I stayed at one of the best hotels in the world, where a $16,000-a-night suite includes its own movie theater, popcorn maker, and 'cabinet of delights'
Situated in central Hong Kong, The Landmark Mandarin Oriental is known for its luxurious design and legendary service. The front of the building was not flashy, but modern.
The entrance, connected to a large luxury mall, was understated. You have to go up a couple steps or a quick lift to enter the hotel.
While the lobby was not grand, it felt luxurious without being kitschy— it made sense for upmarket business travelers and fast-paced city dwellers.
The jasmine tea at check in was a nice touch and check-in was a breeze.
If there's one thing I would change about the hotel, it is making the lobby area more inviting. It felt like an afterthought — a place to pass on the way to your room. Advertisements for luxury products on the wall didn't help.
After staying in a traditional Hong Kong studio apartment a few days before, my 600-square-foot room felt like a palace.
I was welcomed with a personalized letter in my room and a thumb drive. While the thumb drive was a nice thought, I couldn't get it to work.
There was even a welcome treat from the pastry chef in the room. It is best described as a gourmet strawberry shortcake with gold flakes.
The king-size bed was extremely comfortable and there was complimentary water bottles on both nightstands. I almost didn't wake up in time for breakfast.
The mini bar was not so mini, with full and mini bottles of liquor and wine.
There was also a selection of complimentary teas and Nespresso coffee, along with fancy chocolate for purchase.
The closet had an automatic light and two yoga mats, which is super useful if you want to do yoga in the privacy of your room.
The large bathroom has a jacuzzi, a rain shower, and even a mirror with a built-in TV screen. Yes, I took advantage and watched CNN while I brushed my teeth.
The hotel provided all natural Sodashi toiletries and bath salts for the bath.
The fully equipped gym on the spa level was large and convenient. I'm not a big exerciser on business trips. From the looks of how empty it was, neither were the other people staying at the Mandarin Oriental.
Even though Hong Kong is typically warm, Mandarin Oriental keeps its pool indoors. While I would've preferred a rooftop pool, it was nice to take a dip in air-conditioning. It's hard to see in this shot, but there were fountains on either side of the pool.
From there, I headed to the full-service spa. Having a spa at a hotel is a criminally underrated amenity for business travel. Seriously, keep it in mind. There's nothing like coming back from a long day of meetings to a sauna.
The Oriental Spa has won Asia & Australia's Hotel Spa of the Year award for three years. It covers two floors. On the first floor is a relaxing lobby and a small business center.
The second floor leads to the private massage rooms (like this one). The Oriental offers a bewildering array of massages, treatments, and therapies, from more common Thai-style massages to more exotic treatments like a Hammam experience.
Source: Mandarin Oriental
The real star of the spa is the variety of water baths, steam rooms, and saunas, from a tropical rain sauna, a Moroccan rasul, vitality pools, "experience showers" (think: a deluge of ice cold water or a delicate mist), and this giant hot tub.
Source: Mandarin Oriental
Some of the rooms were a bit gimmicky — I have no idea what the benefits of this "amethyst steam room" are — but it was a ton of fun to go from room to room. I went twice to the spa in the course of a day.
After a long, relaxing trip to the spa, there's a fully equipped bathroom to freshen up.
Later in the day, a concierge from The Mandarin Oriental gave me a tour of some of the hotel's other suites. The most luxurious is the Entertainment Suite, a 2,250 square-foot mega-suite designed by Hong Kong architect Joyce Wang.
The entire suite is outfitted for an extravagant party. Along the main wall of the suite is the "Cabinet of Delights," which has boutique wines on tap, a mixologist "booth," Cuban cigars, a popcorn machine, and a glass display stocked with delicacies made by the hotel's Michelin-star chef.
It's called the Entertainment Suite for a reason. There's a 160-inch TV screen and a projector, as well as a coffee table filled with a PlayStation 4 and the latest virtual reality equipment.
Source: Mandarin Oriental
The whole suite is set up for entertaining, with a fully equipped kitchen so your private chef can whip up gourmet meals. Let's be honest: If you're renting this suite for $16,000-plus a night, you aren't cooking yourself.
The dining room is big enough for a ten-person dinner party.
Even the bed in the Entertainment Suite is special. The bed is a FreshBed, which creates a microclimate on either side of the bed so that you can sleep at the perfect temperature throughout the night.
Source: FreshBed
The bedroom is the perfect place to leave your entourage behind as they argue over who gets to use the virtual reality game next.
The bathtub in the master bathroom is a deep soaking tub made from a single piece of marble. It's pretty impressive.
I loved the separate rooms for shower and toilet. Oh, the luxury.
The walk-in closet did not disappoint. I'm not sure who brings enough clothes to a hotel to justify a closet of this size, but, hey, I'm not the one renting a $16,000-a-night hotel room.
The hotel features a two Michelin-starred restaurant by Chef Richard Ekkebus called Amber. Some have called the restaurant Hong Kong's "signature fine dining experience."
Source: CathayPacific
I didn't have time to dine at Amber this time around. But I was thankful in the morning for the complimentary Nespresso pods in the room.
Instead, I hit up MO Bar, the hotel's other dining establishment. MO serves afternoon tea and doubles as a music venue for the hotel.
Source: Mandarin Oriental
But they also do a dynamite morning breakfast buffet. There's plenty of pastries.
But, this being Hong Kong, the real gem of the spread is the dim sum. There were all the classic dim sum favorites from sticky rice to har gow dumplings.
After brunch, it was time to pack up and head out. But first, I had to go back to the spa. Seriously, it was that amazing. I asked the front desk to hold my bags so I could squeeze in an extra hour before my flight. Overall, my experience at The Landmark Mandarin Oriental was impeccable. While I would have liked a rooftop bar or a more inviting communal space, the spa made all those troubles melt away.
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