It’s hard to keep up with Shanghai’s ever-changing landscape. With new restaurants, shops, metro lines, and office buildings sprouting up all over the place, the city continues to grow at a breathtaking rate. In order to accommodate all the visitors and tourists that flock here, hotel space is at a premium. Here’s a rundown of five brand new hotels that only opened this year:

1) Cypress Garden Hotel Shanghai上海康柏苑大酒店 View In Map
2558, Yan’an Xilu延安西路2558号
Telephone: 021- 5262 9898

The Cypress Garden Hotel, which opened on April 15, 2009, is perfect for those arriving by plane – it’s only a ten minute taxi ride from Hongqiao airport! Located in the Gubei area, this five-story hotel has more than eighty rooms and suites, which include Superior Rooms, Deluxe Business Rooms, Superior Suites, and Deluxe Suites. Each are equipped with central air conditioning, internet access, a mini bar, and other amenities. The 24-hour room service is also a nice touch!

The building itself is enveloped by gardens and trees, which is a nice alternative to the usual city view. Once inside, the hotel has everything you need to keep you entertained during your stay. With a restaurant, a 200-person conference hall, multi-functional event rooms, a KTV room, beauty salons, and a chess room, there’s something for every member of the family!

2) The Peninsula Hotel 上海半岛酒店 View In Map
32 Zhongshan Dongyilu 中山东一路32 号
Telephone: 021 - 2327 2888

Opening this fall, The Peninsula Hotel has its eye on luxury. The views of  the Bund, Huangpu River, and Pudong are fabulous from all 235 rooms and suites. And, if the views don’t inspire you, the décor itself is something at which to marvel. Inspired by the Art Deco period of the ’20s and ’30s, and the “Golden Age” when Shanghai was considered the “Paris of the East,” each room of this hotel focuses on fusing the utmost luxury with up-to-the-minute technology.

In an effort to make all their guests as comfortable as possible, each guest room is divided into a bedroom, bathroom, and dressing room with a “privacy door” that allows you to close the bedroom off from the rest of the room. This essentially turns any room into a suite. As you would expect, their meeting rooms are similarly extravagant, with a grand ballroom and a special events salon that they recommend for weddings, meetings, or any other event.

3 ) The Ibis Hotel (Waigaoqiao)上海宜必思外高桥酒店 View In Map
938 Yanggao Beilu 杨高北路 938 号
Telephone: 021 - 5061 9777

One of the more affordable hotels on this list, The Ibis Hotel (Waigaoqiao branch) is located in Shanghai’s Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone. This puts it a mere thirty minutes away (by car) from Pudong International Airport, which makes it a convenient choice for travelers. From The Ibis Hotel, guests can easily get to the heart of the city, as well as Lujiazui Financial District.
The hotel’s bar and restaurant offer a 24 hour snack service, which comes in handy after those late Shanghai nights. Its 132 rooms each offer free broadband Internet service, and their meeting hall facilities cater to a variety of functions.

4) The Grand Central Hotel 上海大酒店 View In Map
505 Jiujiang Lu 九江路505号
Telephone: 021-5353 8888

The Grand Central Hotel celebrated its grand opening in July 2009. When its doors opened, guests were greeted with a 353 room luxury hotel with a “floating oval ballroom” (called, appropriately enough, The Shanghai Grand Ballroom) and seven meter high ceilings – now how many hotels in Shanghai can boast that?

This hotel can be found adjacent to the pedestrian walkway of Nanjing Road, a popular historical attraction. This puts it right smack in the middle of the city, with the Bund and People’s Square just a hop, skip, and a jump away. And if you don’t feel like venturing out for some food, you have your choice of two restaurants located within the hotel – French (at L’ile de France) or Cantonese (at Bo Yuet Hin).

5) Renaissance Shanghai Zhongshan Park Hotel 上海龙之梦万丽酒店View In Map
1018 Changning Lu长宁路1018号
Telephone: 021- 6115 8888

There’s a reason the Renaissance Shanghai Zhongshan Park Hotel won the Best New Hotel in Shanghai 2009 Award at the TTG China Travel Awards – with 31 floors of stylish, spacious guest rooms (616 in total), 56 luxury suites, and a whole floor of conference and multi-purpose event rooms (which includes the largest ballroom in Puxi), this hotel has pretty much any guest could ever need!

If you’re looking to move around the city quickly and easily, this hotel is especially convenient, as it’s directly adjacent to the Zhongshan Park Metro Station in downtown Puxi. Convenience and comfort? Sounds like an award-winner!

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