The St. Regis Shenzhen
The lift climbs past the 75th floor and your ears pop, then the doors open onto a lobby that floats above the city like the observation deck of a ship. Through the floor-to-ceiling glass the whole of Shenzhen is laid out in neon and steel, the border hills of Hong Kong rising dark on the far side of the water, and a butler in a charcoal suit is already greeting you by name. You order a tea and watch the cloud layer drift below the windows, and for a moment the size of the place feels less like a hotel than a small, rarefied country.
The 深圳瑞吉酒店 Shēnzhèn Ruìjí Jiǔdiàn occupies floors 75 to 100 of the KK100 tower, the slender spire that defines the Luohu skyline, and was designed by the British architect Sir Terry Farrell. It carries the St. Regis lineage begun by Colonel John Jacob Astor in New York in 1904, and the signature here is the 24-hour butler service, a holdover from the brand’s origins as a townhouse for high-society entertaining. Of its 290 rooms, none sits lower than the 75th floor, so the city is never more than a tilt of the head away.
The Rooms
The rooms are tall, quiet and built for the view. The entry-level Deluxe City rooms already run 45 to 55 square metres, with deep marble baths set against the window so you can lie back and watch the traffic thread the avenues far below. Climb to the Caroline Astor Suite at 90 to 96 m² and the bedroom faces both the Shenzhen towers and the green ridges of the New Territories, the light changing from silver dawn to violet dusk without you ever leaving the sheets.
What Makes It Special
It is the height that stays with you. The Drawing Room serves an afternoon tea on the 96th floor where the cakes arrive on a skyline of their own, and the St. Regis Bar mixes a “Bloody Mary” ritual that the brand has carried from New York for over a century. Down a few floors the indoor pool and spa look straight out over the rooftops, and the five restaurants cover Italian, Cantonese and a panoramic buffet that turns dinner into a slow rotation of the bay.
Practicalities
Price. Around ¥1,900 to ¥3,500 per night for a standard room, with suites from ¥4,000 and the Presidential Suite well into five figures; weekends and holidays rise.
Address. 5016 East Shennan Road, Luohu District, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518001 (深圳市罗湖区深南东路5016号 京基100大厦A座).
Rooms. 290 rooms and suites on floors 75-100; Deluxe rooms 45-55 m², Metropolitan and Caroline Astor Suites 90-103 m², all with city or Hong Kong border views.
Getting there. Shenzhen Metro Line 1 or Line 2 to Grand Theatre Station (大剧院站), about 170 m from the tower; Shenzhen Railway Station is 2.9 km away. From Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport it is roughly a 40-minute drive.
flowcloud would say that to understand a city you must first rise above it, and let the lights explain what the streets cannot.
Where to stay: The St. Regis Shenzhen (深圳瑞吉酒店 Shēnzhèn Ruìjí Jiǔdiàn), 5016 East Shennan Road, Luohu District, Shenzhen 518001 (深圳市罗湖区深南东路5016号 京基100大厦A座); rooms from around ¥1,900 per night, the Deluxe City room the entry to the clouds; take Shenzhen Metro Line 1 or 2 to Grand Theatre Station, a 2-minute walk, or a 40-minute drive from Bao’an International Airport.