Cheetah_SA

I wrote up my trip report as promised but it turned out very long and verbose. I intended to edit it down but haven't gotten around to it so here, with apologies, is the full length version.

Arrival
I elected to take the hotel transfer from PEK as we were 3 people with luggage and I felt like starting the stay in style. This included meet & greet at the arrival gate (rather superfluous for a domestic flight) by a friendly and efficient young lady. She led us through baggage retrieval and over the road to the garage where she handed us over to our driver and his (clean, but very ordinary at the price) van. He barely acknowledged our presence, certainly no greeting, and half-heartedly assisted with the luggage before driving us so the hotel. Definitely not worth the money and we used taxis on the way back.

At the hotel bellmen were at the ready to greet us and whisk away our luggage and a contingent of reception staff introduced themselves and 2 charming young ladies led us up to our rooms confirming on the way that we were in a 1 BR suite with connecting king room. Check-in formalities were completed in-suite with a minimum of fuss. (One interesting oddity: our friend occupying the 2nd room was given a Fairmont PC application form to sign – they filled in the rest from her check-in details. Perhaps this was to ensure she got the benefits like free internet access? If so, very thoughtful.) Then we were given the tour of the rooms and their features.

Rooms
Wow! The rooms are truly amazing. The 1BR suite has a very spacious living room with guest loo. Then behind double sliding doors, a good sized bedroom (with chaise longue at the window), a huge bathroom, separate vanity area and a capacious walk-in closet/luggage room. The King room has just the bedroom and bathroom and felt smaller than its advertised size of 45sq.m. (perhaps because the bathroom takes up much of the area?) and didn’t have a convenient luggage storage space. In our case it was the perfect adjunct to the very spacious suite for accommodating a 3rd person.

Décor is tasteful (i.e. accords with my taste!) with subtle but satisfying oriental touches and a judicious mix of colours, textures and patterns that succeed in harmonising into a warm and luxurious ambience. The web site pictures give a pretty accurate idea of the décor but in my memory the feel was a little more upbeat than shown. I found the art works interesting yet not obtrusive.

Fittings are of the highest calibre and, of course, brand new. Lighting is well considered and there are convenient switches for full lights or “relax” (subdued lighting) setting in all areas. There is a bedside console for controlling the lights and the electric curtains. Huge, flat screen TVs in the living room and bedrooms and a smaller one above the bath. There is a Bose music system (I didn’t use it) and plenty of phones around.

All toilets are of the Japanese “washlet” variety and the one in the main bathroom is particularly grand – to the extent of automatically opening the lid when you enter and then closing it when leave! Showers are huge and have a built in shelf/seat. There is a lovely big bath (with head pillow) and double vanities with lots of space for your unguents and potions. Bathroom toiletries are by Miller Harris and of the “1888” variety. (Can’t say they excited me.)

The bed was very comfortable with decent light for reading and the linens were of excellent quality. Furniture was also comfortable and practical and mainly of conservative design but enlivened by touches like the brighter silk cushions and curtains. I really loved the coffee table. There are tea making facilities and a Nespresso machine. Mini bar seemed adequate if not exactly inspired.

All in all the rooms are terrific. Are they perfect? Well, I had some, rather minor, quibbles:
The bathroom TV hangs over the bath but is not viewable when soaking because the angle has not been adjusted downward and the picture is hopeless when viewing the screen obliquely.
The brand new gold basin taps have been scoured by some overzealous housekeeper and are now (irremediably?) scratched.
Our friend in the king room was woken one night by her neighbour’s loud TV. Not sure if this is a symptom of a noise insulation problem or if the neighbour was just being egregiously loud.
The lighting control panel next to the bed is so bright that at night I had to cover it with a cloth to prevent it from keeping me awake.

Perhaps it has a setting I never found. This is true for a lot of the electronics: if you’re only going to be in a room for a few days you don’t want to have to spend half a day working out how to get the telephone off speakerphone mode, or how to control one light individually or how to work the second type of phone when you’ve barely mastered the first. I also had a problem connecting to the internet because the instructions were not accurate. Phone assistance did not help and I had to get someone in before it was resolved.

Gold lounge
The lounge itself is a lovely space with a very high ceiling for the most part and a smaller, cosier “library” leg and TV nook. Although it occupies a lofty spot on the 20th floor (above the “bridge” that connects the hotel with its sister building over the road) the view is not a feature since it is largely obstructed by huge X-shaped structural supports. So sheer honey-coloured curtains are used to soften the effect. That does not prevent it getting good light and it is particularly attractive in the afternoons with filtered sunlight filling the room. The furniture is lovely with very attractive chairs and sofas around coffee tables and also restaurant-style tables and chairs. Once again the décor scheme has been very successfully executed and the result is a very pleasing space for the most part. My one reservation is that the layout seems a bit unwelcoming: the entrance is awkwardly circuitous and narrow and on first entering you are thrust into an unwelcoming, largely unfurnished space. (Did they skimp on the feng shui advice?) There are 2 computers in individual glass alcoves for guest use. (Loved the use of the glass with silk laminated into it to separate the cubicles.)

We spent a fair amount of time here over 5 days and experienced all their offerings (breakfast, tea, cocktails and desserts) at least once. Breakfasts were very good with plenty on the buffet including Chinese and western fare and eggs to order. The other offerings were adequate but not wildly inspired and were pretty much identical from day to day. Buffet presentation is very elegant. Cocktails included premium spirits and very acceptable (Australian) wines. Generally it was very quiet when we were there and I can understand that it is a challenge to offer a great deal of variety for only a handful of guests and they must have a great deal of wastage. But I still didn’t feel this was quite up to the standards of the rest of the hotel. (By contrast on the same trip I used the Club lounge at the IC Hong Kong and their F&B offerings were far superior.)

