The Pottinger Hong Kong

Rooms and decor

Picture a hotel that straddles one of Hong Kong's oldest cobblestone lanes — a street laid in stone steps climbing the hill since the colonial era, with small stalls lined up on either side, the kind of classic Hong Kong scene that's getting hard to find. That's the charm of The Pottinger Hong Kong, a roughly 68-room boutique in the heart of Central that's been running since 2014 and tells an East-meets-West story from the signage to the bed linen. Interiors are by William Lim, a Hong Kong artist and architect who folds the old city's character into a contemporary edge. Rooms run to dark grey, warm wood and copper, a moody, tasteful look rather than the usual sugary luxury. Beds are soft, bathrooms are clean and stylish with good-quality amenities, and the soundproofing is fairly solid for a building this central. What sets the rooms apart is the black-and-white photography of Fan Ho — the legendary photographer who shot Hong Kong in the 1950s and 60s — hung throughout the hotel and the rooms, so every corner has a story. If you like a stay with character rather than identical square boxes, you'll likely fall for it the moment you open the door.

Food and amenities

It's a compact boutique, but the food and drink are done with style. The heart of it is The Envoy, whose open balcony looks down on the stone steps of Pottinger Street — sip a cocktail here in the evening, watching people thread past under the shop lights, and you've got an atmosphere that isn't easy to find in Hong Kong. The menu mixes Western-style food and drinks that fit the hotel's theme, good for meeting friends, a drink before a night out, or an easy hang after a day on foot. For anyone who likes to keep moving there's a fitness room, plus a spa / massage service on call when you want to unwind. A small detail many guests love is service that punches above the hotel's size — a loaner mobile handset to use during your stay, restaurant and bar tips as sharp as a local friend's, and the flexible check-in and check-out that reviews mention often. There's no pool or big chain-style spa here, but it makes up for it with a warm, private-home feel.

Location and getting there

If The Pottinger has one trump card, it's this location. The hotel sits right on Pottinger Street in the heart of Central, which means almost everything a Hong Kong visitor wants is within walking distance. A few steps gets you to the MTR Central exit (about 3 minutes), where several lines meet to carry you across the island and over to Kowloon, and Hong Kong station on the Airport Express is close by, about 7 minutes on foot — handy for airport runs. Better still, the hotel is right next to Lan Kwai Fong, Hong Kong's most famous dining and nightlife district, so countless bars and restaurants are a short walk away, and it's on the corner of the Mid-Levels Escalator — the longest outdoor escalator in the world — which carries you up the hill to SoHo and its international restaurants, cafes and galleries without the climb. Around you there's also the IFC mall, the Star Ferry across to Tsim Sha Tsui for harbour views, and the city's financial core to explore. In short, if you want to wake up and walk to eat, drink, shop and catch a train anywhere with barely a taxi, this location scores a full ten.

Things to know before booking

Straight talk to help you decide — the biggest thing to weigh is that The Pottinger has no swimming pool, because it's a boutique in a central Hong Kong building that leans on location and design over resort facilities. If your mental picture of the trip needs a rooftop pool to soak in, you'll feel the gap (there's only the fitness room and an in-room spa / massage service). Next is room size — some entry-rate rooms run fairly compact, in line with central Hong Kong's expensive land, and some face the neighbouring building so the view isn't open. If you value space and a view, upgrade the room type and check carefully when you book. Last is noise: because the hotel is right next to Lan Kwai Fong, which stays lively late — especially on weekend nights — street-facing rooms can pick up some of the district's buzz on certain nights. Light sleepers should ask for a higher floor or the quieter side, and treat this as the trade for being right in the middle of the fun, on foot.

Our take

After reading through hundreds of real guest reviews, The Pottinger Hong Kong is a hotel that sells old-Hong-Kong charm meeting contemporary cool on a historic cobblestone street — a heart-of-Central location you can walk everywhere from, a design with a story and Fan Ho photography that makes every corner anything but ordinary, and warm, attentive service that reviews praise again and again. If your trip is waking up, riding the escalator to SoHo, sipping a cocktail on a balcony over the cobblestones, then walking out for more fun at Lan Kwai Fong without a car, this is about as well-judged a pick as it gets — and the Airport Express keeps airport runs easy too. But if you're expecting a rooftop pool, spacious rooms and quiet away from the nightlife, the central-boutique nature of the place may leave you wanting. Overall we give it 8.9/10, best for couples and city travellers who value a walkable location, design with character, and being in the middle of the buzz over having every facility on hand.