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Dear Guy, The 2008 Beijing Olympics are re-casting the competitive landscape of Beijing's hotel industry. The opening of three luxury hotels in Financial Street this autumn, in addition to Raffles Hotel in central Beijing, will re-distribute high-end leisure and corporate guests within the city. This edition of "Imperial Tours China News" will introduce these new properties and will discuss the relative merits of the eastern Central Business District (CBD) versus the up and coming Financial Street on the western side of the city. The three new hotels herald a shake-up of Beijing's luxury hotel industry. And, we're only at the beginning – many more hotels, including the Park Hyatt, Four Seasons, Aman, JW Marriott, and another Ritz Carlton are not even included in this missive because they haven't yet opened. !!!! Rooms for 2008 Beijing Olympics NOW coming onto market!!!! We have begun the process of booking hotel rooms for the 2008 Olympics period. This process contains many caveats because the Beijing Olympic Committee has not yet released logistical and ticketing information. Also, many of the properties now taking bookings are new and untested in terms of service. However, early bird bookers can now make room reservations via Imperial Tours. This is on a first come, first served basis, so please drop us a line if you have clients interested in booking rooms during the 2008 Olympics. To recap, this broadcast covers the following issues:
Lastly, to inspire your day at work, we are including an introduction to the zaniest of ancient Chinese philosophers, Zhuangzi. Professor Wang Bo of Beijing University will take you on a voyage through Zhuangzi's startling viewpoints to reveal fresh and provocative insights into life. |
Virtuoso's China Onsite Traveling China…in style Phone us at 888 888 1970 |
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East or West Beijing? Financial Street, located in west central Beijing, is a new development in which the new Intercontinental, Ritz Carlton and Westin hotels are based. Previously, Beijing's luxury hotels, such as the St. Regis, were on the east side of the city in an area now called the "Central Business District" or CBD for short. This includes foreign embassies and the most sought after commercial real estate. To compete, the government of Xicheng District, on Beijing's western side, has launched Financial Street. This is a real estate development targeting the country's top insurance, banking and telecommunications companies. Already JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs, the two top U.S. investment banks in China, have moved their offices to Financial Street following in the wake of a stampede of major Chinese companies said to represent almost half of China's GDP. Clearly, this puts the Intercontinental, the Ritz Carlton and the Westin Hotels in good company and shifts the city's center of gravity westwards. Financial Street is still taking its first steps. Star chefs such as Jereme Leung and luxury good stores, such as Gucci, have not yet moved into its vicinity even though all have plans to do so. Corporate customers in the insurance, financial and telecom sectors are likely customers for hotels in this area, but how attractive will it be for leisure travelers? We think that the hotels on Financial Street will become a good alternative for travelers. The majority of Beijing's tourist sites are in the center or to the west of Beijing. Only the airport is to its north east. Little but inertia and a proven track record tie leisure clients to hotels located in the CBD. When we take into account the larger average room sizes of hotels on Financial Street, the impact of these hotels should be to increase the competitiveness and value for money of Beijing luxury hotels. Consequently, we view the development with its new bars, restaurants and hotels as a welcome innovation in the city. Chinese – American Ties We are used to hearing of enmity rather than amity between China and America. Thank goodness the facts do not bear this out. For just as China is Americans' most popular destination in Asia, with 19% more Americans visiting this year than last, so is America the most popular destination with Chinese citizens, 20% more of whom visited America in the same period. Dunhuang Expands Its Airport Dunhuang lies in the Taklamakan Desert, the world's second largest after the Saharan. Fifteen hundred years ago, this city marked China's border with the Silk Road and was one of the largest and wealthiest entrepots in the world. Thanks to the rise of sea travel and the protection afforded by its own desert remoteness, one of the world's greatest art treasures has lain forgotten in the sands for millennia. The Mogao Caves boast nearly 500 frescoed caves dating from the Silk Road era of the fourth to the fourteenth centuries. By expanding the existing Dunhuang domestic airport to receive international flights, the Mogao Caves and the insights they afford into the Silk Road era will become more accessible to all. To learn more about Dunhuang and the Mogao Caves, please click here. |
