Wanda Reign on the Bund

As a seasoned luxury traveler, The Shanghai on the Bund reminded me what real excellence feels like. We stayed 5 nights and were upgraded to a view of the Bund & Pudong and the Huangpu river and skyline view was extraordinary. We enjoyed it immensely. The location could not be better. Yu Garden is close. Nanjing Road shopping is close. The subway is close. The Bund is close. Exploring Shanghai was effortless. The staff were gracious and exceptional. They were warm, attentive, and genuinely thoughtful. When we arrived at the hotel, our internet signal was not working so our Alipay & Wepay were down. With no RMB cash, we were couldn't pay for our car. When hotel staff Alex opened the car door, he immediately and unprompted offered to help us pay with his phone. Special shout out to Alex who deserves special recognition for helping us in our bind and going far beyond what anyone could reasonably expect. The breakfast buffet was astonishing. I am not exaggerating when I say it is the best I have encountered in any hotel. The variety was endless and everything was executed with real care. We didn't have to repeat any food choice during our 5 day stay unless we wanted to taste it again. The ice cream at breakfast raised an eyebrow at first, but hey we are on vacation ... and it was fun. The Art Deco design throughout the hotel and in the rooms was beautiful, exuding quiet confidence and elegance. It is the kind of environment that makes you sit a little straighter and speak a little more thoughtfully. Overall, this was a remarkable stay. Sophisticated, warm, and flawlessly run. I would return immediately and I am already looking for a reason to do so.

I was fortunate to stay at the St. Regis Shanghai The Bund this week on a one-night staycation. From the moment I checked in, the experience was seamless and warm. The Art Deco style throughout the hotel felt elegant and refined. My room was lovely, with a wonderful view over the river and the Bund. Dinner at the newly opened SPAGO restaurant was a highlight. The space is beautifully designed, the view over the city added a lovely ambience, and both the food and service were excellent. Breakfast service was welcoming and attentive; George took great care of me. The fitness area also impressed, a serene tree-lined space with real energy; Mark at the entrance made my visit memorable. Alan, the General Manager, seems to instill a positive energy across the teams, and it shows in every interaction. I look forward to returning soon!"

