Disclaimer: In exchange for a 2-night stay, I am writing a review of The Hari hotel in Hong Kong.
Having been a former (albeit brief) Hong Kong, and Shenzhen resident, I seem to make it to HK once or twice a year. Somehow, HKG is still my 2nd-most used airport, even though it has been more than a decade since I last lived in the region.
Amusingly, I haven’t stayed at in Wan Chai — the neighborhood where the hotel is located — since 2003. In fact, outside of hikes that involve The Peak/Cloud View Rd./Braemar Hill Rd., I’m not typically wandering around the urban parts of the island. For this reason, I was kind of looking forward to seeing what has changed closer to Victoria Harbor.
Enter: The Hari.
Opened in December 2020, and entirely operated by Harilela Group, which manages hotels throughout Asia and Europe, The Hari is in the heart of Wan Chai, a major business, nightlife, and convention hub.
Access
The property is about a brisk 10-minute walk from Wan Chai MTR (metro) station, and also a slightly longer walk to Causeway Bay shopping district. Furthermore, it’s about 10-15 minutes from HKCEC (Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre), as well as the Star Ferry pier with connections to Tsim Sha Tsui on the Kowloon peninsula.
If you’re taking a bus to the airport, hop on the A11 at the intersection of Gloucester Rd. and Stewart Rd., which is less than five minutes away on foot.
Theme
I noticed that there were a lot of modern artworks throughout the hotel. I wasn’t a fan, but at least the hotel helps promote up-and-coming artists not just from Hong Kong, but from throughout the world. Lobby exhibits occasionally, too.
Speaking of the lobby, guests are able to borrow books that are displayed throughout the reception area. Book titles range from architecture and design, to biographies and art history.
Earlier, I wrote that I rarely popped in to Wan Chai when in town. Interestingly, The Hari has prepared a QR code for guests to scan so as to go out and explore lesser-known spots in the neighborhood. Although I didn’t have time to do try out the app, local activities range from underappreciated eateries, to hidden art galleries and historic structures that helped give Wan Chai its inimitable atmosphere.
Check-in
After a quick stop in Sai Kung for some novice hiking, staff nicely let me check-in early.
However, there’s an unpleasant theme I’m noticing with more and more modern hotels: a lack of ground floor check-in.
The Hari further rubs salt in this wound by having the lobby floor just one level above the small main entrance. And there are no publicly-accessible stairs, unless guests also happened to be employees, and/or in an emergency. Ugh.
At least outside of check-in/check-out, guests don’t have to switch to guest room-only elevators. At least.
Although I found the street level staff to be snobbish, there were a couple of personnel highlights. I should be mention that Sugus, a member of the hotel’s marketing team, came to meet me for a tea/coffee. She and Pooja, a food & beverage experience manager, were some of the most pleasant hotel staff I’ve met in a while.
Room
The Hari offers 210 rooms and rooftop suites. to access rooms, patrons must swipe their key cards in one of the elevators. The 24-hour gym is also accessible by keycard swipe; I didn’t get a photo as it was busy no matter when I visited.
I was given a corner room (two total rooms in the corner), which had a useful feature for families. If a family were staying at the hotel, and wanted to have two separate rooms, there is actually a second door to the corner which would allow for even more privacy.
Anyway, my room didn’t have much of a view, besides one that overlooked Lockhart Rd (the hotel’s street).
The room itself was clean-looking, had good air conditioning (it’s still warm in Hong Kong in December), and comes with a minifridge, safe, and ample space for luggage.
Again, however, what is it with modern hotels and the lack of desk space? In lieu of desired desk, there was a couch, and a swivel table.
Between the bedroom and the rest of the guest room, there was a door to slightly reduce the volume. Beyond that, I don’t what purpose the door had, since it was transparent.
On to the bathroom….
The vanity, shower, and bathroom were all in separate spaces. It makes sense to me that sinks are more readily available, but the design of the washing area was odd.
The faucet also seemed like a rush job. If you don’t turn the water on all of the way, it starts to pour onto the countertop itself. In other words, don’t keep toiletries/towels so close to it….
Dining
At The Hari, you have two restaurants, and two cocktail spots.
Zoku is the Japanese restaurant which has weekly specials. Attached to Zoku is The Terrace, an outdoor space popular for lunches, and after-work drinks. If you despise smoking, The Terrace probably won’t be to your liking.
The Lounge, which doubles as the check-in floor, provides a quick bites and liquor menu. In the morning, The Lounge is used as an overflow space for breakfast patrons.
Speaking of breakfast, that’s where Lucciola Restaurant & Bar comes in. The menu is influenced by Italian cuisine — lucciola means “firefly” in Italian. I only tried the restaurant’s breakfast buffet, which is where I had the biggest issues.
As is customary for my reviews, I try to get to breakfast a few minutes early, to get photos/videos of the food while not bothering other guests.
The good news is that my plan worked this time.
Then what’s the bad news?
One employee at first didn’t want to seat me at a four-person table, even as 1) nobody else was there, and 2) the one other guest that came in was solo, and was seated at a four-person table. If it a table a is reserved, fine. If it’s not, give it up.
The second piece of bad news is that the supervisor was coughing her way around the buffet. Furthermore, she was wearing an airpod. Hello, you’re in the service industry…what’s with you?
Let’s move on to greener pastures, and talk about the food.
The way The Hari does breakfast is thus– you order from a list of dishes, which all include a small buffet, tea, and coffee.
Time to inspect the buffet:
Judging by my two visits, a couple of hot dishes and pastries were the only things that changed. Then again, how could I turn down a frittata or egg tarts, the latter being a Hong Kong tradition?
Important to me at any buffet is the presence of raw vegetables, proteins, and yogurt; clearly, Turkish breakfasts sit atop my buffet pyramid. Fortunately, The Hari came through in those categories.
Tally ’em Up
I believe where The Hari shines is its location. It’s a short walk from hiking trails, shopping in Causeway Bay, the Tsim Sha Tsui-bound Star Ferry pier, and the main convention center. That’s hard to beat. Breakfast was a nice touch, too. Buffets don’t have to be heaving to have good value.
Where they could use some help is customer service. I had some good interactions, sure — with Sugus and Pooja, and a couple of front desk people — but otherwise it was indifference or worse.
Finally, if they just let guests check-in/check-out on the ground floor, what’s the problem?
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