Shanghai
China


The Experience

Pudong is the less fashionable side of the river -- most of the best dining and nightlife action is on the west bank -- but it is winning more and more converts. The area now bristles with Chicago-style skyscrapers, dwarfing the original Shangri-La hotel, one of the first luxury properties to be built there. But the hotel has avoided losing upwardly-mobile face (and revenue) by erecting a higher tower of its own, seamlessly linked to the original property by a wide corridor. Now Shanghai's Shang is huge, and new rooms (as with everything new in Shanghai) are larger and pricier. Fortunately, they also offer great panoramas. While conventional (local) wisdom has it that Pudong is far away, it's just a 15-minute cab ride -- and with the amazing views, feels even closer.

The Rooms

Rooms are decked out in predominantly Western-style decor and furnishings, balanced by delicate touches of classical China. Standards start at 440 square feet but feel more spacious because there's more space between buildings than in downtown. And while Tower 1 rooms offer great views of the Bund, Tower 2 rooms have even larger floor-to-ceiling windows. The pricier, upper-floor Horizon rooms are worth the upgrade, since there's a large business lounge where you'll also find floor-length windows offering glorious city views.

The Service

It is improving by the day in Shanghai, but anyone familiar with service levels in Hong Kong, Singapore or Bangkok would find a discernible difference. Spontaneous hospitality toward foreigners, or, indeed, any kind of familiarity with outsiders, was frowned upon in China until a decade ago. But high-end hoteliers like the Shangri-La have helped close the gap between China and the rest of Asia, as locals learn to anticipate the needs and wants of the international traveler.

The Highlights

As befits an enormous hotel, there are several dining outlets, from Japanese to Chinese and International. But one of the most innovative menus is at Jade on 36, an über-trendy upper-floor bar and restaurant designed by Adam Tihany; rising chef Paul Pairet's menu veers at times into pretentious territory, dousing the food in the foams and gels of the molecular gastronomy school of cooking. Still, no matter what you think of the food, the views are some of the city's best.

-- Mark Graham

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