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Good hotels in Shanghai?

By admin on September 16, 2011

Does anyone have a recommendation for a good hotel in Shanghai. Cost is not an issue. I want something good with access to various parts of the city.

Also, does anyone have any suggestions on what to do in Shanghai?

Posted in | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Responses

4 responses to “Good hotels in Shanghai?”

  1. wanderkind
    wanderkind
    September 16, 2011 at 2:10 am |

    The Shangri-La and Hyatt are fantastic hotels in Pudong, which is the newer area right across the river from the Bund. But if you want to be more central, I would go with the Westin Bund Center, excellent hotel, easy walk to the Bund and Nanjing road. (There are other hotels in this area for sure, but I stayed in the Westin and can vouch for it.)

    Things to do:
    Walk along the Bund–maybe see if you can find a tour that will tell you about the history and architecture.
    Nanjing road–touristy, shopping, hawkers, people watching.
    Yu Gardens: must see.
    Jade Buddha Temple.
    Water towns: Zhou Zhuang is about 90 min from Shanghai, a nice half/day trip if you have the time. Quaint town with old bridges, can take gondola rides, etc.

    There’s plenty more to do but I was only there for a few days–and I enjoyed the city much more than I expected!

  2. Jackyren
    Jackyren
    September 16, 2011 at 2:13 am |

    The most fantastic hotels can be Hyatt, Shangrila, and Hilton.

  3. ladyellei
    ladyellei
    September 16, 2011 at 2:54 am |

    There is a St. Regis in Shanghai.

  4. aicaramba
    aicaramba
    September 16, 2011 at 3:53 am |

    Shanghai, as you may or may not know, is divided up into 3 main parts, with the Huangpu River in the middle. 1) Pudong 2) Puxi and 3) Hongqiao. To give you an idea… To the east of the Huangpu River is PUDONG (“dong” in Chinese means east… and “pu” stands for huangpu). Then there is Puxi (Xi in Chinese means West), and Puxi is the equivalent to “central” shanghai, with most of the activities, the French and British Concession areas, Xintiandi, Bund, etc. To the West of Puxi (near the Shanghai national Airport is Hongqiao. It’s a bit farther away from Central Puxi. To get to Puxi/Central Shanghai from Pudong, you must cross the Huangpu River in a tunnel or on a bridge – often a lot of traffic. Hongqiao area is quite far from Central Shanghai. Therefore, you should stay in Puxi, since you want access to various parts of the city.

    The BEST 5-star hotels in Puxi are: Westin. Portman Ritz-Carlton. Four Seasons. JW Marriott.

    The Westin is quite close to the Bund (a major tourist attraction). The Westin is modern and comfortable. It’s better than the Westin Hotels in the west. Decent Service. Comfortable, but nothing that is very very memorable.

    The Portman Ritz-Carlton has been in Shanghai for the longest out of the 5-star hotels. It’s located right in the middle of Puxi/Central Shanghai, so the location is convenient. It’s a bit older, but the rooms have been renovated. It’s got a nice lobby for tea. The area around it has top end shops, etc.

    Four Seasons is a great hotel chain. The problem is that the Four Seasons in Shanghai is not the best Four Seasons. It’s just pretty good. Certainly the service is good. But the lobby, etc, are nothing special. The Four Seasons is located between the Portman and the Westin.

    JW Marriott is located near People’s Square, not too far from the Bund. It’s very close to the Shanghai Art Museum and Shangai Grand Theatre. It’s in a tall building. Quite modern. It’s a Marriott after all, so you you probably have a good idea of the Marriott. They’re good hotels.

    If you don’t mind a bit less convenient, then the Grand Hyatt is located just across the river in Pudong. It’s the tallest hotel in the world, with the lobby on the 54th floor. It’s a very good hotel. But it’s location is not so close to Central Shanghai. And you said you are looking for a place with “good access” to various parts of the city.

    Likewise, the Shangri-La is also in Pudong. It’s quite nice, too. The rest of the hotels in Shanghai are either not very good or too far away. Stay away from the JC Mandarin (it is not a real Mandarin).

    So I have listed the best and worst parts of the best hotels in Shanghai. It will help you to choose which you prefer. You won’t go wrong with any of the hotels listed above.

    The best suggestions of MUST-VISIT places in Shanghai… I’ve been living here for years…

    1) The Bund. It’s a street of colonial style buildings by the Huangpu River. It’s the most famous street in Shanghai. An absolute MUST. Nowadays, many new restaurants have been popping up along the river, expensive but good quality and with nice views. The most famous is M on the Bund, as it started earliest.

    2) Xintiandi. It’s an area of old Chinese style “Shikumen” houses that have been renovated into a shopping and entertainment/restaurants, small boutiques and bars area of the city. They have kept the shikumen houses, so it gives an idea about Shanghai’s history.

    3) Yu Yuan Gardens. It is in a renovated Chinese-style-architecture area of Shanghai. Lots of shops and many tourists. The Gardens themselves are quite nice, as is the area around them. A bit too well-renovated, but very high on the list of tourist things to do in Shanghai.

    4) Pudong, near the river. This is the new business district of Shanghai. It has the tall buildings (soon to have tallest building int he world). For a GREAT view of the Huangpu River and the Bund (from the opposite side of the river), try Jade on 36 at the Shangri-La Hotel – it’s a bar restaurant. Or you can go to the top of the Jin Mao Building or Peal Oriental Tower for a sky-high view. The Jin Mao is cool to go up for a view from the “clouds” (there’s even a bar called Cloud 9), but it’s a bit farther back, so the actual view of ths city is not as good.

    5) Former French Concession (FFC) area. If you know Shanghai’s history, you will know that was divided up into sections that were ruled by different countries (such as the British and French). The Bund area was ruled/”administered” by the British. And the French area – called the FFC is also a very nice area. Not many tall buildings – it has many French style villas. The streets are tree-lined, a bit like in French cities, with French Wutong (Phoenix) Trees. Charming area. Try Fuxing Xi road near Wu Kang road. It’s nice to even walk around that area. The trees keep the area a bit cooler, with all the shade.

    There are all sorts of things to do, depending on your interest. Lots of nice restaurants, with different themes/styles. Lots of bars and clubs (if you want to know about the BEST restauants, bars and clubs, try: http://www.best-shanghai.com).

    Nanjing Road is famous for shopping malls. But you can find shopping malls in every city. There are even some schools for talented children that are interesting and some acrobatic shows. It really depends on what you like.

    Shanghai even has an indoor ski area, not too far away, and a fake beach with artificial waves, quite close-by.

    You could try the canal town of Zhouzhuang, which is cute/quaint, but very small. About 45 minutes by car.

    Or you can travel to nearby touristy cities of Suzhou or Hangzhou (famous for gardens and lakes). You could even take a several hour drive to Nanjing, China’s old capital.

    If you have any specific interests, let me know… i’ll be glad to give you some more specific advice. But most of the BEST places are listed at: http://www.best-shanghai.com. It’s a handy guide.