HKTraveler

Yes, there are still apartments across from Upper House

ngfan

That isn't a bad start to begin with I guess, seems I hit a nerve here

Not everything about Aman is the quality of the furnishings. It is part of the experience, but only one of many elements that make an Aman stay very special.

As I mentioned, the looks of UH feels like an Aman to me. It's clean design, colors and style reminds me of some of the Aman or former GHM properties (i.e. Amanyara, the former New Delhi property, Amangiri, The Setai Miami, even Amanjiwo).

Only after a third look, Aman furnishing quality seems to be a notch above UH's and it is undisputed, that all Amans take excellent care of keeping their stuff in mint condition. That said, if you look as very pedantic as Al Baker of Qatar Airways does before taking delivery of his aircrafts even at (some older) Amans you can always find minor shortcomings in furniture wear and tear, not that I find them noteworthy at all. At UH I never got the impression of cheap/fake furniture material which I got at first sight at many other modern boutique properties around the globe.

Honestly yes.

To start with, there are some beautiful restrooms as part of the garden area and located in the sand-colored block and clearly marked as such (photo evidence can be provided). So no need to go up to the 49th floor at all, although those restrooms up there are stunning and only an elevator ride away: Great design, butler service and a view to die for. Rarely do I have such remarkable loo experiences elsewhere...

The experience at restaurant Café Grey Deluxe was outstanding all around. Had CNY fireworks menu. Got a beautiful table on the window overlooking the harbour and the fireworks, absolutely breathtaking. The food and drinks were outstanding, the presentation, quality of products, ingredients, taste, temperature, texture, variety and creativity, top notch. The service was very efficient HK-style, yet friendly and always on the ball although the place was packed, another very good element of the restaurant.

Breakfast the next morning, same table and one of the best a la carte breakfasts I ever had. Even here, it can be compared with the best Amans foodwise and UH doesn't have to hide. I have rarely seen such a great variety of breakfast dishes, quite creative but not too experimental. Again, the presentations, quality and taste were extraordinary, the service very good.

The only gripe I had there was the low aircon temperature at the window seats but that seems to have been a HK specific for decades. After complaining during dinner, they increased the temperature a little bit and quickly served a warm tea to bridge the gap until the change took effect ^ Otherwise the restaurant was a formidable experience throughout.

UH felt very intimate, well run with personal service, top-notch food, great amenities, beautiful design, exquisite in-room checkin, a correct check balance and the fastest check-out I ever had, excellent views from my Studio 80 room. Certainly one of the best city hotel stays I ever had and I would return without a glimpse of hesitation.

Vuittons, maybe it is time for a revisit...

Yes, the view from our table at Café Grey Deluxe was outstanding. A marvelous show ^

chinmoylad

Cafe Gray Deluxe has been a mixed bag for me. I've been four times now, as follows:
- Breakfast: horrible (can't agree with you at all there ngfan. All I wanted was a very simple breakfast. They couldn't even get their eggs and sausages right. Considering they - both UH and many Amans - only have the one restaurant, I know I'd rather eat at any Aman restaurant any time)
- Lunch: Ok
- Tea: Very good, especially for the price (HK$378 for 2, or thereabouts, plus 10%)
- Dinner: Fair

I find Cafe Gray tries to be too fancy and creative at times, which, in a city like Hong Kong, is understandable. But it only works when you get it spot on - e.g. like at the Mandarin Grill.

Otherwise, keep it nice and simple.

LAXJetter

I stayed in an Upper Suite last month on a stopover from Japan...I found service to be very friendly and personal, if not a wee-bit informal.

We had a car to pick us up from the airport and on arrival, we were taken promptly to our room for check-in. Very seamless and smooth.

Aesthetics for me felt a bit off. I know people rave about the design but something about the place felt cheap. Cheap design-y vs quality design-y. For comparison, just got back from the PuLi in Shanghai, which was a much more aesthetically clean design in my opinion

REN toiletries were a nice break from the overly-perfumed stuff in Japan.

Gifts were plentiful , though the cookies they gave us were slightly stale. The candle we were given is however on a bookshelf in my apartment.

Cafe Grey for breakfast was so-so. Included in the rate so its hard to knock too much..

The guest experience manager emailed us after the trip, addressing both myself and my travel companion by name (taken from her passport no doubt) asking about our stay, saying one day is hardly enough to see all of HK and welcoming us back anytime.

Overall, a pleasant stay but I wouldnt classify this as the creme de la creme.

elg26

If everything was equal and you had 2 nights in Hong Kong: Conrad Hong Kong or Grand Hyatt Hong Kong?

Note: For GH I would be able to upgrade to the "Grand Suite" using points.... downside is that the Lounge will be under construction throughout 2015 and is being moved to the 5th floor.

chinmoylad

The Conrad, it's a solid hotel and its in a good enough location.

Grand Hyatt is not in a good location (unless you have work at the Convention and Exhibition Centre), and I recently went there for a site-visit. The rooms have that very cheap transparent bathroom design (think USD80/night business hotels in China/Bangkok).

