When Banyan Tree Group’s contemporary lifestyle brand Dhawa chose Weizhou Island — China’s southernmost volcanic island — as the setting for its newest resort, the design mandate was bold: bring together the raw energy of ancient lava landscapes, the rhythms of Guangxi’s seafaring Tanka culture, and the fresh optimism of a resort brand built for a younger generation of luxury travellers. The result, Dhawa Beihai Weizhou Island, opened in early 2026 as the island’s first internationally branded luxury hotel — and Zhobai was proud to deliver the complete hotel furniture FF&E solution that brought this vision to life.
Project Overview
Located on the western shore of Weizhou Island in Beihai, Guangxi, the resort sits just two minutes on foot from a pristine natural beach and three minutes by car from Xijiao Ferry Terminal. Volcano craters, coral reefs and open-sea whale-watching routes lie within a 20-minute drive. Spanning 236 guestrooms and suites — including 26 pool-access rooms, every one fitted with a private balcony — the property also features approximately 1,700 m² of meeting and event space, three food-and-beverage venues, an outdoor infinity pool facing the open sea, an 8lements Spa, a fully equipped fitness centre, and a children’s club.
Zhobai’s scope covered the full FF&E package across all guest-facing areas: concept co-development with the design team, custom manufacturing at our Guangdong workshops, factory quality control, container logistics to the island, and complete on-site installation and snagging.
Design Vision: Where Volcano Meets the Sea
The architectural and interior design brief was built on three layered references: the volcanic basalt geology of Weizhou Island; the azure depths of the South China Sea; and the Tanka boat-dwelling heritage of the local fishing communities. Unlike the hushed neutrality of a conventional luxury hotel, Dhawa’s brand DNA demands spaces that feel energetic yet considered — tactile surfaces, youthful accent colours, and decorative motifs that tell a genuine local story.
For Zhobai’s design team, this translated into a precise material palette: natural solid wood in warm walnut and ash tones, hand-woven rattan panels, linen and cotton upholstery in ocean-inspired blues and sandy terracottas, and brushed brass hardware with a subtly oxidised finish — evocative of nautical fittings weathered by salt air. Zhobai’s in-house designers worked alongside the hotel’s interior architects from mood-board stage through to final sample sign-off.
Guestroom Furniture: Crafting the Signature Dhawa Stay
With four core room categories — Garden View, Premium Ocean View, Pool Access and Deluxe Suite — each requiring its own personality while maintaining a coherent brand voice, the guestroom programme was the heart of the project.
Garden View & Premium Ocean View Rooms (41 m²)
Spread across floors one to five, these 41-square-metre rooms had to feel generous and uncluttered. Zhobai specified a full-height rattan-wrapped wardrobe unit that doubles as a soft visual divider between the entry corridor and the sleeping zone. The king bed platform is crafted from solid ash with an integrated bedside shelf. The writing desk — a signature element in every Dhawa room — is a live-edge ash slab on a powder-coated steel frame, paired with a handwoven rattan-back chair in sand-coloured performance linen. Ocean-view rooms are differentiated by upholstery in a deeper coastal blue to frame the sea panorama beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows.
Every guestroom opens onto a private balcony. Zhobai furnished each with a two-seat teak conversation set and a slatted side table, finished with a UV-resistant oil treatment that maintains the warm honey tone without guest maintenance.
Pool Access Rooms (41 m², Ground Floor)
The 26 pool-access rooms on the ground floor required furniture that transitions seamlessly between interior and outdoor terrace. Zhobai developed a coordinated teak outdoor set — a double sun lounger, a lava-stone composite side table, and two sling chairs — that speaks the same material language as the interior while withstanding the island’s humid subtropical climate. All interior furniture in these rooms carries a marine-grade waterproof treatment on exposed surfaces.
Deluxe Suites (55 m²)
The suite programme required a clearly defined living zone separate from the sleeping area. Zhobai supplied a modular three-seat sofa in warm terracotta performance velvet, two barrel chairs in natural linen with hand-carved wood legs, and a ribbed walnut coffee table referencing volcanic basalt texture. A luggage bench with woven leather strapping and a hand-hammered brass mirror frame complete the suite living area.
Bathroom vanity areas received equal attention. Zhobai supplied a custom double-basin console in honed marble composite with solid brass leg detailing, a freestanding magnifying mirror with an integrated LED ring, and a teak bath mat rack — furnishings that elevate the bathroom experience from functional to ceremonial.
