Alila Shanghai Review: The Room Was Good Enough to Give Up the Bund View

Summary This is my current favorite hotel in Shanghai among the ones I have stayed at. The room quality was so high that I would probably choose it over a Bund-view hotel when I return. It was a really phenomenal stay, and I highly recommend it. Alila Shanghai opened in 2024 in the former Four Seasons Shanghai. I stayed for three nights in 2026, paying $336 for the first night, $453 for the second, and $420 for the final night. Alila Shanghai Alila Shanghai is my current favorite hotel in Shanghai. The quiet reflecting pool reinforced the hotel's unusually serene residential feel. I settled into a deep beige daybed beside floor-to-ceiling windows at sunset. Arrival & check-in I arrived very late, and check-in was seamless. I had booked a base 1 King Bed room through American Express Fine Hotels + Resorts, and my World of Hyatt Globalist status got me a pre-arrival upgrade to a Deluxe Suite. The team clearly explained both the upgrade and the FHR benefits. Room The Deluxe Suite was very large and very comfortable for one person. It was absolutely a non copy-pasted hotel room. There were no generic corporate finishes or generic corporate furniture. Suite entry Patterned tile made even the entry corridor feel designed rather than merely functional. The open wardrobe gave the suite a more apartment-like arrival sequence. The dressing nook used woven panels and natural wood instead of generic closet finishes. This was a real dressing room, with open shelves and a substantial luggage bench. The massive, thick sofa felt residential, and the suite had a proper dining or work table by the window, a pantry-style coffee station, and a bookshelf by the couch with actual books on it. They even included bookmarks. The whole place felt like someone with taste designed it and understood how to make a place feel like a home. Suite living space My Deluxe Suite felt like someone's high-end, well-designed apartment, not a copy-pasted hotel room. The suite gave me both a true lounge area and a separate worktable. I found blue, dark green, and pale gray cushions layered across the sectional. Even at night, the layered cushions and artwork kept the room feeling warm. I could see the cream rug and wall-mounted television from the bedroom doorway. The suite's open layout still gave the bedroom and living room distinct zones. The recessed shelf and colorful artwork kept the long sofa wall from feeling plain. I had a proper dining table, not an afterthought squeezed beside the bed. Woven screens gave the dining area privacy without closing off the suite. The window-side table worked equally well for dining or getting work done. I found a copy of “Roaming Shanghai’s Art Museums” beside the sofa. The small details mattered just as much. There were White Rabbit candies in the room and complimentary juice in the minibar, plus a sleep kit with a steam eye mask, sleep spray, and earplugs. It felt like going into someone’s really high-end, well-designed apartment rather than entering a normal hotel room. Thoughtful details The capsule machine and SMEG kettle made the pantry-style coffee station genuinely useful. Included mini bar I appreciated the bedside sleep kit with a steam eye mask, spray, and earplugs. The complimentary White Rabbit candies were a genuinely delightful in-room touch. Turn down service pillow mist The king bed was wonderful. The sheets were rougher than normal hotel linens in a good way, more like a natural, breathable linen, and I slept amazingly in them. I did not notice any specific nighttime noise. King bedroom The tailored bedside joinery gave the king bed a far more custom feel. Built-in bedside lighting and controls kept the sleeping area clean and useful. The broad oak bedside table had enough room for the things I actually use overnight. The bathroom continued the same design language, with black marble that I had never seen before, detailed patterned flooring, a woven stool, and a mosaic-like shower door. It also had a soaking tub, walk-in shower, TOTO bidet toilet, and Frédéric Malle Cologne Indélébile toiletries rather than standard Alila products. Nothing felt like a standard hotel bathroom. The bathroom This black stone and detailed mosaic floor made the bathroom nothing like a standard hotel room. I found a live-edge wooden shelf running beneath the long black vanity. I had both dark and brass-toned fixtures across the expansive double vanity. I noticed vertical tube lights framing the full-width vanity mirror. The wicker stool softened the drama of the dark stone vanity. The mosaic tile continued into the dressing corridor, not just the vanity area. I noticed three soft gray bath mats laid across the geometric tiled floor. The textured-glass shower door was another detail I had not seen in a typical hotel bath. The dark stone bathing area was dramatic without feeling cold. I found a deep rectangular white tub with a long matte-black grab bar. I noticed a matte-black wall-mounted spout projecting over the inset white tub. I showered beneath a recessed round rain head in a dark stone enclosure. I used the square Hansgrohe plate with separate controls for the shower fittings. I appreciated the Frédéric Malle Cologne Indélébile toiletries instead of standard Alila products. The bathroom also included a properly equipped TOTO bidet toilet. The bathroom's scale and double sinks made getting ready exceptionally easy. Even the powder room carried the black stone and patterned-floor design through. The HVAC also worked properly, which is more important than it sounds. At several other hotels in China during winter, I could not use the AC because the building had switched entirely to heating. Here, I could lower the temperature