Hong Kong and Macau - Hotel Recommendation - Sheraton vs W vs Intercontinental

Hello all,

Just looking for a recommendation from all of the experts here in this forum that have stayed at one or more of these hotels!

I'll be here on part of my honeymoon in August (for two nights in HK) and would like to book the 'nicest' (subjective obviously) room with Harbour views...that is the most important aspect of the booking.

So, I've got:
Sheraton Towers (with the view): HK$1572/night
W: ~HK$2500/night
Intercontinental: HK$2317/night

A few things to consider...I'm a SPG Gold (PLT last year, so I'm not expecting any sort of upgrade) and an IC nothing (I've actually never stayed at one before).

My fiancee and I have been to Hong Kong twice before and had great times staying in Kowloon (just in Metropark hotels though) but would like a view for the honeymoon. We ate at Spoon last time we were there and thought the view from the ground floor of the IC was amazing - are the room views like that as well?!?

Thanks for any tips - I really appreciate everything :)

-jeremy

I always say this, but I just love the Peninsula. It is truely a special place for me.

Pen costs HKD 3600 and up (circa HKD 8000 for the nicer suites that are worth getting) so it is a different price point. Of course it is nicer! As you might expect from one of the 10 best hotels in the world.

The Sheraton Towers is actually quite good -- much nicer than the Sheraton part of the same building (and run mostly like a separate hotel). Not really much to upgrade to in the Towers, except the view. At the pricing you quote it is the clear winner -- by far. I used to alternate stays between the Pen and the Towers, finding it to be that good (price/performance).

Staying on the Island is a big mistake for a tourist. It is great for business, but as a tourist staying in Kowloon is far better. You chose well in what hotels to consider and I think the Towers will suit you. Don't forget to make use of the most excellent Towers concierges, who can arrange anything for you. Very useful in Hong Kong and they are better connected than most other hotel concierges.

The fact that you will be on your Honeymoon can be helpful. Each hotel might go a long way to give you a good room if you approach them in advance (esp. as SPG Plat).

AFAIK the IC (espl the renovated suites) are considered the most spectacular harbour view. But they usually come at a price higher than the one you mentiond. Maybe a purpose-AMB enrollment (with free BOGO cert) can help you if you book weekend nights? Actually this is one of the few hotels I never stayed. Check FT on details.

I had a not so spectacular stay at the Sheraton (w Harbor view upgrade as Plat). See the thread on the property in the *wood forum - very mixed reviews. Not sure if you want to take that risk during your honeymoon...

The W is the newest property in your list and -as per FT- as a SPG Plat you will most likely get a WOW suite facing the container harbour (ie not the HK Island view you see on ads). But the hotel is truely spectacular and very well connected to the airport (right on top of the airport express station).

Also you should be able to get a MUCH better rate at the W (even online via spg.com). I get prices around 1800++ HKD for August. Corp rate can be significantly lower. Shop around at Asiarooms or Zuji for good fares.

In any case you should contact the property in advance and notify them about the fact that you are on your honeymoon (bring marriage cert for proof as HK hotels have a history of checking everything - today they are more desparate though).

Have a good stay in one of the greatest cities in Asia!

Depending on your intention there, feel free to contact me via PM for some tourist/restaurant advise.

Have a great trip!

Ham

I have to disagree that staying on the HK island side is undesirable for tourists.

It depends on your travel budget, the Pen is the best. On the other hand, if staying in the cheapest room at the Pen, I'd rather stay at the best room at a one notch lower grade hotel.

I consider the location of the new W to be a little out of the way for tourists.

Caution there are 2 IHC in HK. Make sure that it's the one at 18 Salisbury Road and not the one on Mody Road.

Conrad on Hong Kong has superb harbor views. It is a lovely hotel in a good location for tourism.

Conrad on Hong Kong has superb harbor views. It is a lovely hotel in a good location for tourism.

Yes and the Island Shangri-la is equally nice. Both attached to the Pacific Place.

Have dinner at Petrus at the Island Shangri-la, excellent French cuisine, service and magnificent harbour view.

Conrad on Hong Kong has superb harbor views. It is a lovely hotel in a good location for tourism.

The harbor views are superb ... but only from the top few floors of the hotel. From the first dozen or so floors, you'll be craning your neck to see the harbor between several other buildings that block the view.

wideman, were you the one who wrote the top 10 things to do while staying at the Conrad Hong Kong? It's one of my favorite posts ever. I can't find it. Is it still somewhere on FT?

The Sheraton is a crummy hotel; the Sheraton Towers is an excellent hotel. Never the twain shall meet.

The IC Honk Kong is the former Regent. Fallen from its past glory (as one of the finest hotels in the world) but still excellent. The IC Stamford is also in Kowloon and should be avoided at all costs. Don't confuse these 2 hotels!!!!

