Review: The Park Lane Hong Kong, Autograph Collection Hotels

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The Park Lane Hong Kong – Booking

On my trip to Hong Kong to celebrate Chinese New Year with family and friends, I had many hotel options to choose from, including Hilton, Marriott, and Hyatt. The trip also allowed me to tick off another Bucket List item, that being to visit Hong Kong Disneyland, and I’m closing in on my goal of visiting all the Disney global resorts 😊

I opted to stay with Marriott as I do chase their Titanium status, which earns me 25k status with Air Canada and Silver status with United, both of which come with a few benefits. In my research, I found a 5-star hotel called the Hong Kong Park Lane Hotel, part of Marriott’s Autograph Collection, that was recently brought into the Marriott family.

For a total of 303,000 points (using Marriott’s 5th night free program and one night, which I paid for with a 35K certificate from a Marriott Amex card), I was able to book their 322 Sq ft “Deluxe room” with a City View for 8 nights. The room retailed for $2,424 CAD, so it wasn’t the best redemption at 0.8 CAD cents per point.

I used points earned through the Amex US Personal Marriott Brilliant and Amex Marriott Business cards for this stay. Holding both cards also provides you with 40 elite nights that count towards Marriott Elite Status. I was able to apply 5 of my Suite Night Awards (SNA) to one 5-night reservation and leverage that upgrade to the other 3 nights and get an upgrade to a slightly bigger 366 sq ft “Deluxe room with a panoramic view,” which is a room with a view of HK’s beautiful Victoria Harbour that retails for $4,387 CAD.

Thanks to a little““suite talking,” I was able to upgrade myself for all 8 nights to a premium room that is the same 366 sq ft but has a slightly better view of the harbour, for $4,995. (so my redemption was worth more than double at 1.64 CPP)

The Park Lane Hong Kong Review – Getting there and Check-in

From HKG Airport, the A11 bus, a 1-hour ride, drops you off within a 4-5 minute walk. For 170 HKD, get an “Octopus card” (42 HKD for the card, plus an initial credit of 130 HKD, which is refillable) to use on buses and other transit. Uber was charging the hotel 400 HKD. There is no complimentary airport shuttle.

Another option would be to take the HK MTR (subway) to Causeway Bay Station on the blue line and exit at Exit E, which is a 5-minute walk to the hotel. Subway does require changing lines versus the direct route of the A11 bus.

As I walked into the hotel’s main entrance, the doorman took my bags to the concierge desk. As I approached the reception desk, I noticed a dedicated desk for elite members with no lineup. I was told all the details and amenities within the hotel. I went with the complimentary breakfast option instead of the breakfast option as my titanium option. I was also told that I was upgraded to a newly renovated room. The hotel is over 50 years old, and many of the rooms are slowly being renovated to provide a better 5-star experience.

The room categories are as follows: Superior, Deluxe, Premium, Executive, and the Park Lane Suite. Superior rooms are 301 Sq ft, and the other three are 366 sq ft. The rooms either face the city or Victoria Park and Victoria Harbour, with the Victoria Harbour view coming at a premium. I originally booked a Deluxe Room with a City View, as the room was larger and they were going for the same number of points; however, I submitted an SNA request to upgrade to a Deluxe Room with a panoramic (harbour) view, which offers a better view. My room was a corner room on the 15th floor of this 28-storey hotel.

Corner Deluxe Room 

Upon entering, to the left-hand side are the closets, a mini fridge, coffee maker and kettle, and a safe. On the right-hand side is the bathroom, complete with a shower and a bathtub in a separately sealed room, and the sink and faucet in a separate room within the same bathroom. Of note, there is a glass wall at the bathtub that has a slide-down shade, so technically you do need to bring it down. Otherwise, it’s a peek-a-boo bathroom view from the bedroom.

Upon entering the main bedroom, to the left-hand side is a bench for your luggage and two additional drawers for storage ahead. Laundry bags along with a price list are available in these drawers. In front of the bench is a flat-screen TV, and below it are additional storage drawers and a small stool ottoman.

The twin beds are to the right, with a small nightstand holding the telephone, charging stations, and a phone and alarm clock between them. There were also multiple switches to control the lights in the room, including the master switch, the bathroom lights, a night light, and a switch to let housekeeping know whether to make your room or do not disturb.

Lastly, at the end of the room is an ergonomic chair and a small glass tabletop for work. Finally, at the end of the room is the window with the panoramic view, which I must say was very disappointing. I was expecting a view of Victoria Harbour, but rather my view was 90% park and 10% Victoria Harbour on the left-hand side.

When asked by reception how my stay was going after the first night I did take the opportunity to say that I was quite disappointed with the view and if another room with a better view of Victoria Harbor was available to ask to be moved which they were able to do and moved me from my deluxe room to a premium room which had a much much better view of Victoria Harbor so a tip if you’re using your SNAs make sure that you can upgrade to a premium room versus a deluxe room.

Premium King Room with Victoria Harbour View

The layout of the premium room with a “panoramic Victoria Harbour view” was almost on par with the previous room, with the closet and bathrooms on opposite sides of the main entrance; however, it has slightly less closet space. The bathroom in the premium room only had a shower and didn’t have a bathtub like the previous room ( which I was told was recently renovated )

A twin premium room was not available, so I got an upgrade to a king bed, and the chairs in this room were a different style than in the previous room.

