The art of designing luxury spaces
At first glance, designing a luxury space may seem like dressing it in opulence with gold accents, marble, and rare woods; setting the stage with grand proportions like high ceilings, wide hallways, and expansive windows; and installing state-of-the-art technology tied with a steep price tag.
But more than that, true luxury is also about creating an atmosphere—where each detail feels intentional, where design goes beyond surface-level extravagance, where the space embodies timeless elegance. Something that captures the feeling it evokes and the experience it promises.
For Aldwin Ong, the executive vice president of Cheng Chung Design (CCD), the same applies in designing a five-star hotel. As one of Asia’s respected names in luxury hospitality design, Ong has led many of CCD’s award-winning projects, ranging from high-end hotels like Mandarin Oriental Qianmen in Beijing, DongFengYun Hotel Mi’Le under MGallery, and Regent Shanghai on the Bund.
A graduate of the University of Sto. Tomas with a degree in architecture and a foundation in fine arts, Ong honed his craft through his tenure at international design firms, alongside collaborations with global hospitality brands such as Marriott, Hilton, and Hyatt. Despite—by his own admission in his LinkedIn profile—not owning a single interior design book, he approaches every project with a holistic lens, weaving narratives into spaces to create emotional connections that shape how people interact with their surroundings.
Ong is a key speaker in the upcoming FIND – Global Summit set to take place from Sept. 11 to 13 at FIND – Design Fair Asia—a key event of the Singapore Design Week—that features over 60 speakers from 23 countries.
What do you consider when designing a five-star hotel? What are your non-negotiables?
The first element is always the story. A five-star hotel must be grounded in cultural relevance, but through witty abstraction and a celebration of local identity. This narrative sets the foundation, weaving together the brand, placemaking, and most importantly, an emotional connection.
The non-negotiables are twofold:
- Space: the quality of volume, scale, and atmosphere that defines how guests feel
- Material innovation: pushing beyond the obvious, experimenting with textures, finishes, and craftsmanship that give the project its personal touch
How do you weave local culture, history, and craftsmanship into hotel design, while still appealing to an international clientele, and while making each project unique in both design and branding?
I always say to our clients, we shouldn’t be designing museums; we are designing galleries for the global and local audience. Hotels are ambassadors of the city, not a history book.
Designing for an international brand means balancing local authenticity with global abstraction. Local culture, history, and craftsmanship bring the project its soul—the narrative, references, and character that cannot be replicated elsewhere. The hotel brand, in turn, ensures comfort, reliability, and operational efficiency.
The designer’s role is to interweave both seamlessly. By aligning cultural storytelling with brand standards, we create hotels that feel rooted and relevant yet still globally appealing.
Luxury travelers today are diverse and discerning. What design principles allow a property to resonate with guests from different cultural backgrounds?
There is no one size fits all, unfortunately. Every palette is different.
The key is balancing hardware and software, comfort with connection. The software comes from the brand’s standards, identity, and consistency—giving international guests a sense of familiarity wherever they are. Connection comes from local context—the cultural touchpoints, crafted details, and experiences that can only be found in that location.
When these two principles coexist, the result is a hotel that feels relevant globally while distinctive locally. It’s not about pleasing every taste but about creating honest design with a hint of wit—something that sparks recognition, curiosity, and memory across cultures.
Guests nowadays look for sustainability and well-being in their travel choices. How do these values influence your approach to hotel interiors?
Sustainability and well-being are integral to relevance. Fortunately, products in the current market have incorporated a lot of regenerative values that enable us to make the right partners in our design:
- Using environmentally conscious and innovative materials: recycled, recyclable, or locally sourced does not limit us to finishes only, but also being able to repurpose as needed
- Designing with natural textures and softer palettes: feels calming and authentic
- Incorporating smart systems: lighting that adapts with the day, spaces that connect indoors with outdoors
- Favoring curves and flow over rigid geometry: encourages ease and comfort
This approach creates spaces that don’t just look beautiful, but also support human well-being and ecological responsibility—redefining luxury as design with purpose.
What does collaboration look like between designers, hotel operators, and local artisans in bringing a project to life?
Hotel operators provide the framework for function and efficiency. Local artisans infuse projects with authenticity, skill, and heritage, and designers bring it all together.
I have once engaged a locally-renowned wedding dress couturier to design all the artwork in a hotel—using innovative fabric technology to breathe life, vernacular [flair], and of course, storytelling into the spaces.
When done well, collaboration produces more than beautiful interiors—it creates a hotel that is essentially a storyteller.
What’s one of the biggest design challenges you’ve faced in a luxury hotel project, and how did you overcome it?
The constant challenge is navigating between our creative vision, and operational or budgetary constraints. A daring idea might conflict with brand standards, maintenance requirements, or financial limitations.
The solution lies in customized, creative problem-solving. By innovating with materials, adapting details, or reframing the design to focus on where it counts the most, limitations then become opportunities. The result is often more inventive and meaningful than the original idea—proving that true creativity thrives within boundaries.
Another big challenge is the architectural footprint—oftentimes, we are given a lot of constraints on the architectural baseline that does not give great operational and guest flow. Nowadays, we convince owners to engage us early to collaborate with architects, creating a holistic spatial language from the master-planning stage.
For business owners looking to venture into the hospitality industry, what advice would you give on creating spaces that truly stand out? And for designers, what mindset or approach do you think is essential to thrive in shaping the future of luxury hospitality?
Embrace a mindset of curiosity and wit. Success lies in creating spaces that are relevant, authentic, and yet “sparking joy” that results in a vibrant spatial community. Our hotels need to live as such—a living community, not a museum for antiquities. Thriving in this industry requires being both a storyteller and a problem-solver, always designing with empathy and purpose.
The FIND – Global Summit will take place from Sept. 11 to 13 at FIND – Design Fair Asia, a key event of Singapore Design Week, held at Marina Bay Sands Expo & Convention Centre. Aldwin Ong will be speaking on the panel “Global Signatures: The New Definition of Luxury” on Saturday, Sept. 13 from 3:35 p.m. to 4:35 p.m.
