J Hotel Shanghai Tower: World's highest hotel opens in China
Shanghai's already-hot hotel scene just keeps getting hotter.
The J Hotel Shanghai Tower, which opened on June 19, isn't just another high-end property.
It claims to be the highest hotel in the world. The J Hotel occupies the top floors of the Shanghai Tower — which at 632 metres (about 2000 feet) is the tallest building in all of China.
J Hotel Shanghai Towers stands 632 metres high. J Hotel
Aside from impressive bragging rights, what is the hotel actually like? The J has 165 rooms, of which 34 are suites. There's 24/7 personal butler service, an indoor swimming pool, toiletries by Hermes and Diptyque, magnolia petal-shaped bathtubs, a luxe spa with a focus on Reiki treatments and full Chinese tea sets in every room.
The hotel has four suite types, with the most expensive being the 380 square metre Shanghai Suite. Besides the bedroom, this suite includes a parlour, study, kitchen, physiotherapy area and a room just for getting dressed. (The hotel did not reply to CNN Travel's request for a price.)
Shanghai Suite's lavish bedroom. J Hotel
The least expensive room goes for 3601 RMB (about $744) per night, while the J Suite — one notch less posh than the Shanghai Suite — costs 67,628 RMB per night (about $13,960).
There are also seven different places to eat within the hotel including a Cantonese restaurant called Heavenly Jin on the top (that would be 120th) floor. There are also restaurants offering Japanese food, Italian food and afternoon tea.
The J Hotel is owned by Jin Jiang International, one of China's largest state-owned hotel and tourism companies.
Centouno is one of seven different dining spots. J Hotel
Despite the global travel slowdown amid the coronavirus pandemic, competition for the newest, best and highest hotel isn't going anywhere.
The Ritz Carlton in Hong Kong lays claim to having both the highest hotel pool and highest hotel bar in the world.
In Dubai, there's an ongoing battle for the title of tallest hotel in the city and on the planet.
Views from the spacious Premium Stateroom. J Hotel
The 356-metre (1168 feet) Gevora Hotel was officially recognised as the world's tallest hotel by the Guinness Book of World Records in 2018.
It's worth noting the title of tallest hotel is typically applied only to buildings used wholly as hotels, unlike the J Hotel, which only occupies an upper section of the Shanghai Tower.
Luxurious ensuite of the Premium Stateroom, complete with tub with a view. J Hotel
Hot on Gevora's heels is the still-under-construction Ciel Tower, which will have 1042 rooms and reach a height of 360.4 metres when it's completed.
Unlike some of the other hotels on this list, the Ciel (French for "sky") is slated to have a glass rooftop observation deck, which will give non-guests an opportunity to experience the view for themselves.
