The Conrad Hong Kong

This is my first stay at a hotel when I have some real hotel status and we are certainly talking Chalk and Cheese (mmmmm….. cheese…) in my check in experience.

At the main check in desk I am whisked up to the 59th Floor Executive Lounge for check in. I am not handed off to some other flunky but dealt with by the same person from entry to room. This may not seem a big deal to some people but I do sometimes get frustrated with being overserviced being passed around to more senior people. I just wan t a quick smooth check in service.

No questions are raised or changes to rates as a result of my change in stay due to the impending Shanghai side trip. I had expected at least a rate change due to the pair of shorter stays. The HHonors Diamond benefits are great, spelled out at check in and include:

- Executive lounge access and evening cocktails
- Harbour view with larger room
- Free wireless internet in the Exec lounge
- 4 shirts pressed for free

The in-room experience is also quite enhanced by having a massive room, chocolates and jasmine tea brought up to me a few mins after I get to the room. Overall very nice.

Not long after check-in and freshening up I head to the Exec Lounge to catch up with family on msn whilst sipping champagne. OK – I admit it – this isn’t the hardest part of the job.

I have a quick day in the office on Monday and my jacket is relegated to a cupboard in the office whilst I go to Shanghai due to the very, very warm temperatures here in HKG. The next few days are planned and we actually realise that I only need to be in PVG until Monday at the latest. What this does mean is another trip with lots of moving around again – something I am getting a little bored of.

Having not spent any time in PVG before and knowing that I will be back in HKG in November I decide to fly back to HKG on the Monday and spend a full weekend in PVG. It is a little bit of a luxury as it will wipe out half a day’s work but I don’t fancy spending three weeks travelling every weekend.

Monday evening I am back in lounge for further excellent service – they already know my drink!!!! As I get back to the room I intercept the turn down service (something I really don’t need as a business traveller who leaves at 8AM and gets back at 7PM and whose room doesn’t change after the first clean in the morning) and am handed a Conrad Bear At least I have a gift for Dog2 now

I am pretty exhausted so I am in bed by 9:30PM and set my alarm for 5AM – forgetting that the alarm is set to Sydney time so after my 3AM wake up I go back to bed for a little longer.

On check out I make a further change to my booking and grab a cab to the train station intending to get the train to the airport. In the past I have averaged HK$380 for the ride to/from the airport. In the cab the driver asked if I already had a ticket to the airport which I said no to. He then offered 25 mins and HK$260 to the airport – which sounded fine. I was taken through the “back streets” of Hong Kong and past many places I had never seen but on schedule and on the money I made it to the airport. It would have been great if one of my pens had not escaped into the cab