios, the Skydeck forms the centrepiece of a visitor experience which also includes a new interactive exhibition showcasing how architecture has shaped Chicago’s history and identity. On entering the

A global team of architects has been chosen to design the masterplan for the Milan Cortina 2026 Olympic village. The team, called Outcomist, includes Diller Scofidio + Renfro, Arup, Nigel Dunnett Studio, Carlo Ratti Associati, Gross Max, Portland Design, Systematica, Studio Zoppini, Aecom, LAND, Artelia and PLP Architecture. The project – called Parco Romana – will transform the vast Porta Romana railway yard area in Milan, creating a Athletes’ Village

A new waterfront destination in San Francisco, US, would transform the city's South Beach neighbourhood. Designed by Heatherwick Studio, the project – called The Cove – would be developed on the site of three former piers which were destroyed in 1984. The Cove is based around a dramatic five-acre public park and has been designed to provide a new hub of activity for the city. The horseshoe-shaped building includes modular,

Warner Bros. has revealed plans to develop a Harry Potter studio tour attraction in Japanese capital Tokyo. To be located on the grounds of the Toshimaen Amusement Park in the city's Nerima ward, the attraction will become the second Harry Potter studio site, following the opening of the inaugural Warner Bros. Studios in Leavesden, UK. Since its launch in 2012, the Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of

Mexican design firm, Aidia Studio, has unveiled plans for a complex of 25 luxury hotel pods with collapsible shells, located in the Rub’ al Khali Desert in Abu Dhabi. Called the Oculus, the pod consists of a double-glazed dome encasing a luxury hotel room, which is shrouded by a collapsible shell for shading, temperature control, camouflage and privacy. The outer shell is made up of 60 shading panels which create

A team of architects have revealed plans to transform a multi-lane road in central Copenhagen into a green and car-free city park. The project will turn a famously congested passage to an inviting living space, where "nature is merged into the urban space". The road will be replaced by trees, water, wildlife and illuminations, with the aim of creating a new recreation area in the middle of the Danish capital

Italian architecture studio Studio Apostoli is designing a luxury wellness centre in a restored twentieth-century Milanese palazzo, scheduled to open in 2021. The three-layer 1,000sq m facility will part of a boutique-hotel complex at the five-star Palazzo Bernasconi hotel, a project developed and owned by Italian hotel group Cipriani, and shall be named ‘Palazzo del Sarto’. Architect Alberto Apostoli has been commissioned by the client to develop the interior design

Studio DB have designed a boutique condo development currently under construction in the historic Brooklyn Heights area of New York that offers a contemporary and tranquil base for prospective residents. Covering half a city block, The Symon contains 59 residences, including three penthouses, across 13 storeys. The architects sought to deliver a modern and comfortable design while giving the building its own "bespoke identity". From the outside, that is defined

Studio Saxe have created a fitness centre in Costa Rica designed to be a "small village amongst the trees" that brings guests and locals together, as well as close to nature. The Athletic Center was built as an extension of the Gilded Iguana hotel in the town of Nosara. Rather than simply create a single large volume, the architects and the client wanted to work around the trees and the

LUO Studio recently completed a new community centre in Hubei province, China, by adding a timber frame to a set of existing foundations for a residential project that had been abandoned. It was necessary to find a new home for the Party and Public Service Center of Yuanheguan Village because its existing location had been earmarked to be part of a new hotel development. What's more, there were only two

Interior architecture and design firm O’Donnell O’Neill have created a boutique gym and health club at The Mayson hotel in Dublin with high-end design and facilities to match those of the hotel. The Mayson itself was only opened at the end of 2019 by Irish leisure and hospitality company Press Up Entertainment Group. The 94-key hotel is located in a renovated brick building in Dublin's docklands and its design mixes

Studio RHE is converting a 1.5ac (0.6ha) underground bunker that developer General Projects suggests may once have been occupied by MI5 into a subterranean mixed-use destination. Located in Vauxhall, London, Storybox will provide 58,000sq ft (5,400sq m) of flexible space for creative industries workspaces, as well as occupiers like pod hotels, urban farms, R&D labs and fitness clubs. It has been designed with cultural, educational and research bodies in mind

Studio Ramoprimo have created a store for fashion retailer TGY conceived to go beyond just selling clothes and be a hub for fashion lovers, events and exhibitions. The venue in Shenyang, China, is aimed at inspiring people to talk about lifestyle, creatives to organise industry functions and photographers to host shoots. Covering 600sq m (6,600sq ft), it combines a curated shop, a flexible event area, a temporary exhibition space where

Carles Enrich Studio have created a timber frame for the ruin of a 13th-century tower in Catalonia, Spain, that not only helps to support it, but that also provides a means for visitors to explore the heritage structure. Located in the municipality of Puig-reig, Merola’s Tower was constructed as a lookout point, but is said to have been largely destroyed as a result of earth tremors in the area during

BXBstudio Bogusław Barnaś and Studio Projektowe Paweł Jarosz have designed a house that is aimed at rebuilding relationships between humans and their surroundings. The Symbiotic House is based on the traditional values of living in harmony with nature, but integrates technology to provide a modern and convenient way of life. Constructed primarily of timber and glass, it has three main sections – a section for living in, a greenhouse section

Sarah Mannerings Studio have transformed an unserviced and flooded basement garage in London into an apocalyptic-themed fitness studio for rowing-based high-intensity interval training workouts. The 1675sq ft (156sq m) space is the first and flagship site for the Rowbots fitness brand, which offers 45-minutes classes in which individuals alternate between rowing machines and floor-work. The brief requested the conversion of the derelict space into a boutique gym with a reception

Dutch boutique fitness brand Switch The Gym has launched a second technology-based studio aimed at optimising workouts for each individual, designed by DR+ Architecten, No Bears and First Impression. Founded by Terry Labee, Switch The Gym provides a timetable of HIIT group workouts at an affordable price point. "It offers the fun and energy of group training with the attention and expertise of personal training, but without the expense," Labee

OF Studio have won a competition run by Emaar to create a new "landmark structure" on a 6,300sq m (67,800sq ft) plot within the 5.6 million sq m (60.3 million sq ft) Dubai Creek Harbour waterfront development. Participants were briefed to submit proposals that would respect the culture and climate of Dubai, but also expose children and families to new worldviews. OF Studio's LAND-MARK proposal was conceived to be a

Action PR have created a new studio design for Everyone Active 's Fortis Powered by Speedflex fitness brand that is focussed on inclusivity and integrates the workout technology into the space. Speedflex is a type of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) delivered using resistance exercise machines in small-group, trainer-led classes. Individuals of different training abilities can be in the same classes because Speedflex machines automatically adjust their resistance levels to the

A temporary memorial for victims of the Holocaust, designed by Studio Roosegaarde, is on display in the Netherlands, with 104,000 luminescent stones representing each one of the country's victims. Levenslicht (literally "Lifelight") was created for the National Committee for 4 and 5 May, a Dutch authority for war monuments and memorials, in recognition of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz on 27 January 2020. Studio Roosegaarde explained: "The