However, the view was the highlight. The view is the same as in the executive lounge a few floors above, where breakfast and our are. So I was very pleased with my new view—the only complaint… my peekaboo shower. If you were sharing the room, there was no privacy screen for the bathroom, unlike the previous room.

Welcome Amenity

I was asked what I would like as a welcome “treat,” and a cheese plate with bread, fruit, and wine was an option, which I ordered. I asked if I could get that on my 2nd night, as I had dinner plans my 1st night.

It was at this point that I mentioned that I had asked where the closest place to buy a bottle of wine for my dinner that night was. My welcoming receptionist said to me, “Let me take care of that for you,” and within an hour of my getting to my room, there was a knock on the door and a bottle of red wine. Additionally, upon entering, there was a bowl of fruit and sweets. Less than an hour in, I was impressed by the service at this 5-star hotel.

Breakfast

Playt is a 3rd-party restaurant open to hotel guests. My Titanium status gave me a complimentary breakfast here. Playt has a buffet-style breakfast with everything you can think of. As you walk in, the pastries, muffins, donuts, and other baked goods are on the right-hand side, along with a small South Asian hot-food section featuring chapati and samosas. Moving straight ahead to the left-hand side are your traditional Western breakfast items, including sausage, bacon and an omelette station. Next to the omelette station is a hot noodle bowl station. To the right of this is the cold food section of cold meats and cheeses. Walking farther ahead is the cereal bar, and farther down is a juice bar, followed by a fruit salad station and a yogurt station. Making a left from the yogurt station is another hot food section of mostly Asian breakfast items such as congee, steamed buns, and dim sum. Amazing breakfast… Breakfast 10/10 just for its variety.

A second option for Breakfast is the Executive Lounge on the 26th floor, served from 7 am to 10 am. The 7 am to 10 am menu items, along with buffet options. While I was there, menu items included HK-style peanut butter French toast with condensed milk, congee, ramen, bacon and eggs, and made-to-order omelette.

The buffet consisted of hot foods such as pork buns, dim sum, Congee, and spring rolls. Cold foods consisted of salad, fresh-sliced meat and fish, cheese, and yogurt. There were freshly baked bread, muffins and croissants. There was a juice bar, and coffee was made to order at the dining bar. There were no “western style” breakfast options, such as bacon, eggs, and sausages, es at the buffet; however, they could be ordered off the menu.

If I were to make a suggestion, go with the 1st-floor breakfast, as buffet-style breakfast was clearly the better of the two choices. However, the view from the executive lounge at breakfast is a great way to start your day.

The Park Lane Hong Kong Review – Amenities

A first for me in my travels: every morning, usually after breakfast, when I went back to my room, there was a black bag hanging on my handle that contained the daily English newspaper. On the 5th floor, next to the gym, is the business center. There are three desktop computers available, including a Mac and a PC, along with a laser printer, and, on the other side, sofas to relax in and business magazines to read.

The gym is also located on the 5th floor next to the business center, and it’s open 24 hours. A very extensive gym with treadmills, exercise bikes, elliptical machines, various weight machines, as well as free weights. The change rooms in the gym have private lockers and a rest area.

As advertised on their website, the hotel hosts a fireworks viewing party the day after Chinese New Year. Early bird price: $500 HKD ($85 CAD), when Victoria Harbour is lit up with a fireworks display that is in line with some Disney fireworks shows I’ve seen. Well worth the money, with an unobstructed, sweeping view of the harbour and the fireworks. No need to go out for dinner after either, as the food and drinks offerings were good. As advertised, the Champagne and wine were free-flowing.

Takeaway

I picked The Park Lane Hong Kong primarily because of its location overlooking Victoria Harbour. Causeway Bay is a very busy suburb of Hong Kong, close to many attractions, including the MTR subway. Exit E of the Causeway Bay MTR station was under a 5-minute walk and very convenient.

Overall, I would give this five-star hotel a 9 out of 10, from my complimentary bottle of wine at check-in to switching rooms for a better view, to the breakfast. I was impressed with this hotel, and I would definitely stay here again!!

The staff at the hotel couldn’t have been better. When I went to Breakfasttive Lounge for breakfast or happy hour, they greeted me by name. I always love it when staff remember your name and greet you by name; it’s that little extra touch that shows they’ve gone the extra mile to remember you as an Elite member.

Chinese New Year is a wonderful time to be in Asia, and Hong Kong knows how to throw a party. Along with checking out the fireworks, I also checked out the annual New Year’s parade the day prior and went to the horse races the day after in case you’re looking for things to do in the city. No visit to Hong Kong would be complete without visiting HK Disneyland and seeing the Giant Buddha statue, which appears on most postcards and fridge magnets.

My only observation was that the largest rooms were under 400 square feet, so if you’re looking for a 1,000+ square-foot room that other 5 Star hotels can offer, there is none at the hotel. There is the Park Lane Suite, their top-tier room at 710 sq ft.

The rooms, however, are intelligently designed to maximize the space… though I wasn’t a fan of the peekaboo shower in my 2 rooms 🫣

祝你有個愉快嘅旅行 ✈️