Architecture firm Spratley & Partners have completed a multi-million-pound renovation on the historic Heckfield Place estate, in Hampshire, UK. Formerly a conference centre and wedding venue - and home to Horace Walpole, the 4th Earl of Orford in the 18th century - the Grade II listed Georgian house has been transformed into a lavish country hotel. It boasts 38 bedrooms, six Signature rooms and one two-bedroom cottage, each designed to

The first property from new hotel brand Salt, launched by the team behind Lux Resorts, has opened in Mauritius. The 59-bedroom Salt of Palmar has been conceived to champion sustainability, connect with the local community and introduce culturally curious travellers to the “real, unvarnished Mauritius,” the company said. Its distinctive look is born out of collaboration between local Mauritian architect Jean-François Adam of JFA Architects and French artist Camille Walala,

Emirati real estate developer Viva City Developments has announced that it will supervise the creation of a record-breaking sports complex in Dubai. Dubbed "The Sports Society", the 3-storey structure will occupy 3,717 sq m of space and a feature number of leisure attractions, such as an ice-skating rink, trampoline park, martial arts dojo, bowling alley, and cricket simulator, as well as multiple climbing walls and retail shops. Other amenities in

The Apurva Bali Kempinski – a retreat which takes artistic influence from Indonesia’s "gods and temples" – is set to debut in March of next year. Designed by architecture firms and studios Denton Corker Marshall and Trivium Design Group, the new clifftop getaway, which overlooks Nusa Dusa bay, has been described as an exemplar of the Balinese art and philosophy Tri Hita Karana, combining both the divine and natural worlds.

A Tanzanian wellness-focused getaway has opened its doors on the isle of Kendwa in the Zanzibar archipelago. Developed by Czech financier and filmmaker Václav Dejmar and designed by Jestico + Whiles, Zuri Zanzibar occupies a 300-metre stretch of coastline and features 55 thatched roof villas, five restaurants, three bars, a 32m infinity pool, jacuzzi, spice garden, and watersports centre. The resort – which has been in the pipeline for ten

St. Regis Hotels & Resorts (SRHR) has opened its latest hotel on the waterfront of Wanzai, Zhuhai in the city’s tallest skyscraper. Commissioned by the Zhuhai Huafa Group and designed by Chinese architectural firm RMJM, the 31-storey St. Regis Zhuhai – which reportedly is also the first luxury hotel in the district – features 251 guest rooms and 34 suites. In addition to its five on-site restaurants, the resort also

The latest addition to the EDITION luxury brand of hotels has opened in Abu Dhabi. The 198-room resort – which features 57 residences as well as a three-storey nightclub, fitness centre, spa, barbershop, ballroom, and infinity pool – marks the brand’s first foray into the MENA region. Other amenities at the EDITION Abu Dhabi include three gourmet restaurants – all of which will be helmed by award-winning chef, Tom Aikens.

Dutch architects Studio Piet Boon and Florida-based firm OBMI have been selected to design the Half Moon Bay, a Rosewood hotel and residential community on the Caribbean island of Antigua. Set to occupy 132 acres of uninhabited land, the new beachfront getaway will feature 47 suites and several Rosewood-branded villas, as well as 10 purchasable luxury estate lots – all of which will be anchored around a 'retail village'. Further

International design firm WATG has created the first five-star resort on Flores Island, Indonesia. The tropical getaway takes the form of the region’s infamous reptilian indigene – the Komodo dragon – and occupies a 3.4-acre expanse on Waecicu Beach. On-site guest amenities include 192 rooms and 13 suites, a 420sq m spa, six restaurants, two shoreside pools, and a 500sq m pier leading to a private diving centre. Bill Reed,

Belmond Savute Elephant Lodge has reopened in Botswana’s Chobe National Park. Renovated by London-based interior design studio Muza Lab, the renovated resort – which Inge Moore, the firm's founder, has likened to an environmentally conscious explorer’s camp – has 12 new guestrooms and an open-air dining space, lounge, bar, library, and spa. Other features of the timber wood and bamboo lodge include a multi-function room for yoga and private meetings,

Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas will operate a 60-bedroom hotel at The Forestias, a THB90bn (US$2.8bn), 119-acre green development at Bangna in Bangkok being developed by Magnolia Quality Development Corporation Limited (MQDC). The project is a mixed-use, multi-generational lifestyle project that will also incorporate a large forest ecosystem. Set to open in 2022, The Forestias will include residential housing, retail buildings, office buildings, a health centre, innovation centre, forest pavilion,

Architect Bill Bensley is working on a national cultural heritage site in Yên Tu Mountain – considered to be the cradle of Trúc Lâm Zen Buddhism in Vietnam – as part of the Vietnamese government’s strategic development plan for the area. Designed with attention to historical detail – Bensley has created the entire Yên Tu Village in 13th-century style and using 13th-century techniques where possible – the village will include

A new wellness and lifestyle member's club with a unique twist has opened in London's Notting Hill. Designed specifically for families, the club, called Cloud Twelve, features a spa, salon, holistic wellness centre and a plant-based eatery, as well as an interactive learn and play zone for children. Cloud Twelve was founded by former investment banker and herbalist Jenya Emets, who wanted to bring a host of facilities together to

Frida Escobedo, the youngest person yet to design a temporary Pavilion for the Serpentine Gallery in London, has recently sold her creation to international spa and wellness company, Therme Group. According to Architects' Journal, Therme Group, which is perhaps most famous for operating Therme Bucharest–the largest thermal leisure facility ever developed in Europe on a greenfield site–made overtures to and later reached a deal with Escobedo’s Mexico-based firm in order