Service was disappointingly inconsistent and veered from highly personable and efficient (bouquets for Barbara) to tentative and inept. Most staff made every effort to address us by our names at all times. Much as that is appreciated it is more important that they not have lapses that would embarrass a waiter in the lowliest restaurant. Some staff were on top of their game and even proactive (cream requested today led to cream offered tomorrow). Others were barely coping: forgetting parts of orders, leaving them to get cold in the kitchen, never heard of poached eggs (others even knew to ask how you wanted them and the kitchen always did them perfectly). There was also inconsistency in what was produced: a latte macchiato from one server was totally different from another. Sometimes wine bottles were allowed to stand empty and only replenished on request.

One quite avoidable annoyance was staff clattering around the quiet lounge's hardwood floors on noisy high heels, thoughtlessly and needlessly destroying the wonderfully calm ambience. So despite great willingness there was too often an inability to see the world from the guests’ point of view and then translate this into top notch service.

Public areas
The lobby is large and imposing with floors and walls clad in warm, caramel-coloured marble. The very high ceiling is dominated by a gigantic sculpture that consists of a school of glass fish the colour of burnt sugar coiled into a swirling dragon-like shape. More glass, this time multiple coloured spheres, decorates a vast screen behind the concierge desk. And visible on high on either side are the numerous glass lantern shapes that decorate the ceilings of the upstairs bar and private dining room. The lobby is not a place to linger, however: the concierge and reception desks face each other austerely across a vast expanse of warm brown marble floor. This is furnished only with two areas of carpet each hosting two pairs of formal armchairs that feel uncomfortably exposed.

Also on this level is the lobby café which succeeds in having an entirely different personality despite being separated only by a few steps and an open wooden lattice screen. This space is friendly and welcoming and has as a centre piece a huge, whimsical white ceramic teapot completely covered in large ceramic flower rosettes.

On the mezzanine level are the Champagne Bar and the private dining room whose glass ceiling adornments can be glimpsed from below. These comprise numerous, tasselled, pale amber-coloured, blown glass lantern shapes and form the most striking feature of both rooms - which regard each other across the airy expanse of the lobby below and through the fish/dragon sculpture. As well as decorating the rooms they exquisitely soften and enhance the lighting. The dining room has a majestic table that seats 24 and is magnificently appointed in an impressive, rather masculine, style.

Between the two is The CUT restaurant. I only saw it empty but found it breathtaking. Quite why I find surprisingly hard to explain - I can only talk in abstracts about the elegance of the space and all its fittings and furnishings; about a sense of proportion and a sleek modernity that effortlessly embraces luxury. The space is both cool and warm and exudes a sophistication that makes you feel it will take time to appreciate the depth of its beauty. If the food is half as good as the restaurant itself it will be great. Unfortunately I didn’t ever see Lunar 8 so can’t comment on that restaurant.

The spa occupies 3 floors (with their own lift) above the Gold lounge. Behind the deceptively plain, though quietly posh (it also has silk laminated in the glass), door is a serene and gorgeous space incorporating a spacious gym with the latest equipment, a yoga studio, a large heated swimming pool, treatment rooms, sauna and no doubt several things I didn’t see. It is beautifully appointed with an especially grand passageway leading to the pool. They use products by Aromatherapy Associates and another which I cannot remember.

Food and beverage
Unfortunately apart from the Gold lounge offerings the only food I ate was a room service sandwich. It was a very good sandwich and the service was prompt and the warming trolley and linen and cutlery all exemplary. My partner was less thrilled with a very bland rice dish that had no condiments to perk it up.

Service (apart from the Gold lounge)
Whenever I called the service number I received prompt and appropriate help. When the person was unable to assist, someone was immediately despatched to attend to my problems. At all times I felt that a call would produce the desired result. Bell staff was always on duty and ready to help with luggage or securing a taxi.

We consulted the concierge occasionally and if perhaps they sometimes lacked warmth we were always helped efficiently and got good advice. In particular I am indebted for the recommendation of Room Beijing where we had two satisfying meals (it was so good we went back) in a restaurant that is at least ten times cooler than we are but still very welcoming and pays as much attention to its food as its decor.

There were minor lapses. Laundry was done as it should be – and then returned to the wrong room. I was on the verge of phoning about it when my friend came through having found it in her closet. Problems connecting to the internet resulted a chap arriving very promptly - in overalls and carrying one of those window glass holders with the suckers. Talk about a jack of all trades! In the event he was not master of the internet and after a few attempts summoned a dapper young man in a sharp suit who could speak both English and IT.

Location
We found the location very convenient for tourism. It is five minutes’ walk from the Yong An Li subway station on the number 1 line. This gives very easy access to the Forbidden City, Wangfujing, etc. Although tucked down a small street, taxis were always available to be summoned by the bell staff. There were a number of eating options nearby and even a sizeable convenience/grocery store in one of the huge LG Twin towers a few blocks away which also has a food court. (To get to the LG towers it was an experience to walk through some old, dilapidated lane housing to reach these ultra modern skyscrapers.) If you have the stomach for it the frenetic, hard-sell Silk Market is just across the main road.

Verdict
This is undoubtedly an exceptionally fine hotel. (My criticisms must be taken in the context of applying the demanding standards of top luxury hotels.) My stay was one of the highlights of my China trip and I wish I had more time to make use of the restaurants and spa. Undoubtedly it was the décor that impressed me most. While very little is flashy or ostentatious the attention to detail and harmonisation of the concepts into sophisticatedly pleasing spaces is everywhere evident. The mood is modern yet decidedly refined. Service, despite the hiccups, is very good and could be great given time and strong management.