The island is more English while Kowloon is more chinese. For a tourist the chinese part is more interesting, plus you get a view of the island (which looks much nicer than the view of kowloon from the island). Most of the better hotels are on the island, along with the expensive restaurants, bars and shopping. The cheap versions of these are in Kowloon. Much more interesting to a tourist, cheaper and more exotic. But the 2 are minutes apart, so doesn't really matter where you stay.

Some hotels have special honeymoon packages that are quite lucrative. Might be worth checking that out in the equation. Langham does, for example, and I bet Langham Place would be the most lavish for your dollar (but the location is a bit edgy for a new bride unless she wants red ropes from the ceiling).

wideman, were you the one who wrote the top 10 things to do while staying at the Conrad Hong Kong? It's one of my favorite posts ever. I can't find it. Is it still somewhere on FT?

Thank you, SD1k, I did indeed write that post. I couldn't find it directly through FT (I have no idea which forum it's in now), but I got there through Google:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/1231571-post74.html

Thank you ALL for your recommendations on a hotel...

I might consider a hotel on the island side, but as a tourist, most of what we'll be doing will be on the peninsula and I really want to get a good view OF the island :)

The exact dates we'll be there are 26-28 August, so you can see the prices for those dates, but the Sheraton Towers still looks the cheapest to me - at least from the individual hotel websites. That said, on SPG.com, how would I know that my room would be in the Tower? The rate that I saw (with a view) listed: ' Harbor View Non-smoking, High-speed Internet For A Fee, Coffee/tea Maker, Ergonomic Chair/large Desk, Massage Shower Head ' - is that a room in the Towers?

Any other advice (or if I'm missing any hotels) would be appreciated...plus I'll probably come back with advice on restaurants, but since we've been to HK twice before, we've done the typical places: City Hall Maxim's Palace, Luk Yu, M on the Fringe, Spoon, Tea at the Pen...

Thanks again to everyone - just reading all this makes me want to get back to Hong Kong even more quickly :D

-jeremy

..., how would I know that my room would be in the Tower? The rate that I saw (with a view) listed: ' Harbor View Non-smoking, High-speed Internet For A Fee, Coffee/tea Maker, Ergonomic Chair/large Desk, Massage Shower Head ' - is that a room in the Towers?...They cleverly put the word "Tower" in the room name. Your cited room is NOT a Tower room (and is the crummy one, even the harbor view is not guaranteed to be from a high floor). You really want Tower room (or stay somewhere else!).

Tower is often priced at double the Sheraton price, fwiw (varies greatly by date).

They cleverly put the word "Tower" in the room name. Your cited room is NOT a Tower room (and is the crummy one, even the harbor view is not guaranteed to be from a high floor). You really want Tower room (or stay somewhere else!).

Tower is often priced at double the Sheraton price, fwiw (varies greatly by date).

Great to know - I saw only one room with the title 'Tower' in the description, yet it didn't have anything at all about harbour views...

Do all of the rooms in the Tower have harbour views - or only some of them?

Thanks again,
jeremy

Just thought to add, as an SPG Plat, you can often score a suite at the Sheraton. They may try to persuade you to take a Harbour View room first but hold your ground and say you prefer a suite. The Plat upgraded suites have a partial (and I really mean partial) ocean view but the size of the suite more than makes up for it.

While not on your list, there is the LM. As a Plat, you can often score a room with a spectacular 180 degree harbour view. The bennies for Plats are first rate (free hotel breakfast buffet, unlimited drinks from a special selection at the lounge, and some dry cleaning/% off restos. The only downside is the location, but nothing short $10 cab rides can't fix.

Great to know - I saw only one room with the title 'Tower' in the description, yet it didn't have anything at all about harbour views...

Do all of the rooms in the Tower have harbour views - or only some of them?
About half the Tower rooms have harbour view (the rest are on the side of the building, so have a partial view but aren't sold as such). Normally there is about 20% rate premium for harbour view (free upgrade as a Plat but not for Gold). If no rate is listed it may be sold out. You can try contacting the hotel directly.

Fwiw, the Tower lounge has a fine harbour view, so you can see the harbour any time you want, just not from your room. I've only had harbour view rooms, anywhere in hong kong, as I enjoy the view but it comes at significant cost.

If you want the view, choose the IC. It’s worth spending the money for a few nights. Take the cheapest harbour view room (or better if you want spend it). I know that you do not have any status with IC, but in this hotel it does not really matter anyway. They are notoriously stingy with benefits for Priority Club members.

Top location (with the view), top service and very nicely decorated rooms.

And yes, enrol in Ambassador. Pay 150US$ and get one night free (if you plan on staying there during a weekend).

Conrad on Hong Kong has superb harbor views. It is a lovely hotel in a good location for tourism.

Yes, it does, but it cannot match the Sheraton Towers, the IC or the Penn for Harbour and skyline views.

