The Opposite House
Beijing · China
Reviews
Character and identity
A Kengo Kuma-designed glass cube in the heart of Sanlitun, this 99-room property reads more like a working art gallery than a conventional luxury hotel: Chen Wenling's Red Memories anchors a soaring atrium alongside a 20-foot wall of 6,000 Chinese apothecary drawers and metallic textiles cascading from the ceiling. Rooms are pared-back compositions of white linen, pale Scandinavian wood and charcoal stone, with heated floors and Japanese cedarwood tubs. Dining runs from Alan Yau's theatrical Jing Yaa Tang to the BAO House food truck out front. Service comes via iPad-equipped Guest Experience staff rather than a traditional desk.
Who's it for
Best for:
Design-literate travellers, architecture and art followers, and creative-industry visitors who want contemporary Beijing rather than chandelier-and-marble grandeur. Couples and solo guests drawn to Sanlitun's boutiques, bars and restaurants (Dover Street Market is across the road) will find the location and the in-house cooking genuinely strong.
Should look elsewhere:
Families wanting a resort footprint, traditionalists who equate luxury with ornament and a formal reception, and anyone sensitive to mood lighting: the public spaces are dim enough to be disorienting. If you want quiet seclusion, Sanlitun's buzz is not for you.
Bottom line
What sets this hotel apart in Beijing is its conviction: a Kuma-designed, art-led, deliberately un-ornate counterpoint to the city's gilded competition, backed by serious cooking and unusually fluent service. Book it if you care about design and food over square footage, take a Sanlitun-facing room for the light, and use Mesh for a pre-dinner martini.
Location
What this place offers
- Wi-Fi
- Restaurant
- Bar
- Room service
- Breakfast
- Breakfast buffet
- Smoke-free property
- Kid-friendly
- Front desk
- Full service laundry
