Inside the Most Lavish Public Bathroom in the World

Most public bathrooms are places you escape as quickly as possible. This one stops you in your tracks.

Located inside Deji Plaza, an upscale mall in Nanjing, China’s Xuanwu District, this restroom was designed by Shanghai studio X+Living as a full-blown sensory experience. And it shows.

The design concept was rooted in nature: a tribute to spring, and a longing for green in the middle of an urban environment. Double-skinned walls reveal living plants behind golden-framed windows.

Floor patterns and lighting evoke insects, flowers, and foliage. Every inch of it is intentional — and extraordinary.

A Corridor of Gold and Light

The entryway is designed as a procession, large golden lamps arch overhead, leading visitors through a luminous corridor toward marble sinks. Think stepping into an upscale art installation, not a place to go pee.

Hand-Carved Marble — In a Mall Bathroom

The sinks are hand-carved marble pedestals, the kind of craftsmanship you’d expect in a five-star hotel lobby, not a shopping mall washroom. Rounded custom furniture provides rest near the entry, and the space includes a nursery and medical room alongside the main bathrooms.

The space is also fully accessible — wheelchair-compatible toilets, grab railings, and call-buttons for assistance are seamlessly integrated without breaking the aesthetic. X+Living proved that inclusive design and jaw-dropping luxury aren’t mutually exclusive.

It’s the rare public space that makes you want to linger. Which, for a bathroom, might be the most extraordinary achievement of all. 🚽

You might also like: A Sinuous Red Stairwell Wraps Through Buildings in Nanjing • Wildly Ambitious Bookstore Design in Tianjin • Dramatic Biophilic Kitchen Designs That Use Trees as Architecture