As a major metropolis at the crossroads of China and the Pacific, Hong Kong has one of the highest per-capita numbers of luxury hotels in the world. With all that competition, some of the city’s top properties are providing a slew of unique amenities and offerings to separate themselves from the pack and to woo luxury travelers. Here are five Hong Kong hotels offering exclusive experiences you can expect on your next stay.
Complimentary BMW Service at The Upper House
In addition to boasting one of the hippest hotels in Hong Kong (Sunday brunch at its restaurant is one of the hottest tables in town), plus spectacular city and harbor views from its rooms atop one of the JW Marriott’s towers, The Upper House also offers guests the opportunity to speed around the city in its sporty BMW 428i convertible with 3M (you know, in case you need the extra horsepower to climb those steep hills). While you can’t take it all the way to the airport (there’s not much room for luggage anyway), the hotel is happy to shuttle you around Central and Wan Chai (there is no specific maximum radius). Best of all, the service is complimentary, so looking great won’t cost you extra.
Bastien Gonzalez-Sodashi Pedi:Facial:Synergy at The Landmark Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong
Just in time for summer, The Landmark Mandarin Oriental debuted an all-in-one beauty treatment for guests. It combines Australia-based Sodashi’s signature chemical-free products and French nail treatment pioneer and podiatrist Bastien Gonzalez’s patented regimen of beauty, healing and massage for the feet into a truly indulgent experience. Guests are worked on by two therapists at once. One performs the Sodashi Samdara Illuminating Age-Defying Facial while the other polishes and buffs the feet with a chamois leather nail buffer before applying a diamond dust polish for the ultimate healthy shine. Guests leaving glowing from head to toe—literally.
Family Fun at the Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong
Though Hong Kong might not spring to mind as a top family destination, it is actually a great place to bring kids thanks to attractions like Disneyland Hong Kong, the Ocean Park amusement park, various cultural villages and opportunities to hike, bike and go to the beach. And Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong gives families one more reason to visit with its array of amenities geared just toward kids. Children who check in receive their own welcome amenity such as a stuffed animal, and rooms are stocked with child-size bathrobes as well as step stools for reaching the bathroom sink. Guests with infants can also request complimentary necessities like diapers, pillows and blankets for their babies. The tykes are welcomed at the property’s sixth-floor pool, as well as in the restaurants with special children’s menus, including at the Michelin-starred Caprice and Lung King Heen. If parents want a night to themselves, the hotel can also arrange a babysitter with just four hours’ notice, and with complimentary milk and cookies in the evening, bedtime should go smoothly.
The Krug Room at the Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong
The original Mandarin Oriental, one of Hong Kong’s truly landmark properties, launched a partnership with vaunted Champagne house Krug back in 2006 that included an intimate dining room tucked away in the heart of the hotel’s main kitchen. Dubbed The Krug Room, the restaurant was redone in 2013 as part of the hotel’s 50th anniversary, and now resembles a luxury railroad carriage. It has just 12 seats arranged around a marble table that overlooks the hushed bustle of the kitchen preparing that particular day’s tasting menu of 10-14 courses. You won’t find a printed menu, though. Instead, Chef Uwe Opocensky writes what he has found fresh at the market that day and what he is using as inspiration listed by ingredient (one might read Clam: razor, potato, fennel) and then takes guests’ personal tastes and preferences into consideration. The dishes are then paired with a selection of Krug vintages from the hotel’s collection, the largest selection of Krug Champagnes outside of France. Now that’s something to toast to.
Michelin-Star Cooking Class at The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong
It’s not every day that you get to take a cooking class from a Michelin-starred chef, but that’s exactly what you can do at The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong. Chef Pino Lavarra came to the hotel’s fine-dining Italian restaurant Tosca, back in 2013, and since then his southern Italian-inspired cuisine has garnered a Michelin star, no surprise given the chef had two Michelin stars under his belt back in Italy at Palazzo Sasso. Guests who take his cooking class are shown into a private kitchen adjacent to Tosca way up on the 102nd floor, with perfectly framed views of the harbor. Though guests are given an apron, toque and a flash drive with the recipes, Lavarra does most of the work, walking guests through the steps of some of his signature dishes while wielding various implements that can range from a pasta maker to a blowtorch to some frozen nitrogen. Best of all, when class is over, guests are invited to enjoy a leisurely three-course lunch of dishes like his Sea Tiramisu with red prawn Carpaccio. Come hungry.
