STAYCATION: THE MIRA, HONG KONG
Located in the heart of Tsim Sha Tsui, The Mira Hong Kong is a luxurious upscale 5-star hotel that features 492 rooms including 56 suites and exquisite dining experiences. The hotel overlooks the leafy Kowloon Park and has direct access to the Miramar Shopping Centre & Mira Mall complex which is both convenient and efficient for hotel guests.
The Mira’s interior has a very intriguing background. Little remains of the hotel’s prior incarnation as the Hotel Miramar such as the low-ceiling hallways and a few chandeliers now encased in open-ended tubes in the Japanese restaurant Yamm. The designer Charles Allem teamed up with celebrity stylist Colin Cowie - (he did Oprah Winfrey’s 50th birthday party), to create an ultra modern hotel that abounds with stainless steel, mirrored surfaces, and contemporary twists. The Mira is Hong Kong’s first member of Design Hotels, a network of over 200 unique hotels in more than 40 countries.
I stayed in a Parkview Room which had beautiful views of nature blossoming in Kowloon Park. The room was very spacious and lightly-dimmed which created a cosy ambience. What interested me was that there are 4 different colour-themed rooms available for Mira guests to choose from, one can get bold with Red, re-energize with Green, or luxuriate in sumptuous Silver: choose whichever colour palette takes your fancy as you check in to your Hong Kong oasis!
Inside the room guests can find a pillow menu to to suit what they desire as well as a handy mobile phone with free unlimited local calls and international calls to over 25 places as well as Wi-Fi connectivity via a complimentary mobile solution. The Mira Hong Kong was actually the first hotel in Asia Pacific to provide all guests with this feature!
Other room features included wifi, tea and coffee, complimentary on-line kiosk for over 4,500 newspapers and magazines from over 100 countries in more than 56 languages, bathtub and stand alone rain shower, safety box, bose ipod docking station and more.
There are various places to dine within The Mira but the restaurant that stood out the most to me (and is definitely worth a visit) was WHISK. Wandering into the restaurant, it’s almost impossible to miss the installation of gleaming white globes that dangle just beyond the glass barrier to the right, which doubles as the ceiling for Cuisine Cuisine, the Mira’s Chinese restaurant.
The interior design was overseen by the international interior stylist Charles Allem of CAD Associates, and – having designed exclusive residences, hotels and commercial spaces in places like Palm Beach, Las Vegas, New York, and Bel Air – he shows what he is good at, with atmospheric lighting, frequent spots of natural light and lively retro circular-patterned carpets patterns giving Whisk an uplifting yet unpretentious feeling. With monochromatic black, greys and platinum silvers, circularly galaxy-like chandelier fixtures and plenty of nonstandard low-slung dining chairs, there is a cosmically retro vibe to the interior, but enough touches of elegance keep the space sophisticated and formal. There are various areas to the restaurant, with a barcode-patterned bar greeting one upon entry, a mezzanine area complete with views over Kowloon Park, two cosy private rooms and, of course, the main dining room, which connects up to the terrace.
The good taste doesn’t stop at the interior, with a menu assembled together by Justin Quek, a European chef trained under many Michelin-star eateries throughout Europe. Quek’s specialty is French fare sprinkled with a touch of orientalism – a forte that he perfected when he was at the widely acclaimed French establishment, Les Amis, in Singapore. At Whisk he brings in a few more European flavours and refines a number of Asian favourites, with items like roasted crackling suckling pig and baked Miso Marinated Cod. In addition there are plenty of juicily fresh seafood options, plus a cellared selection of carefully selected European wines.
A must-see for all guests or even Hong Kong-ers is The Mira open-air bar lounge called Vibes. At night, watch the venue light up as you sit in a private cabana by one of their lotus-shaped open fires. Food and Drinks are served here as well as the famous arabic shisha. The classy laid-back vibe and upbeat music makes Vibes the ideal place to just sit back and relax.
In the third basement level of The Mira lies a 18,000 square feet wellness zone that includes an inviting 25m indoor infinity pool, sauna and steam, a 24 hours fitness centre and the award-winning MiraSpa. The sophisticated urban sanctuary of MiraSpa comprises nine treatment rooms including two luxurious VIP spa suites for those who want more privacy. Most recently awarded with the Best Luxury Hotel Spa in Hong Kong award by World Luxury Spa Awards 2015, I knew I had to try out one of their treatments whilst I was here. The Mira Spa experience was extremely relaxing to say the list. Each of the therapists tailor the environment of the Spa room according to your personalized needs and each room comes with house plush massage beds, showers, vanity and washroom facilities.If your not a spa person, The Mira's indoor pool is the best way to relax with the light on top of the pool makes for a very beautiful illumination.
There is also a big jacuzzi right next to the pool, which is where I spent most of my time! Whether you appreciate the design of The Mira or not, this hotel is a great place to stay if you want to enjoy proper five-star luxury and also have easy access to the city. The service and quality of the hotel is definitely to be mentioned and would be on our recommended lists of hotels when traveling to Hong Kong, or even when you need that quick getaway!