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Hotel/Restaurant Update For Hong Kong, Shanghai & Beijing Hotels Comment:The top hotels in Beijing and Shanghai offer excellent service, larger rooms, more modern facilities, superior equipment and lower prices than their peers in London, New York, Paris and Rome. Why not recommend China for a private tour? For a lower daily price than a typical European hotel, your clients can enjoy an altogether superior and more exotic experience in the form of an exclusive private tour of China. Beijing New Hotel Properties On Financial Street The hotels reviewed below have raised the bar still higher for five star hotels in China. A flat screen TV, sound system, DVD player, broadband internet access, quality bath products and spa are now taken for granted. The newly extended characteristic is the room size. Ritz Carlton Hotel Intercontinental Hotel Westin Hotel Update – Since its opening, travel agents have complained to me about the Westin's service. This is not unexpected. Hotel's are opening at an unbelievable pace in China's main cities, and their human resource departments find it hard to get up to speed. New properties in China often have excellent hardware, but their service levels should be expected to be erratic in the first weeks, months and even years of operation. One To Watch – Raffles Hotel Commune By The Great Wall – Phase 2 When Imperial Tours went to inspect the properties shortly thereafter we discovered that many of the bedrooms did not have en-suite bathrooms and many of the room fixtures fell short of expectations. For this reason, we used its excellent restaurant and banquet facilities but never booked its rooms. On Saturday September 24th, 2006, the second phase was opened. In all there are 12 buildings based on modifications of 4 designs from the first phase. Now managed by Kempinski, the mid-level five star German hotel operator, all bedrooms come with en-suite bathrooms, and while fixtures are not first class, they are serviceable. The in situ Six Senses Spa is well done, and I can foresee many Friday afternoons when my office-numbed mind will race one hour out of the city ahead of me in quest of reinvigoration. Commune By the Great Wall is a design phenomenon nestled in a valley running by the Great Wall of China about one hour's drive north of the city center. As a design concept, it delivers. However, the challenge of successfully delivering a range of high quality services to demanding guests in approximately 60 rooms in 12 separate buildings, is likely to stretch the capabilities of the local staff. Notwithstanding that it would be wise to forewarn guests of the likelihood of service issues, visitors will be pleased by the architectural journey that this property offers. Shanghai Le Royal Meridien Other Destinations Sofitel Xi'an at Renmin Square Four Seasons, Hangzhou Restaurants Comment: Over the past year, Shanghai's restaurant scene has become so much hotter than Beijing's that we Beijing-based expats have been scratching our heads in wonder at the widening gap. The capital's restaurant scene is now responding. In this broadcast, we report on four new restaurants in the city, of which three would meet our customers' high expectations. Meanwhile, Shanghai has not been idle. Bund 6 is a new lifestyle center that has opened to challenge Three on the Bund and Bund 18. And Bund 5 is repositioning itself to join the three other buildings as a lifestyle center. Beijing Garden of Delights – At long last, Beijing has an independent western restaurant to challenge the complacent Courtyard. Long time Beijing resident and award-winning Venezuelan architect, Antonio Ochoa-Piccardo has teamed up with star chefs Mariano Montero and Edgar Leal of "Cacao" in Coral Gables, FL to open this wonderful South American restaurant. "Garden of Earthly Delights", the painting by Hieronymus Bosch, images of which appear throughout the restaurant, is a fitting metaphor for this stage of epicurean adventure. Our journey through the garden began with delicious black bean foam and ended with a hot chocolate so creamy that three of us duelled over it with our spoons. Between the beginning and end of the satiating repast, we dined on finely prepared ceviche, seared foie gras, seafood tamale and an Argentinean Matambre steak, all of which are to be recommended. The restaurant's surroundings are as warm and inventive as its cuisine. And the Chinese wait staff, under the watchful direction of the charming restaurant manager Alex and executive chef Daniel, were inspired with the charm of the Latin skies. Lan by South Beauty – Beijing joins the ranks of metropolises boasting a Philippe Starck-designed restaurant. South Beauty, a fast-expanding