A tale of two hotel stays in Shanghai

Two stays redefining luxury in the heart of the Pearl of the Orient. Stephenie Gee checks in

The Middle House

It’s not easy to stand out in a city whose skyline waxes and wanes on a weekly basis. Conversely, it’s not easy to be lying within a vast urban development project yet feel tucked away. Shanghai’s high-design hotel The Middle House manages both. The fourth House under Swire Hotels’ award-winning The House Collective (after Beijing’s The Opposite House, Hong Kong’s The Upper House and The Temple House in Chengdu), its name refers to its prime spot right in the heart of city – a short walk from the vibrant neighbourhood of Jing’an and the tree-lined former French Concession, and a longer but pleasant stroll from The Bund – but you’d never know. Shielded behind a bamboo grove, the property’s two curving towers – clad in dark grey aluminium louvers that add shade and privacy while creating a textured aesthetic that visually distinguishes it from surrounding buildings – look more a ritzy apartment building from the outside than a hotel. There are no big, flashy signs either – just a discreet one and a smartly dressed doorman or two.

The creative magician behind this is the Italian Piero Lissoni, an inductee into the New York Interior Design Hall of Fame, who also took charge of the interiors, updating signature European sensibilities with considered Chinese craftsmanship and composition to create a sublime expression of modern-day Shanghai. Handmade, emerald-green tiles rise up two storeys to create a striking entrance topped with a majestic six-metre-high, 3,760-piece Murano glass chandelier by Fabiano Zanchi. From here, the space opens up, decorated in muted tones and some outstandingly curated art. The Middle House’s poetic “I dream of China” theme is stunningly represented in over 670 pieces of artwork by local and international artists. Hanging in the lobby, these include Caroline Cheng’s 12,000 handmade porcelain butterflies sewn on a burlap Chinese robe, and Chinese-Australian artist Lindy Lee’s Fire Over Fire paper works with burnt perforations.

The rooms dial down the drama in favour of a tranquil, almost meditative calm. There is a total of 111, each made up of similar layouts with the exception of varying sizes, starting at a sizeable 50 square metres and expanding to 90. Floor-to-ceiling windows make even the smallest rooms feel larger. For all that brightness, dark wood floors keep the room atmospheric, contrasted with pops of blue and canary yellow. There’s a large walk-in closet kitted out with a Lululemon yoga mats and mini hand weights, and a fully-stocked complimentary maxi bar to satisfy spontaneous cravings. Hanging over the bed, a silk tassel cord referred to as Mr. Goodnight serves as a master light switch. Glass walls partition the bedroom and bathroom, equipped with dual vanities, an expansive rainshower, freestanding bathtub and luxury Bamford amenities. The Middle House aesthetics owe a great deal to gorgeous works of photography, including images by William Furniss, whose shots of vases and other furniture are suspended just above the actual subject that are found in the rooms.

For longer stays, the 102 residences located in the adjacent building span 55 to 110 square metres, offering all the same comforts and modern luxury albeit with the convenience of apartment-style living. On the top floor, the palatial 600-square-metre penthouse can be booked out for private events and has hosted A-listers the likes of football player David Beckham, Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton and multihyphenate Jackson Wang.

The late Gray Kunz, meanwhile, continues his long association with the House brand by lending his name to the hotel’s all-day dining concept, Café Gray Deluxe (the sister restaurant to The Upper House’s celebrated flagship in Hong Kong). The semi-buffet breakfast menu (arguably one of the best in town) is a proverbial mix of East and West: think dan dan noodles in homemade peanut sauce, chicken and mushroom congee, quinoa yogurt porridge with passion fruit, and American breakfast pancakes. Afternoon tea is a fine spread of finger sandwiches, delicate pastries and buttery scones. Its bar doesn’t fail to impress either. Visit during working hours and you’ll find glamorous international types lingering over cappuccinos and catching up on emails; come by night and you’ll find some of the neighbourhood’s coolest citizens making their first, middle or final stop of the evening. Sipping on my negroni, it wasn’t hard to see why it’s the kind of place that a local might recommend to a friend visiting the city. Sophisticated but not stuffy, and five-star service that also feels familial: The Middle House may sit in one of the busiest areas of the city, but it still carries the air of a true hidden gem.

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Bulgari Hotel Shanghai

In the early 19th century, Shanghai was a mere fishing village. The Opium Wars changed all that. Britain and other European powers forced China to open trade in the deadly substance and looked for ports that would take their cargoes. Shanghai, once the Huangpu had been dredged, proved a perfect gateway to the Yangtse, and more defensible than Nanjing. So the West carved it up, opening the city to foreign involvement, which not only brought in trade but also bequeathed the city a unique fusion of cultures – French, British, Americans, Russians, to name a few – shaping the city into an amalgamation of Chinese and Western influences that continues today.

Occupying a 48-storey skyscraper with Bulgari- branded residences in its lower levels, the hotel’s 82 bedrooms and suites run from the 41st to the 46th floor. The rooms are all about the views, which are, by and large, sensational. The Shanghai skyline, particularly – though not only – by night, is among the most dramatic in the world. Not all rooms come with the Bund and Pudong as a backdrop, however, so you’ll have to book accordingly, but it’s worth it. In terms of the rest of the décor, an immaculately choreographed tussle between Italian and Chinese design is enacted in marble and bronze versus silk and lacquer. Service is exceptional, with unpacking services, 24-hour in-room breakfast, and shoe care by luxury shoemaker Berluti. Look forward to turndown service, as housekeeping leaves gifts like luggage tags, mini perfumes and soothing Chinese herbal teas for a restful night’s sleep.

The property is anchored on the Chamber of Commerce Shanghai, a 1916 heritage building that still retains its original Chinese floor mosaics and houses event spaces and restaurant Bao Li Xuan. Chef Fu Man Piu’s silk-wallpapered Cantonese fine-diner notched two Michelin stars in the 2021 guide, making it a poetic partner to Il Ristorante – Niko Romito, the classy Italian spot in Bulgari’s gilded 48-storey hotel tower just across the courtyard that has had a star since 2018. But the true showstopper is The Bulgari Bar. There are few better places from which to take in the great spectacle of Shanghai than here – which is saying something, since this is a city with no desperate shortage of rooftop venues. Sip Italian wines and enjoy an aperitivo on a grey evening and spritzes on the terrace on a steamy summer night.

And if you have too many negronis the night before, a visit to the subterranean spa will set you straight. Spanning 2,000 square metres, with a 24-hour state-of- the-art gym, 25-metre emerald-green swimming pool, as well as eight treatment rooms, a manicure and pedicure salon, and gold-tiled vitality pools, this place feels worlds away from the city’s pace, modelled after Rome’s Baths of Caracalla. Indeed, as I bask in the warmth of the steam room, the minor problems of my morning melted away quickly – it was all calm, in the middle of the storm.

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