The Peninsula, the “Grand Dame of the Far East,” is one of the world’s legendary hotels with an atmosphere of unmatched grandeur and timeless elegance. Completely renovated and refurbished, it has kept the elegance of a bygone era and the tradition of service excellence and combined them with the most up-to-date technological innovations. In the Far East, it has always been considered one of the most prestigious addresses to stay.
The world-famous lobby. Massive leafed columns and potted palm trees where breakfast and afternoon tea are served still shines in 1930s splendor. The suites overlook some of Hong Kong’s most spectacular views, and the ambiance is still serene, no matter how crowded the hotel.
Gaddi’s, the Michelin-starred on-premises French restaurant considered since the 1930s the best restaurant east of the Suez Canal, was unsurpassed as usual, serving classics such as Beef Wellington and now, many more contemporary dishes.
This time, I also tried the hotel’s Spring Moon Chinese Restaurant, also Michelin-noted, and thought it very good. The dim sum offered the most elegant variety of exquisite little dishes, all classics of Cantonese cuisine. The service was professional and discreet, yet not overbearing, and I like the way they handled the food until it was served in front of you.
On arrival, the floor butler presented us with gold-embossed, personalized stationery and bilingual business cards, as well as a selection of full-sized designer bath soaps. We had a personal fax in the suite, and there were multi-line, multi-port telephones all over, plus Wi-Fi access, of course. The bathroom had full-sized bottles of shampoo, conditioner, etc., not the miniature travel sizes offered in most other properties.
The Peninsula has been using its signature green Rolls-Royce vehicles for more than 60 years, beginning with the hotel’s first order for seven Silver Shadows in 1970. That purchase made history as the largest ever single order for Rolls-Royce cars, and over the years, the Peninsula has set new records with each successive order – a trend that continues to this day.
If you need to get to Hong Kong Central, the main business section of Hong Kong, the hotel is a stone’s throw away from the foot of Salisbury Road near the Star Ferry Pier, the location where the frequent ferries that connect Tsim Sha Tsui (Kowloon), Central, and Wan Chai are located.
The shopping arcades in the galleries overlooking the lobby are still brimming with authentic luxury merchandise and real antiques. One problem is still prevalent in Hong Kong, however. There are too many knockoffs, and outright fakes fill stores in the Kowloon shopping district. Unless you know your merchandise, it’s very easy to be taken.
Still, the Peninsula is our favorite Hong Kong hotel. The Kowloon location is central and convenient near the Star Ferry, yet is somehow insulated from the din of the city. And we think the addition of the pool and sundeck in the 1990s, the refurbished spa, and the modern helipad on the tower’s roof have made a superb hotel even better, if that’s possible.
The author received a complimentary stay at this hotel, but as always, we are dedicated to giving you unbiased accounts of our experiences. See our Disclosures page for more information.
Manos Angelakis
Manos Angelakis is one of the founders, the former Managing Editor for 25 years, the current Managing Editor Emeritus, and Senior Food & Wine Writer of LuxuryWeb Magazine. He is an accomplished travel writer, photographer, and food and wine critic based in Hackensack, New Jersey. As a travel writer, he has written extensively about numerous cities and countries. Manos has also been certified as a Tuscan Wine Master and has traveled to wine-producing areas in order to evaluate firsthand the product of top-rated vineyards. In the past year, he has visited and written multiple articles about Morocco, Turkey, Quebec City, Switzerland, Antarctica, and most recently the South of France. Articles in other publications include Vision Times and Epoch Times.
Nick A. Ross
Nick A. Ross, a regular contributor to LuxuryWeb Magazine, is a retired banker who has eschewed retirement in London for adventure in Southeast Asia. He is currently based in Singapore after spending the last seven years in Guam. He did a “reverse Paul Gauguin, and he is not even French!” He now spends much of his time in Bangkok, Taipei, Hong Kong (when there are no riots), but he still visits the eastern Mediterranean in the summer whenever he has the opportunity. He loves traveling, good food, and good wine, and he enjoys the serendipities of life as they come along.
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