Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel (Marriott Bonvoy)

This is our review of The Shanghai EDITION hotel.

Although it sits as part of Marriott Bonvoy’s portfolio, the EDITION brand is a bit of an outlier in that Marriott does not have full control.

The EDITION is a pet project of Ian Schrager. Schrager, you may know, was co-founder / co-owner of Studio 54 and Palladium in the 70s, followed by an extensive career as hotelier. He is credited with introducing the concept of “boutique” hotels to the world.

In 2008, Schrager partnered with Marriott International to introduce EDITION, a luxury lifestyle boutique hotel brand. Over the past few years the brand has been growing rapidly, with the aim of having 30 EDITIONs open by 2027. This will probably be it, as Schrager has announced that he wants to move on to new projects.

I’ve now stayed in a number of EDITION hotels, including in Barcelona (review) and Tampa (review). One thing that strikes me is that it offers, by far, the most consistent experience of any hotel brand I have stayed at.

Some EDITIONs are in towers; others are in historic buildings (such as The London EDITION on Berners Street) but virtually all share the same minimal modernist interiors and statement staircases. At a time when most brands claim to be consistent in one way or another, EDITION actually delivers.

Of course, this also means that one EDITION is very similar to the next. There are very few local influences, which may or may not be what you are after when staying at a boutique hotel.

Anyway, let’s take a look inside The Shanghai EDITION.

The hotel website is here. Marriott Bonvoy very kindly arranged my stay for review purposes, but all other expenses were mine.

Where is The Shanghai EDITION?

The Shanghai EDITION is located just a couple of blocks behind the Bund historic waterfront along the Western banks of Shanghai’s Huangpu River. This is a largely historic area, and in fact part of the EDITION occupies the former art deco offices of the Shanghai Power Company. This now houses the Shanghai Tavern restaurant, bar and spa.

Getting to the Shanghai EDITION is a little finicky, because the entrance is on a pedestrianised portion of Nanjing East Road. Staff walk you and your bags from the cul de sac on one side to the main entrance.

If you are arriving on a weekend, expect it to be extremely busy; this is a high traffic area for locals and tourists alike, and there’s a big mall just opposite the hotel.

Nanjing East Road MTR station is just opposite on the corner, which gets you onto Lines 2 and 10 of the Shanghai metro system. Line 2 gets you to the Maglev station to Shanghai Pudong Airport, although it takes over an hour. By car, with light traffic, it’s about 45 minutes.

Inside The Shanghai EDITION

The lobby is divided into two spaces. On the left hand side is the connection between the old art deco building and the modern new tower, which has the guestrooms. There is a skylight which means it is always very bright.

Next door, in the base of the tower, you have the lobby bar with more casual seating and a moodier darker atmosphere, as well as a giant glowing ball suspended in the centre like the sun.

At the far end (in an even darker part of the room!) is the hotel reception, with the bank of lifts in almost pitch-dark.

We arrived early and our room was (as expected) not ready, but the staff took our bags and I signed the paper work. When we returned a few hours later it was good to go.

Rooms at The Shanghai EDITION

As I mentioned above, consistency is one of the defining characteristics of EDITION hotels, and nowhere is this more visible than in the guest rooms. They feature a super minimalist design characterised by sleek wood panelling and an artfully draped faux fur blanket on the bed. It is undeniably striking.

First up is a large hallway space, connecting to the bedroom and bathroom. The wardrobe and mini bar are hidden behind floor-to-ceiling wood panels:

There is a Nespresso machine, fully stocked fridge and assortment of snacks available.

To the left is the large marble bathroom with double wash basins and a standalone bath tub:

The shower and toilet are in separate, frosted-glass cubicles.

Toiletries are the typical Le Labo custom for the EDITION – a favourite of mine:

The bedroom is also huge.

There is a seating area immediately on the right:

…. plus a good desk in the window overlooking the city:

Speaking of the window, the reason it’s that shape is that the tower has been designed to give as many of the rooms as possible views of the skyscrapers in Pudong. This means that around 50% of the rooms have fantastic views. A particular highlight is that the view is visible from bed:

Speaking of the bed, here it is:

Room controls were very simple, in contrast to some of the other hotels I stayed at on this trip. There are also controls for the electric curtains. A Bluetooth speaker and lots of charging ports round out the offer.

The TV is wall-mounted on the side – I didn’t try to see if it pops out.

Pool and gym at the Shanghai EDITION

The pool and gym are on the 5th and 7th floors, respectively. There’s only one way to describe the pool area, and that’s “architectural”. It’s a massive, open space with raw concrete walls and ceiling. It feels a bit like stepping into the lair of a James Bond villain, albeit with much more natural light. The photos don’t do it justice:

There’s also a hot tub in the corner:

The gym is a bit more discreet. Here is approximately one half:

Breakfast at the Shanghai Tavern

Almost every EDITION hotel has a Tavern; in the London EDITION, it is called Berner’s Tavern after the street.

In this case, the Shanghai Tavern is located in the ground floor of the art deco Shanghai Power Company building:

Breakfast is a combination of a la carte and buffet style. You can order as many items from the a la carte menu as you wish; they are quite small which lets you sample a range of items. Of course, I had to have the eggs royale which was excellent:

The xialong bao were less impressive – I had better in Taipei!

The buffet features cold / ambient items such as cereals, yoghurts, fruit and the like. It was beautifully and abundantly arranged:

and

Conclusion

If you’ve been to an EDITION hotel before then you’re not going to be surprised by anything at The Shanghai EDITION.

Opened in 2018, it is very much representative of the EDITION brand. Slick, minimalist rooms are the order of the day with wood panelling on virtually every wall. It’s classy.

The Shanghai Tavern serves up an excellent breakfast – definitely one of my favourites on the trip, thanks to its hybrid buffet/a la carte style. If you want something more ‘wow’ then the Punch Room cocktail bar and Roof rooftop lounge should suit, with views across to Pudong.

After two nights at The Ritz-Carlton Shanghai, review here, the EDITION’s minimalist residential atmosphere was a welcome contrast to the glitz and glamour of the former.

Room rates start at around £175 per night, whilst Bonvoy redemptions are from 42,000 points per night. You can find out more, and book, on the hotel website here.

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How to earn Marriott Bonvoy points and status from UK credit cards (April 2024)

There are various ways of earning Marriott Bonvoy points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses.

The official Marriott Bonvoy American Express card comes with 20,000 points for signing up, 2 points for every £1 you spend and 15 elite night credits per year.

You can apply here.

You can also earn Marriott Bonvoy points by converting American Express Membership Rewards points at the rate of 2:3.

Do you know that holders of The Platinum Card from American Express receive FREE Marriott Bonvoy Gold status for as long as they hold the card?  It also comes with Hilton Honors Gold, Radisson Rewards Premium and MeliaRewards Gold status.  We reviewed American Express Platinum in detail here and you can apply here.

You can also earn Marriott Bonvoy points indirectly:

• American Express Gold (20,000 bonus Amex points)
• American Express Rewards Credit Card (10,000 bonus Amex points)

and for small business owners:

• American Express Business Gold (20,000 bonus Amex points)
• American Express Business Platinum (40,000 bonus Amex points)

The conversion rate from American Express to Marriott Bonvoy points is 2:3.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which can be used to earn Marriott Bonvoy points. 

(Want to earn more hotel points?  Click here to see our complete list of promotions from the major hotel chains or use the ‘Hotel Offers’ link in the menu bar at the top of the page.)