UrCove Shenzhen Bay Futian Port

The hotel shares its building with offices, and the busy, slow elevators and crowded lobby made the place feel more like a commercial complex. Mobile data barely worked inside, which made getting around and keeping in touch frustrating. I had booked a bay view room, but they moved me to a city view room as an "upgrade." It felt like a downgrade and wasn't the view I'd been looking forward to. I'd expect better from a Hyatt-branded property.

The staff were a real bright spot. Eve and Sail were especially kind and did their best to help me. In general, though, staff don't speak English, and I was surprised not to find at least one English speaker on each shift. It seems clear Western travelers aren't the target guests, which is fair enough. Google Translate helps. This Chinese hospitality and Hyatt co-venture raises the usual local offering with Hyatt standards, and the result is pretty good for an excellent price. My room was clean, recently furnished, and nicely equipped. My Globalist rank got me a bigger, nicer room, though it wasn't quite a Jr Suite. The setup is sparse but perfectly adequate. Breakfast is included and simple, though it doesn't compare to Hong Kong. The advertised fitness center was a letdown: the elliptical and recumbent bike had no power cords, and there were a few weights in what looked like a housekeeping closet. Still, the rest of the hotel was generally very clean, with little to no cigarette smoke. The hotel is in a large, shiny, clean shopping mall with a big Starbucks and tea shops. The surrounding neighborhood has phenomenal cafes, and there's a pleasant mangrove park and massive marina next door. Interesting concept for a Westerner. I'd stay again.

The location loses a star because some drivers don't know where it is and end up turning around a few times. Once you're there, the mall next door makes it easy to get food or a drink, catch a movie, or browse the small night markets. There's also a bar downstairs. If you don't feel like going out, you can order through meituan Meituan and a robot will bring the food to your room. Service was great. You can use the in-room tablet to request things and control the lights and curtains, and housekeeping responded quickly to our needs.

There's lots to do nearby and the rooms are spacious and clean, but ours smelled strongly of second-hand cigarette smoke coming through the bathroom exhaust. The crowd was loud and seemed to party all night. Quite a lively nightlife scene.