Sichuanese restaurant chain in China, is moving into the high end segement. Having opened South Beauty 881 in Shanghai (featured in a previous broadcast), Philippe Starck was commissoined to design a huge restaurant space in the LG Tower on Jianguomenwai Road. South Beauty's culinary success is attibutable to their embellishment of Sichuanese food. Well-loved classics such as chilli-spiced chicken and "Lion head" meat balls sit on a menu together with Indian lettuce with sesame sauce and delicate bamboo and squid appetizers. Although the food is good not sublime, it meets the expecations created by the avant-garde decor. My criticism of this space is that it bears no relation to its context. You could be anywhere in the world; Chinese themes and materials are absent as though the owner, Zhang Lan, wished to create an entirely western locale in the midst of the ancient Chinese capital. Imperial Tours will use this restaurant because Philippe Starck's is a fascinating statement. However, it is a shame that this opportunity to benefit from the talents of a world-class designer was not used to innovate a Chinese aesthetic. Jaan – As promised in our last broadcast, we dined at Jaan, Raffles' new French restaurant. Guillaume Galliot, the Chef de Cuisine, hails from Michelin three star "Le Jardin Des Sens" in Montpellier, France, whose sister restaurant, Sens & Bund in Shanghai, regularly features on our private tours. For this reason, our expectations of Chef Galliot were high. The lightness of touch of the salmon carpaccio, seared tuna, lobster capuccino, seafood salad, steamed sea bass and baked cod were a delicious tonic. Jaan is clearly one of the best western restaurants in the city. Nhu – This is a recently-opened western restaurant – bar – club opened by a few veteran Beijing restaurateurs. This venue has already become the darling of PR companies for multimedia events using its panoply of multi-functional spaces. Although Nhu is a welcome addition to expat life, judged on the quality of its food, its appeal is limited to a local rather than international clientele. Shanghai The Chinoise Story – Various restaurants of Andrew Tjoe, the Singaporean restaurateur, have been previously reviewed in our past broadcasts. One of the first, "Humble House" in Chengdu, was featured in "Departures" as part of our Culinary Tour, and his "Humble House" in Beijing has been reviewed here long ago, and has now appeared in many international magazines. "The Chinoise Story" is his new venture in Shanghai, in which he is partnered by the Old Jinjiang Hotel, an Art Deco structure in which the restaurant is located. The food is good and the design of the restaurant is suitably nostalgic whilst remaining contemporary. White leather banquette seats allude to the glamour of the interwar period, whilst articulated white lacquer panels and geometric pendant lighting reflect the aspirations of modern times. T Sens – Since Sens & Bund is our favorite western restaurant in Shanghai, it is hardly surprising that their recently opened casual dining venue on Suzhou Creek wins my plaudits. While many will question the interior design of this waterfront space both for function (the glass building may be hot in summer and cold in winter) and form (a cross between a wedding cake and a doll's house), the service and food are in line with the pricing. Since Sens & Bund is only a short walk away, the menu has been designed around lower cost items to encourage market segmentation rather than risk having this venue cannibalize sales at Sens & Bund. T Sens is more appropriate for lunch than dinner and should be judged on that basis. Hugo's – This Chinese – Dutch joint venture is located across the street from the Four Seasons in a period building that was formerly the Spanish Consulate. The ground floor and garden make a pleasant brasserie and the upper two floors with their terrace spaces are for fine dining. The restaurant manager and chef hail from De Hoefslag, the Michelin rated restaurant outside Utrecht in Holland. Having eaten my way through four restaurants in a two day period, I had little appetite by the time I arrived at this establishment. The restaurant had not even officially opened when I visited for a bowl of soup, so there is time for me to go back to make a more informed judgement. Shanghai Club – The decor at this restaurant at the north-west corner of the Music Conservatory on Renmin Square is known to be gaudy, so I was pleasantly surprised when the decor was not quite as tacky as I had been warned. Although the chef comes from a Michelin-rated restaurant, the dishes were as disappointing as the service. A Future Perfect – Perfection is a laudable aim. This newly opened restaurant in Shanghai offers easy and light western food. Whilst it is a welcome addition to the expat dining scene in Shanghai, as an alternative to such restaurants as "Mesa", "A Future Perfect" does not make it for the