Hotel Reviews and Trip Advisory

One of London’s most anticipate hotels may not be open yet, but this is no excuse not to take a sneak peek at what is to come when Shangri-La London at The Shard opens its doors. The hotel occupies floors 34 to 52 of the 72-storey skyscraper, with the entrance, welcome reception and Lang patisserie and deli located on the building's elegant double-height ground floor and 202 rooms.

While Lang is likely to prove popular with commuters and the reception presents a sophisticated space with impressive art and a vast chandelier, the experience for Shangri-La guests starts when you get whisked up via two high-speed lifts in 28 seconds tops to the main reception on the 35th floor, also home to the Ting lounge serving an Asian menu and afternoon tea and restaurant offering modern European dishes with Asian influences.

Here on the 35^th floor and further up The Shard, you are granted uninterrupted 360-degree views of London with all its landmarks through the floor-to-ceiling windows.

The rooms are split across four categories: Superior, Deluxe, Premier, and Grand Premier. Superior Rooms face south, while Deluxe and Premier have the more desirable northern view, towards the City and St. Paul’s Cathedral. Grand Premier rooms add a 180-degree aspect to that, an example of which is shown in the top half of the opening picture above. With sizes ranging from 323-2024sq ft (30-188sq metres), these are among the largest hotel rooms in London.

The marble bathrooms all have on offer heated flooring, TVs imbedded into the mirrors, Japanese-style electronic toilets with heated seats and Acqua di Parma toiletries. Some 80 guest rooms will have freestanding baths positioned by the windows, with breathtaking vistas of the capital.

While all 17 suites will have dedicated butler service, yet to be revealed are the unannounced features of the hotel’s three signature suites.

The Shangri-La Suite on the 39^th floor, Due to open in September, will offer 188-degree views of London, stretching from the Houses of Parliament to Canary Wharf. Guests staying here will be able to park in the Shard’s basement levels and be whisked off to their suite via the private lifts otherwise reserved for the owners of the apartments on floors 53 to 65 of the 72-storey building.

Furnished in chic aqua, silver and rust with wood and marble finishes, the rooms also offer the best in high tech: free wifi as standard, Samsung flatscreen TVs, iPod docks and Nespresso machines.

On the 52nd floor are the champagne and cocktail bar Gong and an adjoining infinity pool, due to open on 1 July, designed by Andre Fu, the Hong Kong-based designer behind the Fullerton Bay hotel in Singapore and the Upper House in Hong Kong. Set to be the highest hotel pool in Western Europe, this infinity pool will offer fantastic views of London.

Also located on this level is the gym guaranteed to give you a workout with top views, perhaps even making up for the lack of a spa – although there are two rooms set up for treatments as well as in-room service.

The tallest hotel in Western Europe; it will be the first hotel in a London skyscraper; it will be the first luxury hotel in London to open south of the Thames is set to welcome its first guests on 6 May as 59 of its rooms will open, with the remainder — bar the three signature suites, situated on the 37th to 39th floors and due to open on September 1 — set to follow on July 1.

To book a room, email reservations.slln@shangri-la.com; call +44 (0)207 234 8088 or visit www.shangri-la.com/london