Mandarin Oriental Wangfujing Opens in Beijing
A 73-key hotel above WF Central gives Mandarin Oriental its first Beijing address, with Forbidden City views, a Tihany-designed grill and design pieces by Gehry and Tim Yip.
Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group opened Mandarin Oriental Wangfujing, Beijing on 18 March 2019, its first hotel in the Chinese capital. The property sits above WF Central, a premium retail centre at 269 Wangfujing Street in Dongcheng District, a few minutes from the hutongs, Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City.
With 73 rooms and suites, it is one of the group’s more intimate city hotels, yet its accommodation ranges from 55 to 260 square metres, putting its rooms among the largest in the city. Many look towards the Forbidden City, which is also visible from the hotel terrace.
Interiors are by Hirsch Bedner Associates, with commissioned pieces from a roster of well-known names. Frank Gehry designed the sculptural fish lamp in the lobby, Oscar-winning art director Tim Yip created the signature fan, Hong Kong designer Alan Chan drew the restaurant logos and Vivienne Tam designed the uniforms.
Dining centres on Mandarin Grill + Bar, a steakhouse designed by Adam Tihany, and Café Zi, an all-day restaurant serving Cantonese and regional Asian dishes. MO Bar is the rooftop cocktail lounge, while The Mandarin Cake Shop and The Library, a tea lounge stocked with books on craft, complete the offer.
The Spa has four treatment suites, and the wellness floor adds a 25-metre skylit lap pool, a steam room and a fitness centre. At opening, general manager Mark S. Bradford highlighted the hotel’s proximity to “the sights and sounds of historical Beijing”. More details are on the Mandarin Oriental website and in our Beijing guide.
