Hotel Pullman Oceanview Sanya Bay Resort & Spa

If swaying palm trees and a tropical island setting don’t exactly jive with your idea of China, consider this: the People’s Republic has a competitive national beach volleyball team, and they have to train somewhere. That somewhere just happens to be Sanya, a coastal city on southern Hainan island, and Hotel Pullman Oceanview Sanya Bay, it just so happens, is the sort of hotel that justifies the flight.

With 469 guestrooms, two swimming pools, a spa, a water park, tennis courts, a pair of restaurants and a private beach, the Pullman is more of a resort than a hotel. But given this range of offerings, and the massive building’s glowing resort-style facade, the place has a few surprises in store. Interiors are airy — even fully open-air in some cases — with towering beamed ceilings and magnificent views over the water, as in the striking dark wood-paneled lobby and lobby lounge, where you might be tempted to linger with a cocktail while staring out at the sunset.

Guestrooms range from the standard, with amenities including a rain shower and a private balcony, to larger suites and apartments with ample living space and deep soaking tubs on private patios overlooking the ocean. At the top of the line, villas come with their own private pools. All rooms the contemporary comforts you’d expect from a business hotel; the Pullman simply has a little more style and character.

The most attractive spaces on the property are the gorgeous Red Sun Bar on the 17th floor, open to the sky and the ocean, and the resort’s private beach, well-equipped with complimentary umbrellas, cabanas and chaise lounges. Other highlights include wines by the glass at Vinoteca wine bar, dim-sum at The One Chinese Restaurant, and watching the chef prepare your dinner at Open Kitchen. After dinner, feel the sand between your toes at the breezy thatched-roof Beach Bar — you’ll have to remind yourself you’re still in China.