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My review of No.77 First Class Lounge, Shanghai Pudong
Shanghai is a city that you won’t miss when visiting China, and it is very likely that you’ll pass by the Pudong Airport, which in the main international travel hub of Shanghai. Despite having grown up close-ish to Shanghai, I haven’t travelled through Pudong many times and it is my first time flying an international route today.
Etihad Airways uses Terminal 2 of PVG, and contracts with the China Eastern First Class No. 77 Lounge. There is another No. 69 Lounge at Terminal 2, but words are it’s a lot worse.
The name may sound strange, but it is a very common way to name airport lounges in China. They are very often just called No. XX First Class Lounge, where XX is the nearest boarding gate. I find it not bad as locating the lounge is made super easy.
As you have guessed, China Eastern is the main sponsor of the lounge, although it’s also the contract lounge for dozens of other airlines. It is operated by Plaza Premium, which means you can enter for free with any Amex Platinum card.
My departure is in late December, and at this time China’s international travel is still pretty much non-existent. There are very few passengers in the lounge, and some areas are shut because of that.
There are some big sofas when you enter. This area is far from the dining area which makes it a lot quieter.
Going in, there are some open-plan rooms on the left, and armchairs on the right.
There’s a kitchen a buffet area at the very end of the lounge. The buffet is decent, with the following options available on the day:
- Braised beef with red wine
- Grilled fish with chillies
- Oyster mushrooms
- Fish tofu with Thai sauce
- Laoganma fried rice
- Pasta
- Buns
- Sour and spicy soup
- Sweet potato soup
Drinks and snacks:
China Eastern lounges are famous for their signature noodles, and I ordered one with high expectations. It turns out that they have outsourced catering to a third-party supplier at the moment unfortunately, and the noodles are very disappointing.
The No. 77 China Eastern First Class Lounge at Pudong Airport isn’t an outstanding lounge, but the catering is decent (and should have improved since China ended all the restrictions), and you can get in with an Amex Platinum card or DragonPass.
My review of St Regis Shanghai Jing’An
This is not gonna be any other review that you’ve seen of a hotel – before returning to the UK I had a two-day layover in Shanghai, and it’s when China had the massive covid outbreak and everyone was catching the virus. Your future experience staying at the same hotel will be very different to mine, but it could still be an interesting read 🙂
Shanghai has many hotels, but not so many outstanding ones by China’s standard. I was told that the St Regis Jing’An hotel is decent, and at 34,000 points per night it seems to be a good deal. If you are a first-time visitor, I recommend the Waldorf Astoria for its history, location and great view.
The St Regis sits in the Jing’An district, which is probably the most central area of Shanghai
The hotel looks quite low-profile from outside.
The lobby is quite ordinary for a five-star hotel in China which hasn’t been refurbished for a while.
This is a rare St Regis hotel that features a Club Lounge. Marriott elite members are not entitled to Club benefits at the St Regis brand, but if your suite night award clears into a room type with that feature then it’s granted at this property. My two SNAs cleared and I was upgrade to the Caroline Astor Suite.
The lobby is very quiet. As I had expected most of the hotel staff are sick and the shortage has been going on for a while. The receptionist informs me that most of the services such as housekeeping are cut or heavily reduced right now.
My Caroline Astor Suite catches her by surprise. She says that no room is available yet but it may take two hours for one to be cleaned. Remember that it’s already 4pm when I arrived.
I don’t understand why they couldn’t have checked what room types were booked on the day and make arrangements beforehand. She didn’t even try to apologise at all, which made me uncomfortable.
Fortunately I ran into the manager Douglas when I just sat there trying to figure out what to do next. He came up to me and said hi, and I took to chance to complain about my situation. He’s very generous and offered me a two bedroom apartment in the residence!
Regular rooms (and suites) are located on the 61th floor and below, whereas floor 62-68 is the St Regis Residence for long-stay guests only. You can’t book the residence on marriott.com, instead you need to talk to the hotel’s sales department.
The living room is very bright with a great view of Shanghai’s skyline.
The kitchen is fully equipped with a fridge, an oven and hobs.
There’s a small guest bathroom to the right, with a walk-in shower.
A study squeezes in between the bathroom and the guest room.
Guest room:
The master bedroom is a lot bigger:
And it comes with a walk-in wardrobe and a dressing table.
The main bathroom is also fairly big with a bathtub.
According to their website the apartment measures 109 sqm but it feels even larger. On the other hand it doesn’t feel like a hotel room anymore, which may be to some people’s liking but not to the others.
This is a list of the original club benefits.
Unsurprisingly the Club Lounge is closed. In fact the only eatery still open is the Social Restaurant on the ground floor.
Oriental buffet:
English breakfast:
Food stations for noodles and omelettes etc.