international traveler. Elements Fresh – There are now 5 casual western restaurants in Shanghai offering light salads, soups, pasta and easy western food. For independent travelers who are looking for a break from Chinese food, these casual eateries might be an option. None of these restaurants belong in the luxury bracket. For luxury travelers seeking a more casual dining option in Shanghai, we would recommend "New Heights" on the top floor of "Three on the Bund". The array of newly wealthy Chinese and newly arrived expats taking coffee or a hamburger on the balcony of this historic building recaptures the spirit of Shanghai past. Bund 5 & Bund 6 – So many foreign companies are investing in buildings on Shanghai's Bund these days that at the last People's Congress a Chinese representative complained about the prospect of a second colonization of the Chinese city. As a result, there is some sensitivity to development here. Nonetheless, the current spate of development projects are coming to fruition. Bund 6 offers Dolce & Gabbana's stylish new store on the ground floor. Refreshment is provided at an eponymously named "Martini" bar next door. On the second floor, the Suntori owned and beautifully crafted "Sun" Japanese restaurant is already open, together with Aqua, its accompanying bar. We look forward to the exciting prospect of Tiandiyijia opening on the third floor. Bund 5, which houses the newly enlarged "M on the Bund", is also now upgrading itself to a lifestyle center. The designer furniture store on the ground floor is of interest. However, the spa does not compare to the Evian Spa at Three on the Bund. Attica Shanghai – The dome of a stately Victorian building further south along the Bund, as of last month, played host to the hottest new dance club in Shanghai. Boasting three roof top restaurants looking straight onto Shanghai harbor, it seems that for the next few months this is the place to be seen.
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I wanted to let you know Joe & I felt our China trip was phenomenal! Every aspect of it was so well done; the attention to details was unlike anything we'd seen (and you know we're well traveled). We totally appreciated how you made every effort to have our sightseeing excursions be as uncrowded & uncommercial as possible. And we totally appreciated how you made almost every meal an occasion – we kind of ate our way through China! Unbelievable experience from start to finish!" Tour News 2007 dates and prices for our 13 night monthly departure, the Imperial Tour visiting Beijing, Xi'an, Guilin, Hangzhou and Shanghai, are now out. The price of US$7,680 per person remains a steal in comparison to Europe, and we encourage travel professionals, journalists and editors to re-gear visitors' expectations of China. For details of this tour, please click here. We are also pleased to introduce the new Majestic Tour at US$6,790 per person. Since excellence only comes in one form, Imperial Tours' supporters will be delighted to know that there is no quality difference between this and the classic Imperial Tour. The lower price follows the elimination of Hangzhou from the itinerary. The 11 night tour, visiting Beijing, Xi'an, Guilin and Shanghai, follows a market trend towards shorter itineraries. For more details of departures in April, May, September and October, 2007, please click here. For more information about our August 2007 Family Tour or the subsequent Culinary Tour, departing in September 2007, please call Margot Kong at 888 888 1970 or email her now by clicking here. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) To date, Imperial Tours has principally given assistance, both financial and administrative, to the ambitious Special Olympics program in China. For several years, we have also been sponsoring the education of various rural children. In this newsletter, we thank former customers, particularly guests of "Diversions" of Baltimore, for their assistance in co-sponsoring a new playground for the children of a rural school outside Guilin in southern China. Details of Imperial Tours CSR and the playground can be viewed by clicking here. Thanks to the technical assistance of Kelly Lau of Nike, China, as well as offers of help from other guests, this project will now be moving to a second phase, which we will report on in due course. |
