Index:
Introduction
Delta Economy Comfort ECP-ATL-SEA-NRT-HKG
W Hong Kong
Exploring Hong Kong
Conrad Macao
Exploring Macau
Conrad Hong Kong
Delta Economy Comfort HKG-NRT-SEA-ATL-ECP
Conclusion
Introduction
When I started planning my trip, I had a difficult decision to make as an SPG Gold member – choosing between the W Hong Kong or the Sheraton Hong Kong and Towers. Many people online will tell you to stay at the Sheraton because of the views of the skyline across Victoria Harbor on Hong Kong Island, but honestly a rather boring standard looking hotel room just doesn’t do it for me, even if the goal isn’t to spend much time there. I spend enough time in those types of rooms throughout the year traveling for work, so if I am going to be flying halfway around the world I might as well stay somewhere that I know is going to be a great experience. Plus being on top of the Elements Mall/Kowloon Station it isn’t in the center of tourists that is Tsim Shi Tsui (location of the Sheraton), means not getting haggled by touts offering cheap suits and knockoff goods.
Since the W Hong Kong was going for about $360-400/night I decided that I would pay for two nights and have one night on some of my SPG points to make a three night stay. As a Category 6 hotel in the SPG program that free night was going to cost me at least 20,000 points, but when I went to go make my reservation the only non-smoking rooms that were available were the “Fabulous Room”, so it wound up costing me 22,500 points for that free night. When you’re already going to drop 20,000 points for a night, what’s 2,500 more?
Arrival
The arrival process actually started several days before I even got in the plane in Panama City to start my 26+ hour journey to Hong Kong. About three days prior to me checking in, I received an email from the hotel’s “SPG Specialist” to confirm arrival time, checked if I needed any transfer assistance, and let me know that they would try to see what they could do for an upgrade (not that I expected anything being only SPG Gold). I didn’t really need any assistance getting from the airport and I was already staying in the room that I would have likely been upgraded to as an SPG Gold member, so it’s not like it was helpful in my situation, but I did appreciate that they did reach out prior to my arrival. It shows that they care about the total guest experience, should I have been traveling to celebrate a major event this would have been a great avenue to make any special requests. Being a single guy traveling alone, I didn’t need much. Upon disembarking for my train I started to journey through the maze that is the Elements Mall at 1AM. I decided to follow the signs from the side of the station that I came out of, which with my luck was the route that would take me on a thorough tour of the mall prior to reaching the entrance to the W. The next day I would discover that by going to the opposite side of the station you could find yourself just right around the corner from the hotel entrance. After a short elevator ride up to the sixth floor, I proceeded through the dark and quiet lobby to the only person working at the front desk that late Monday night. All the usual motions were went through and I selected points for my Gold check-in amenity (although as I now look at my SPG account, it looks like I never got them), given a quick lay down on the hotel, and handed me the keys to my room on the 38th floor. There would be no upgrade for me on this stay, but that’s hardly the end of the world.
Up The Elevator I Go…
The Room
As I mentioned earlier, I reserved a Fabulous Room which is two categories above the standard Wonderful Room of which there are two configurations of. Located on the 38th floor, I walked into Room 3805 at almost 1:30 AM, which also turned out to be the highest floor that had rooms on it. I should note that there’s a book theme going on throughout the public areas of the hotel, with the elevator landings having bookshelves and each room number placard being a “book”. Actually made for finding the down elevator button a bit of a challenge that first morning, because it was hidden on one of the “bookshelves”!
Floor 38 Elevator Landing
Come On In…
Although I was very, very tired and ready to hit the sack, I decided to check out the room first. Like one would expect with a stay at a W Hotel, everything had the modern look and feel to it and featured the always very comfortable W Hotels bed – hands down, my favorite hotel bed out there. Space was pretty good, I never felt cramped in the room as there was adequate space around the bed and between the bed and desk and the bathroom didn’t feel like a closet. Actually, speaking of the bathroom, it was interesting in its own right. There’s a separate shower and tub (which was a decent size that I didn’t have a problem feeling cramped in it), a toilet which shares a sliding door with the shower, a TV located in the mirror above the tub (admittedly I sat in the tub one afternoon soaking and watching college basketball on ESPN), and a decent sized sink/counter. On the counter, in addition to the usual toiletries, were all the items you normally would have to call down for if you were to forget your own such as razor, toothbrush/toothpaste, etc. Since I tend to usually forget something, having everything at the ready in my room makes for a better first morning when you realize what you leave behind. As for the shower, the water pressure was excellent, but I could never get the shower as hot as I wanted. It wasn’t that the water was cold or lukewarm, but I just happen to like very hot showers.
