A new hotel in China is making waves in the international hospitality industry for its stunning design and beautiful setting. Recently awarded the number-two spot on Condé Nast Traveler China?s “The New Aesthetic ? Hot List 2017,” the Alila Yangshuo Hotel in southern China?s Guangxi region is housed in a former sugar mill, which itself resides in a dramatic valley surrounded by sharp karst rock formations. The mill, built in the 1960s in a characteristically industrial style using brick and structural steel, has been given a new lease on life thanks to the addition of hotel spaces and the renovation/reappropriation of its existing structures to create an experience unlike any other.

The complex was designed by Vector Architects in collaboration with interior designer Ju Bin from Horizontal Space Design, consisting of two existing elements ? the mill buildings and an industrial steel truss ? and a number of new buildings that have been conceived of in a manner that clearly sets them apart from their surroundings. Rather than trying to emulate the existing architecture, the architects decided to create additions that were complementary to it yet distinct in the way of their material palette. The building materials used have similar textures and treatments to those of the bricks used in the original mill buildings, but they are clearly contemporary in nature and serve to add another layer to the site?s already rich history.
The form and massing of the new buil...