The weekend is nearly over in Shanghai as I write this. One thing I’ve learned about living 12 hours ahead of everyone else I know is that you can easily live each day twice—once for yourself and then again as family wakes up to start the day I just had.

The trendy and award-winning La Vie en Rose brunch at Le Royal Meridien Shanghai every Sunday features a gourmet chocolate and dessert bar.

One of the things I did today was read Frits van Paasschen’s blogs on The Huffington Post. He’s been documenting his own time in China, and while he’s certainly got more passion for exercise than me as he trains for a triathlon, I think his insights are spot on. I’m really looking forward to talking to him in person tomorrow.

I also attended La Vie en Rose brunch at the hotel today. It’s really a spectacular food & beverage affair complete with live DJ, models dressed as nurses and champagne for all. Rahman Lal, executive assistant manager of F&B for Le Royal Meridien Shanghai, said the pink-themed event has helped to distinguish the hotel in a competitive market.

The hotel itself, three years in the market, is still growing awareness as more supply arrives every month. During the past year, Shanghai has added 7,817 rooms, according to STR Global, a sister company of HotelNewsNow.com. There are another 14,535 rooms in the active pipeline.

That’s not to say Le Meridien isn’t doing well. Shirley Xiao, director of marketing communications and my on-site host, said that even though it’s low season right now in Shanghai (when it feels like 108 degrees Fahrenheit outside), the hotel is doing better than the market in occupancy. Data for May from STR Global shows that market occupancy was at 58.5%.

The Fairmont Peace Hotel, located in the bustling Bund area on the Huangpu River, was eerily quiet on the Saturday I checked out the lobby.

This is the flagship Le Meridien for Asia/Pacific and it shows. The upper-upscale hotel has 761 rooms, four restaurants, two bars and 2,000 square meters of meeting space. The level of staffing, around 800 employees, would be reserved for luxury properties in the United States.

Shirley said meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions business is very important to the hotel.

While I’ve certainly spent more time at my host hotel than any other in Shanghai, I couldn’t help but notice that three luxury properties I checked out yesterday—The Peninsula Shanghai, The Sofitel Shanghai Hyland and Fairmont Peace Hotel—seemed very quiet. While Shirley noted that it’s low season here, I expected a little more hustle and bustle in the lobbies in such a big market. I’m hoping to see some hotels in lower segments in the next few days for comparison. Maybe this is the quiet elegance guests here want. 

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