Wanda XishuangBanna International Resort in Jinghong City
Chinese Name:万达西双版纳国际度假区
English Name: Wanda XishuangBanna International Resort in Jinghong City
Wanda Xishuangbanna International Resort is located in Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Prefecture, covering 5.3 square kilometers. It is a comprehensive cultural tourism project developed by Wanda Group with a significant investment. The resort features a versatile amphibious theme park capable of accommodating 50,000 visitors simultaneously, a cluster of mountain resort hotels comprising three star-rated hotels, a Dai culture technology stage show that can host 1,183 people, a Wanda Plaza shaped like a “peacock feather,” a tertiary hospital, and educational facilities including those for primary, secondary, and preschool levels. The resort’s total investment in self-owned assets is approximately 16 billion RMB. The project fully opened in September 2015 and is Wanda Group’s first venture into cultural tourism projects.
Tourism Information
The resort officially opened on September 26, 2015, attracting significant attention from government and media. Since its opening, it has hosted VIPs such as the Prime Minister of Laos, the Tourism Minister of Queensland, Australia, and the Indian Minister of Industry. It has also welcomed TV programs such as “Running Man” and “Accelerate” for filming. Additionally, the resort has hosted several major events, including the China Tourism Trade Fair “Tourism + Internet” Summit Forum, the first South Buddhism Ascension Ceremony, Yunnan Tourism Industry Development Promotion Conference, BMW X1 new product launch, and various beauty product distributor appreciation meetings. The resort is a landmark project in Yunnan’s tourism transformation and upgrade, poised to become a new representative and branding card for tourism in Yunnan.
Regional Location
Jinghong City is the political, economic, and cultural center of Xishuangbanna Prefecture and serves as a key window and hub for Southeast Asia and South Asia. It is a major transit point for tourism and cargo between Yunnan Province and these regions, with promising prospects for becoming an information and logistics center. The Xishuangbanna International Tourism Resort is situated on the outskirts of the city, with a moderate distance from the city center, offering a favorable ecological environment and advantageous transportation and environmental conditions. It has substantial tourism development potential.
Pan-Asian High-Speed Rail and Investment in Xishuangbanna
The Pan-Asian High-Speed Rail, which will connect Southeast Asia, began construction in June and will travel from Kunming to Singapore, passing through Jinghong. This rail will reduce travel time from Kunming to Xishuangbanna to just 2.5 hours, significantly boosting the development of Xishuangbanna as a strategic gateway.
Planning Structure
The resort is divided into seven main functional areas: a theme park, high-end resort hotels, the Dai Show Theater, a commercial center, a tertiary hospital, and a new tourism city. The resort follows a “one core, two wings” spatial layout:
- “One Core”: The tourism reception area, which combines upscale hotel architecture with a 260,000-square-meter central artificial lake, forming the most refined and high-quality public activity area. The Wanda Plaza on the southeast side becomes a new urban commercial core for Jinghong City.
- “Two Wings”: The northern and southern wings. The resort is roughly divided into east and west functional areas, with the eastern area focused on residential living and supporting functions, and the western area centered on tourism, leisure, and commercial services.
Introduction to the Functional Areas
Theme Park The theme park covers 61 hectares and is designed by the world-renowned FORREC company. It features a Dai cultural theme and aims to become a cultural tourism hotspot in Xishuangbanna and the entire Southwest region. The park comprises five distinct areas: Butterfly Kingdom, Jungle Adventure, Tea Horse Road, Fisherman’s Wharf, and Water Park. Each area has its own theme to cater to different visitor interests. Designed as a family-oriented amusement park, it addresses diverse family needs. The park’s opening signifies Wanda’s integration of Xishuangbanna’s cultural elements with modern entertainment concepts, attracting many tourists and enhancing the cultural tourism sector in the region. The first tropical rainforest-themed park in Asia, Xishuangbanna Wanda Theme Park, grandly opened on September 26, 2015.
Wanda Plaza The commercial hub, Wanda Plaza, spans 77,500 square meters, with a width of approximately 114 meters and a length of about 218 meters. It integrates shopping, dining, entertainment, and leisure into a city complex, which will significantly alter the consumption patterns and levels in Xishuangbanna. The plaza features three and a half floors: the basement for supermarkets and facilities, the first floor for street-level shops, key stores, and children’s areas, the second floor for additional commercial spaces, a cinema, arcade, and karaoke, and the third floor for dining and themed restaurants. The third-floor dining spaces incorporate local characteristics with outdoor platform gardens, blending indoor and outdoor leisure. The plaza’s façade design features local peacock motifs, aiming to become a landmark building in Xishuangbanna.