Junior Luxury Rooms
Bridging the standard and suite categories, these rooms feature an expanded lounge corner — a single rattan accent chair with a loose linen cushion, a washi-shade floor lamp, and a smoked oak side table — creating a deliberate pause point where guests can sit away from the desk and take in the island view.
Each guestroom vanity and lounge area was treated as a cohesive composition. Zhobai produced a bespoke vanity stool in solid ash with a hand-stitched saddle-leather seat, paired with a floating walnut shelf — so that even a 41 m² room reads as a unified interior rather than a collection of catalogue pieces.
Public Areas & Food-and-Beverage Furniture
Lobby & Living Lounge
The arrival lobby is open-plan, flooded with natural light, and anchored by a custom semicircular banquette in deep ocean-green boucle. High-backed rattan screens partition the check-in counter from the lounge without closing off sightlines. Low occasional tables in smoked glass and brushed brass surround the seating island. Every upholstered piece is wrapped in Crypton-treated fabric — a practical choice for a beachfront resort where sandy feet are a daily reality.
Restaurant Xi — All-Day Dining
The all-day dining venue serves a Chinese-Western buffet breakfast and an evening a la carte menu celebrating Beihai’s renowned seafood. Zhobai delivered four-top solid ash dining tables with removable inserts for group configuration, bistro-style upholstered side chairs in striped cotton, and curved booth banquettes along the perimeter wall creating semi-private dining alcoves.
Fine Dining & Banquet Spaces
The fine dining hall and multifunctional banquet conference spaces required a more formal register. Zhobai supplied high-back chairs in champagne velvet with brass leg caps, round banquet tables in dark walnut veneer, and a custom bar-back unit in smoked mirror and brushed brass. The 1,700 m² event space was fitted with Zhobai’s stackable banquet chair range in a coordinated finish, ensuring visual consistency across all configurations.
The Zhobai One-Stop Process
Delivering a complete FF&E package for a 236-key resort on a ferry-only island demanded rigorous planning from day one. Zhobai’s project timeline ran across four structured phases:
- Design Collaboration (Months 1-3): Zhobai’s design team worked alongside the hotel’s architects, producing FF&E schedules, material samples, and 3D visualisations for every room category and public area, reviewed against Dhawa’s brand standards.
- Custom Manufacturing (Months 4-9): All furniture was produced at Zhobai’s Guangdong workshops under ISO 9001-certified QC. Each batch underwent dimensional inspection, finish durability testing, and fire-retardancy certification per GB 17927. Upholstered pieces received Martindale abrasion testing for high-occupancy performance.
- Logistics & Island Delivery (Months 10-11): Zhobai consolidated 23 container loads into timed ferry crossings aligned with the hotel’s construction programme, avoiding holding charges and site congestion on the island.
- On-Site Installation & Snagging (Months 11-12): A Zhobai team of 18 technicians completed room-by-room fit-out over six weeks, followed by a joint pre-opening walkthrough with the hotel’s operations team.
Sustainability & Quality Standards
All solid wood — ash, walnut and teak — carries FSC Chain of Custody certification. Rattan panels are sourced from PEFC-certified plantations in Fujian Province. Water-based lacquers and low-VOC adhesives were specified throughout the guestroom programme, supporting the property’s indoor air quality targets and Green Building Star rating ambitions.
Result
Dhawa Beihai Weizhou Island opened in early 2026, marking a defining moment for leisure tourism on an island long regarded as one of China’s best-kept coastal secrets. As the first internationally branded luxury hotel on Weizhou Island, the property has drawn immediate attention for its design quality. Guest feedback has specifically highlighted the rattan craftsmanship, the balcony furniture experience, and the sense of “local character executed with international precision.”
For Zhobai, the project affirms our one-stop hotel furniture methodology: from the earliest design conversation to the final snagging walk, a single accountable partner managing every aspect of a complex FF&E programme. We are proud to have contributed to a resort redefining luxury coastal travel in South China.
Project Snapshot
- Project: Dhawa Beihai Weizhou Island
- Client: Banyan Tree Group — Dhawa Brand
- Location: Weizhou Island, Beihai, Guangxi, China
- Scale: 236 guestrooms & suites (incl. 26 pool-access rooms)
- Scope: Full FF&E — guestrooms, suites, lobby, all-day dining, fine dining, banquet hall, outdoor areas
- Timeline: 12 months from design to handover
- Opening: Early 2026
- Services: Design collaboration · Custom manufacturing · QC · Island logistics · On-site installation
Planning a similar hotel furniture project? Contact Zhobai to discuss your FF&E requirements.