5-star hotel
Embankment Resort Hotel
Forget the creaky floorboards of a converted dyer’s workshop. The Dishang Resort is the headquarters of the 'New Wuzhen'—the one that hosts the World Internet Conference. It is a structural leviathan, a massive vessel where the lobby ceiling mimics the ribcage of a wooden ship on a brutalist scale. The design dialogue here is fascinating: stark, cathedral-like concrete spaces framing the delicate, grey-tiled Ming Dynasty roofs outside. Inside the rooms, the experience is strictly 21st-century efficiency. You get the requisite Dyson hair dryers and L'Occitane verbena amenities, but the true luxury here is logistical: unlike the car-free scenic zone where luggage is a nightmare, you can drive a vehicle right to Dishang’s entrance. The 'Cloud River' outdoor infinity pool is the architectural high point, offering a surreal vantage where you float in azure water while looking down on ancient canals. Dining is equally ambitious, with the 'Sichuan & Japanese' restaurant attempting a bold fusion of grilled eel and spicy mala textures. A warning for the light sleeper: the hallway soundproofing is thinner than the stone walls suggest. But for the design-conscious traveler who refuses to drag a Rimowa suitcase over cobblestones, this is the only address in town.
