Flair Lounge, Shanghai
Shanghai offers some of the best city views in the world. With the famous Bund, the former foreign embassies, overlooking Huangpu river, and skyscrapers on the other side, in Pudong. The nighttime sparkles with the lights from the Aurora Building, the Pearl Tower, and the Shanghai World Financial Center among others. Sitting at top the Shanghai IFC building is the Ritz Carlton Hotel’s Flair Lounge, a rooftop lounge in Shanghai, like M1NT and Music Room.
This lounge bar is unique in that it offers a spacious outdoor multilevel deck with couch seating with awesome views. M1NT’s outdoor patio, currently closed, was only for members and private parties, with minimal views. Strip Prime’s overlooks People Square and is nice but doesn’t compare to the Bund skylines. Salon de Ning at the Peninsula Hotel and the Vue Bar Rooftop Terrace at the Hyatt on the Bund , both have small outdoor space. I would argue that the Flair Lounge has the best combination of views and outdoor space in Shanghai.
I wish I took this picture, but I got it from the Ritz Carlton site.
On the 58th floor, I believe it is one of Shanghai’s highest bar lounges. To get to the lounge, you have to take 2 different elevators. You enter the building to take an elevator to the main lobby of the Ritz Carlton. Then another hotel elevator up to the top. As you walk in you notice the large glass enclosed wine closet with the large rectangular bar. Then you see the soft hues of brown, red, and black of the high ceiling interior space. There’s a DJ corner spinning in the corner. There’s scattered low slung couch seating all over for those intimate moments. With a heavy wood communal table for the drinkers with views over looking the river.
But I ignore most of this and head straight to the outdoor area. As you walk out, the Pearl Oriental Tower catches you eye. Then to the right, you see a large bar with bar tables strewn across the top level deck. Just below, spanning the entire space, you see couches with several groups. Thick large glass separates you from 58 floors below. This is enough to keep your heart beating just a bit faster, with your drink in hand. But I don’t think I want it to slow down.
Rating 3 Pigs Price Range 3 $/¥/NT