-100 Worst service provider among JW Marriott properties ! Stayed 2 nights and regret terribly! I have stayed more than 8 properties in Shanghai, all at least 5 star Luxury level and has never stayed in such a poorly managed hotel , 1 YEAR OLD! Very bad property despite telling us it’s only 1 year old ! Paid about $350 per room per night , lead in basic category because they do not have higher category for twin bedded rooms. Upon check in , they wanted to hold a total sum of RMB 9000 (about $1270). I fully understand if they have other F&B facilities or amenities which need payment but there’s only The bar , the Bfast venue and the Spargo which was opened a day before . The restaurant or F&B outlets aren’t the one you will look forward to soak your time there if you have only 2 nights and there are so many better eateries in other hotels for you to savor . Also, the location is like the tip end of the bund, accessible by foot though? I paid because St Regis is a luxury property . I seemed to be staying at upper end of 3 star hotel . During check in , I asked the check in staff, how old is the hotel. The lobby looks good, the iconic St Regis style . He mentioned the hotel was opened yesterday . I thought I heard wrongly , so I asked again .. you mean yesterday? Is it officially opened yet ? He said yes , yesterday . I think I’m doubtful of my question and my understanding. I asked again in Mandarin! The same phrase and this time the answer is different . The check in personnel mentioned it was last year ! . I teased him , last year and yesterday is 365 days different . Nevertheless, the manager on duty Christina came and help and mentioned that he spoke wrongly. It was last year. I was abit surprised at the understanding of the English for a check in personnel because that position is crucial as they have to communicate with guests from all over the world . I’m not expecting linguistic or very profound in English or other languages but basic understanding and able to handle basic information should be clear. So I mentioned to Christina that I have stayed in another St Regis in Shanghai before and we just came from another I thought it would not be a good hotel but however I underestimated that property and it was a wow factor. Christina volunteered to throw in breakfast for our stay . I rejected initially because I remembered that the breakfast at St Regis Shanghai was so so and Christina insisted I have their breakfast a try . (I’ll come to breakfast review later part) After we got our keys , Christina assigned Kitty , Chief Butler to escort us to our room . Everything was fine till we went to our room. As we opened the room door with our key , I was shocked to find someone in the room . I was left speechless and the moment was stalled for a good few seconds before Kitty explained that the concierge has brought our luggages up . I don’t know but normally , a 5-star property would have acquired the guests consent prior or accompany guests to the room to place the luggage. In our case , no notice was given . As we unpacked our luggages, we noticed the making up of the bed was not professional enough and not properly tucked in and was unevenly tucked in. To our surprise, the frame of the bed was torn and tattered ! Accordingly to the check in personnel and Christina , the front manager on duty, the hotel is only one year old ! Went to run a quick shower before heading out and there was a quite an obscene area of black patches of molds where the shampoo, shower gel and conditioner were placed . Gross ! We left the room to wonder soon around the Yu Garden. We came back around turn down services timing. As we were about to go in to our room , the housekeeping retreated herself saying that she has finished the housekeeping and requested us to go in to the room with our room key. This is understandable due to security. But prior to our entry, the room was left open, not even just slight open. Before we leave the room early afternoon, I purposely took a face towel and leave it by my bed . I also took out the jewelry storage box and left it at the table by the bed. As the table by the bed was small , i took the TV remote control and its storage box and put it at the console where the TV was. When we came back to the room in the evening , the table by the bed was once again filled with stuffs including the TV remote control and its control box . The jewelry storage box which I had placed earlier on the table by the bed, was gone and found near the safe box near the writing desk. The towel was cleared away. There was also an uncut fruit platter at the TV console desk top but without cutleries ! I related the housekeeping incident to Kitty, the chief butler, when we met her at the lobby. Told her about the housekeeping way of up keeping the room and also the condition of the beds. Kitty mentioned that she will point out to the housekeeping to keep in mind about our preferred placements of belongings in the room. The next day , we headed out after breakfast. Around noon time, I sent a text to the butler team on the chat group , telling them that I was expecting some delivery services . I had duly input the delivery information including one which is at the delivery locker (provided the team with the passcode) and also expected date of arrival of the items. I have also indicated my room number and I would like to have the items placed at the closet area. The butler’s team replied well noted and will pass on the information to the concierge team to follow up. When we went back to the room around 8ish pm, a rude shock. The deliveries were behind the entrance of our room just before the bathroom and none was at the closet area ! Moreover , there was no updates on the missing items . I texted back the team and ask about the missing delivery (I gave them the 2 delivery numbers to check). Without checking the fact , the butler team , Amber, mentioned that one parcel, which was from the locker has just arrived . And the concierge has gone to retrieve it and will be delivered up to my room shortly. I told Amber , the locker parcel has arrived some time ago and definitely not today . Furthermore , Amber mentioned that the rest of the items were not in the hotel yet ! I was kind of disgusted by the lack of professionalism of the service personnels of the hotel ? Did they try to answer my queries while sleeping ? I gave them the list of information at 12ish in the afternoon . I asked about the ongoing around 8ish pm. Then I asked Amber who was the butler service provider who gave the concierge team on the delivery of the parcels to my room when u requested earlier today. It took her almost an hour to find out the name ? Ridiculous ! Just as we were exchanging the messages, the concierge came and delivered the parcel which was retrieved from the locker . He asked for RMB$2 because there’s an overdue charge. I was about to pay him but I just recalled that Amber has mentioned that the parcel at the locker has just arrived and the concierge is picking up ! I’m sick of the lies and after lies , lack of respect, lack of ethics and lack of professionalism in a luxury 5 star hotel , St Regis. I paid the concierge but I also asked him if he knew who was the one who delivered the parcels this afternoon . He mentioned he was one of them and there are another one or two . So my next question to him was , did the butler team gave them the list and told them where to place the parcels ? He mentioned that they have received the list and was told to check on the deliveries and sent them to the respective room. The wrong placement of deliveries wasn’t the fault of the concierge. That concierge guy was so freaked out and dare not even mention who was the one who gave them the instructions . Are there any junior staffs abusing in the hotel? I told him I won’t say his name but I would like to know who’s the one passing the instructions. I could feel the pressure he had and I didn’t press hard on it . However , I did record down what he had mentioned . My query is clear : did the butler team tell u where to place the delivered items? I texted the butler team back on my findings and they just gave me a very simple “sorry”! St Regis Shanghai on the Bund , your sorry is so cheap that we can feel the insincerity ! The housekeeping on day 2 was the same attitude . The housekeeper wanted her TV remote control and casing by our bed. So again , the jewelry box was removed and replaced by the remote control . But the salt for the bath and soap at the bath tub area was not replaced ! The housekeeping cleared away the used ones and did not replace a set of new ones. The next morning , we were about to check out . Got the butler to help and get the concierge to help us with our luggages . Waited 20mins and no one came . We went down ourselves with our luggages . Saw the concierge guy at his station and one of the butler standing inside the hotel lobby as we went down. Both had eye contacts with us and definitely saw us with our luggages. But both were glued to where they were standing and no assistances rendered until we called out to them . I proceeded to check out and related the problems with the front manager then , Derrick . Derrick sounded genuinely apologetic and promised to escalate the problems that we faced to his GM. He also mentioned that he will hold on to our charges and let me know . I asked him to pull out the charges we had on Day 1 to check as I couldn’t recall how much was charged to our account. I knew there was a holding deposit but I wasn’t briefed clearly on the amount. Upon showing me the information, I was shocked to learn that the holding deposit is almost the same amount as our room rates . I asked Derrick if there’s a reason for the high deposit holding , he mentioned that guests may spend at the newly opened Spargo and that’s why the holding deposit was higher. Nevertheless , whatever damages done earlier , the deposit holding just added another negative value of the property. Derrick promised to address the issues to me as soon as possible . We left the hotel on Friday morning . I contacted Derrick on Tuesday, 5 days after we left. How well does the hotel holds compromise? No initiative and we have to poke and ask. St Regis Hotel on the Bund does not live up to your standard and we have to pay so much , OVERPAID , to suffer ? The services , the room condition, the torn and tattered bed frame , the lies and so many more.

I really recommend this hotel if you are going to stay in Shanghai. It’s an amazing hotel with greatest service. All employees are so friendly and helpful without any excuses. Also most employees speak English here what’s nice if you are a foreigner. Rooms are in the great condition, location is convenient and nice, food is excellent, staff is perfect. Most thanks to Emma wang and George peng from main restaurant, they are so helpful. Brilliant 🤩 besides most thanks to Zeki Chen, he helped me to order an item that I couldn’t order without knowing the Chinese language. Wish to come back again. 🙏

Outstanding service, outstanding location, a hotel that even if busy has the ultimate host service far beyond what can be expected. Breakfast is very good in calm and cozy environment. Amazing to get the champagne at sabring service. The butlers are amazing. I will be back next in Shanghai