My wife and I recently stayed at the Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong for three nights as part of a round-the-world honeymoon trip. First off, I want to start by saying this hotel and it's staff are fantastic. My wife and I have stayed at many fine hotels around the world, and this hotel ranks in the top two. It is without doubt the best hotel we could have chosen in HK.
A special mention goes to the staff, particularly Jackie Hoo and Lochlan Cheng who went out of their way to make our trip memorable and fantastic in every way. I can't say enough good things about them and this wonderful hotel property.
Another specific point about the location. We personally loved the location of this hotel. It's on the top 20 floors of the ICC tower in a newer area of Kowloon, directly connected to the Elements Mall and the Kowloon MTR/Airport Express Station. There are many nice eateries in the mall, which are reasonably priced. Additionally, it's only a $7 USD cab ride to TST where there are more options, or about $11 to Central. Alternatively, you can take the MTR to Hong Kong station, which is connected to Centra via tunnel. The views from this hotel are amazing. I highly recommend the Grand Deluxe room, which is on the corner and has a 270 degree view of the Hong Kong skyline. Some days you will be in the clouds, especially in summer, but when the clouds part, the view is breathtaking.
The pool and spa facilities are also excellent. I can't remember the name of the attendant that was working on May 15th, but he was fantastic. There's even an outdoor hot tub where you can sit and look at the skyline from the 118th floor. Impressive!
We also liked having access to the Club Lounge. It was extremely convenient for breakfast and other meals/snacks throughout the day. We would recommend getting a room with club access if possible.
Pros and cons of this property are as follows...
PROS:
- Staff
- Service
- Pool / Spa
- Location
- Rooms
- Free Wifi
- Club Lounge
- Amazing Views
CONS:
There really are not any negative things to say about this hotel, however, if I had to mention two minor things, they would be as follows...
- On the weekends (when there are a lot of visitors) the elevators from the 9th Floor to the 103rd Floor can have a short wait. There is nothing the hotel can do about this, it's just a little annoying if you're in a hurry to get somewhere. With that said, this is a very small thing...
- We felt the drinks prices at Ozone (the bar on the 118th Floor) were a little excessive. I didn't mind paying $18 USD for a cocktail (normal for a bar or this type) but I felt that $15+ USD for a Diet Coke was excessive. Soft drinks should be a nominal charge (like $5 USD or less). With that said, the Ozone bar may be under separate management from the hotel (it does have a separate entrance) so I'm not sure how much control they have over this. This would be something that could be a simple fix for the management of this bar, and hopefully it will be fixed before our next visit. Again, in the grand scheme of things, this was a very small thing, and frankly we had a better view from our room and the club lounge anyway, although the ambience and decor of the bar was very nice :)
Overall, I would not hesitate to recommend this property to anyone visiting HK. We loved the location, the service, the view from our room, and the staff. It was an exception experience. Once again, particular thanks go to Jackie Hoo, Lochlan Cheng, and the GM, Mr. Pierre.