About half the Tower rooms have harbour view (the rest are on the side of the building, so have a partial view but aren't sold as such). Normally there is about 20% rate premium for harbour view (free upgrade as a Plat but not for Gold). If no rate is listed it may be sold out. You can try contacting the hotel directly.

Fwiw, the Tower lounge has a fine harbour view, so you can see the harbour any time you want, just not from your room. I've only had harbour view rooms, anywhere in hong kong, as I enjoy the view but it comes at significant cost.

I often have trouble finding a Towers Harbour View Room on SPG.com, but the Platinum concierge has never failed to get me one.

Just thought to add, as an SPG Plat, you can often score a suite at the Sheraton. They may try to persuade you to take a Harbour View room first but hold your ground and say you prefer a suite. The Plat upgraded suites have a partial (and I really mean partial) ocean view but the size of the suite more than makes up for it.


I personally prefer the Harbour View Room to the suites. In fact, I always put this in the notes section of my reservation.

The Sheraton rooms are small sized (rooms are the same size regardless of whether they are in the Towers or the regular section), but they use the space quite nicely and I really, really like the double shower heads that they have.

W Hotel everytime! Their pool is the highest in HK so has amazing views. If you've stayed on Kowloon side before you might also like it because it offers a slightly different perspective due to it's location. I reviewed it a while ago (here (http://blog.iloho.com/older/2008/11/6/w_hotel_brings_nontraditional_luxury/)) if you want more details. The restaurants are great, esp. Kitchen, and well, don't need to say anything about Bliss Spa!

another one for the W - got the WOW suites and can definately say the rooms and overall hotel are fantastic! stayed there in dec 08

I don't see Grand Hyatt mentioned here - how does it compare locationwise and overall to W, IC Conrad etc?

Just got back from a stay at W, and it is great. Incredible pool and very fun vibe. The Kate Bliss amentities are really nice too.

Stayed at the IC (harbor view) a few years ago, and I think that hotel has the best, most unobstructed views of HK Island.

Stayed at the W in April. Fantastic hotel. As a SPG Gold, I always seem to get modest upgrades at W Hotels, usually to a higher floor / better view, but sometimes to a bigger room. At W HK I was on a fairly low floor but had a partial harbor view. Most of the view to the Island was blocked by the ICC tower. I imagine most if not all of the rooms at the W are like this?

I found the location of the W fine. Obviously very easy access from the airport. Easy MTR (subway) access into Central, and also to Disneyland or the Ngong Ping Cable Car, if either interest you. Getting to TST/Nathan Rd. is probably a bit more tricky. I think the hotel runs a shuttle or I imagine the taxi ride isn't that expensive.

Stayed at the IC (harbor view) a few years ago, and I think that hotel has the best, most unobstructed views of HK Island.

Stayed at the W in April. Fantastic hotel. As a SPG Gold, I always seem to get modest upgrades at W Hotels, usually to a higher floor / better view, but sometimes to a bigger room. At W HK I was on a fairly low floor but had a partial harbor view. Most of the view to the Island was blocked by the ICC tower. I imagine most if not all of the rooms at the W are like this?

I found the location of the W fine. Obviously very easy access from the airport. Easy MTR (subway) access into Central, and also to Disneyland or the Ngong Ping Cable Car, if either interest you. Getting to TST/Nathan Rd. is probably a bit more tricky. I think the hotel runs a shuttle or I imagine the taxi ride isn't that expensive.

Thanks for the tips - these are all good...and I believe I'm going to go with the IC - primarily for the views.

I'm only a SPG Gold now, so I won't count on any amazing upgrades, and I do like the vibe of Ws, but the location and the lack of a pure front view of the island irks me a bit. Most of our trip will probably be centred around TST and the markets off on the sides of Nathan with the occasional trip across to Central and up to Mid-Levels. I was thinking about going to DisneyLand, but I'll avoid that this trip and Ngong Ping 360 would be nice, but we did the Buddha via the bus (360 was being tested) the first time we were there...so I'm thinking about a trip to the New Territories (never been up there before).

In addition, we did Spoon last time, and haven't ever seen the nightly light show...plus the price for Omakase at Nobu seems great (compared to New York/London prices), and all three of those favour the IC.

Thanks again for all the input - just reading these is already making me excited to go back to HK!

-jeremy

If you want the view, choose the IC. It’s worth spending the money for a few nights. Take the cheapest harbour view room (or better if you want spend it). I know that you do not have any status with IC, but in this hotel it does not really matter anyway. They are notoriously stingy with benefits for Priority Club members.

Top location (with the view), top service and very nicely decorated rooms.

And yes, enrol in Ambassador. Pay 150US$ and get one night free (if you plan on staying there during a weekend).

+1

... Getting to TST/Nathan Rd. is probably a bit more tricky. I think the hotel runs a shuttle or I imagine the taxi ride isn't that expensive.Taxi costs USD 2 or maybe 3 at most. A bit different from US prices.