Location
The Fairmont Peace Hotel is the most iconic hotel on the Bund in Shanghai. One cannot miss the hotel, with its iconic green metallic roof, a landmark that is part of the Bund skyline. The Fairmont Peace Hotel is situated at the end of East Nanjing Road on the Bund, where shopping options are plentiful, ranging from large shopping malls and department stores to small shops selling souvenirs and snacks. There are also several 24-hour convenience shops and multiple eateries, from street food to restaurants, within a 5-minute walk from the hotel. The hotel is conveniently located near East Nanjing Road Station, the nearest subway station, just a 5-minute walk away, providing easy access to explore Shanghai by metro. Guests wanting to visit the Pudong area across the Huangpu River also have the option of taking the Shanghai Ferry from Jinling East Road Ferry terminal, which is about a 10-minute walk along the Bund.
The Suite
We checked into the 1-Bedroom Suite in Fairmont Peace Hotel. The suite has a floor area of 89㎡, with dedicated spaces for the living room, bedroom, bathroom, and even a walk-in closet.
Entryway
We could see the old Shanghai colonial decor from the entryway to our 1-bedroom suite at Fairmont Peace Hotel, featuring dark wooden flooring and plastered walls. In addition to serving as a transitional space between the living room and main entrance, the mini bar, fully stocked with snacks and drinks ranging from soda to liquor, is discreetly tucked into a niche next to the main entrance of the suite. I was pleasantly surprised to find the latest Nespresso Vertuo machine equipped in the mini bar area. The mini fridge is housed in a dark wooden cabinet in the minibar area. The entryway was also home to the entrance to the powder room and the walk-in wardrobe, which had direct access to the bathroom.
Powder Room
The powder room, furnished with a sink and a toilet, is located on the right side of the entryway and provides an alternative location for using the toilet. Decked in white and black marble, the powder room exudes the classical luxury vibe characteristic of the other parts of the suite.
Living Room
The living room of the 1-Bedroom Suite, occupying approximately half of the suite’s space, is adorned with French Colonial decor, from the beige patterned walls to the intricate carvings on the beams and ceiling. Topped with a floral-patterned hanging light on the ceiling, we were swarmed with a luxurious vibe in the living room. The beige fabric three-seater sofa, sitting next to the window and facing the entryway, immediately invites guests to take a seat and enjoy the view of the Bund. A small dark brown coffee table, decked with welcome amenities, together with the table lamp resting on the side table in a corner, gave us a cosy feel. I find the TV cabinet’s placement a little off, as it is positioned next to the sofa rather than facing it, which makes watching programmes on the 55″ LED TV a tad difficult. I also find a lack of storage space in the living room and the suite. The TV cabinet provided us with the only storage space for temporarily storing the items we had bought. When it comes to entertainment, TV channels offer only a handful of English channels, while the majority of channels are in Chinese. Fairmont Peace Hotel makes up for the lack of English channels by treating guests to a complimentary small catalogue of on-demand English movies (selectable under “Joy Cinema”).
The high-back armchair, tucked in a corner of the suite next to the entrance to the entryway, invites the suite’s occupants to relax and enjoy a cup of coffee or read a book. The living room in the 1-Bedroom Suite at Fairmont Peace Hotel is furnished with a fairly large work desk, placed by the wall of the powder room. Despite being fitted with a table lamp, I still find plenty of space to work on the work desk.
Bedroom
The French Colonial decor also dominated the interior of the bedroom. The king bed was luxurious and very comfortable to sleep on, thanks to its firm mattress. However, the sleep quality was impaired by the pillows, which were too soft for my liking and gave me a neckache the next morning. Although I was unable to find a list of pillow options, the Fairmont Peace Hotel was able to provide the buckwheat and foam pillows that I requested, which significantly improved the sleep quality on the king bed. I thought the space afforded by the bedside tables for us to place our lifestyle devices was generous. In addition to the phone/alarm clock and the large bedside lamps, we still find plenty of space for us to charge our mobile devices overnight. The two drawers in each of the bedside tables allowed us to store our belongings neatly.
