巴黎半岛酒店 — Hotel in Shanwei

I was recently in Shanwei for business and was booked into Paris Peninsula (or Paris Pan-island). The hotel is very nice, much better than what I expect in a city such as Shanwei.||||My most pleasant surprise was the buffet breakfast. In all my years of traveling for business in China, I have not come across a place that serve decent baguette, let alone croissants. So much so that I don't even bother to try them for invariably it will end with disappointment. When I walked passed the bread table at Paris Peninsula, I was drawn to the baguette. It was covered mostly with towel, Only a little of the uncut end was showing. Somehow, the texture and color of the baguette looks just right. The the bake line is popping out a little, evidence that it has been properly proofed. I ventured to cut a slice, so far so good. Crust is crispy and thin, the inside was soft with sufficient air pockets. I eventually had three slices of it. Too bad only with President butter and not Normandy. Alas, one should be contented. A good baguette would stand on its own.||||After the three slices of satisfactory baguette, I saw the plate of croissant. There were only two left. Most croissant you get in China, in fact most hotel's buffet all over the world, has a overall soggy feel to it. You can forget about the crust. Crust? what crust? You get a skin. Not so with these. It actually has a flaky looks about it. I took one and walked back to my table. Couldn't resist pressing it a bit along the way. The flak was so crispy it popped up. Wow! Jackpot!! I took an eager bite the moment I sat down and I was not at all disappointed. The croissant was cold, but the crust is nice and flaky, the content soft and fill with the fragrance of butter. I devoured it and washed it down with my expresso. I was full by then but debated if I should finish the last croissant on the tray. After 3 seconds of pondering, I order another double expresso and requested the waitress to warm the croissant up for me. While I waited, I asked the other waitress about the pastry chef. She told me the chef was trained in Shenzhen. When I inquire why the bread are so good, she informed me that the hotel's GM, a monsieur Gerard Pacaud, is from France and he personally checks the baguette and croissant quality every morning. Ah, such passion and dedication!! Needless to say, the next croissant was much better than the first, having been warmed.||||It was a rush trip for me and I did not have time to explore the rest of the hotel much. But with such attention to the small things as the baguette and croissant, I am sure the rest of the hotel and its staff are in good order. I do enjoy when people perform their job with pride and love.||||Thank you again monsieur Gerard Pacaud and your team. I shall stay in the Paris Peninsula again if I ever...

Visited Shanweii for business, had no idea what to expect from hotel in this sleepy coastal town.||Before I booked this hotel I called the hotel and spoke with the concierge about how far and how much to pay for cab from high speed rail station. Trip to city center takes about 15minutes and 40RMB.||We checked in early afternoon. Room was super clean and smoke-free. Nice view of city and a peak at the ocean. Furniture, bed, carpet seemed almost new. Bathroom very clean. Hot water very hot and stream strong.||Wifi in rooms uses a mini router for each room. Not too fast speed but enough for basic email or brousing||Dinner buffet very nice selections of seafood, meats, veggies and deserts. ||Buffet breakfast was likewise very good quality foods with great variety.||Before we left city we asked front desk to give us to see the harbor and old town.||Hotel manager, a local gentlemen called the 3 wheeler for us. 8 RMB to the Mazhu temple area, Re Ma Road, old town and the fishing pier. Well worth an hour out of our day to explore this...

While Shanwei does not have a lot to offer, we didn't mind one bit, spending almost all of our time in the hotel. The room was lovely, and as we were traveling with our 3-month-old, they provided us with a proper cot for her. The services were great- we swam in the pool and treated ourselves to massages in the spa (the masseuse was amazing!). The breakfast buffet was very good and the lobby bar was a nice place to enjoy a drink in the evening (although they really need a new music playlist).||||But most impressive of all was the service. Everyone was so polite and warm and helpful. When we wanted to go out to see a little of Shanwei they organised a car to drive us to the best spot and he even helped us order some local street food on the way. They were full of recommendations and everyone spoke very good English.||||Definitely...