Salad, fruits and desserts.
I don’t the noodles, but otherwise it’s all ok.
As the Club Lounge is closed, we are invited to have lunch and dinner at the Social Restaurant instead, whereas the afternoon tea is cancelled. You can order one soup and one main from the menu:
A few items from the menu weren’t available anymore during lunch, and it became much worse at dinner.
I tried the tenderloin and fried rice, which are anything but tasty.
They don’t even offer any drinks for free, although a lot of alcohols were at display (for purchase) during the “Happy Hour”. From what I’ve heard the Club Lounge’s usual offering is very good, but sadly the execution is just terrible at this special time.
The swimming pool is nice though. You need to wear a swimming cap but it’s provided for free.
The gym:
My unique experience is unprecedented, and unlikely to act as a reference point for anything in the future. I’m grateful to the manager Douglas for a chance of trying out the two bedroom apartment, but to be honest the service I experienced here is well below par.
Unboxing HSBC’s LUXURY thank you gift!
(The original post was submitted by a friend and published here. This is my attempt to coarsely translate it!)
I applied and was approved for the HSBC Elite Credit Card (US-issued) last year, which comes with an annual fee of $395.
One main incentive for me to apply for this card was the mysterious Luxury Thank You Gift – each year when you spend $50K, $75K and $100K on the card you will earn a “surprise luxury gift”, a suspense or marketing trick they’ve created for this product.
I did my research using Google and going through all the blogs and forums, yet shockingly couldn’t find any answer to what the gift actually is. Even the customer representatives from HSBC knew no more than “it’s something from Tiffany”, which was why I started putting a lot spend through the card out of curiosity.
I finally reached all three targets in November 2022, and was looking forward to the arrival of my gifts!
It was a long wait as they needed to courier the gifts to China, but I received the package in February 2023 eventually.
They are indeed Tiffany boxes as expected!
My three gifts are shipped in the same package, with a lovely thank-you card in each of them.
Hold your breath while I reveal the grand LUXURY gifts!!!
This is definitely not something that I had expected or hoped for. So it turns out that each gift is pair of Tiffany wine glasses, and I got a package of six. Don’t forget that I spent $100,000 in order to receive them!
They look much better IN the boxes.
The retail price is $125 per pair on Tiffany’s website.
If you’ve been wondering what the luxury thank you gifts are from the HSBC elite credit card, now you have the answer. Whether it is worth spending at least $50,000 annually will be totally up to you😉
My review of Palace Hotel, San Francisco
I spent my first two nights in San Francisco at the InterContinental hotel, and for a change of scenery I’m moving to the Palace Hotel from Luxury Collection for the third night. Thanks to the $200 credit from my U.S. Amex Platinum card, I paid just over $100 for the FHR stay.
The general manager sent me a few emails before my stay to ask for any special requests and offer some general information. He sent me another email to ask for any feedback on the day I checked out. Although many people may find it unnecessary, I think it’s a nice touch to show that the hotel cares.
Palace hotel is not far from the InterContinental, and right next to the Montgomery metro station. However, I find its location more handy than the InterContinental, as it’s closer to the metro station, and walkable to more local attractions including the Chinatown.
The building and its lobby have an ordinary look. The agent who checks me in is very familiar with the FHR benefits. In fact if you are Marriott Platinum or above, the main add-on is just the $100 on-property credit. Some hotels (especially in the U.S.) refuse to honour Marriott benefits when you prepay your FHR booking because it’s backed by Expedia, but this time she explicitly offers me the 1,000 welcome points since breakfast is already included.
A truffle chocolate box is offered to me as a welcome gift, then another two white chocolates at the turndown service.
The serenity of the guest room areas is reminiscent of my stay at St Regis New York.
I fared a free upgrade to the Junior Suite. I had thought about using a suite night award here, but then the so-called Superior Suite is only 480sqt, so I backed off.
When you enter the room, there’s a walk-in wardrobe on the left.
Overall the room looks very classy, and the (oversize) bed is quite comfy. The bathroom has no tub, but does have a Washlet seat which isn’t commonly seen even at five-star hotels.
Slippers are quite fluffy.
I assume it’s a board game?
The hotel has only nine floors and I’m on the fifth. If you expect a view, then the InterContinental hotel is a much better option.
You have to give some credits to their guest room, but the most prestigious thing about this hotel is far more than that. Right next to the lobby there’s an extensive and glamorous gallery:
And there’s some memorabilia on display, which tells the history of the Palace Hotel. It may remind you of museum – and there is indeed a small museum, named Landmark 18, in the gallery.
