WOW Architects - Mandai Rainforest Resort by Banyan Tree - Singapore

2026-01-16

Singapore’s journey from a Garden City to a City in Nature finds bold expression in the Mandai Eco-Resort. Conceived through a government-initiated competition, the winning design proposed a regenerative resort that is sensitively inserted into Singapore’s nature reserve around the Mandai Wildlife Parks. The architecture not only blends into the jungle—but enhances it. By inverting the traditional Zoo paradigm, rather than separating guests from nature and wildlife, the resort reimagines the relationship: humans become part of the jungle ecosystem, learning to coexist harmoniously with native flora and fauna.

The 4.6-hectare site for the 338-key resort previously housed the Singapore Zoo’s back-of-house facilities. The building mass is carefully integrated into the site, enriched through the replanting of native tree species felled during construction. Inspired by the Liana vine, the branching building form meanders through the forest, designed with no fixed façade, blending architecture and ecology into one living, breathing organism. The resort’s 338 keys—including 24 elevated treehouses—are all envisioned for open-air living, maximizing natural ventilation and comfort through passive design. This is Singapore’s first super-low energy hotel, setting new benchmarks in tropical sustainability.

The resort achieves a 40% reduction in energy consumption compared to typical benchmarks. This was made possible through an integrated environmental strategy that includes naturally ventilated corridors and lobbies, mixed-mode air conditioning in guestrooms, solar panel integration, and the use of Passive Displacement Ventilation (PDV) in the Treehouses—where chilled air circulates silently and efficiently without the need for conventional compressors. This project sets a new precedent for biophilic, regenerative design—an eco-resort that disappears into nature while cultivating awareness, stewardship, and deep connection with the living world.

Architecture and landscape

The concept is sympathetic to the existing vegetation and tree lines, as well as natural topography. Wherever possible, the resort is elevated several meters above the ground, allowing native wildlife to move across the site. It is also designed to be unobtrusive, sitting below the upper canopy layer of the surrounding trees. The branching form of the 4-5 storey main guest wings meander through the jungle, while treehouses shaped like seed pods are tucked neatly in between existing trees and are linked by jungle pathways or an elevated walkway. In addition to extensive planting at the roof and façade of the resort buildings, more than half the trees on the site will be retained, of which 40% are of conservation value. The re-greening effort will enhance the site’s biodiversity through thoughtful planting strategies that will both promote native species on the site of the resort and double the number of trees from today.

Interior design

The interior design continues the journey of adventure and discovery through the layers of the jungle. The interior spaces and furnishing offer new paradigms of comfort and coexistence with the outdoor and tropical climate, inviting guests to discover and adapt to be intriguingly closer to nature. Guest rooms are designed to be comfortable shelters from which to observe the jungle and be very close to nature. Sliding doors, verandas, and balconies blend indoors with outdoors, with material continuity from interior to exterior. The bathroom is designed so that the shower has natural light, with sliding panels that open the bathroom to the bed area for a spacious and open feel. Collaborations with local artists and artisans in the wall murals, furniture, and artifacts tell the story of the jungle ecology, as well as educate and promote the memory of flora and fauna indigenous to Mandai jungle.

Resort operations for a conscious stay

Operated by the homegrown Banyan Tree Group, the resort is rooted in the brand’s core sustainability ethos — “Embracing the Environment & Empowering People” — encouraging responsible consumption, meaningful connection, and wellbeing-driven experiences that inspire guests to minimize their impact and help safeguard the natural world. As lead design architect, WOW Architects worked in close collaboration with a multidisciplinary team of specialist consultants to ensure sustainability in planning, design, and delivery of the resort. These included Atelier Ten (Environmental Sustainability Design), Arup (Mechanical & Electrical), Bo Steiber (Lighting), Ramboll Environ (Ecology), Ramboll Studio Dreiseitl (Landscape Architecture), Warner Wong Design (Interior Design), and Web Structures (Structural Engineering). In addition, a dedicated working group of academics and professionals provided critical guidance across key areas such as landscape, education, sustainability, ecology, horticulture, and acoustics.

Expanding upon Banyan Tree’s sustainability values, WOW Architects envisioned a regenerative eco-resort that would not only coexist with the surrounding jungle, but actively enhance it — giving back more than it takes. The resulting design blurs the boundaries between built form and nature, aiming to leave the site in a better ecological condition than it was found, and offering guests a truly immersive and conscious stay.

About WOW Architects

Wow is an international consultancy offering professional design services in architecture, interior design, landscape design, and masterplanning. Their mission is to create spaces of extraordinary sensory experience, rooted in culture, memory, and place.

WOW's core competency lies in the areas of hospitality, residential, and commercial design, with strong lifestyle-driven concepts.

Photo credit: Aaron Pocock Photography