Dusit Thani Resort& Spa Twin Moon Bay is located on the coast of Twin Moon Bay, a beautiful oceanfront destination named for its two crescent-shaped beaches, with wide stretch of sand and sparkling turquoise waves. One and half hour drive east of Shenzhen, a fast growing metropolitan and technologically advanced city with over 12 million people, Twin Moon Bay is facing growing pressure of tourists, and thus all the new developments are regulated by strict environmental constraints. As a result of the coastal setback line, the site is a hillside land with one narrow side facing the ocean, separated from the beach by a coastal highway. Landscape design challenge is to create a memorable seaside resort experience on this hillside land with very limited beach access.
Began with overall site planning, the landscape design draws inspiration from natural lagoons surrounded by cliffs. Through restoring an ecological stepping stone consisits of water body and extension of the hillside forest, the landscape design visually and ecologically relinks the hillside forest environment and the ocean.
The authentic ecology of the site is acknowledged by well utilizing the site features as assets: existing streams are directed into a natural retention pond that filters and attenuates surface runoff during rainfall events. Existing hillside forest is carefully preserved, as a natural rustic backdrop for the pool side gardens. The pool side gardens serve as a natural buffer, filtering the constant strong wind from the ocean, while allowing panoramic ocean view for guest rooms behind. Existing boulders on site are quarried and used for retaining walls.
Instead of making an instant landscape that requires high maintenance under coastal saline conditions, landscape design created a growing garden, with the feeling of an extension of the hillside forest, and a transition from a beach habitat to a hillside forest environment.
The image of light color art pieces floating on top of naturalistic planes is essential to the project aesthetic of the resort, bringing in delightful oceanic feel for the resort. At the resort entry focal point, landscape art installation ‘Twin Moons’ sits on a reflection pool, creating an image of reaching the Pacific. On both sides of the entry are white quartz stone water cascades reminiscent of beach tides. Throughout the poolside gardens, a white quartz stone island for performance events is floating on the natural retention pond; curve lounge chairs are arranged around the roomy passive pool under leafy palm canopies.
Overall landscape design creates a harmonic feel throughout the resort. A natural haven, a seaside getaway for the thriving global metropolis.
Name of the project: Dusit Thani Resort& Spa Twin Moon Bay
Project category: Hospitality – Hotels and Resorts
Role of the entrant in the project: Landscape Architect (including site planning, landscape design, art installation and site furniture design)
Other designers involved in the design of landscape (if any):
Lead Designer: Yi Zhu
Landscape Designer: Renqiang Song, Weiyue Zheng, Mathieu Vernet, Ranghai Wu, Wenqi Ling, Minghua Fang, Yan Luo, Zhenzhen Si
Project location: Twin Moon Bay, Guangdong Province, China
Design year: 2018
Year Built: 2019
