A few words come to mind when thinking about Island Shangri-La. Opulent, grandiose, and traditional are just a few. This hotel gave me new meaning to the definition of a luxury experience. Being a guest here, I felt pampered in a different way than ever before. It all started with the service received from the moment we walked through the door to check in. We stayed at the Island Shangri-La for five nights. Our hotel was booked through Amex Fine Hotels and Resorts. Through Amex, we received the fifth night free. Also, we decided to stay on their club level floor, the Horizon club. Benefits we received through Amex were free breakfast daily for two, early check-in (noon when available), late check out (four guaranteed), room upgrade if available, and one way airport transfer. Other hotels that we considered for our stay were the Ritz Carlton, Upper House, and the Conrad. The Conrad, Upper House, and Island Shangri-La are all within walking distance of each other. Keep in mind that the rate you book at through Amex does not include taxes and fees. Our stay cost us more than anticipated when the service charge was added. However, I do feel that we received what we paid for.
Upon arrival to the hotel, it was approximately 10am. They checked us in and said a room would be available within one hour. A room upgrade was available to us, which was a harbor view. We were ecstatic to get into the room early, and they offered us complimentary breakfast in the Horizon club while we waited. Once we arrived at the club level, the views were incredible. Just as they promised, the room was available within one hour. My boyfriend and I were celebrating our one year anniversary of dating on this trip. When they informed us the room was ready, they brought along a beautiful bouquet of flowers and took our photo. Our room was gorgeous with traditional touches like dark wood and marble in the bathroom. A complimentary bottle of wine, chocolates, and warm tea were waiting for us in our room. All of these things were great foreshadowing of a lovely stay. The room was spacious with plenty of room for our luggage and relaxing. The bathroom was the same large size with plentiful amenity items added daily like toothpaste, hair ties, soap, shampoo, etc.
Horizon Club: This is the club level floor at Island Shangri-La. I was so happy that we made the decision to stay on the club level. The perks included snacks and beverages including beer/wine all day. In the evening, for club level guests, this service expanded to include additional cocktails and champagne. After spending the entire day exploring, I really looked forward to coming back to the hotel and relaxing from 6-8pm with hors d’oeuvres and champagne. They serve Veuve Clicquot, which was fantastic. The service in the Horizon Club is unparalleled, and the food was great. We tried not to ruin evening dinner plans, but honestly, you could eat all of your meals at the hotel and never even have a need to buy a meal outside. The views from the lounge are breathtaking over the harbor. The view from our hotel room was very similar a couple of floors down. This view also allows you to enjoy the Symphony of Lights at 8pm every night. All of the buildings around the harbor put on a light show, and it is nice to be able to enjoy this from the comfort of your room.
Food & Drink: There were several options available to us for breakfast. Cafe TOO is just above the lobby. It has a little bit of everything. There are American as well as Chinese options. It is buffet style and you can get as many plates as you like. Buffet style is usually not my favorite; however, this breakfast could convince one otherwise. I looked forward to going down for breakfast each morning. They do have a little variety, and there were small changes in plate options amongst the days.
Restaurant Petrus is just adjacent to the Horizon Club. It is a very formal dining area at the top of the hotel. You order off the menu and go through a small buffet style arrangement of cold items. It also has Chinese and American breakfast. I opted for the dim sum and enjoyed it. The views are fantastic, and it is a very elegant dining room.
If you are staying club level, you always have the Horizon Club available for breakfast as well. They have a small buffet of several cold and hot foods. The great thing about Horizon Club is having access all day to an endless amount of food and beverage. It was great to grab a Fiji water or Coke Zero before setting out for the day. All of these items are easily available in the refrigerators. You can also grab and pour beer and wine.
There were a number of fantastic options through Amex for our stay. Overall, I was extremely pleased with the service we received at Island Shangri-La. I feel that I have received this superior level of service very few times at a hotel. I would absolutely stay here again. We utilized the hotel transfer at the end of our stay to go back to the airport. It was a great service especially at the end of the stay. The drive back to the airport is about 40 minutes. The car had Wi-fi, newspapers, water, candies, and a card thanking us personally for our stay. Everything was top notch.