The TV cabinet is placed against the wall and not facing the king bed. Fortunately, we were able to swivel the TV to face the bed, allowing us to enjoy the same entertainment as the TV in the living room. The bedroom is also furnished with a two-seater sofa and another coffee table, placed opposite the king bed by the window. Perhaps the hotel intended for guests to sit on this sofa and watch the bustle of the East Nanjing Road below, or to peek out into the Bund from the comfort of our suite.
Bathroom
The bathroom can be accessed via the door in the bedroom or the walk-in wardrobe. Being connected to the wardrobe gave us the convenience of accessing our clothing. The bathroom is adorned with white marble, which lends it a luxurious ambience. From the bathroom entrance, the first thing that caught my eye was the deep-seated bathtub nestled by the wall furthest from the entrance. The bathtub was perfect for us to soak away the fatigue we had accumulated from exploring Shanghai. Despite having a small TV installed at the bathtub, I find it rather useless, as the angle at which it was installed made it nearly impossible to watch while soaking in the bathtub.
The walk-in shower and toilet cubicles are installed on either side of the bathtub. The walk-in shower, fitted with a rain shower and a regular shower head, was quite sizeable and even had a bench fitted inside. The toilet on the opposite side is fitted with a Japanese-style bidet, which is also quite sizeable. The bathroom in the suite is fitted with two sinks, opposite the walk-in shower. The countertop space on each of these sinks is very generous, allowing us to place our toiletries without having to resort to a game of Tetris. As if the space is not enough, the hotel further increases the countertop space by installing another ledge underneath the large mirrors in the bathroom. The hotel also provided a vanity table in the bathroom, located outside the toilet cubicle, but we merely used this table to store our toiletries bag.
Walk-in Wardrobe
The walk-in wardrobe sits between the bathroom and the entryway and can be accessed from both parts of the 1-Bedroom Suite. I like how the Fairmont Peace Hotel carved out a space as a walk-in wardrobe and made it accessible from the bathroom. The hotel fitted two large open wardrobes facing each other in this space, but with more hanging space than storage space. I thought there was plenty of space to hang up at least 2 weeks’ worth of clothing, but the limiting factor is the number of hangers, which I am fairly certain the hotel will be able to provide when requested. One of these wardrobes is fitted with only hanging racks, providing space for us to store our luggage after unpacking. The other wardrobe has a similar design, but features a three-tiered open shelf and a single drawer. Despite having these designed into the wardrobe, they only increase the storage space for smaller clothing items slightly. The in-room safe is located on the open shelf.
Service
The service around the hotel is generally very good. All the staff that we met during our stay made us feel welcome and were always wearing their smiles. The doormen at the main entrances would always be one step ahead of us and open the door for us. The reception staff were always ready to assist guests in answering any questions regarding the city and the hotel. The staff at the Fairmont Gold Lounge were always welcoming. We visited the lounge twice and were always greeted with a warm welcome by the staff. We requested to visit the rooftop terrace at night, and the lounge staff brought us up, sharing with us the best views and photo spots.
Gordon, the Fairmont Gold butler, got in touch with us months before our arrival. Following our initial email to the hotel, checking on the suite we will be staying in and other options that were available to us. Gordon was very responsive and patient in answering our questions. He also helped us arrange for our private transfer between the airport, the cruise terminal and the hotel, so our trip would not be affected. He was also present during our check-in and made us feel welcomed. Gordon also arranged a private historic tour of the hotel and a private visit to the roof terrace, where we enjoyed a privileged nighttime view of the Bund and Pudong area. Gordon generously shared his local knowledge with us, enabling us to plan our stay in Shanghai effectively. Gordon’s efforts were pivotal in making our stay in Shanghai enjoyable.
