In late spring 2015, NUO Hotels unveils NUO Hotel Beijing as its flagship hotel, a contemporary lifestyle showcase of Ming Dynasty heritage literature, art and culture, the perfect example of tradition blending in harmony with the future of contemporary China.

Located in advantageous proximity to the city’s 798 Art District, the heart of China’s dynamic art movement, NUO Hotel Beijing is a celebration of both old and new China, its style and design heavily inspired by the golden age of the formidable Ming Dynasty whilst heralding the emergence of contemporary Chinese art on the world stage.

“The spectacular growth of the Chinese tourism industry in recent years has underlined the need for China to have its own distinctive ‘made in China’ luxury hotel brand,” said Duan Qiang, chairman of Beijing Tourism Group (BTG), owners of NUO Hotels. “As one of China’s largest tourism companies, Beijing Tourism Group is proud to launch a five-star hotel group which celebrates Chinese heritage and culture.”

Contemporary Chic

Housed within the sleek NUO Center, a new, upscale “green building” mixed-use complex, owned by Beijing Tourism Group, and comprised of a state-of-the-art office tower and the hotel, NUO Hotel Beijing serves as a landmark art destination, sharing the richness of Chinese culture for the pleasure of its guests, with a dedicated art gallery and the hotel lobby, guestrooms and suites, food & beverage outlets acting as backdrops for a stunning series of carefully curated pieces by the country's most critically acclaimed artists, from newly emerging to world-renowned, including four exclusive, custom-created artworks by iconic Chinese artist Zeng Fanzhi, considered by international art experts as “China’s greatest living artist.”

Mr. Zeng’s signature expressionistic style has resulted in his works commanding record-breaking prices at recent contemporary Asian art auctions. In his role as NUO’s art consultant, Mr. Zeng created two majestic masterpieces,”Revered Mountain”, a silver and bronze sculpture, and “Landscape 2014”, an oil painting, as the dramatic centre pieces of the hotel’s grand lobby.

“Art should be intimately connected with life because beauty knows no barriers; it is all interlinked,” said Zeng Fanzhi. “This collaboration with Beijing Tourism Group is a marvellous example; I hope to express my consistent pursuit of beauty through the continuing support of NUO Hotel Beijing. Only by insisting on bringing art into life, for everyone to appreciate and experience, will art truly inspire the daily life of everyone around us.”

Homage to Heritage

Threading a common design inspiration throughout NUO Hotel Beijing are symbolic heritage footprints of a veritable who’s who of the Ming Dynasty’s most renowned scholars and philosophers, artists, poets and calligraphers, innovators and explorers - from intellectual Zhang Dai in the hotel lobby, writer Wen Zencheng and poet Wen Zhengming in the guestrooms, calligrapher Xu Wei in Jia, the hotel’s Chinese restaurant, prince-turned-philosopher Zhu Quan in Yuan Tea Pavilion and legendary naval explorer Zheng He in N’Joy, the hotel’s international all-day dining destination.

“NUO Hotel Beijing operates under the guiding philosophy of ‘using the past to serve the present’,” said Adrian Rudin, General Manager of NUO Hotel Beijing. “With a civilisation that has fascinated travellers for more than 5,000 years, the depth of China’s history is unparalleled; we look forward to welcoming guests from around the world to experience a contemporary and luxurious view of the most prosperous period of China’s past at NUO Hotel Beijing.”

Residential-Style Luxury

With key interiors designed by Hirsch Bedner Associates, NUO Hotel Beijing is comprised of 439 guestrooms, including 56 suites, all with floor-to-ceiling views of the city. Elegant furnishings in warm woods and leather, hushed jewel-toned accessories, plush silk-patterned walls, rich wooden and textured marble floors combine harmoniously in a contemporary interpretation of Ming Dynasty-inspired residential style. Guestrooms bring the hotel’s art destination experience vividly to life with each room featuring an original print wall mural of Zeng Fanzhi’s painting, an interpretation of “Stepping on Snow to Look for Plum Flowers”.

All guestrooms have been thoughtfully designed and equipped with the modern traveller’s security, comfort and productivity in mind: complimentary broadband and wireless Internet access, flat-screen high-definition televisions, Bluetooth-enabled Bose stereo speakers, in-room bars and Nespresso coffee machines, walk-in wardrobes, ensuite laundry and valet delivery cabinets, sophisticated air purification systems and high-level soundproofing, all-marble bathrooms with large soaking tubs, glass-enclosed rainforest showers and custom NUO Pu’er tea-infused bed and bath accessories. Guests may avail of the hotel’s round-the-clock butler service, in-room dining and lifestyle concierge whilst Club accommodation and suite guests have exclusive access to the hotel’s 23rd floor Club Lounge.

Culinary Voyages

In keeping with its commitment to serving authentic cuisine, NUO Hotel Beijing sources food ingredients from partner organic local farms and producers, which are then creatively prepared in the hotel’s six restaurants and bars by a team of culinary experts from 13 different countries.

Diverse dining and entertainment venues at NUO Hotel Beijing include Jia, the hotel’s signature Chinese restaurant; N’Joy for international all-day dining; NUO’Ki for contemporary Japanese cuisine; sleek avant-garde O’Bar with its craft cocktails and outdoor terrace; gourmet boutique U’Deli as well as the hotel’s sumptuously elegant, art-bedecked Lobby Lounge.

Unique to NUO Hotel Beijing is the Yuan Tea House, with its graceful interiors evoking an exquisite courtyard and garden in a contemporary interpretation of a Ming Dynasty-era tea house, and where a variety of premium teas sourced directly from tea plantations in Yunnan, Anxi and Wuyi mountain regions are offered, including bespoke teas created exclusively for NUO Hotel Beijing.

Lifestyle Sanctuary

For relaxation and wellness, guests may avail of NUO Fitness’ well-equipped lifestyle gymnasium and a 25-metre heated indoor swimming pool, and NUO Spa, with its nine treatment rooms and traditional Chinese medicine centre.

Significant Occasions With its opening, NUO Hotel Beijing unveils a total of 2,500 square metres of conference and banqueting facilities, including 13 function rooms and the pillar-free 1,600-square metre Yongle Grand Ballroom, which can accommodate up to 1,500 guests and features natural daylight, a 10 metre-high ceiling designed for flexible lighting installations, LED dynamic lighting to change the room’s mood, and direct-access elevators with the capability to accommodate cars. Event organisers benefit from a dedicated events manager on standby at all occasions.

Arrive & Explore

A fleet of limited-edition, luxury “Red Flag” H7 sedans and L9 limousines, supplied by NUO Travel as the hotel’s exclusive limousine service, are deployed to meet NUO Hotel Beijing’s guests’ transport needs.

Proudly “Made in China”, the iconic “Red Flag” limousines were luxury vehicles used for the transport of foreign dignitaries in China’s past and have recently experienced a nostalgic resurgence in popularity.

Green & Smart

In keeping with NUO Hotels’ commitment to “low-carbon green intelligence”, NUO Hotel Beijing is equipped with a sophisticated air-purification system with medical-level “F8 classification recognised by the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN), which efficiently filters up to 90% of PM 2.5 particles, an intelligent lighting system and an energy-saving curtain wall system designed by German firm Schüco which reduces air-conditioning and heating wastage in the hotel.

The hotel has stayed faithful to the “green building” template, carefully adhering to gold-level certification standards in LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design Building Rating System), as well as achieving gold level pre-certification.