Amanyangyun ranks #21 on our 2026 list of the best anniversary hotels in the world. The case below explains why — the hotel itself, what it does specifically for milestone celebrations, and the alternatives we measured it against.
“On 30 hectares — 24 villas and 26 antique houses preserved from Jiangxi Province, Aman's most ambitious China project.”
The hotel itself
Aman's Shanghai countryside retreat — twenty-six villas in relocated Ming-Qing dynasty courtyard houses surrounded by 10,000 ancient camphor trees, plus twenty-four suites. The most architecturally distinctive luxury hotel in mainland China.
"26 villas in relocated Ming-Qing courtyard houses + 24 suites, surrounded by 10,000 ancient camphor trees. The most architecturally distinctive luxury hotel in mainland China."
Amanyangyun opened in February 2018 in the southwest Shanghai countryside (Minhang District, 60 minutes from central Shanghai) as Aman's most architecturally ambitious project anywhere — a property built around the relocation and restoration of Ming and Qing dynasty courtyard villas (originally from Jiangxi province, threatened by reservoir flooding in the 1990s, dismantled stone by stone and relocated to Shanghai over an extended programme) and 10,000 ancient camphor trees similarly relocated and replanted in the property's grounds. The result is a 25-acre property where ancient camphor forest surrounds restored Ming-Qing villas (some over 400 years old) used as villa accommodations.
Why it works for an anniversary
Anniversary trips to great cities live or die on the dinner of the trip. The hotel must do the celebration without the city having to do the work — a private room in a Michelin restaurant inside the building, a bar where the right toast is poured, a turn-down service that knows tonight is the one. The cities that do this best — Paris, London, New York, Tokyo, Vienna — have grand-dame hotels measured in centuries, not decades.
An Aman is a particular kind of hotel. The architecture is local material — basalt in Bhutan, raw stone in Italy, bleached oak in New York — and the service philosophy refuses to perform. For an anniversary the case is structural: Aman's signature is suite-only inventory in many properties, deep-discount-free pricing, and the kind of pre-arrival communication that means the cake is on the bed before you ask. The brand exists to upgrade discreetly.
The 50 accommodations split between the 26 Antique Villas — fully restored Ming and Qing dynasty courtyard houses ranging from 230 to 2,400 square metres, with original timber beams, hand-carved stone, and the architectural details of the original 16th-19th-century structures — and the 24 contemporary Suites in the property's purpose-built tower (designed by Kerry Hill Architects, Aman's longtime architectural partner). Each Antique Villa is unique, with different floor plans, original architectural features, and personal-attention butler service. The Antique Villas are among the most architecturally significant luxury hotel accommodations anywhere — guests staying in 17th-century Ming dynasty courtyard houses with the original timber framing preserved.
The grounds — the 10,000 relocated ancient camphor trees forming the property's forest, the original camphor temple at the property's centre (a restored Buddhist temple structure), the heated indoor swimming pool, the comprehensive Aman Spa, the cultural centre with traditional Chinese arts programming (calligraphy, tea ceremony, traditional Chinese opera), and the gardens — are extensive. The Aman Spa Amanyangyun is one of the larger Aman Spas in Asia, with comprehensive wellness programming.
Where it ranks against rivals
For a 2026 milestone anniversary at this level, the most direct comparisons are Aman at Summer Palace, Beijing in Beijing (#20 on this list), Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Marunouchi in Tokyo (#22 on this list), Rachamankha in Chiang Mai (#19 on this list). Amanyangyun earns the higher rank for one or two specific reasons covered in the verdict above. The other properties are not lesser hotels — in some cases the answer for your particular celebration is the runner-up. The city-specific page below has the full local ranking.
Practical: getting in
Address: 6161 Yuan Jiang Lu, Min Hang Qu, China, 201111. Anniversary-suited categories — the upgraded suites, the rooms with the morning view — book six to twelve months ahead. The full review at the hotel page has current rates, the room categories worth paying up for, and the dining and spa programmes worth booking pre-arrival. Use our anniversary occasion page for the broader context, or the Shanghai city guide for what else to do while you’re there.