Upon arriving at the front desk in the lobby, we were directed to the 38th floor executive lounge for check-in, where we were offered cold drinks while we completed our registration. We checked in at early-afternoon (approximately 2:00) and we were granted access to our room immediately (which wasn’t too much earlier than the regular check-in time). The executive lounge was a blessing to us, providing us with complimentary breakfast (from 6:30 am to 11:00 am), afternoon tea (from 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm), and cocktails/light dinner (from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm). The lounge is very spacious and attractive, and has fabulous views of the Shanghai skyline toward the Bund and Pudong. The lounge is designed in such a way that it provides many places to sit in various rooms, so it is possible to find a more private area to relax. There is no smoking in the lounge, and children under 12 are not admitted. Casual attire is requested. There is a spiral staircase that leads to floor 37, so guests on that executive floor can access the lounge without using the elevators. Breakfast was the usual hot and cold choices. Afternoon tea consisted of tiny sandwiches (although not the girly tea-sandwich type; they were more like fancy sliders) and yummy miniature desserts, many of which were served shotglass-style. The evening cocktail fare was interesting, with both hot options, Asian options, and fancy small-plated items. Servers took orders for complimentary alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages; there is also an interesting (although smallish in size) sort-of sunken bar where you can sit and chat with other patrons.
As for the hotel itself, we didn't partake in any of the restaurants, although they looked lovely. Leonardo’s serves dinner only, daily from 6:00 pm to 10:30 pm. Sichuan Court serves lunch and dinner from 11:30 am to 10:30 pm. The Lobby Pavilion serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner from 7:00 am to 1:00 am. Near Leonardo’s is a cigar bar/lounge; I don’t recall the hours, but it seemed to be open continuously from early afternoon on; we had a drink there one afternoon, but we were the only patrons. The cigar bar seemed to be the only place that one could smoke publicly inside the hotel. (There are ashtrays outside the front doors, so it is also possible there.) We didn’t see the Penthouse Bar on the 39th floor, but it served dinner only from 6:00 pm to 2:00 am. Unfortunately, the Atrium Café was undergoing renovations (supposedly lasting from July 1 to September 1 according to their website [which has now been changed to say October 31], but a sign in the actual area said the changes wouldn’t be complete until October 1 [I assume that sign has been changed to October 31 as well]), which was a shame to miss, because it seemed like a really attractive indoor space where one could have a drink and enjoy the skylight views.
The indoor swimming pool/spa/fitness center is quite lovely and looks like an excellent place to relax should one have some free time (which I did not). There was also a place to eat in the spa/pool area serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner from 6:00 am to 11:00 pm. The fitness center is spacious and contains many machines of different types (I didn't actually use it, so I can't comment on anything specifically). I was given a tour of the spa, although I only saw the locker room, shower area, and Jacuzzi, not the actual treatment rooms, but the staff seemed very professional and eager-to-please. As a Hhonors Platinum member, I was able to use the spa facilities for free, and was offered 10% off any spa service, which I regrettably had to refuse.
As for other features of the hotel, it has an ATM machine in the lobby which doesn't appear to charge a fee for use. There is also a florist in the lobby area, and they keep the lobby decorated attractively as a result of their position. The hotel also features a type of walk-through coffee shop/counter, where you can buy coffee, of course, pastries, chocolates and other candies, and some other cold drinks (although no sodas). It is easy to hail cabs outside the hotel lobby at any hour of the day, and there is almost always a doorman present to assist you.
The hotel is located in the French Concession, which seems like a relatively quiet area just two blocks from Nanjing Road (although this part of Nanjing Road is not pedestrian-only, and even walking on the sidewalks proved challenging to us because of all the almost-silent motorbike and pedal bicycle traffic). The hotel is also quite near the Jing 'An Temple and People's Park. There is a row of bars/restaurants right across the street from the hotel, however, we found them a bit mysterious in their appearance - the ground-floor storefronts were clearly small bar areas, but the dining room/restaurant must have been on the second floor because we couldn't see them. There was one fusion-type restaurant at the end of the retail row which looked great, but was fully committed on the evening that we tried to dine there. Restaurants on Nanjing Road seemed to be completely missing - there was one café with indoor and outdoor seating on the edge of People's Park, but we didn't see any other options on the street level for the few blocks that we walked. There are a few malls on the road, and they advertised restaurants, but they seemed to be only fast-food types of places. We didn’t see any small stores near the hotel where we could purchase drinks or snacks, which is our usual modus operandi when travelling instead of using the minibar, but fortunately it wasn’t necessary at this hotel because of having access to the executive lounge.
Although the Shanghai Hilton was beautiful and we thoroughly enjoyed our stay there, we think that the next time we visit Shanghai, we will stay in the Bund/Pudong area to be closer to the glitz and glamour.
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