When it opened in 1875, the Palace Hotel was the biggest hotel in the world. Unfortunately the hotel was hit by a fire in 1906 and it took three years’ restoration for the hotel to reopen. In 1954 it became a Sheraton hotel and a lot of its original features were lost to accommodate the brand standard, which was then reverted in 1973 when the hotel was finally purchased by the Japanese Kyo-Ya group.
The most stunning piece of the hotel has to be the Garden Court restaurant, which became a landmark of San Francisco in 1969.
Many people come here for the afternoon tea experience, and I’m here for breakfast. FHR comes with $30 credit per person, and as I’m travelling solo that’s $60 for myself. I thought it would buy me loads of food until I saw the menu:
Yogurt for $6 and orange juice / coffee for $8, so $60 doesn’t really get you far at all, and don’t forget the tips. I didn’t notice the buffet option at the top for $43, which is probably what I should have gone for.
The $100 FHR credit can be spent at the Pied Piper restaurant, which is famous for that painting. I ordered some chicken wings and a steak, which came to 90-odd dollars including taxes and tips. If you are travelling with a partner, the $160 credit is just enough for the breakfast buffet plus a couple of drinks.
The swimming pool is on the fourth floor. Similar to the Garden Court it has a nice glass dom.
But the pool is only 1.2m metre deep, so more like a children’s playground.
The jacuzzi is broken, although the water is still warm…
Sadly there’s no sauna or steam room.
The Palace Hotel is a landmark of San Francisco, full of history, and a hotel well worth experiencing. If you happen to be in the city, I recommend popping in and have a look even if you don’t stay at this hotel.
British Airways and Virgin Atlantic relaunches Shanghai with great reward availability
After being absent from China’s market for three years and having permanently discontinued Hong Kong, Virgin Atlantic is resuming its daily service between London Heathrow and Shanghai Pudong on the first of May.
Reward availability was released this morning, and you can book literally any single day, although seats over China’s festive periods are selling fast.
Here is a reminder what a one-way ticket in Upper Class costs, and the respective fees from Shanghai / London:
- Economy: 12,500 points + 833 RMB / £208
- Premium Economy: 22,500 points+ 1,565 RMB / £360
- Upper Class: 57,500 points + 1,719 RMB / £411
You need to add another 10,000 points if flying at peak. Shanghai is operated by the older B787 aircrafts, although I think they are less bad compared to the A350 suite.
British Airways on the other hand, is also relaunching Shanghai on April 23rd and Beijing on June 3rd. However Avios seats have been available for quite a while now so it’s not as exciting.
BA’s new RFS pricing wants 200,000 Avios + £550 for a return trip to Shanghai, which is ridiculous. Unless you are looking to book first class with a companion voucher, Virgin Atlantic is the more favourable option by a large margin.
£15 free money to spend at Amazon Fresh stores
Amazon has been promoting their Fresh stores heavily lately. There was a £5 offer in December 2022 which I took advantage of, and it has come back with a couple of other new offers.
You can access the offer page here. It is very straightforward: you get a £5 discount to use at any Amazon Fresh store and there’s no minimum spend requirement, which means you can grab £5 worth of items for free! It will also stack with any other promotions the store might have. (Snapshot from previous offer so date is incorrect)
You don’t have to use the £5 balance in one shop. It’s not valid on alcohol or infant formula.
You have until January 31 to redeem the offer. The problem of course, is Amazon Fresh doesn’t operate outside London. They do have almost 20 stores in the capital though, so you are a London resident it’s very likely that you’ll come across one.
There is a similar offer for new stores, which you can access and claim here.
Which entitles you to a further £5 discount each at the Monument and East Croydon store, valid until March 10th. You cannot stack two vouchers at once, but nothing stops you from doing two back-to-back £5 shops.
Travelling to Monument or East Croydon for £5 isn’t worthwhile, but if you happen to be near either store don’t forget to pop in!
- £10 off your first Amazon App purchase
- £20 off your first Amazon Fresh and Morrisons order
- Get £10 Amazon voucher for using its Photos app
- £4 off your next Amazon pickup order
- £5 Amazon bonus when topping up £60
- £5 Free Voucher for Streaming Amazon Music
- £5 Free Voucher for Streaming Amazon Podcast
- Earn £5 voucher for using Amazon Pay
- Free £5 Amazon voucher to claim
- £5 voucher for watching Amazon Prime Video
- £5 reward for creating an Amazon wish list
- £15 free money to spend at Amazon Fresh stores
- Amazon Warehouse £5 free voucher
My review of the United Polaris Lounge, San Francisco
At the end of the U.S. west coast trip, I’m heading back to London from San Francisco. In sheer contrast to the abundance of lounges at LAX, SFO is almost barren. United is the only Star Alliance airline that has any lounge here, and the same awkwardness applies to Skyteam and Oneworld too.
