Top art hotels for a cultural stay

Each year, galleries and museums around the world attract millions of travellers looking for a taste of arts and culture. At these art hotels, you’re just a stone’s throw from cultural hotspots and world-class art pieces. In some cases, you can even sleep right next to them.

Benesse House

Naoshima Island, Japan

Located on Japan’s Naoshima Island, this Tadao Ando-designed museum-cum-hotel features bright and airy guestrooms with sweeping sea views, while artworks by Hiroshi Sugimoto, Niki de Saint Phalle and Dan Graham are featured outside. One of Yayoi Kusama’s famed polka-dotted pumpkins can also be seen at the end of a pier. Don’t miss the zen-like vibes of the Lee Ufan Museum and Shinro Ohtake’s Shipyard Works, a spiky, outdoor installation built on the terrace of the property.

Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp & Resort

Chiang Rai, Thailand

While elephants are the undisputed stars at this hilltop resort near Thailand’s border with Myanmar and Laos, guests can also take advantage of the Golden Triangle Discovery package, which includes a walk with the gentle giants in the jungle plus a visit to the Hall of Opium nearby. A decade’s worth of research at the museum shines a light on a dark chapter of the region’s history as the world’s biggest supplier of heroin. Through the museum’s interactive exhibitions, operators hope to reduce the demand for illegal substances.

The PuXuan Hotel and Spa

Beijing, China

A short walk from the Forbidden City and opposite the National Art Museum of China, the multi-purpose Guardian Art Centre complex pushes design boundaries with its staggered blocks of grey stone topped by a rectangle of floating glass. Architect Ole Scheeren calls his creation a ‘Chinese puzzle of interlocking cultural spaces’. The lower floors form auction rooms, galleries and exhibition spaces, while the upper levels house The PuXuan Hotel and Spa , a 116-room hotel that sticks stylishly to tradition, featuring furniture by Hermès’ sibling brand Shang Xia, as well as antique and contemporary artworks.

Avani+ Luang Prabang

Luang Prabang, Laos

When it comes to getting a flavour of local culture and art, hotels like the minimalist Avani+ Luang Prabang , housed in the former quarters of French colonial officers, offer a fascinating insight as well as plush accommodations. Avani+ Luang Prabang’s 52 wood-accented guestrooms occupy a prime perch within this Unesco World Heritage site. After exploring the city’s many Buddhist temples and its famed night market, guests can visit the Traditional Arts and Ethnology Centre across the street to explore Laos’ 27 distinct ethnic communities through their textiles, jewellery, household items, harvesting tools, basketry and ritual objects.