Food at both is average, but at the Conrad you have more options in the vicinity.

moondog

I would say the opposite wrt location. To me, Admiralty is sterile while wanchai is not. Also a much better pool at the GH.

offerendum

Just back from FS Hong Kong and I´m very satisfied. Will post a review soon

elg26

Forgetting about location and pool for a sec....who would you say has the nice property/rooms between the Conrad and GH?

JohnRain

Great! Can't wait for your review...

grumbler

Totally personal preference, but I would say Conrad.

As an aside, and not that I think it is a bad place, but I have never understood what all the fuss is about the Upper House when there are so many other top tier places in HK.

bhrubin

Having just been to the Upper House for our first time a year ago, I get what the fuss is about. It's the most Aman-like urban hotel of any urban hotel at which we've ever stayed (and that includes the Aman Summer Palace in Beijing!). It not only has amazing rooms and design, but it also has that tremendous service and also exudes that sense of tranquility and place that Aman is so famous for--and it's not an Aman. If you don't care about a pool, to me the Upper House is the best or among the best 2-3 hotels in the city.

We dined at the FS (Lung King Heen) and Landmark MO (Amber) while at the Upper House, and explored both hotels in Central, as well as exploring the RC, Pen, W, and IC on the Kowloon side. We saw rooms/suites at all of them, and got a sense of them all. For us, the Upper House was still our favorite--but to some the Kowloon side may be more preferable for different reasons.

The FS was quite large, and it felt quite large. Its views generally are better than the UH unless you are in one of the Upper Suites/Penthouses on the higher floors, but the UH service was better and more consistent. I understand why people like the FS, though--though I imagine few FS guests have bothered to visit the UH and compare them. The FS does have a pool, of course, and the UH does not. The FS also has great restaurants, but it was a 10 min drive from the UH to dine there. The rooms at the FS just didn't wow us beyond the views…while the UH had much better rooms IMO.

The LMO was lovely, but had no views at all it seemed. Its dining was great (Amber was tremendously good), and its service was very good, even a bit better than the FS. Its rooms were nice and spacious, and we liked their design.
For the price, though, the UH was an obvious winner.

On the Kowloon side, we did love the Pen and surprisingly the IC. The Pen feels grand and felt like it catered more to the business traveler than a holiday guest…especially compared to the Pen in Shanghai (which we loved). Its service was tremendous--equal to the UH. Its suites and rooms were also beautiful, much nicer IMO than the FS, and most seemed to have nice views onto Central.

The IC was more dated but its views were incredible, as was its service and dining. For the price, this was the clear winner out of all of them that we visited.

The RC we didn't like. It had amazing views being so tall, but it was out of the way and it felt more feminine and with oddly laid out room configurations--exactly our same way we felt about the RC in Shanghai, coincidentally. Service was good, and it is a beautiful hotel…but it just didn't connect for us.

The W isn't a luxury hotel in the same class as any of these others. No surprise there. It is right next door (across the shopping mall) to the RC, though.

All in all, I'll take the UH over all of them. If I had to have a pool, I'd consider the Pen, FS, and IC. If I wanted to be on Kowloon, it'd be the Pen or IC depending on what I want to pay. If money were a big factor, I'd choose the IC.

JohnRain

I find it quite fascinating that there seems to be a consensus on most if not all high-end properties in HKG except for the UH. The views expressed in this thread vary by quite a wide margin, which is rather confusing. The fact that the property is ranked #1 (of all HKG hotels) on Tripadvisor should tip the balance in the positive direction though...

bhrubin

I actually don't think that a #1 rating on Tripadvisor in and of itself tips in favor of the UH…though I do generally believe that high ratings on Tripadvisor for very expensive properties for entry room types DOES suggest that the property is extremely good. High ratings on Tripadvisor for cheaper properties are usually not very indicative of quality as much as of being cheap enough and good enough to please the masses. The UH being so highly rated there and being an expensive property clearly not for the masses is what is cogent here, IMO.

I do believe that most people who downplay the UH have never been there…or prefer a pool, so would never bother to visit. I believe others simply dismiss it since it IS #1 on Tripadvisor and simply make the mistaken assumption that such a lofty rating on that site must indicate it is not worthy to be truly considered a luxury property. Still others visit the UH Cafe Gray's bar and draw conclusions about the clientele that are false. Still others assume falsely that with a FS, Pen, RC, and 2 MO properties, it is not possible that such a boutique hotel as the UH could possibly compete--and they would be wrong.

Few people I know who have visited and experienced the UH as well as several of the other luxury properties of HKG downplay the UH.

The funny thing is that even though I loved the UH and would stay there again, I don't downplay the Pen, FS, MOs, RC, or IC. They all are amazing hotels in their own right. I find each to have its own strengths and weaknesses, just as I do the UH. I don't care for spas, and I normally visit cities when it isn't too hot, so the lack of pool and spa isn't an issue for me. But it is for others. Still, that doesn't discount for me the UH's amazing service level and incredible design and spacious rooms/suites and (sometimes) views. Everyone has their priorities, and for me the UH is nearly perfect.

moondog

It's rare to find a #1 TA hotel in any major city in which management isn't intimately familiar with how TA ratings work. I'm by no means alleging fraud of any sort. It's just that more famous properties often don't care about TA.