Marco Polo Hongkong Hotel, Hong Kong

...hotel we chose was the Marco Polo Hong Kong in Kowloon.

++++++++++Booking++++++++++
I booked our stay through British Airways Holidays www.baholidays.com the whole stay was paid upfront, which is useful as there a multitude of taxes and service charges that get added to the room rate. I managed to get the hotel for a rate of £66 per night for the 5 days we were staying in Hong Kong, I thought this was very good considering ...
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++++++++++Location++++++++++
The Marco Polo Hong Kong is located in the Tsim Sha Tsui district of Kowloon. The hotel is one of three owned by the Marco Polo chain and all are part of Hong Kong's largest shopping centre called Harbour City. Here is a link to the location through Microsoft Live http://tinyurl.com/ya356b Harbour city is by Canton Road.

The Hotel has a fantastic location being no more than 5 minutes walk ... more

Another year another Christmas, this year we decided to go to Hong Kong for our time off a bit different to the normal. We ended up booking the flights and hotels through British Airways holidays, the hotel we chose was the Marco Polo Hong Kong in Kowloon.

++++++++++Booking++++++++++
I booked our stay through British Airways Holidays www.baholidays.com the whole stay was paid upfront, which is useful as there a multitude of taxes and service charges that get added to the room rate. I managed to get the hotel for a rate of £66 per night for the 5 days we were staying in Hong Kong, I thought this was very good considering we were staying over Christmas Day..

The hotel is part of a chain of hotels which operate in Asia predominantly China you can make a booking through their website www.marcopolohotels.com, as with all hotels I would recommend going through a broker site as the rates will be a lot cheaper, due to them buying rooms in bulk.

++++++++++Location++++++++++
The Marco Polo Hong Kong is located in the Tsim Sha Tsui district of Kowloon. The hotel is one of three owned by the Marco Polo chain and all are part of Hong Kong's largest shopping centre called Harbour City. Here is a link to the location through Microsoft Live http://tinyurl.com/ya356b Harbour city is by Canton Road.

The Hotel has a fantastic location being no more than 5 minutes walk from the Star Ferry and stunning views of Victoria Harbour. There is a local MTR (underground) station no more than 10 minutes walk from the hotel on the Nathan road from here you can get to most places. Not too far away is Kowloon park a nice place to go a sit whilst giving your tired legs a rest from all the walking that you will undoubtedly do whilst in Hong Kong.

For shopping there is the Harbour City mall which can be accessed from the hotel lifts without having to go outside, this mall is in typical of most in Hong Kong and full of designer shops. Also nearby is the Nathan road which is famous for electronics and Jewellery shopping, although prices are not as keen as they used to be.

++++++++++Formalities++++++++++
Check in was quite a simple affair with the bell hop taking our bags as soon as we got of the bus from the airport and then delivering them to our room once we had completed check in. I had only booked a standard room with no breakfast etc, we were offered a room with a view over the harbour and breakfast for $800HK per night but we turned it down as we weren't planning to do much more than sleep in the room. There were no issues with check in and the staff spoke very good English. Interestingly for a large hotel in such a technology driven country they still had traditional keys for the room doors, I found this a little odd, but there we go. The reception counter is very large and there were around 8 people working when we arrived so we were seen to very promptly. After the usual swipe of my credit card was taken for any incidentals we might choose to have such as the bar, restaurant or an in room movie, it was off to the room on the 14th floor, check in took about 10 minutes in total.

The standard check out time is 1200, and checking out was a painless as checking in. A quick call to the bell hop had our bags collected from the room and stored for the remainder of the day. As the room was prepaid and we didn't use any extras check out was a simple matter of handing the key back. When our late evening pick up turned up to take us to the airport it was a simple matter of handing the bell hop our luggage tag and it was put onto the coach for us, very painless and convenient.

++++++++++Room++++++++++
The room we had was a very good size with a large double bed. The room also had a large desk for working on, and the usual TV. The bathroom wasn't the largest I have ever seen but was functional and clean with all the things you could need, tooth brush, comb etc. The view from the window wasn't the best but then we were not expecting it to be, but first thing in the morning the view of the car park entrance can be thrilling.

Thankfully this time the room was equipped with complimentary tea and coffee stuff so I didn't get my ear bent like last year. There was also a mini bar in the pantry, a separate little area which also doubled up as a walk in wardrobe. There was an in room electronic safe where you could store your passport and money etc, I prefer to have an in room safe as it is far less hassle than having to walk to reception every time. There was broadband in the room as well, but this had to be paid for and was not wireless. The TV was good with a number of UK channels such as Sky News and BBC World, they also had a number of sports channels which showed the premiership games that were on whilst we were away.

The cleanliness of the room was excellent and it was serviced every day as you would expect. The selection of towels available to dry yourself with was vast with at least six for each of us, of course of varying sizes. The hotel had the these days standard policy of having to request your towels to be changed by placing them in the bath, they also had a similar policy with the bed clothes where a card had to be placed on the bed if you wished them to be changed.

++++++++++Facilities++++++++++
The hotel has 644 rooms and has a number of communal facilities, which I will go into, the entrance was decorated with a large Christmas tree which seemed to be a big draw for people taking photos by it. Inside the lobby there were other Christmas decorations and a seating area for people waiting to meet friends etc. There are the standard services you would expect from a hotel, complementary luggage check, free in room safety deposit boxes and a full concierge service for ordering a taxi or booking a restaurant.

There are a number of bars and restaurants in the hotel. We only visited one which was the Lobby Lounge for a quick drink before going to bed on our first day there. The shopping centre that the hotel is linked to has over 50 restaurants so there is plenty of choice on your doorstep whatever you want. There is also a Gym and swimming pool within the hotel, but during our visit it was closed as the hotel was undergoing a complete refurbishment, although this work never affected our stay.

++++++++++Opinion++++++++++
I felt that the Marco Polo Hong Kong was exceptional value for money and was in line with is 4 star rating. The location is very convenient with good access to lots of facilities and tourist locations. The hotel staff are very helpful and made our stay more pleasant, the little things like the doors being opened for you do make you feel good.

When I go back to Hong Kong if I can get a good rate for this hotel I would stay here again, as its location is perfect.

If you are going to visit Hong Kong then I would suggest you consider this hotel for your stay.
 

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