Hotel Icon – Where to Stay in Hong Kong

I’ve looked forward to writing this review.

I stayed in three hotels this trip (not to mention hundreds in my life), and my experience at each subsequent hotel underscored the superiority of the Icon. It is, quite simply, the gold standard.

It’s not about the highest-end accoutrements in the room or even the largest room. Both the Home Hotel and the Formosa Regent in Taipei have it beat in those parameters. Nor is it necessarily about the restaurants or the facilities, though it’s competitive in both. Nor is it even entirely about offering something exceptional at such a price as to make it a no-brainer, though the barely-$200 US-per-night price tag was a head-turner, and strong evidence that there’s a brilliant business mind behind the franchise.

In a word, it’s about expertise. Knowing exactly where to spend your money for maximum impact – i.e. world-class employee training in the Nordstrom mold, where employees are empowered to think independently to solve problems , “good enough” rooms with smart design to maximize space usage and luxury features you’re likely to use, and an onsite health facility that’s well-equipped and minimalist, with exactly the features you need and no waste – and where not to waste it (real oak inlays in the room walls, gold toilet seat handles, etc) to avoid driving the price too high. Anticipating guests’ needs before they arise – like a gym that’s open 6am to midnight, and providing quick follow through to resolve any unexpected issues – such as when my bathroom drain clogged. (As I mentioned elsewhere the Home Hotel in Taipei, world-class by many standards, was comparatively slower-on-its-feet.) It will come as no surprise, then, that Icon is the training facility for one of Hong Kong’s leading hospitality management schools. Indeed, the student dormitory occupies several wings of the Icon’s lower floors.

A quick inventory of our experiences.

In a word, it’s about expertise. Knowing exactly where to spend your money for maximum impact.

The rooms are large by most standards, and certainly for the price. As is the case in many modern hotels, the shower room is not relegated to one side, but rather occupies the room’s core, allowing the rest of the room to “wrap around” a curved, retractable dividing wall. The restroom includes a waterfall-style shower (with massage wand) in a unique “almond” shape, and a curved glass partition instead of a curtain, a bathtub with its own television (hardly necessary for a blogger whose favorite thing to do in the tub is read, but appreciated), and, as readers of my Taiwan hotel review will appreciate, a bidet.

“Harbor view” rooms that face Hong Kong Island are more expensive, but “city view” rooms that face Kowloon and Jianshazui have beautiful views as well.

It goes without saying that the rooms satisfy the parameters most travelers care about – cleanliness and newness – but I’m saying it anyway. “Harbor view” rooms that face Hong Kong Island are more expensive, but “city view” rooms that face Kowloon and Jianshazui have beautiful views as well, and public spaces from which to see the city in grand style – like the pool bar on the 9th floor – are ample, so you can save still more by electing a city view room. Wifi is ubiquitous in modern hotels, but a lot of it is crappy. Icon’s is fast, and a single network serves the whole hotel, so you can walk from your room to the elevator, take it down to the second floor, and walk into the banquet hall, all without losing a Skype call.

The restaurants, by-the-way, are some of the highest-reviewed in Hong Kong. (It’s standard in Asia to locate great restaurants in hotels, unlike in the west, where hotel restaurants mostly suck.) Of the three largest – the Italian restaurant and bar on the ground floor, the Chinese restaurant on the 17th floor, and the end-to-end buffet on the second floor – we only reviewed the third. I’m not generally a fan of buffets but the definition of “buffet” needs to be rewritten for spots like this. English-Irish, Hong Kong/Chinese, and even Middle Eastern dishes were represented, and all high quality ingredients, fresh, and expertly prepared. The price tag was on the high side – about $60 US for all we could eat (or $30 each), so we only went once.

 

The restaurants, by-the-way, are some of the highest-reviewed in Hong Kong.

(The business side of my brain theorized that Icon was perhaps using a twist on the Vegas model – monetizing the restaurants heavily so they could offer the rooms at a discount. The hack, just as it is in Vegas, is to use the room only, but the restaurant was so good even We couldn’t resist.)

Finally, the athletic facilities were the best I’ve ever seen in a hotel. The day spa and gym occupy the entire ninth floor, and while the day spa is open only noon – 6, the gym and pool are open extended hours. Locker rooms are vast and exquisitely maintained, and the gym itself has space to spare. Treadmills and elliptical machines front the glassed-in pool area, and a discrete-but-comprehensive set of weight equipment (all brand new) lurks in the corner. (Yes, there is everything you need to do crossfit, including free barbell and dumbbells, and a squat rack, Not a Smith machine.)

The Icon is so good I’d recommend booking an Asian vacation around it – subscribing to the mailing list and booking travel when you can get a particularly good rate.

Checked out our Taiwan articles yet? They’re here.