Former Site of Dakuo Hotel

The former site of Dakuo Hotel

The former site of Dakuo Hotel is a cultural relic protection unit of Tianjin.

The former site of Dakuo Hotel is located at No. 15 Zhejiang Road, Heping District. It is a cultural relic protection unit of Tianjin and classified as a historically significant building under key municipal protection.

The hotel was originally located on Race Course Road in the British Concession (now Zhejiang Road). The first-generation Dakuo Hotel was built by an Irish couple but was later destroyed in a major fire. In 1931, Jewish businessman Cui Bofu funded the demolition of part of the hotel and added several more floors on that foundation, repurposing the building as the States Hotel. The structure features a brick-concrete composite construction, with a linear floor plan and curved corners. Its architectural style reflects the influence of modernist trends, emphasizing functional simplicity and clean form, characteristic of modernism.

The building has a long, linear floor plan with curved corners and includes a five-story tower section in certain parts. The original exterior facade featured concrete and red brick detailing, later covered by paint; currently, the outer walls are rendered, with some sections preserving the original exposed red brick. The building also features decorative floral motifs on the walls between select windows. The first-floor lobby is adorned with ten concrete columns topped with simplified Doric capitals, and the floor is finished with wood paneling and wooden flooring. The guest rooms were luxuriously decorated, with some featuring wooden wainscoting and fireplaces. The building’s design was influenced by modern architectural trends, emphasizing function and simple form, reflecting characteristics of modernist architecture. In 2008, the Dakuo Hotel underwent renovation. The layers of paint from different periods on the exterior walls were removed to restore the historical appearance of the building façade. Major decorative elements on the outer walls and roof were also repaired.

The Dakuo Hotel also stands as one of the testimonies to the development of the foreign community in Tianjin.

Further Reading:

· Fourth Batch of Cultural Relic Protection Units in Tianjin