as much as I wanted. The view was of nearby towers rather than the Bund. I had already stayed in Bund-view rooms elsewhere in Shanghai, so that did not bother me. I loved this room enough that I would likely pick it again over a hotel with a better view. I could adjust bright and soft lighting, curtains, and sheers from one panel. Service No individual staff member otherwise stands out in my memory, but the team handled one unusual request very well. I asked them to call China Eastern Airlines because the online portal would not let me select a seat, and they contacted the airline using my confirmation number. They reported back that I could not choose a seat because I had booked with partner mileage, which matched my later experiences. They could not solve the issue, but that was not their fault. They did everything properly, and I appreciated that they actually called and made the effort for me. Food & drink I used my $100 FHR dining credit at 500 Weihai Road, the hotel’s Chinese restaurant. It had good vegetarian options, and the food and service were both very good. I do not remember everything I ordered, but the vegetable egg fried rice was tasty and came in such a large portion that I could not finish it. Dinner I found good vegetarian options at 500 Weihai Road, including these delicate steamed dumplings. The ceramic tableware matched the carefully considered presentation at dinner. My fried rice had peas, diced carrot, egg, and pale vegetable pieces. I received six open-topped dumplings with a bright shredded yellow topping. The warm, low-lit setting made dinner feel as polished as the food. I was served two halved passion fruits resting on crushed ice. The only odd part was that my Chinese tea was excluded from the FHR credit even though the restaurant otherwise accepted it. Nobody disclosed that restriction before I ordered. It was not a big deal, but specific items should not be excluded from a restaurant credit without the hotel telling you upfront. Breakfast was phenomenal. It combined a buffet with a small à la carte menu, which is my favorite format because you get variety while still being able to order specific dishes. I ordered scrambled eggs easy, and they were properly cooked, which is a very telltale sign to me of a quality hotel breakfast. The pastries were also top notch, especially the bow-tie-shaped croissants. I was addicted to those things. Breakfast was consistently delicious each day that I had it. Breakfast Properly cooked eggs are my telltale sign of a quality hotel breakfast. Breakfast was phenomenal: a buffet for variety and a small a la carte menu for cooked dishes. I ordered a neatly folded omelet served on a pale green speckled plate. The breakfast spread made room for a properly indulgent start to the day. Chocolate Danish and yuzu brioche were among the top-notch pastries. I noticed the Alila branding and bilingual labels framing the pastry display. Blueberry Danish and gluten-free bread broadened the selection across the wooden counters. Even the juice station avoided the generic hotel-buffet look. I saw pastries, fruit, breads, and cold dishes spread across a large wood table. Breakfast beside the planted courtyard was a particularly calm way to start the day. The pastry selection alone made it easy to linger over breakfast. The breakfast buffet balanced pastries with cheeses, charcuterie, and courtyard views. Facilities I absolutely loved the pool area. The pool was at a comfortable temperature and was never too busy, while the chairs were thick and plush with nice sunset views. It was not quite an infinity pool, more like an above-ground infinity-style pool, and the water generated enough noise that I did not have to hear other guests’ conversations. They also have a real hot tub, which is something I often do not find in China. It was easy to access and never too busy. I think the pool area is worth setting aside time for if you have it in Shanghai. The feature beside the hot tub is not a spa snow room. It is essentially an ice or snow dispenser in the main pool area, and it was really nice to come out of the hot tub and put the very cold ice on my face. I did not have time to check out the gym. Pool and wellness I loved this pool area: comfortable water, relaxing ambient sound, and never too many people. The thick, plush poolside loungers were genuinely comfortable. The real hot tub was a standout, since I rarely find one in China. I used the ice dispenser to cool off after the hot tub, and the contrast was really nice. Location I found the Jing’an location convenient enough for many things I wanted to do in Shanghai. I could walk to the Louis Vuitton ship and a Starbucks. It is not on the Bund, and the outlook is nearby towers rather than the Pearl Tower or postcard Shanghai views. If those views are your priority, this is not the hotel for you. Bund alternative For Pearl Tower and Bund views, I would stay elsewhere; I chose Alila for its exceptional rooms. I passed a grand golden-lit historic building near the waterfront at night. Value My nightly rates were $336, $453, and $420. With the Deluxe Suite upgrade, breakfast, and $100 FHR dining credit, I thought the hotel was top tier, unquestionably, at this price point. Bottom line Book this hotel if you care more about distinctive room design, comfort, breakfast, and a relaxed pool area than a famous skyline view. Do not book it if the entire point of your Shanghai stay is seeing the Bund or Pearl Tower from your room. The city view here is mostly neighboring towers. I would very happily return. I might stay somewhere else to splurge on trying the Bvlgari, Capella, or J Tower, or specifically to get a Bund view. Otherwise, I would want to stay here again because I just loved the room so much.