Dai Show Theater The Dai Show Theater covers 3.64 hectares with a building area of 19,500 square meters and a height of 21 meters. It showcases Yunnan’s ethnic diversity against the rich natural and cultural backdrop of Xishuangbanna. The creative team behind the show includes Frank Dragone, who revolutionized American entertainment with the “O” show in Las Vegas. The theater’s design, by Marc Fisher, who also directed the Beijing 2008, Guangzhou 2010, and London 2012 Olympic ceremonies, features a palm-leaf-inspired structure with enhanced structural rigidity. The theater, with 1,200 seats, officially opened its mysterious doors on September 26, 2015.
Luxury Hotel Cluster Located in the eastern wing of the project, the luxury hotel cluster includes a six-star Mandarin Oriental Hotel and four-star Hilton Garden Inn and Holiday Inn hotels, covering approximately 29 hectares with a total building area of 142,000 square meters. The Mandarin Oriental Hotel, situated in the northern part of the cluster, offers 165 spacious, luxuriously decorated villas nestled in tropical rainforests with private pools and relaxation areas. The hotel aims to create a serene, culturally rich environment. The Hilton Garden Inn and Holiday Inn provide diverse lodging options, offering various experiences for visitors to Xishuangbanna.
Bar Street Bar Street is located near the mountain gate entrance, adjacent to Wetland Park. It combines traditional local architectural styles with modern elements, blending tradition and contemporary design. The area aims to enrich the local nightlife and offers a romantic setting for visitors.
Tertiary Hospital The resort area plans to build a tertiary hospital designated as an ASEAN International Hospital. With a building area of 50,000 square meters and 500 beds, it will provide multi-level medical services to the region, improving urban healthcare standards and offering international medical support to visitors.
Schools The resort area features top educational institutions, including kindergartens, primary schools, and secondary schools. The facilities include Wanda Campus of Xishuangbanna State Kindergarten, Yunjinghong Primary School, and Xishuangbanna No. 1 Middle School, all offering quality education in a conducive environment for students.
Tourism New City The new tourism city includes comprehensive educational facilities and offers a one-stop education service system with kindergartens, primary, and secondary schools. The city’s design focuses on innovation, blending Dai architectural styles with modern amenities, creating a harmonious environment that integrates with nature. The new city aims to provide a high-quality living experience and enhance the region’s tourism appeal.
Project Development Vision
The Wanda Xishuangbanna International Resort was planned to commence construction in 2012 and to open its main cultural and tourism projects by 2015. The investment and development of the resort are set to revolutionize the level of tourism in Xishuangbanna, invigorate the local tourism economy, and establish Xishuangbanna as a new highlight in tropical tourism within China. With high-quality tourism project planning, high-standard construction, and advanced supporting facilities, the Wanda Xishuangbanna International Resort is expected to become a premier destination for tourism and vacation in Southeast Asia.
Latest Updates
The Wanda Xishuangbanna International Resort is the third major cultural and tourism project launched by Wanda Group, following the Changbai Mountain Resort and Wuhan Central Cultural District. Covering 5.3 square kilometers with a total investment of 16 billion yuan, the resort aims to create a world-class tourist destination with distinctive local characteristics, further driving the transformation and upgrading of Yunnan’s tourism industry.
Located in the northwest of Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna, the resort spans approximately 7,950 acres (about 40% of the urban area) and is a high-end tourism resort developed by Wanda Group with an investment of 16 billion yuan. The project is about 4 kilometers from the Lancang River, the longest river in Southeast Asia, around 5 kilometers from the old town, and approximately 6.5 kilometers from the airport. Once operational, it is expected to transform the tourism landscape of Yunnan Province and even China. The entire project is divided into seven major components: a theme park, Wanda Plaza, a Dai Culture Theater, a bar street, an integrated education system (kindergarten, primary, and secondary schools), a top-tier hospital, and a high-end hotel cluster.
Renaming
The project has been renamed as “Sunac Wanda Xishuangbanna International Resort” following Sunac’s acquisition of the Wanda Xishuangbanna International Resort.
