Maelstrom

Introduction Located in Shekou district, near many headquarter buildings for various technology companies, such as Tencent and Alibaba. It is about a 15-minute walk to the nearest metro station. There are a few nearby shopping malls for food and shopping. It is about a 20-minute drive to the Shekou Ferry Terminal, for services to Hong Kong and HK airport, Macau and other Pearl River Delta destinations.The hotel lobby is on the 34th floor of the tower, with rooms up to the 45th floor, and some facilities higher up. Loyalty I booked using a Suite Night Upgrade through Accor Central Reservations, booking a Junior Suite for the price of a Deluxe Room City View (their base room). I think that the price I had to pay was actually a bit higher than what was listed on the website (but not heaps higher). I was given the option of using my SNU on either a prepaid or flexible rate – I chose the flexible rate because I wanted to burn ALL Reward Points on departure.Room upgrade – met expectations (one category to Raffles Suite) and given proactively.Drink voucher – none given, due to the closure of the bar and other dining outlets, due to the coronavirus.Welcome gift – met expectations (same as what tris06 received)Early check-in – met expectations. I arrived at 12 noon, two hours prior to check-in time. My room was ready,Late check-out – met expectations. Offered 4pm late checkout without prompt on arrival. Room Upon entering the room, a staff member was finishing up placing my welcome gift on the table. The Raffles Suite is 159 sqm, with a very large living area, bedroom, walk-through closet and two bathrooms. Our suite had a city-facing view, with partial views from the bedroom over the bay towards Hong Kong. While the hotel and room are obviously luxury, the room was not gaudy or over-the-top. The living area, which you see upon entering the room, is large, with a L-shape couch, flatscreen TV with sound system (HDMI/USB accessible!), dining table for six people and a work desk. An air purifier had been placed in the room, as per my request for a non-smoking room, for the reason of my asthma. A welcome letter had been placed on the working desk, outlining some of the measures the hotel was taking to ensure guest safety and wellbeing during the coronavirus situation. The guest bathroom was located off the living room, which had a toilet and sink. Interestingly, no towels were placed in this room – presumably an oversight on the inspection. The mini bar was complimentary, though there was no alcoholic options in it, even though the receptionist had specifically mentioned alcoholic options were also complimentary. The walk-through closet connects the living room and bedroom. In here was the safe, some (VERY comfortable) slippers, umbrella, yoga mat, ironing board and weight scale. The bedroom had a very comfortable King bed, a seat and a massage chair. The TV in this room was also USB/HDMI accessible, but did not have a sound system like the living room. There was a bedside control panel for lighting, curtain control and a power outlet. A pillow menu was located in a bedside drawer. The main bathroom was very large, with dual sinks, a very large shower and a bath with a view over the bay. The toilets were Japanese-style electric ones. Hermes toiletries are provided. Service I could not fault the service at this hotel. Prior to our stay, the Butler team reached out to us to confirm our booking, as well as confirm our room preferences, as they were written in my profile. As mentioned above, the air purifier was proactively offered, due to my non-smoking room preference. The Butler team also mentioned that, due to the special situation with the coronavirus, that most of the hotel’s outlets and facilities would be closed for our stay. This was confirmed again on check-in. The restaurant remained open for a shortened and limited breakfast, and the gym remained open.Check-in and check-out were both efficient, and there were no issues redeeming ALL Reward Points at check-out, though this obviously took a few minutes, as the redemption process is a little lengthy. No turndown service was offered, which was surprising, though I do not find this service particularly important for me. Dining A reduced breakfast was served in the restaurant from 8:30 – 10:30 and was an a-la-carte option only. The food was very good. This was, of course, complimentary for Platinum and above members. The juice was fresh-squeezed. Room service was still on offer, however there were many options unavailable. I enquired if it was possible to order Singapore Slings, with the closure of the hotel bars. Unfortunately, it was not possible, which was a shame. The room service was decent, without being fantastic. I was a little surprised at the lack of a bread basket, but I am just being picky. When the room service attendant delivered the food, we were offered to use the trolley to dine, but since the room had a large dining table, we just ate at the table. Overall This was my first stay at a Raffles hotel, and I would highly recommend it. While disappointing that I could not enjoy a Singapore Sling at the Long Bar (or for room service), I could not fault any other part of our stay.