Our Shangri-La China World Summit Wing experience started right from the moment we stepped off the plane at Beijing Capital International Airport (after a red-eye flight from Singapore) when we were greeted by a Shangri-La hotel representative at the air-bridge/gate (where our plane docked).  This airport butler/meet and greet service is provided when guests arrange for airport limousine transfers with the hotel (starting at RMB 790 for a Mercedes Benz E300).  Do note that the meet and greet service does not include expedited passport/customs clearance or buggy transfers so you will still have to queue just like any other traveller at passport control – remember to complete your China arrival cards or you will have to re-queue again (after being turned back by the immigration officer).

The hotel representative guided us to our baggage claim (which is at another part of the airport accessible by the airport monorail or the INNOVIA Automated People Mover System) and eventually to our waiting limousine – the entire process was smooth (short waiting time for immigration clearance and baggage arrival) and we also managed to get some useful information on Beijing attractions, sights and weather from the representative.  The complimentary Wi-Fi access in our limousine transfer to Shangri-La China World Summit Wing was an added bonus too as we managed to update our family of our safe arrival in Beijing!

Upon arrival at Shangri-La China World Summit Wing, we were whisked straight up to our room at the 65th floor to complete our check-in process (no need to queue at the hotel check-in desk!).  The entire check-in process was hassle-free and efficient – Photocopies of our passports were made and our luggage were delivered straight to our room before we managed to explore what our Grand Premier Room at China World Summit Wing had to offer.

At 75 square metres or 807 square feet, the Grand Premier Room is very spacious and the room decor and artwork comprises a good mix of traditional Chinese (like the huge picture of a misty mountain scene over the king-sized bed with feather duvet pillow) and contemporary design (like the red glass display just by the large executive writing desk).  The 40-inch LCD TV (attached to a swivel which tilts the TV towards the bed) comes with a huge selection of cable TV channels (the first 10+ channels are CCTV ones – interesting peek at local TV content though some are National Geographic/Discovery Channel content dubbed in Chinese).

The spacious bathroom at the Grand Premier Room has separate shower (rain shower available!) and toilet stalls as well as double vanity area (his and hers), TV installed in the mirror and L’Occitane toiletries.  As evident in the picture below, the “wow” factor is clearly the bathtub with a view! Our Grand Premier Room is a corner unit, thus we can enjoy a great view of 2 different sides of Beijing Central Business District.

From the bathtub, you can get a great view of the iconic China Central Television (CCTV) Tower in Beijing and maybe contemplate about what critics had to say about the design of the tower – whether it looked like a pair of pants or boxers?! 🙂  or just relax with a movie/drama series from one of the CCTV channels showing on the TV atop the bathtub!

Each Grand Premier Room features floor-to-ceiling windows that open up to stunning views of Beijing – day and night curtains can be activated with a click of a button by the bedside.  The views are just awesome and unblocked considering that China World Summit Wing is the tallest building in Beijing.  In the picture below, you can see the entire Shangri-La China World Trade Centre complex with the curved Traders Hotel and the China World hotel just beside it.  Underneath all of these is a huge underground shopping complex (China World Shopping Mall) which connects the Line 1/Line 10 Guomao Subway/metro station to the various China World/Shangri-La hotels in the area.

The China World Summit Wing is Shangri-La’s second hotel in China’s capital city – Beijing.  Opened in late 2010, the 278-room five-star hotel occupies the top 16 floors of the 330-metre-tall China World Tower in Beijing’s central business district.  The rooms and suites of China World Summit Wing Beijing are among the largest in the city.  On the day of our arrival, Shangri-La China World Summit Wing also played host to Beijing’s first vertical marathon – participants took an average of 15 minutes to ascend the hotel’s 81 floors.  See more pictures of the marathon at: http://www.passportchop.com/asia/china/beijing-lovingthemoment-shangrila/

The service standards at Shangri-La China World Summit Wing are impeccable – having stayed at the Singapore Shangri-las, we expected nothing less from the Beijing Shangri-La and we were not disappointed.  Housekeeping services were just excellent – with our hectic and tight itinerary in Beijing, our room is always in quite a mess before we leave for a day of exploration of Beijing.  Returning to the comfort of our Grand Premier room after a long day, we always wondered if we were in the right room!  Our clothes (previously randomly slung over a sofa) folded and neatly set at the corner of the bed; the missing half of my pair of bath slippers found and laid by the side of the bed (fresh unopened pack of bath slippers also topped up!); my messy USB cables and laptop power cables neatly rolled up and laid on the executive writing desk etc…  We were very pampered during our stay and I loved it!

