Staying at the Capella Shanghai feels like stepping into a time tunnel!

Many people highly praise the Capella Shanghai, but just how good is it? With this question in mind, we specially chose this long-renowned hotel when we visited Shanghai in early June this year.

The Capella Shanghai is located in the Xuhui Historical and Cultural Preservation Area, at 480 Jianguo West Road, Jianye Li, within the old Shikumen architectural complex. The Shikumen, built in 1860, is a distinctive Shanghai architectural style that blends Eastern and Western design elements. The Capella Shanghai, nestled within, includes 55 Shikumen villas and is the only pure villa city resort hotel in Shanghai.

We chose the Shikumen Garden Twin Villa. The villa’s red brick exterior walls are covered with green plants, as if quietly counting the years alongside the mottled sunlight. The room is spacious, measuring 110 square meters. The villa has five floors: the first floor is the living room, the second floor is the tea and entertainment room, the third floor is the bedroom, the fourth floor is the bathroom, and the fifth floor rooftop is a terrace overlooking the Shikumen scenery.

Walking into the living room feels like stepping back in time! The room’s facilities look antique but are actually top modern brands, deliberately creating a classical yet luxurious visual effect; although the hotel is located in a bustling area, it is very quiet, allowing you to quietly converse with the ancient times here!

On the coffee table in the first-floor living room, a welcome card handwritten by the hotel manager has been waiting for guests, and the small gifts for guests include Shanghai’s famous White Rabbit milk candy, as well as comic books of "Havoc in Heaven" and "Journey to the West"! The hotel also offers exclusive library privileges, including drinks, snacks, and beer; morning and evening rituals featuring the historic Shanghai "Shen Bao" newspaper, coffee, Chinese tea, and dim sum; plus free ironing and laundry for five items.

The breakfast is rich and delicious. Besides the usual high-end hotel Chinese and Western dishes, there are many local Shanghai specialties such as wontons and xiaolongbao. The drinks are excellent too; we specially ordered red wine and champagne.

For lunch, we chose to dine at the hotel’s French restaurant, Le Comptoir de Pierre Gagnaire. Founded by the French culinary genius Pierre Gagnaire, the restaurant quickly earned a Michelin star and two Black Pearl diamonds. After tasting the food, we sincerely felt it lived up to its reputation!

The hotel’s service absolutely justifies the high room rates! From check-in onwards, every experience was perfect! Including the doormen, luggage staff, housekeeping, restaurant, and bar... Special praise goes to staff members Shao Bochen (Ethen Shao) and the bartender Ethen at the hotel’s Le Bar. Their service was professional, patient, polite, and enthusiastic, giving us a wonderful stay and unforgettable memories!

In short, the stay at Capella Shanghai was fantastic! Here, you can enjoy high-quality service and accommodation dining experiences while feeling as if you have stepped into ancient times! Here, you can search for old dreams of the Shanghai Bund and also feel the pulse of the modern magic city! It’s worth coming back again and again, to get lost and wander in the intertwined space-time of past, present, and future...

Capella Shanghai truly lives up to its reputation! I think we will come again!

Capella Shanghai Jianye Li
Capella Shanghai Jianye Li · Le Comptoir de Pierre Gagnaire
Xuhui District · Shanghai