Fabulous Room – King Bed (After Turndown Service)
Fabulous Room – King Bed (Pre Turndown Service)
Fabulous Room – TV/Desk Area
Fabulous Room – Minibar
Fabulous Room – Bathroom Entrance
One thing that I really appreciated about the room was the view. Sure, it’s not of Central/Financial District on Hong Kong Island, like you would get at the Sheraton, but it’s still not a view to turn down. My room was a Harbour View room and as such I faced the commercial harbor that was located next to the hotel. There were plenty of ships and ferries that were anchored with partial views of Hong Kong Island and other areas. When I woke up that first morning and saw the sun shining I couldn’t help but to smile a little; it was the perfect way to wake up to Hong Kong.
W Hong Kong – Hong Kong Island View (South)
W Hong Kong – Harbor View (West)
W Hong Kong View – Commercial Harbor (North)
Food and Beverage
I took it upon myself to try out several of the Food and Beverage options located on the property, and there’s plenty of them. There’s Sing Yin Cantonese Dining located off the hotel entrance (never made it to this restaurant), Woobar (the main hotel bar located off of the lobby), Kitchen (the main hotel restaurant located off of the lobby), and the Wet Deck located on the 76th floor next to the pool which offered a selection of drinks and food items. All around I was very impressed.
Kitchen
I went to Kitchen my first morning in Hong Kong for the breakfast buffet. After flying half way around the world and living off of airline meals and what food I could get in the Delta Sky Clubs, I needed one heck of a proper meal. Let me just say, that it was beyond excellent. Going with the buffet lead to a multitude of options ranging from western (American and European) to Asian with plenty of options for all tastes. I had some mystery dim sum, a lobster Benedict, a salmon omelette, bacon, sausages, noodles, baked beans, potatoes, spring rolls, fruit, and more! In fact I barely even scratched the surface in terms of the offerings as there was much, much more. The quality of everything was superb and was definitely worth the HK$250 ($32 US). It was probably the best buffet breakfast that I have had. Ever.
Amazing Breakfast At Kitchen
Woobar
I only came to Woobar on my second night at the hotel and only stayed for one drink. I hit it at happy hour before I left for a night on the town, so there were some discounted drink options. With it being a bit on the early side on the nightlife time scale, it was pretty empty. I was the only person sitting at the bar and there were only a few others in the lounge area of Woobar. I’m sure it picked up a little bit, but on a Tuesday night, it was still probably on the dead side. I should note that later in the week after I had checked out, Woobar was hosting events during the Clockenflap music festival and from what I saw online it looked very packed.
Wet Deck
I think that the biggest benefit of the Wet Deck is the fact that it’s outside on the 76th floor and poolside. The only downside, it got a little bit on the cool and windy side while I was in Hong Kong. My first attempt was my third and final night at the hotel, but it was rather windy and chilly even with the heaters turned up around the tables, so I quickly aborted that attempt. However, the next day, having decided to take a leisurely approach to my day, after doing some morning roaming around town, I came back to the hotel for lunch before I headed to the ferry terminal to catch a ride to Macau. It wasn’t nearly as chilly as the night before, so up to the pool deck I went and settled down at a table. I was the only person up here and soon enough I had a large, very good Mojito in my hand and a club sandwich followed shortly thereafter. Really, the point of grabbing a drink or a bit to eat here is being able to look out to Victoria Harbour and Hong Kong Island. I wont say that the views are overly spectacular, as several adjacent towers block the view a bit, but it does the trick. I sat there relaxed and enjoying myself until it was ultimately time to head back down to my room to pack everything up.
Wet Deck – Mojito!
Wet Deck – Pricey, But Tasty Club Sandwich
The View From Wet Deck
Overall Impression
Overall, the W Hong Kong impressed me and had me walking away with this easily being one of the top hotels that I’ve stayed at. All around the staff was incredible helpful and friendly, whether at the front desk, restaurants, or even just hailing me a cab to take me to a night on the town. All of the public areas and the room were very clean with obvious attention to detail to keeping it that way. If I were to ever go back to Hong Kong (I’m sure one day I will), I would not hesitate to stay here again; It’s nothing short of a fantastic hotel!
Pool Deck At Night
