Hotel roundup
Spring Festival Banquets
Shanghai Le Royal Meridien's elegant Chinese restaurant, Ai Mei, is celebrating the start of the Chinese zodiac Year of the Horse from Jan 31 to Feb 13. Wok-fried crab, braised sea cucumber and deep fried cuttlefish are all set to tempt diners. 021-3318-9999 Ext 7700
The Westin Bund Center Shanghai offers two special sets for the family, prepared by chefs from the Chinese, Japanese and Thai kitchens at Crystal Garden during the Lunar New Year. The menu includes seafood soup with dried scallop, stir-fried fresh abalone with sticky rice and chili cordyceps sauce. 021-6335-1888 Ext 7340
Specials Of The Week
Swissotel Hotels & Resorts is offering a package that allows guests to enjoy a 20-percent off the current rate when they book two or more nights at any of the group's 11 Asian properties including China, Japan, Singapore and Thailand. Valid from Jan 1 to Feb 15. For more information, visit swissotel.com.
Regent Beijing partners up with Visa Cards to launch the Visa Business Package, allowing Visa Commercial cardholders 20 percent off when staying at Executive Rooms or Executive Suites for two or more nights. They also get an additional 20 percent off dining at Daccapo and cafe 99. Valid for the whole of 2014. 010-8522-1888.
Culinary Specials
Sweet gift
Traders Upper East Hotel is sharing the love over the Spring Festival, with a gourmet pastries gift hamper. At 128 yuan each, guests can enjoy traditional Chinese pastries like turnip cakes and brown sugar pound cakes. 010-5907-8405.
Cronuts
Pudong Shangri-La is launching the cronut next week, a croissant-style pastry fried like a doughnut, filled with cream and topped with a glaze. The cronut comes to China after mesmerizing New York crowds in the US city. Move over, cupcakes. 021-6882-8888 Ext 270.
Good News
Elite admission
Chaptel Hotel by the West Lake in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, has been admitted as the latest member of Relais Chateaux, the global fellowship of luxury hotels and restaurants. Chaptel is renovated from a typical 1930s Shanghainese lane house, or shikumen, once the residence of a galaxy of historical characters. After three years of careful restoration, the hotel now boasts 17 cozy suites, all decorated in Art Deco style. Relais Chateaux, established in 1954 in France, is most famous for its strict standards in luxury hotels with character.
Green prize
The Grand Central Hotel Shanghai and the Central Hotel Shanghai, sister hotels under Shanghai Wang Bao He, have been honored with the National Five-Leaf Green Hotel award for efforts and achievements in eco-friendly construction.
