I N WITH THE NEW

In a city like Hong Kong, where the hospitality scene is as competitive as you’ll find anywhere in the world, having top notch suites for travelling jetsetters is a must. Luxury travellers may love to hit the city’s restaurants, malls, and museums, but they also enjoy returning to spacious accommodations laced with more than a few creature comforts. Fortunately, the newly envisioned Horizon View and Cityview suites at the Island Shangri-La, created to coincide with the hotel’s 30th anniversary, have set a new benchmark for luxury in the city.

Built with the needs of the modern-day traveller in mind, and designed by world-renowned French interior designer Tristan Auer (whose previous works include The Cotton House, Mustique, and Paris’ Hotel de Crillon), the new look Horizon Club suites – including my Harbour View Suite - are spacious, elegant and timeless, and are all about providing a sense of space while also being both luxurious and functional. Taking both Parisian and Asian design cues, the suite is dressed in oriental-inspired furnishings, with a leather upholstered adjustable armchair and ottoman custom-made by Knoll Italia just begging guests to take a load off.

Within the living room, spacious day beds that run the length of the room allow guests to soak in spectacular city views or catch a flick on a 55inch flatscreen TV, and are complemented by a broad dining table, while a multi-functional in-room pantry, complete with wine cooler and chilled fridge drawers, lets guests indulge, extending a home-from-home feel to the suite. Beyond, a new valet box allows for additional guest privacy and leads on to a walk-in closet, dressing table, and the main of two bathrooms, this one with twin vanities, a glorious bath tub, and a cavernous doublehead shower.

With the best hotel rooms, it’s often the little things that make the difference and at the Island Shangri-La this includes wireless charging ports secreted within bedside tables, sound bars and speakers throughout the suite that allow guests to groove to their own tracks via Bluetooth (including a separate panel in the bathroom), distilled hot and cold water taps in the pantry, intuitive lighting, an indulgent pillow menu, and multiple nozzles in that huge shower. The result is a suite that you’ll never want to leave.

Beyond the suite, Horizon Club guests are also afforded access to the hotel’s intimate executive lounge, which serves an infinitely elegant cocktail and canape experience each evening, complete with signature cocktails and a host of indulgent bites from the hotel’s culinary team. shangri-la.com – NICK WALTON