As the China World Summit Wing hotel only occupied the top 16 floors of the tower, guests are required to swap lifts at Level 64 to get to their rooms – this can get quite confusing for first-time guests.  Thankfully, the China World Summit Wing staff are always on hand to guide any lost guests to the right place – the Resident’s Foyer is also located at Level 64 just right by the lift lobby.

Our pictures do not do justice to the spaciousness of the Grand Premier Room of Shangri-La China World Summit Wing.  Check out the video (available in both PassportChop Youtube Travel Channel and Youku versions) for the walk-in wardrobe, state-of-the-art amenities, designer bed linens and bath accessories which ensured a truly luxurious experience for any guests staying in the hotel.

See the Youku version below:

As seen in the videos above, Shangri-la China World Summit Wing boasts a state of the art gymnasium and swimming pool at the 78th floor.  Saying the 78th floor health centre as spacious is an understatement – the facilities occupy an entire floor of the China World Summit Wing tower, thus offering a 360 degree view of the entire Beijing city – it is said that on a clear day, one can see all the way to the Forbidden City/Tiananmen Square.  We couldn’t test this out as Beijing was covered in smog then (worse than the Singapore PSI 400 haze but without the burning smell!).

At the gym, you can find almost every kind of fitness machines here and these are top-end machines e.g. treadmills with built-in TV to keep you entertained while you run.  On the other side of the floor, there is a 25-metre infinity pool which overlooks the Beijing city – there are also comfortable sofas and lounges (those you see in resorts) to chill out.  Besides swimming at the infinity pool, another must-try is the Vitality Pool (jacuzzi) with its on-the-shoulder jet and stainless steel lounges built inside the swimming pool – very relaxing.  And just when you think nothing else can surprise you at China World Summit Wing, guess what – music is piped into the swimming pool so you can swim away to the tunes!  Very shiok, atas and interesting experience!

There are six restaurants/bars at China World Summit Wing, offering different cuisine from Cantonese fine dining (Fook Lam Moon) to modern Japanese (Nadaman) and even an international grill restaurant (Grill 79), where breakfast is also served. We will share more about these dining options at another post!

Location of Shangri-La China World Summit Wing

Location-wise, the Shangri-La China World Summit Wing is located at China Beijing Central Business District.  The Beijing International Airport is approximately 45 minutes away via expressway, while world-famous landmarks like The Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square are an easy 15-20 minute drive away (a taxi ride from the China World Summit Wing to Drum Tower will cost about RMB 30 -40 – about 6-8 Singapore dollars; very affordable fare).

Address of China World Summit Wing:

China World Summit Wing at China World Trade Centre, No. 1 Jianguomenwai Avenue, Beijing, China 中国北京建国门外大街1号

http://www.shangri-la.com/beijing/chinaworldsummitwing/

You can try to take the metro at Line 1/Line 10 Guomao station (RMB 2 per trip – about 40-50 Singapore cents) but do factor about 10-15 minutes walking time from China World Summit Wing to the subway station; you can access the station via the large underground China World Shopping Mall.  Line 1 connects Guomao station directly to Wangfujing and Tiananmen East/West stations (where some of Beijing’s key attractions are located) but be prepared for a lot of walking as Guomao station itself is a big interchange station (between Line 1 and Line 10).  Tiananmen East/West and Wangfujing stations are themselves about 5-10 minutes walk from the attractions.

Another thing about Beijing’s subway is the sheer number of people using them and you will need to do as the Romans do (or in this case the Chinese) to even board the trains i.e. shove your way into (or out of) the train when it comes into the station (no one gives way to alighting passengers here and if you are too kind, you will never be able to board or alight from the train!