The Diary of a Hotel Addict
#1: Park Hyatt Shanghai 上海柏悦酒店
© 2010, yohanes.budiyanto
We are at the conclusion of Shanghai 777-777, and congratulations to the Park Hyatt Shanghai!.
Despite being the clear winner and a personal favourite, Park Hyatt Shanghai is not perfect too. After completing the overall stays at 7 hotels for the project, I initially thought The Peninsula would have taken the throne because the service was exemplary and the technology is the very best the world has to offer. Only after tabulating all the scores that Park Hyatt was confirmed as the winner.
Unlike alot of other fellow hotel-junkies and wannabes who rely heavily on subjective reviews based on one major incident (one small glitch in service means bad hotel; and one free suite upgrade blindly makes it the best hotel), I have always scored the hotel based on several fixed categories across the board (i.e. 12 categories for Shanghai 777-777) as it is the most objective way to review a hotel despite still being subjective to my personal preferences on some aspects, e.g: design.
The Park Hyatt has been my personal favourite since my inaugural stay back in 2008; and while the overall stay and product was as amazing as before; I was quite disappointed with both the service and concept of its signature restaurant, 100 Century Avenue (the world's highest restaurant). Fortunately, the overall service on the rest of the stay was quite good so it only affected the overall score for service.
I was particularly impressed with GM Christophe Sadones' pursue for excellence and impeccable service. In the hospitality world, the success of great hotels depend on visionary and legendary GM at the helm. Together with Susanne Hatje (ex-GM Landmark MO, Hong Kong) and Michael Burchett (Conrad Bali), they not only clearly understand the basic concept and importance of customer service, but they are also some very humble human beings. Alot of hotel's GM nowadays seem to be living in their own sphere and appear to be cocky, chauvinistic and self-centred ignorant beasts. I've met a few along the way already..
Design is what I personally think the Peninsula suffers quite a bit as it displays more of ostentation, especially in its public spaces. The Park Hyatt, on the other hand, scores perfectly on design because it presents a subtle, unpretentious yet profoundly dramatic contemporary design in minimalist tone; and the end result is simply breathtaking. You could have mistaken it for a world class museum, if not better. It is all about simplicity, understated elegance and refined details.
Pictured here is the foyer to every guestrooms, -aptly called The Courtyard-, which is derived from the concept of courtyard planning in Chinese traditional dwellings. Unlike most hotels with hotel rooms that opens directly to the main corridor, Park Hyatt's unique layout brings guests to a small "courtyard" which is shared among two rooms, before entering their own room(s), so privacy is paramount here. This courtyard could also be closed off to make an interconnecting rooms for guests travelling with small family or entourage.
PARK HYATT SHANGHAI
上海柏悦酒店
100 Century Avenue
Pudong, Shanghai
General Manager: Christophe Sadones
Executive Chef: Jack Wetzel
Architect: Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF)
Interior Designer: Tony Chi
l #1. Park Hyatt l #2. The Peninsula l #3. The Puli Hotel & Spa l #4. Grand Hyatt l
l #5. Hyatt on the Bund l #6. Le Royal Meridien l #7. The St. Regis l
#1: Park Hyatt Shanghai 上海柏悦酒店
© 2010, yohanes.budiyanto
We are at the conclusion of Shanghai 777-777, and congratulations to the Park Hyatt Shanghai!.
Despite being the clear winner and a personal favourite, Park Hyatt Shanghai is not perfect too. After completing the overall stays at 7 hotels for the project, I initially thought The Peninsula would have taken the throne because the service was exemplary and the technology is the very best the world has to offer. Only after tabulating all the scores that Park Hyatt was confirmed as the winner.
Unlike alot of other fellow hotel-junkies and wannabes who rely heavily on subjective reviews based on one major incident (one small glitch in service means bad hotel; and one free suite upgrade blindly makes it the best hotel), I have always scored the hotel based on several fixed categories across the board (i.e. 12 categories for Shanghai 777-777) as it is the most objective way to review a hotel despite still being subjective to my personal preferences on some aspects, e.g: design.
The Park Hyatt has been my personal favourite since my inaugural stay back in 2008; and while the overall stay and product was as amazing as before; I was quite disappointed with both the service and concept of its signature restaurant, 100 Century Avenue (the world's highest restaurant). Fortunately, the overall service on the rest of the stay was quite good so it only affected the overall score for service.
I was particularly impressed with GM Christophe Sadones' pursue for excellence and impeccable service. In the hospitality world, the success of great hotels depend on visionary and legendary GM at the helm. Together with Susanne Hatje (ex-GM Landmark MO, Hong Kong) and Michael Burchett (Conrad Bali), they not only clearly understand the basic concept and importance of customer service, but they are also some very humble human beings. Alot of hotel's GM nowadays seem to be living in their own sphere and appear to be cocky, chauvinistic and self-centred ignorant beasts. I've met a few along the way already..
Design is what I personally think the Peninsula suffers quite a bit as it displays more of ostentation, especially in its public spaces. The Park Hyatt, on the other hand, scores perfectly on design because it presents a subtle, unpretentious yet profoundly dramatic contemporary design in minimalist tone; and the end result is simply breathtaking. You could have mistaken it for a world class museum, if not better. It is all about simplicity, understated elegance and refined details.
Pictured here is the foyer to every guestrooms, -aptly called The Courtyard-, which is derived from the concept of courtyard planning in Chinese traditional dwellings. Unlike most hotels with hotel rooms that opens directly to the main corridor, Park Hyatt's unique layout brings guests to a small "courtyard" which is shared among two rooms, before entering their own room(s), so privacy is paramount here. This courtyard could also be closed off to make an interconnecting rooms for guests travelling with small family or entourage.
PARK HYATT SHANGHAI
上海柏悦酒店
100 Century Avenue
Pudong, Shanghai
General Manager: Christophe Sadones
Executive Chef: Jack Wetzel
Architect: Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF)
Interior Designer: Tony Chi
l #1. Park Hyatt l #2. The Peninsula l #3. The Puli Hotel & Spa l #4. Grand Hyatt l
l #5. Hyatt on the Bund l #6. Le Royal Meridien l #7. The St. Regis l