Shanghai Hotels with a Jacuzzi: What Is Really There
Shanghai hotels with a jacuzzi are harder to pin down than booking filters suggest: of the three hotels I cover that are sold on one, only Grand Mercure Shanghai Century Park in Pudong has a hot tub named in some of its amenity lists, next to an outdoor pool that opens in summer. Holiday Inn Shanghai Pudong Kangqiao is worth booking for something else, a 24th-floor pool whose glass-bottomed end hangs over the edge of the building. Lavande Hotel near Shanghai Railway Station is sold with an in-room whirlpool tub, which I could not confirm in any room description. With January averaging about 5 °C, a warm soak matters here, so ask for the room type in writing before you book.
Shanghai splits along the Huangpu River: Puxi on the west bank holds the Bund, the French Concession and Shanghai Railway Station, while Pudong on the east bank holds Lujiazui's towers, Century Park and the newer suburbs. Two of the three hotels here sit in Pudong, and only Lavande is in Puxi.
Where to stay
Where the warm water actually is
A hot tub earns its place in Shanghai in the cold, damp months: January averages about 5 to 6 °C, with nights near 2 °C, and Grand Mercure's outdoor pool, the one beside a listed hot tub, opens only in summer. In July and August, with averages near 29 °C and heavy humidity, few people want hot water at all. The search for a jacuzzi in Shanghai is therefore mostly a winter search, and that is when a summer-only outdoor setup lets you down.
Grand Mercure Shanghai Century Park is the only one of the three where a hot tub appears in amenity lists, and even there only on some of them, beside the seasonal outdoor pool that listings describe as open in summer. The five-star hotel, formerly the Radisson Blu Pudong Century Park, stands at 1199 Yingchun Road, about 870 m from Fangdian Road station on Metro Line 9, and Century Park is close by. It also has a sauna. Rated 8.4 from 425 reviews, it is the best documented of the three, and the one I would book for a soak.
Holiday Inn Shanghai Pudong Kangqiao, at 1088 Xiuyan Road, is the hotel I would book for the swim rather than the soak. Its indoor pool sits on the 24th floor, runs about 30 m, and ends in a glass-bottomed section cantilevered beyond the facade, built by the Singapore firm Chan Sau Yan Associates and opened in May 2011. Its amenity lists name no hot tub, only a sauna and a steam room. It is a four-star rated 7.8 from only 79 reviews, and Kangqiao is far out in southern Pudong.
Lavande Hotel Shanghai Railway Station Branch answers the in-room search on paper only. The three-star hotel at 158 West Zhijiang Road is about a 19-minute walk from Shanghai Railway Station, which suits an early train, but none of the room descriptions I read mentions a whirlpool tub, and its rating of 8.0 rests on just four reviews. If an in-room jacuzzi is the reason for your booking, ask the hotel to confirm it for the exact room type in writing, and keep a cancellable rate until it does. Do not confuse it with Lavande's hotel at Hongqiao Railway Station, in Minhang.
Pudong versus Puxi decides more than the tub here. Grand Mercure and Holiday Inn Kangqiao are both on the Pudong side, Grand Mercure near Century Park and the Line 9 corridor, Holiday Inn Kangqiao in the southern suburbs where you will rely on taxis or long metro rides. Lavande is the only one in Puxi, north of the old centre near the main railway station. For a first trip focused on the Bund and the French Concession, none of the three is central, and I would weigh that before the hot water.
A traveler's takeI would book Grand Mercure Century Park if a hot tub is the point of the trip, because it is the only one of the three where a tub shows up in amenity lists, and I would go in summer, when the adjoining outdoor pool is open, or ask first in winter. For swimming, Holiday Inn Kangqiao's 30 m glass-ended pool on the 24th floor is the more memorable water, even without a tub. I would not book Lavande for an in-room whirlpool on current evidence: four reviews and no room description that names one. For a 'jacuzzi in room' stay in Shanghai, get the room type confirmed in writing first.
Hot tub / jacuzziGrand Mercure Shanghai Century Park Hotel
Outdoor pool and hot tub in a polished Shanghai setting
Why guests love itOur kids spent two straight afternoons in the outdoor pool while we alternated dips in the hot tub next to it, and the room itself felt bright and spacious enough for the four of us without tripping over suitcases. Century Park across the street gave us a proper walk before dinner at one of the hotel's three restaurants, which made a real difference after a day of sightseeing in Pudong. It's a solid pick if the kids need somewhere to burn energy outdoors.
Hot tub / jacuzziLavande Hotel Shanghai Railway Station
Relaxed rooms with private whirlpool tubs in a lavender-themed setting
Why guests love itWe arrived by train from Suzhou late in the evening, and having a whirlpool tub right in the room meant we could unwind immediately instead of hunting for a spa somewhere else in the city. The lavender-themed rooms felt cheerful rather than clinical, which our daughter appreciated after a long journey, and the on-site restaurant covered a simple breakfast before we headed out. It is a smoke-free, straightforward base if the station is your main anchor point.
Hot tub / jacuzziHoliday Inn Shanghai Pudong Kangqiao
Indoor pool and hot tub for year-round relaxation
Why guests love itWe booked this one mainly for the indoor pool, since our trip landed in January, and the hot tub next to it became the evening ritual after a day out in Pudong. Kangqiao is quieter than the tower district, so bedtime for the kids actually happened on schedule instead of getting derailed by street noise. The two restaurants covered breakfast and dinner without us needing to venture far, which mattered with a toddler who does not travel light.
Local tips
- 1Ask Grand Mercure Century Park whether the hot tub beside the outdoor pool runs outside summer, since listings describe that pool as seasonal.
- 2Use Fangdian Road station on Metro Line 9, about 870 m from Grand Mercure Century Park, rather than a taxi across Pudong at rush hour.
- 3At Holiday Inn Kangqiao, swim to the glass-bottomed end of the 24th-floor pool in daylight, when the drop below the glass is clearest.
- 4For an in-room whirlpool at Lavande Railway Station Branch, get the exact room type confirmed in writing and keep a cancellable rate.
- 5From Lavande's address on West Zhijiang Road, allow about 19 minutes on foot to Shanghai Railway Station before an early departure.
- 6Pack swimwear even for winter: the warm options here are an indoor pool, a sauna and a steam room rather than outdoor water.
- 7Do not book Holiday Inn Kangqiao for a jacuzzi: none of its amenity lists I read names one, only a sauna and a steam room.