Hong Kong: A City of Hotels That Match Its Extraordinary Skyline

The Harbour View Question

Every first-time visitor to Hong Kong faces the same choice: Hong Kong Island or Kowloon? The conventional wisdom is that the harbour view from Kowloon — looking across the water to the Hong Kong Island skyline — is the finest urban panorama in the world. The Rosewood Hong Kong and the Peninsula, both on the Kowloon waterfront, offer this view from their harbour-facing rooms, and it is genuinely extraordinary: a wall of illuminated skyscrapers rising from the water, backed by the green hills of the island.

The Hong Kong Island hotels — the Mandarin Oriental, the Upper House, the Four Seasons — offer a different perspective: looking across the harbour to Kowloon, with the Star Ferry crossing below. Both views are magnificent; the choice comes down to whether you prefer to be in the heart of the financial district (Hong Kong Island) or in the more residential and culturally rich Kowloon.

Rosewood Hong Kong: The New Standard

The Rosewood Hong Kong, which opened in 2019 in the Victoria Dockside development in Tsim Sha Tsui, is the finest hotel in Asia. Its 413 rooms — including 89 suites — are the most beautifully designed of any hotel in the region, the work of New York designer Tony Chi. The harbour views from the upper floors are the most dramatic in Hong Kong, and the hotel's collection of restaurants and bars — including Holt's Café, the DarkSide bar, and the Butterfly restaurant — is the most accomplished of any hotel in the city.

The Asaya spa, spread across three floors, is the most comprehensive wellness facility in Hong Kong. The hotel's Residence Suites, designed as private apartments with full kitchens and separate living areas, are the most residential luxury accommodation in the city. And the hotel's position in Victoria Dockside, adjacent to the K11 MUSEA cultural mall and the Museum of Art, makes it the most culturally engaged hotel in Hong Kong.

The Peninsula: The Grande Dame of Kowloon

The Peninsula Hong Kong has been welcoming guests since 1928, and its position on Salisbury Road — directly facing the harbour, with the Star Ferry pier a five-minute walk away — remains the finest hotel location in Kowloon. The hotel's fleet of Rolls-Royce Phantoms, painted in the Peninsula's signature green, is the most recognisable hotel transport service in the world.

The Peninsula's Felix restaurant, on the 28th floor, was designed by Philippe Starck in 1994 and remains one of the most visually extraordinary hotel restaurants in Asia — its floor-to-ceiling windows offer a panoramic view of the harbour and the Hong Kong Island skyline that is unmatched. The hotel's afternoon tea, served in the lobby since 1928, is the most celebrated hotel ritual in Hong Kong.

Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong: The Central Icon

The Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong, on Connaught Road in the heart of the Central financial district, has been the city's most prestigious business hotel since its opening in 1963. The Clipper Lounge, its famous lobby café, serves what is widely considered the finest afternoon tea in Hong Kong. The hotel's Man Wah Cantonese restaurant, on the 25th floor, is one of the finest Chinese restaurants in the world.

The Upper House: The Quiet Masterpiece

The Upper House, designed by André Fu and opened in 2009, is the most architecturally considered hotel in Hong Kong — a 117-room property in the Pacific Place complex that prioritises space, silence, and natural materials over the visual spectacle that characterises most luxury hotels in the city. The hotel's Café Gray Deluxe, with its panoramic harbour views, is one of the finest hotel restaurants in Hong Kong.