Hong Kong hospitality: a first-class take on art deco

The 10-storey Silveri Hong Kong opened in June 2022 as the territory's first MGallery hotel. I love this hotel and I will come back here.

The Silveri towers over the otherwise dominant Citygate Mall in Tung Chung new town on the north-western coast of Lantau Island, a 10-minute (at most) drive from Hong Kong International Airport in the hotel's complimentary shuttle bus. The hotel is an elevator ride from more than 150 outlet stores and 40 cafes and restaurants, and a short walk through a soulless town centre to the base station for the Ngong Ping 360 cable car ride - a must-do for any Hong Kong first-timer.

From the outside, the hotel looks like a giant electric shaver that has somehow mated with an intergalactic cruise liner, but the interiors are a classy and pleasing take on opulent art deco, the style of the glory days of Hong Kong hospitality. It is apparently supposed to be reminiscent of Lantau Island's past as a centre for silver mining, although I can't imagine any place like the Silveri in early 20th-century Lantau. The facilities are generally first class and blessed with terrific views to Lantau's magnificent green hills and the open waters of the South China Sea. The family-friendly rooftop pool is fringed with cabanas, and secluded seating in the adjacent rooftop gardens offers a solitude that is mysteriously undisturbed by aircraft noise. By some miracle of flight-path planning, I don't hear a single aircraft noise throughout my 24-hour stay.

My Classic room (the cheapest in the house) has a stupendous view of the hills and the eternally climbing cable car. It's large for Hong Kong, and well-appointed with a rainforest shower and a peculiarly interactive Japanese-style toilet. The bed feels divine.

The food is not the reason to stay at the Silveri. The lovely Pavilion bar offers Spanish tapas to enjoy with a happy-hour drink (or any other drink; it's just that the only time I can afford a drink in Hong Kong is during happy hour). The dinner courses at the hotel's signature restaurant, The Enclave, are labelled ouvertures, arias, harmonies and finales. I don't eat symphonies - for much the same reason that I don't listen to sausages - so I choose to sample The Enclave's buffet-style lunch instead. The mixed salads are ordinary, the Chinese food is comparatively tasty and the Western dishes - such as lamb shank - are inoffensive (unless you're offended by blandness).

The Citygate Mall stocks unusual items from the usual retailers. This is the place to buy a Tang-style quilted Nike Air Jordan jacket, for example, should you be looking for one. The Ngong Ping 360 cable car carries travellers 5.5 kilometres up into the hills to Po Lin Monastery and the 34-metre tall Big Buddha statue - a lovely excursion over some of the most remote country in Hong Kong and definitely worth the detour.

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The unfeasible peace and quiet of the hotel's accommodating rooftop areas; the cable car ride to Ngong Ping; the classic feel of The Pavilion bar; the views to the hills.

Where: The Silveri Hong Kong-MGallery, 16 Tat Tung Road, Tung Chung, Hong Kong.

How much: Classic rooms start at about $289. Add about 20 cents (!) for breakfast. Executive rooms, larger and on a higher floor, start at $381, with lounge access and breakfast. This might represent better value for two people planning to comprehensively enjoy the lounge's complimentary cocktail hour between 5pm and 7pm.

Explore more: thesilveri-hongkong.com

The writer stayed at his own expense.