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Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel (Marriott Bonvoy)

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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.

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

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.

Shangai Edition hotel map

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.

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

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.

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

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:

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

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:

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

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

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

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

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

The bedroom is also huge.

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

There is a seating area immediately on the right:

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

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

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

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:

Shanghai edition review hotel

Speaking of the bed, here it is:

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

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.

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

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:

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

There’s also a hot tub in the corner:

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

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

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

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:

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

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:

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

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:

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

and

Review: The Shanghai EDITION hotel

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.


How to earn Marriott Bonvoy points and status from UK credit cards

How to earn Marriott Bonvoy points and status from UK credit cards (December 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.

Marriott Bonvoy American Express

20,000 points for signing up and 15 elite night credits each year Read our full review

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.

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You can also earn Marriott Bonvoy points indirectly:

and for small business owners:

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.)

Comments (11)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • MT says:

    I must say that looks much better than the London Edition, where I found the suite to be about as impractical and badly lit hotel room I have ever stayed in. So while I would agree they have a consistant minimalistic approach, some Editions do it far better than others!

  • JDB says:

    Thank you for the review! The hotel looks nice enough, but the location (apart from the access mentioned) is quite odd. East Nanjing Road is very much like Oxford Street and super crowded. The other end of the road (West Nanjing Road) on the other side of People’s Square is the Bond Street equivalent, but it’s probably about an hour’s walk to the far end by Jing’An Temple.

    • The Original David says:

      Much quicker to get around Shanghai on a shared bike rather than walking anywhere

      • JDB says:

        Well, yes cycling is faster than walking but you get to discover so much more in Chinese cities on foot.

  • MQ says:

    Looks so nice. I love the edition hotels. I always wanted to go to Sanya, they have a nice Edition there as well (in case you are doing any Sanya reviews).

    • The Original David says:

      I’ve been to Sanya three times. Unless you want to go duty free shipping or attend a communist conference, go to Vietnam or Thailand instead.

  • JDB says:

    @Rhys – out of interest, having just stayed in hotels on each side of the river, if you went back which side would you stay on not taking those particular hotels into account?

    • Rob says:

      Rhys is on #Flight100 and not available 🙂

    • Tony says:

      West side if you are in for sightseeing, east if you are there for business. Although it isn’t difficult to get to the other side at all using metro or DiDi

  • Tiger of ham says:

    This use to be a Four Seasons. It didn’t quite feel as good as the other Four Seasons hotel in the city but looks decent still. Will have less staff now tho. Service quality will likely be different.

    • JDB says:

      It’s not the old Four Seasons – that’s in a different location some 3km away and is currently closed for refurbishment. It will reopen as Four Seasons as the dispute with the owner has finally been resolved. The old Four Seasons in Pudong is now the Regent.

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

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