Lux Resorts is launching a new brand, Salt, and the first property is set to open in November on the east coast of Mauritius. The 59-bedroom Salt of Palmar is designed to add a humanistic approach to hospitality for the “culturally curious traveller”, and to connect guests to locals and their way of life. Salt guests will be immersed into Mauritian life, with the opportunity to connect directly with locals

Quebec-based company Nordik Group is currently overseeing the construction of a new spa and wellness resort in Whitby, Ontario. The US$20m (€17.4m, £15.3m) complex, which was designed by architectural firm LEMAYMICHAUD, is being built on a 385,423 sq ft plot of land in Whitby’s Cullen Park. Taking inspiration from what Nordik has called the 2000-year-old "heat therapy and relaxation techniques from Scandinavian countries", the new Spa-Nature facility will feature five

David Chipperfield Architects and ReardonSmith are moving forward with plans to design a new Rosewood hotel on 30 Grosvenor Square, the former site of the US Embassy in London. Developed in collaboration with the Grosvenor Estate and Qatari Diar, the new hotel is scheduled for completion in 2023. Expected to cost £1bn (US$1.3bn, €1.1bn), it will comprise 137 bedrooms, five restaurants, six retail units, a spa and a ballroom with

Following the opening of Six Senses Duxton, sister property Six Senses Maxwell is scheduled to open on December 1, 2018. Six Senses Maxwell is the second of two heritage buildings that together form Six Senses Singapore. While Six Senses Duxton portrays Anouska Hempel’s East-meets-West eclecticism, the 120-bedroom Six Senses Maxwell, designed by French architect and designer Jacques Garcia, offers an alternative aesthetic with his signature European style, which melds tradition

A luxury hot springs spa hotel and retreat is planned for Victoria, Australia, with Six Senses, GOCO Hospitality and Banyan Tree Spa all vying for the project, the Sydney Morning Herald reports. The AU$100m luxury project – called Nunduk (which translates into ‘the bark of a tree’ in the native Gunnai-Kurnai language) – will be located on a 2,480-hectare sheep farm on the banks of the Gippsland Lakes, and developer

Thonburi Healthcare Group is planning a residential project for retirees in Bangkok with a focus on wellness and integrated healthcare services. Jin Wellbeing County includes 13 seven-storey buildings with a total of 1,300 units, an Aged Care Center for assisted living, and a Wellness Center with spa, providing preventive healthcare services for physical, emotional and mental conditions. Architecture firm ThomsonAdsett, which specialises in universal design, is responsible for the overall

Jumby Bay Island, a 300-acre private island on the Caribbean nation of Antigua and Barbuda, is undergoing a complete renovation programme before it re-opens this winter. Once a Rosewood Resort, Jumby Bay Island became part of the Oetker Collection last year. The resort will unveil a fresh Caribbean Ocean-inspired look, designed by Brazilian interior designer Patricia Anastassiadis of Anastassiadis Arquitetos. Anastassiadis also created the design concept for the sister Oetker

The Port of San Diego is moving forward with its US$1bn bayfront regeneration project, which – when completed – will make the coastal city of Chula Vista the new home of a luxury hotel, convention centre, and two public parks. The resort will be built and partially financed by the RIDA Development Corporation and will include 1,600 rooms and 275,000sq ft of space for restaurants, bars, a swimming pool and

Turkish architects Project Design Group have designed the KentPlus Yalova Wellness Spa Resort in Armutlu, Yalova in Turkey, which is due to open at the end of this year. The project includes three five-star thermal hotels with more than 1,300 bedrooms and more than 1,000 apartments for timeshare and full-time living. A Physiotherapy Medical Centre will provide thermal water healing, together with detox, physiotherapy and rehabilitation services. The complex will

Work could soon begin on what has been described as one of the first developments of its kind in the world. The £200m Llanelli Wellness and Life Science Village, planned for the Carmarthenshire coast, is set to include a wellness hotel, sports and wellbeing centre, wellness spa and primary care centre. An outline planning application for the project will be assessed by mid-November, with preparatory works on site at Delta

InterContinental Hotels Group’s long-awaited adventurous hotel, which will sit in a 328ft (100m)-deep quarry in the Sheshan Mountain Range in Shanghai, China, is finally due to open this year. The InterContinental Shanghai Wonderland has been designed by JADE+QA, led by architect and former Atkins employee Martin Jochman, and developed by the Shanghai Shimao Group. It has a convoluted backstory that dates back to 2006 and has faced various setbacks since

One&Only Resorts will open its first location in Malaysia, the One&Only Desaru Coast, in late 2018. Set on a 128-acre beachfront development, the resort will include 42 suites, two luxury suites and a four-bedroom villa, as well as 50 One&Only Private Homes available for purchase. Designed by Kerry Hill Architects, One&Only will place an emphasis on privacy through the design, which has been inspired by the ocean waters and lush

In among the busy, loud and polluted streets of Bangalore, one might think it would be hard to find solace and practice wellness routines. However, the architects behind Navyas Naturopathy Centre have been undeterred, creating an antithetical haven in which medicinal plants, softer dynamics and a general sense of calm pervades. Set in the heart of Bangalore, Navyas Naturopathy Centre brings a range of wellness offerings to the surrounding populace.