Toward Hotels With A Lighter Footprint

How has the growing desire for sustainable tourism affected hotel design? Says Teo Su Seam, “It’s still an educational process. Some clients want it but then they cannot accept it later because of the look [of alternative materials].” The firm starts the discussion by specifying local or natural materials as much as possible, engaging local economies in the process.

“[Today’s clients] see the value in their own identity. They want that now.”

Lim Hong Lian

Opposite: In the lobby of Jumeirah Nanjing, a folktale about a ‘black dragon’ seen across the misty air of Xuanwu Lake is referenced with an eight-storey-high dragon-scale wall and a river of flowing seating. Above: Chocolatini Martini Lounge at the Jumeirah Nanjing references a Tang Dynasty poem about autumn. Both images copyright Jumeirah Nanjing.