I started planning this stay several months before we were due to arrive in Hong Kong. We ended up staying 4 nights, 2 nights on rewards and then 2 nights using an ambassador BOGO.
I read up on the other reports on this forum and worked out that to get a full harbour view room I needed to book same. The ambassador upgrade is then to an executive harbour view room. When I first booked they had club rooms on the BOGO rate but when I changed my dates they only had ordinary rooms. You can purchase club access with any room and there do not appear to be club floors or club rooms.
Check In
I decided to make use of the airport pickup service. I know it is fairly easy to get from HKIA to your hotel but I knew we would be tired and that we would, despite my best efforts, be carrying way too much luggage to be taking any form of public transport. The pick up service was very efficient. A staff member was waiting after we cleared customs and collected our bags and directed us to the limousine lounge. We waited for a few minutes there until our car was ready. The car was a mercedes s class. The driver was talkable but not overly so. It was a pleasant ride. I thought it was good value for the $HKD 660 (incl tax) price.
On arrival we were taken straight to the club lounge for check in. The features of the club were explained. Check in was quick and soon we were on our way to our room.
The room
There aren't a lot of options for upgrades at this hotel because of the limited number of room types. We had booked a harbour view room which upgrades to an executive harbour view room. You can't actually book an executive harbour view room so you could possibly argue that this isn't a real upgrade. An executive harbour view room is numbered xx35 and it appears that these rooms only exist on floors where there isn't a corner suite.
The executive harbour view room is on the corner closest to central HK and is larger than standard harbour view rooms. I found the room size sufficient so I would say the standard harbour view rooms could be a bit cozy. So, on the basis that it was bigger than the other rooms and on the corner with a full harbour view I was satisfied with the upgrade. Of course, I was also satisfied that I was allowed to keep this room, without surcharge, on the reward nights. I note the other IC charges $HKD 1000 for this privilege making it uneconomical to redeem points for stays.
The style of the room is old world but comfortable. It actually reminded me a little of the styling of the Singapore IC – slightly colonial, light neutral colours with period details. This kind of style doesn't worry me at all so I was happy with the room. The rooms have undergone an update of sorts with a flat screen TV superimposed over the mirror in front of the bed. The carpet looked reasonably new and the bathroom was in good shape. The bed was very comfortable and the pillow menu was a good touch.
From our room we had a full view of Hong Kong Island and the harbour. Admittedly it was not a view of central and you couldn't see the light show. There was also a shipping terminal in front of the hotel which appeared to be a depot for collecting trash of some sorts. I was happy with the view but the view from the other IC would be better as it is right on the water and overlooks central HK. That being said I did enjoy sitting in front of the window and looking out on the harbour and seeing all the ships coming and going.
Club Lounge
We spent a lot of time in the lounge and found it to be excellent value for $HKD 660/day (incl tax). With lounge access you get free wired and wireless in room internet access as well as access in the lounge. (why don't all ICs give in room internet with club access?) They also serve excellent food and drinks at the designated times. The service was, overall, excellent with staff very attentive and eager to serve.
I take breakfast very seriously so it takes a lot to make me happy. There was the usual spread of hot and cold items here but the made to order menu really made the difference. Staff would take your order from the table for hot sweet or savoury items. The french toast was excellent. The eggs as you like them were also served nicely. They had a range of fresh juices with a juice of the day that changed daily. This juice of the day wasn't always great but the apple, star fruit and mint combination was a winner in my view.
The afternoon tea was perhaps the least impressive of their food offerings but was still good. The food was good quality but did not change from day to day. They always offered small sandwiches, with tasty fillings, scones and a cake.
The evening cocktail hour offered a great variety of food and drinks. There were several hot and cold items which changed daily as well as the standard cheeses, antipasto and cold cuts. Staff made up cocktails on request and would make things not on the menu. They took the cocktail making quite seriously and had all their drinks set out on one of the buffet tables so you could see the drinks being made.
The lounge was a comfortable and well designed environment. It overlooked the harbour, and the flyover in front of the hotel. While we were there it was fairly quiet and we never had trouble getting a window seat. It was more lively during the week than on the weekends. The clientele in the lounge was predominantly business types. Occasionally I found the loud voices and arrogance of these business types to be annoying but I was usually able to block them out.
Overall, the club staff provided a great service and were always eager to serve you more drinks or to help with other queries. On some occasions I thought some of the staff were overly familiar with some customers and forgot the need to maintain professional boundaries. It was obvious, though, that some of the guests were repeat customers and visited the hotel on a regular basis so perhaps they had merely developed a good relationship over time.
Location
We preferred the Kowloon side location of this hotel. A short visit to HK Island one day confirmed that we preferred the Kowloon side. The Grand Stanford isn't too far from the MTR and in the mild winter weather I was happy to walk most places. In summer you might prefer a closer location such as the other IC. We walked to the Tsim Sha Tsui MTR station a few times when we needed to go to other suburbs and it was very efficient although the stations are much larger than I'm used to. The star ferry is a good 10 minute walk.
Summary
We enjoyed our stay at the Grand Stanford and would definitely return. It was fairly relaxed and low key. It is not as sumptuous as the other IC but then the prices reflect that difference.
If my stay was all paid nights, or a BOGO, I would try the other IC just to see what it is like. But if you're combining rewards and paid nights then the Grand Stanford gives you better value.
Note from Modeator:
Older post prior to this post could be found in the archive thread of this property:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/inter...an-2011-a.html
Thank you
FLYGVA
Moderator IHG Forum