Since a good friend of mine from the mainland was visiting Hong Kong for a 3-day, 2-night trip for the very first time, I wanted to show him the best of our city. As a local, I know that what truly sets this international metropolis apart from the Greater Bay Area cities is our world-class luxury hotels and legendary 5-star service.
That's why I specially handpicked K11 Artus and The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong for our two-night stay.
We ended up skipping the Peak Tram to Victoria Peak, mostly because our time was simply too limited.
My friend once mentioned that living in Xi'an, he rarely gets to see the ocean, so he has a special fondness for sea views and the cool sea breeze.
That was the exact reason I chose K11 Artus over The Regent.
As a born-and-raised Hongkonger, every single time—let me emphasize, *every single time*—I take a stroll from Tsim Sha Tsui East along the Avenue of Stars toward the Star Ferry Pier just as night falls, I am reminded that Victoria Harbour's night view is undeniably the best in the world.
In *The Dark Knight*, the second installment of Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy, the iconic scene where Batman dives from the top of Two IFC into the city still remains deeply etched in my memory.
From the balcony of K11 Artus, you can feel the sea breeze while taking in the world-famous view of Victoria Harbour right at sea level.
🙋🏻 Note: I didn't even go into this much detail in my other review of K11 Artus.
As for our second night at The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong, the reason was simple and obvious: to gaze down at both sides of Victoria Harbour from the top floor of the tallest building in Hong Kong (even higher than the Peak Tower at Victoria Peak). You get a panoramic vista stretching from the outlying islands and Kennedy Town, sweeping through Central, Wan Chai, and North Point in the harbor, all the way out to the Lei Yue Mun strait.
In four words: jaw-dropping and breathtaking.
I shared this with my friend, reminding him to take in the harbour views from two distinct perspectives: (1) right at water level, and (2) from a bird's-eye view. I promised him that the next time he visits Hong Kong, I'll take him up the Peak Tram for a walk around the Peak Circle Trail and up to the Peak Tower to experience the third angle of this world-famous, heart-stoppingly gorgeous harbor view.
However, when I booked the Victoria Harbour Suite at The Ritz-Carlton via Trip.com, the information was confusing and unclear. I booked a room for $xxxx, which supposedly included breakfast for two (buffet style).
At the time of booking, I also noticed that doubling the price to around $xxxx x2 ($1x,xxx) would get us the same suite, plus access to the Executive Lounge on the 116th floor for all 5 daily presentations (including buffet breakfast, gourmet bites, coffee, tea, juices, and house wines), along with other perks like a one-way luxury limousine transfer within Kowloon. Since it was literally twice the price, I opted not to upgrade.
Imagine our surprise at the front desk during check-in when we were told that because we booked a "suite," all suite guests are actually entitled to complimentary access to the aforementioned Executive Lounge privileges on the 116th floor!
*However*, we were also told that if we wanted the "more extensive" buffet breakfast down at the main hotel restaurant, it would cost an additional $148 (+10%) per person. We ultimately decided to have breakfast at the Executive Lounge. The atmosphere was peaceful and elegant, the food was exceptionally delicious with a great variety, and of course, the service lived up to its consistent ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐+ standard.
I hope Trip.com pays closer attention to this and improves their booking details, and I sincerely hope our experience provides a helpful reference for other travelers looking to book this hotel.
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