There was a time not that long ago when travel lodging in Beijing was a drab affair—the typical hotel design could be described as "institutional" at best, while service was meted out by cadres of uninspired job-for-lifers. How the times have changed, and with the success of the summer Olympics, luxury hotels have sprung up like weeds across Beijing. Some of the newest offerings include global chains expanding their presence in the city, longtime favorites putting on a new face, and young upstarts taking their first swing at China’s cultural, political, and educational powerhouse.

The Opposite House- Opening August 15, 2008
Newly formed Swire Hotels brought together celebrated Japanese avant- garde architect Kengo Kuma and equally edgy Shanghai-based designers Lyndon Neri and Rossana Hu to create their first luxury hotel, The Opposite House, part of The Village at Sanlitun, a new open-plan shopping and entertainment destination. The hotel’s exterior is covered in vivid emerald glass, and Kuma has described the hotel’s overall green color scheme as evoking an "urban forest."

Among the hotel’s signature features is a stainless-steel-clad swimming pool designed to reflect both natural and fiber optic lighting. The 99 guest rooms are open and simple with natural brushed oak floors, furniture, and bathtubs.

Shanghai-based chef entrepreneur David Laris, along with Neri and Hu, developed the restaurant and bar concepts, which divide the basement level into five interactive spaces that use materials associated with the five elements (metal, wood, water, fire, and earth). An outdoor Sunken Garden, thick with bamboo and water features, offers small gathering spaces to enjoy a coffee or dine alfresco. Adjacent is the Mediterranean restaurant Sureno, with a wood-fired oven and surrounding counter, enabling patrons to watch the chefs at work. At the neighboring Asian restaurant Bei, guests are surrounded by a forest of trees before entering a clearing and the dining room.

Designed with seclusion in mind, five white "boxes" house private dining rooms that are entered across water channels (in the largest such room, water also streams down the walls). In contrast, Punk, a late night bar and mini club, is a solitary transparent box, wrapped by a rough, punched metal screen. www.preferredhotels.com

Park Hyatt Beijing- Opened July 2008
The new Park Hyatt Beijing is part of the prestigious Beijing Yintai Center, the tallest skyscraper on Chang’an Avenue in Beijing’s Central Business District (the hotel’s 66th-level restaurant is the highest in the city, offering 360-degree views of the sprawling capital). Located directly opposite the China World Trade Center and the new CCTV Tower, the hotel is five minutes from the Embassy District, and 15 minutes from the Forbidden City by car.

The hotel’s 237 guest rooms, including 18 suites, range from 484 to 2,583 square feet, and feature work desks with international power outlets, wireless and wired broadband Internet access, flat-screen televisions, and spa-inspired bathrooms with oversized rain showers, deep soaking tubs, and heated floors. In addition to dining in the sky, guests can sample vintage wines, champagne, and cocktails while listening to live jazz in the level 65 bar; socialize at the level 6 entertainment center featuring three bars, a wine cellar, a cigar room, live music, and outdoor courtyards; or book one of the private dining suites on level 5 offering authentic Cantonese cuisine and butler service, among numerous other options. Guests can also experience a wide range of shopping, dining, and entertainment concepts at Park Life, a lifestyle destination located within the complex. Or escape Beijing’s hustle and bustle at the spa on levels 59 and 60 with eight treatment rooms, a relaxation lounge, an exercise studio, and indoor swimming pool. www.beijing.park.hyatt.com

The Ritz-Carlton Beijing- Opened January 2008
The esteemed chain’s second offering in Beijing offers some of the largest standard-size rooms in the city—266 of them, to be exact, as well as 38 executive suites, all located on the corners of the building for better views, and The Ritz-Carlton Suite, offering two bedrooms, a living room and separate dining room, a study room, and walk-in closets, located on the 15th floor overlooking China Central Place gardens. Standard guest room amenities include Ritz-Carlton signature linens and featherbeds, 42-inch flat-screen LCD televisions, marble bathrooms with 15-inch LCD televisions, full-size writing desks, high-speed Internet access, and complimentary overnight shoeshine.

The property also houses a 2,500-square-meter (approximately 27,000- square-foot) spa, offering a wide variety of Chinese massages and a heated indoor lap pool. Dining options include Yu, serving modern Cantonese cuisine in six private dining rooms (also available are the services of the in-house Tea Master, who complements each meal with a selection of graded teas); Aroma, featuring five open kitchens preparing cuisines from across the globe: Indian, Japanese, Southeast Asian, Chinese, and a Western grill; and Barolo, serving contemporary Italian cuisine. www.ritzcarlton.com

The St. Regis Beijing- Reopened June 2008
This longtime favorite of luxury travelers reopened in June after a six-month, $20 million renovation that combined modern technology and redesigned interiors with the restoration of many custom-designed architectural features. The majority of the renovations have been in upgrading facilities and hardware, including adding new LCD touchscreens in guest rooms that control everything from the temperature to the curtains and TV, all from one’s bed. The lobby has also been improved, with the addition of giant Frank Lloyd Wright-style screens and more open seating. The number of guest rooms has been decreased to enlarge the size of standard guest rooms to approximately 645 square feet. External improvements include adding a deck for alfresco dining, and improved facilities for outdoor events.

Services and amenities remain top-shelf, including the renowned St. Regis Butler Service, offering round-the-clock personal attention for each guest. The St. Regis Spa features natural hot spring water channeled from 4,500 feet below the hotel’s surface, 10 treatment rooms, and a spa menu of more than 40 Western and Eastern therapies.

And the hotel’s location remains hard to beat—a stone’s throw from the U.S. Embassy, a few minutes’ drive to the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square, and a 10-minute walk to the fabled Silk Market. www.starwoodhotels.com

The Westin Beijing Chaoyang- Opened May 2008
The second Westin in Beijing joins The Westin Financial Street, The St. Regis, and the Great Wall Sheraton in Starwood’s Beijing portfolio. The hotel offers a range of room categories to choose from, including WestinWorkout® rooms equipped with exercise facilities; Renewal Rooms and Suites, offering a foot massager and complimentary "bathologist"; and Executive Club Floor rooms and suites, offering access to the Club Lounge as well as fax machines, espresso machines, and massage chairs in select rooms. All 550 rooms and suites, which range from 430 to more than 3,000 square feet, feature Westin’s signature Heavenly Bed® and rainforest shower as well as WiFi Internet access, flat-screen interactive televisions, and state-of-the-art audio/video systems.

Facilities at the Heavenly Spa include an indoor pool, hydrotherapy center, and WestinWorkout® Gym. The Westin’s seven original restaurants and lounges include Grange, a fine dining steak house showcasing Australian beef, regional steak specialties, and fresh seafood; Zen5es, offering fine Cantonese cuisine in 11 dining rooms and individual show kitchens; and Taste, an international all- day dining restaurant with a popular breakfast offering live cooking stations. www.starwoodhotels.com ET