The Ritz-Carlton Shanghai, Pudong

We held our company event at The Ritz-Carlton Shanghai, Pudong. Special thanks to Menglin for her amazing coordination throughout the whole process. She was incredibly friendly, responsive and helped arrange all venue and event details perfectly. Thanks to her thoughtful support and seamless follow-up, our meeting went extremely smoothly. Great service, professional team, highly recommend for corporate events!

My recent stay at The Ritz-Carlton Shanghai, Pudong was an exceptional experience, made even more memorable by the thoughtful recognition extended to Marriott Bonvoy elite members. From the moment I arrived, it was clear that the hotel takes elite status seriously—not just in name, but in genuine hospitality. The room upgrade and welcome amenities were both generous and well-curated, offering a level of comfort and attention to detail that truly elevated the stay. The lounge access was another highlight, with excellent service, refined food offerings, and one of the most stunning skyline views in Shanghai. What stood out most, however, was the personalized care from the Guest Recognition team. I’d like to extend special thanks to Angel, whose warm and attentive service made a lasting impression. Her professionalism, friendliness, and proactive approach ensured that every detail of my stay felt seamless and welcoming. Overall, this property exemplifies what loyal Marriott members hope for—recognition, comfort, and genuine hospitality. I would not hesitate to return.

The TL;DR: A prime location and impressive views cannot compensate for consistent service failures and dismal culinary standards. Expect poor communication (at least in English), a lack of punctuality, and a management team that remains invisible until it is too late to be helpful. The Experience: We selected the Ritz-Carlton Shanghai, Pudong for a family weekend, specifically as a base for a Disney visit. Our plan required precision: an early in-room breakfast to ensure we utilized our early-entry passes before the general public arrived. The service issues began with a rude evening operator. When I requested in-room dining, she insisted—contrary to the physical menu in the room—that breakfast was "buffet only." When I asked to speak with a manager to clarify, she refused, eventually transferring my call to a random on-premise restaurant simply to terminate the conversation. Property and Operations: While the location is excellent, the physical state of the rooms is inconsistent. We booked both a regular room and a suite; surprisingly, the suite felt significantly more "tired" and dated than the standard room. The operational underwhelming continued into the morning of our Disney trip. After eventually securing a 6:00 AM delivery through a different department, we rose at 5:30 AM to be ready. By 6:10 AM, nothing had arrived. When contacted, the staff was dismissive, incorrectly claiming our order was for 6:30 AM. The food finally arrived at 6:35 AM with multiple errors. Because of this delay, the "early entry" advantage we had paid for was entirely squandered. Dismal Culinary Standards: The in-room dining was, quite frankly, a chore. Aside from the congee, the quality was consistently poor. The Shanghai beef noodles were a soggy, tasteless mess with chewy meat. Even the basic service was amateurish; staff seemed unfamiliar with how to lay out cutlery, neatly arranging all forks and knives in a row on just one side of the table. On one evening, the kitchen actually ran out of mini-burgers—apparently, a Ritz-Carlton kitchen cannot manage to prepare more than four tiny patties before exhausting their meat supply. Providing such below-average local cuisine in a city world-famous for its food is unforgivable. Management Apathy and Data Security (lack thereof): I made multiple attempts to connect with management during the stay, even involving the Marriott Ambassador team to assist me. These requests were ignored. Leadership only engaged once I had checked out and a payment issue arose. Most concerningly, I observed two unauthorized transaction attempts on my credit card post-departure, both failing due to an incorrect expiry date. Someone at the property was clearly attempting to manually process my 16-digit card number by guessing the expiration. The hotel offered no credible explanation for this breach of protocol, forcing me to cancel my card entirely. Verdict: This property charges premium Ritz-Carlton rates while delivering mid-tier execution. If you expect the "Ladies and Gentlemen" standard of service, you will be deeply disappointed.

We dined at the Chinese restaurant. On the 53rd floor. Amazing views, impeccable upscale service, live Chinese music, and a Michelin rating for the food! Must haves: the duck skin with foie gras, and the crab fried rice. Our waiter Jason was delightful: top professional, good English, and super alert to our every need. A true credit to the ritz Carlton brand!

I originally planned to stay 4 nights at Ritz Carlton, and 5 nights at the Puli. But I liked the location so much, that I spent al 9 nights at the RC. Location: perfect!!! I mean, the metro station is just 'downstairs', so that is very convenient! And I love this side of the river. Breakfast: Asian breakfasts are the best, so also here at the RC: perfect! A lot of choice between more European and Asian delicacies. Service was kind, but I have the feeling a lot of the staff are not really up to the standards of a 5star hotel. This was notable in small details, like how they serve the tea (once they just put a cup without a saucer on the table), and how they interact with clients. But: they were very friendly. Room: I was in room 3925. Perfect view of the Pearl Tower! I loved the room, I loved the bathroom. The lighting system is a bit outdated. The hallways also could use an update to stay on the 5 star level. But I loved my room! What I would change though: I would switch the location of the desk and the sofa. I know, the sofa is orientated to the TV, but 1) watching tv from the sofa is not comfortable as you are not in front of it, and 2) everybody watches TV from the bed :-). So if you switch the desk and the couch, you can orientate the sofa towards the outside: so you have the view of the tower. I loved sitting there and watching all the lights at night, it is better than any tv show. People book these rooms for the view, so makes much more sense to be able to watch it from a comfy couch. Flair: the rooftop bar! I only went twice, it is Shanghai's hotspot, so it is very busy. Even as a guest, one needs a reservation. The views are amazing! Aura: I spent every night here :-) . Loved the very nice singer and musician! Also here, the same feeling as with breakfast: the staff is kind, but needs a lot more training. One could see they are not experienced with for instance pouring a glass of champagne. Once, I opened the bottle of wine myself, as the kind waitress couldn't unscrew the bottle. I don't mind at all, and i hope she remembers the trick I taught her :-). But I can imagine some clients could get a bit frustrated with these issues. Some training in how to serve drinks, how to open a bottle, how to place a teacup (with the ear to the righthand side..) should fix all this. I also visited a friend in the Regent at Pudong side, and Banyan Green on the other side. I admit, their rooms were a lot bigger (especially Banyan Green hotel), and much more up to date. But: i preferred the location and the overall feel of the Ritz Carlton! Arriving at the lobby after a day in the city, always made me feel great! So, if i should come back to shanghai, I'll definitely choose the Ritz Carlton again! Kind Regards, chris snepvangers.