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Zhuangzi, Ancient Chinese Philosopher Discovery – The Spirit of Zhuangzi Imperial Tours sponsored a series of four lectures in Beijing on Chinese philosophy with the aim of increasing the range of materials in English on ancient Chinese philosophy and its impact on modern times. Our first lecture was on the philosopher Zhuangzi and was provided by Professor Wang Bo of Beijing University. Although Zhuangzi lived over 2,000 years ago, his thoughts are relevant to all times. Reveling in paradox and delighting in the absurd, Zhuangzi defies conventional norms. His jesting wit challenges us to re-examine our society, our role in society and our values. He is also appealing in that he practiced what he preached: when the king offered him the prime-ministership, Zhuangzi turned him down. When his beloved wife died, after a few days of sorrow he realized the pointlessness of mourning. His searing gaze is so committed to seeking truth whereever this might lead that he can appear harsh in his views. But although he takes the world as no more than it appears to be, he does invest his vision of it with beauty, value and love. Professor Wang provides a humorous and interesting insight into the challenging ideas of Zhuangzi. Enjoy – and even if you don't read the whole piece, please tell me what you think of it! By Prof. Wang Bo "Good evening everybody. My name is Professor Wang Bo and I have been at Peking University (PKU) for about 24 years since 1982. My area of research is Chinese philosophy. Zhuangzi is my favorite philosopher. Generally speaking philosophers should not like things, you know, they shouldn't be anyone's fan. Well, Zhuangzi is really very special, very cool. So I am just Zhuangzi's fan, and not anyone else's. Tonight we are going to talk about Zhuangzi. Zhuangzi did not like theories – he liked to relax. I hope both you and I feel relaxed. So, let's begin. Zhuangzi was a person; however, I have always suspected that he was not human. In Chinese if you say that someone is not human, you are insulting them. However, there is a story about the famous poet, Su Dongpo, during the Song dynasty. Once, when he wanted to praise a girl he started as though he was going to insult her. He said that the girl was not a human. But he went on to say "but rather a fairy descended to the mortal world". Thus, he created a very strong contrast. Imitating him, I say that Zhuangzi is from heaven. The reason why I say so is because he is so different. Many, including he himself, considered him crazy. Of course this was not due to any mental disorder but because of his understanding of the world and life. Zhuangzi lived about two thousand three hundred years ago. It is very far from us, especially, from you. To us Chinese he is far in time, while for you there are many other kinds of distances also. However, I believe human beings can share many things. Thus, not only I, but I believe also you can comprehend him as well. During his lifetime, Zhuangzi did many strange things. I'll give you two examples. The first is that he refused official positions. We know that Zhuangzi was a great scholar. My name is Wang Bo. Bo means abundant. But compared with Zhuangzi, I am like a grain of rice measured against a granary. So you can imagine the extent of his knowledge. Because of his knowledge many people wanted Zhuangzi to become an official in their government, particularly in the Kingdom of Chu. Zhuangzi was offered the position of Prime Minister, like China's Mr. Wen Jiabao today. Generally speaking, Chinese intellectuals are convinced that "he who excels in study can follow an official career". So many people seek a position in government. However, when Zhuangzi was invited by the King of Chu, he resolutely refused. He told the emissary the story of two animals, a pig and an ox. The ox had often been used as a sacrificial offering in ancient China. Prior to the sacrifice it would receive very good treatment. It would be placed in a nice pen where it could enjoy good food, hot baths and even wonderful music. However, its destiny was to be butchered. By contrast, although the pig is housed in mud in a poor environment, it lives a longer and more unconstrained life. For Zhuangzi, entering government was like becoming a sacrificial ox. Zhuangzi asked the emissary whether he would prefer to be the sacrificial ox or a pig. For Zhuangzi, the answer was obvious. He preferred to be a pig. From the story of The Bull and the Pig we can see Zhuangzi's attitude towards power. He considers power the dirtiest, ugliest and cruelest thing in the world. In Chinese we can describe someone as a "Renwu" ?C literally a human object. In my opinion, and I believe that Zhuangzi would agree with me, this means a person is turned into an object. In other words, power is so corrupting that it can turn a person into an object. The second example of Zhuangzi's peculiarity is related to his wife's death. In China – I believe this is universal – you should demonstrate sorrow in such circumstances. To read the rest of this lecture, please click here. |
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We hope you enjoyed this newsletter. As always, please do write back with any feedback that you would like us to incorporate. Alternatively, please call Margot Kong, our Director of Sales and Marketing, in San Francisco, at 888 888 1970. With Best Regards, To forward this newsletter to a friend, please click here. |
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