Where Space Means Everything

Over the last decade or so, Asia has been setting the pace in creating ultraluxurious hospitality experiences, buttressed by steady economic growth and ambitious city redevelopment plans. The Park Hyatt Kuala Lumpur, poised to open its doors in September, is the latest example chasing superlatives in a modern vernacular. We look at some of the most exciting new properties in the region.

- Manfred Lu

Walk through the doors of Capella Bangkok, and the city's relentless pulse fades into a meditative calm. Banished is the cacophony of angry traffic and clattering luggage. And there is no sight of tour groups milling about in matching caps, nor a backpacker trying to repack a bulging suitcase full of Chatuchak Weekend Market trinkets.

There is an almost unnerving sense of stillness, perhaps thanks to the few immaculately dressed lobby ambassadors stationed like serene sentinels. Or it could be the understated, linear and tastefully minimalist interiors that take up more space than they need to. Here, silence is not just an absence of noise, but a feature.

That is the difference Capella Bangkok is offering. When most people think of luxury hotels, they envision opulent pieces of furniture, grand lobbies and roughly 300 rooms in a palatial-style skyscraper.

However, a new breed of luxury hotel has emerged, and it is selling a certain sense of luxury that most hotels cannot afford to do so — space. This is what defines modern luxury hotels now.

Indeed, the discreet, almost monastic, approach to hospitality is not just a Capella Bangkok signature but a rising trend across Asia. New properties have risen across the region, each more enigmatic than the last. Think Six Senses Kyoto, where guests pad silently through temple-like corridors in socks, or Amanoi in Vietnam, which feels less like a resort and more like a spiritual retreat carved into a cliffside.

These are not hotels with grand pianos or dramatic floral arrangements engineered for Instagram selfies. Instead, they are designed for those who value privacy over pomp, and refinement over recognition — just good taste, impeccable service, and a sense of peace money cannot buy.