I arrived at the airport three hours ahead to make sure I have enough time to review the United Polaris Lounge. As it is the only decent Star Alliance lounge at SFO, the entry rules are quite strict: only business and first class passengers on a long-haul Star Alliance flight are allowed.
If you are a Star Gold member but flying economy, sadly you can only visit the United Club, which is like an average dull lounge that you expect in this country. Interestingly, anecdotes from my readers suggest that you may be invited to the Polaris Lounge if you are under 21, as you cannot enter the United Club due to alcohol restrictions.
The lounge is huge, occupying two floors and measuring about 2,600 square metres. The ground floor is a very nice area itself, but usually pretty quiet as the main food offerings are on the upper floor.
The armchairs are probably one of, if not he best I’ve ever seen in any airline lounge. it is very wide, with a small side table and sockets included.
The views are nice.
Shower rooms, and the Quiet Suites for resting are also on the ground floor. However, make sure you reserve enough time to explore the upper floor!
Turn left for the business zone, which offers private booths for phone calls and video calls.
And there are more desks and sofas inside.
If you turn right, you will pass the very beautiful bar first. There’s no self-service so you have to order your drinks instead, just like a regular bar 🙂
And then you’ll enter the dining area.
The buffet options are:
- Lobster corn bisque
- Ginger lemongrass ramen bowl
- Roasted broccoli and cauliflower
- Dakjjim Korean chicken braised chicken
- Miso glazed cod
- Brown basmati rice
I’m impressed that they offer lobster soup! You may also notice that the majority of the cuisine are Asian, which I quite enjoy. There are even tofu and shitake mushrooms in the salad area.
I’m not particularly hungry, so just had a taste of a couple of dishes but they are nice. Don’t miss out on the Dining Room though, which gives you a full dining experience!
I came around at about 5 o’clock and was told of a waiting time of 30 minutes. Fortunately an empty table became available in just five minutes.
Here’s the menu:
I ordered a small plate (octopus) and a glass of cocktail.
To be honest, the octopus is not to my liking. But the food looks posh enough to be served in a fancy restaurant.
Finally, a picture of the bathroom:
When I was leaving for my flight, the upper floor started to become really crowded. As most flights to Europe depart in the evening, it’s hardly a surprise.
The United Polaris Lounge at SFO is the best Star Alliance lounge that I’ve ever been to, and it is definitely worth visiting when you have the chance.
Hotel redemption guide on London New Year’s Eve
London New Year’s Eve, thanks to the famous fireworks show, attracts hundreds of thousands of tourists every year. If you are looking for a hotel on that night, you should act as soon as possible, especially if you want to burn some points.
[Marriott]
Marriott London County Hall is the best hotel for watching the fireworks show, and redeemable with points. The redemption price has gone up a little bit this year, from 100K to 106K, but it’s still great value compared to the £1,500 NYE package rate.
Award availability is temporarily blocked right now, but my friend did manage to grab a room a few days ago. I believe more availability will be released in the future – in fact last year it was even bookable on the day.
Marriott London County Hall is inside the Fireworks Zone. The hotel will send you the wristbands a couple of days ahead by courier, which you’ll need to travel in and out of the zone freely. You can chill in your hotel room until the firework starts, and then walk to the White Zone, which is one minute away, to enjoy the show. Fireworks can be seen from rooms with London Eye view too, but don’t expect any upgrade on that day.
I have a couple of friends who stayed here on the 2023 NYE. To be honest the viewing angle from the White Zone is far from ideal, but it is an experience nonetheless.
[Hyatt]
Hyatt “poached” two Crowne Plazas last year, which happens to be the only two London IHG hotels that I liked. The former Crowne Plaza Albert Embankment, to be re-opened as Hyatt Regency London Albert Embankment, is already bookable for NYE.
It costs 20,000 points which isn’t cheap, but acceptable for a special occasion. Interestingly, Twin Room with River View (priced at £500+) is available for the same amount of points, although I don’t think you can see any fireworks from the room.
Hyatt Regency London Blackfriars has a better location, but it’s not bookable yet and we don’t know its redemption category.
[Hilton and IHG]
Somehow most Hilton hotels in central London have already sold out. The only sensible redemption right now is the Westminster, a Curio hotel. It’s a newly-renovated hotel, converted from a Doubletree, but at 60,000 points it feels a bit steep.
In terms of IHG, the only economical option left in central London is Holiday Inn Oxford Circus at 32,000 points. There were many more better options when I checked last week:
- Staybridge Suites London Vauxhall – 34,000 points
- Holiday Inn Express London Victoria – 19,000 points
- Hotel Indigo Tower Hill – 25,000 points
But the availability has gone now. Keep checking as they might come back, but I’m most certain that it’s just going to get more and more expensive.