Hotel Facilities
Breakfast @ Jasmine Lounge
Breakfast at Fairmont Peace Hotel was served at the Jasmine Lounge, located on the Ground Floor of the hotel, next to the Jazz Bar. I’d say there is quite a good spread of food available during breakfast. For Western options alone, we were spoiled for choice, with a large variety of salads and cold cuts, as well as a wide selection of pastries, in addition to the hot favourites of bacon, eggs, and hash browns. What makes the breakfast served at Jasmine Lounge stand out is the equally large menu of Shanghainese options. We could choose from dim sum, Shanghainese street noodles, pot stickers, and Shanghainese pancakes. The food quality served during breakfast was excellent. Having said that, I did not notice any menu changes throughout my three-night stay at the hotel.
Fairmont Gold Lounge
The Fairmont Gold Lounge is located on the 9th floor of the hotel, accessible to suite guests and Accor members with platinum or higher status. The Fairmont Gold Lounge employs an earthy tone, which feels very relaxing, while the chandelier hanging on the ceiling exudes a luxurious vibe. The relaxing feeling was even more pronounced when the lounge was empty most of the time during our visit, contrasting with the bustling scene on East Nanjing Road below. The lounge is dotted with dining tables with four accompanying chairs, creating a great space for guests to relax as a group or for business meetings. There is a part of the lounge that feels more like a living room, with couches placed in front of the TV. There are only a handful of tables that were furnished with sofa seats, allowing guests to chill.
We were only at the lounge on one occasion (due to spending most of our time exploring Shanghai), and we visited during their evening cocktail hour. The Fairmont Gold Lounge serves hors d’oeuvres during afternoon tea and evening cocktail time in a buffet area at the back of the lounge. Considering the evening cocktail where food is served in bite-size portions, there is a great variety of food available. From cold cuts like smoked tuna, prawns, and octopus to hot food options like fried dumplings, sweet and sour fish, and even a station with smoked duck, to pastries, I thought the variety served during the evening cocktail was quite substantial. Guests are free to help themselves with the variety of spirits and soda.
Swimming Pool
The Fairmont Peace Hotel is fitted with an indoor pool located on the 1st floor, accessible via the same entrance as the hotel’s in-house spa, Willow Stream. The pool is a little on the small side, but still allows guests to do some decent laps. The pool is slightly heated, allowing guests to swim comfortably. There is a limited number of poolside chairs available at the pool, which allows only a small number of guests to use the pool at a time. Fortunately, the pool does not seem to be popular with guests at the hotel. During our visit to the pool, there were no other guests present. There is a sauna facility in the changing room.
Gym
The hotel also has a small gym, located on level 1 in the same area as the Willow Stream spa and the swimming pool. Despite its small size, the gym is well equipped with workout machines for cardio and strength training. For cardio training, guests can work out on the stationary bikes, the three treadmills, and the elliptical machine. The gym is equipped with machines that work out every muscle in the body, including a machine for the abs. On top of these strength training machines, the gym is also equipped with a set of free weights. In addition to the equipment on the main gym floor, the Fairmont Peace Hotel also features a yoga studio for guests to practice yoga. I am not sure if the hotel offers any yoga lessons, as there were no indications that it does.
Overall
We had a wonderful stay at the iconic Fairmont Peace Hotel in Shanghai. Being located on the Bund, we had a great view of the Pudong skyline, the icon of Shanghai, from our hotel room. The hotel is also well-connected to the rest of the city via the metro, with the nearest station, East Nanjing Road Station, just a 5-minute walk away. The 1-Bedroom Suite is comfortable with sufficient furnishing for us to enjoy the suite without over-cluttering it. The sleep quality on the king bed was excellent, which left us feeling refreshed every single night. The service at the hotel was top-notch, from the moment we arrived to our daily interactions with the staff; everyone made us feel welcome, and nothing seemed too small to bother them.