There is a poetic quality to Hangzhou – one that is immediately arresting, and with a bittersweet edge. On the way to the Banyan Tree resort in the western reaches of the city, our local taxi driver regales us with tatler_stories of how the rice paddies used to stretch to the east of the town, the exact land over which concrete and high-rise buildings now tower over instead. Hangzhou is a rapidly developing city, evident in its booming internet trade (it houses e-commerce site Alibaba’s headquarters) and Forbes listing as the best place to do business in the country, beating out Shanghai at position two. As we relished in tatler_stories of Hangzhou’s great lakes, forests and legendary cuisine, our eyes searched for the watercolour-perfect scenery that inspired history’s most prolific painters and poets.

Through the inky black night, we meandered through a discombobulating mix of highways, underpasses and eerie tree-lined streets before reaching the resort close to midnight, nearly an hour after we set off from the airport. The cool night air is still and almost icy in early spring, and the only sounds are from the occasional non-descript rustle of tree leaves in the wind.

Banyan Tree Hangzhou is just over two years old, and is the fourth Chinese resort in the brand’s global portfolio. It plays off the natural beauty of the ancient Chinese city to its best advantage – that is, classical Jiang Nan-style architecture ensconced in verdant greenery – without resorting to Disneyfied theme park clichés. Cradled in 72-acres of the south-eastern quadrant of the Xixi Wetlands Park (the first national wetland park in China), the resort is a tranquil retreat that immediately puts you at ease. We step into the high-ceilinged lobby that wouldn’t look out of place on a Wong Kar-Wai set and are quickly checked in before being whisked off to our private premier water view villa in whirring golf carts.

Read our review of Banyan Tree Macau




The individual villas each offer their own gated entrances with heavy bronze knockers, which open out into a courtyard lined with blossoming trees and a pebbled walkway leading to the sliding glass door to the accommodation. Extremely tall ceilings, heavy wooden beams and plush furnishings at once evoke country charm and extreme luxury. Each room is themed according to the four seasons, a dramatic silky print depicting birds in flight amidst falling golden leaves tells us immediately that we’re in Autumn.

Seemingly for good feng shui, you can go from the front entrance straight out to the balcony overlooking the still waters just beyond, accessed through another sliding glass door. Blue skies and spring sunshine followed us throughout our stay, and so the wooden patio table and chairs was where we spent many a quiet morning sipping a brew while picking at freshly baked pastries from small bamboo steamers with nothing but the soundtrack of bamboo leaves in the light breeze and the chirp of small birds. Hangzhou’s most famous export – dragonwell tea – is naturally provided in each room complete with clay teapots for kung-fu style tea ceremony, and we imagine ourselves as ancient Chinese scholars contemplating the simple beauty of nature.

As Alice Zhao and Den Navarro from the marketing team tell me, a trip here is all about forgetting the frenetic pace of the metropolis. Zhao, a Hangzhou native, speaks about returning to her hometown to work after years of working in other busy cities, and realising how the Hangzhou people truly embrace the slow, languorous lifestyle missing in most modern communities. Without noticing, we had spent nearly three hours lounging at our waterside table overlooking frolicking koi fish and elegant weeping willows, enjoying the eclectic breakfast offerings – congee with sweet pickled vegetables, mushroom and ham omelettes, Thai-style cold salads and tiny nectar-like kidney mangos.We depart for the city for a long and luxurious lunch at Dragon Well Manor, one of Hangzhou's most famous restaurants, before returning at dusk.

In the early evening, a session at the Banyan Tree spa melts away some of the day’s stresses incurred by Hangzhou’s infamous gridlocked traffic. Bamboo groves and lush greenery is the key imagery at this sanctuary, inside and out – our private room is soothingly lit and we are given a choice of incense stick aromas to choose from (we opt for the uplifting sandalwood). Banyan Tree’s signature treatments include the 150-minute Royal Banyan featuring a highly aromatic herbal pouch massage utilising the best of techniques from east and west; a lemongrass scrub, oriental back massage and aromatic bath complete the disarmingly relaxing proceedings. We are short on time before our dinner reservation at Bai Yun, the resort’s signature Chinese restaurant, and we take the recommended 60-minute Balinese massage treatment to knock those muscle knots into submission. We appreciate the little details – our therapist makes sure to ask if we would like to forgo the oils usually administered for the facial massage, knowing we had to freshen up before dinner.

We also tried the Balinese massage at Banyan Tree Macau

Bai Yun, overlooking the main lake within the Banyan Tree Hangzhou resort, is smartly made up but convivial in atmosphere. We charge through course after course of delicately executed Hangzhou classics, washed down with plenty of fresh longjing tea (Alice tells us with a hint of regret that we had arrived a touch too early for the best of the “before Ching Ming” crop later in the month). Among the highlights is a small earthen pot holding a single cube of perfectly braised Dongbo pork, the iconic favourite of the eponymous poet. Crisp, fresh river shrimp with longjing tea leaves and jewels of wolfberry are also spot on, elevated with the slightest sprinkle of Zhejiang vinegar.  

As we wobbled back to our villa, meandering through paved stone pathways, elegantly curved bridges set over ponds, and past sweet blossoms illuminated by hanging lanterns, we wish we didn’t have to go back to the hardknock Hong Kong city life the day after.

The ‘Romance in Hangzhou’ package currently running at Banyan Tree Hangzhou is valid now until August 30, 2013. Priced from RMB5,998 with a minimum of two nights’ stay, it includes accommodation in the Water Terrace Suite, breakfast, dinner, afternoon tea and a 90-minute spa session all for two.