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First look: Ovolo Southside

25 Jul 2014 by Tamsin Cocks

First look: Ovolo Southside

Business Traveller Asia-Pacific enjoyed a showround of the new Ovolo Southside property.

The hotel recently opened in the Wong Chuk Hang area of Aberdeen and has been given an edgy, urban design aesthetic – reflecting the industrial neighbourhood it inhabits.

As previously reported (see here) the hotel offers 162 guestrooms, a 24-hour gym and a collection of social/meeting spaces including the B.I.G (“business is good”) meeting room and the G.I.G event space on the ground floor, which can host up to 375 people.

Cirqle restaurant is located on the fourth floor and serves a menu of classic comfort food and desserts. Meanwhile, the Lo Lounge provides a relaxed place to work or hang out by day, coming to life at night with guest DJs. The rooftop Above bar and VIP roof garden are also available to guests.

Décor

The urban-chic interior design, masterminded by local architectural firm K plus K Associates, is pretty cool. From the purposefully exposed pipes in rooms, to steel cabinets and naked wardrobes, the raw edges are refreshing yet still have an air of sophistication.

 

 Queen double room

Even the light switch control panels by the bed have been designed to look like they will start some heavy-duty machinery.

Graffiti in the corridors has been hand-painted by local street-art groups such as Parent's Parents, the lifts have been decorated with graphic motifs that are "perfect for selfies" and this urban theme continues right through to the doodle-style guest handbook.

 Grafitti in the corridors designed and hand-painted by local creative group Parent's Parents

A Polaroid moment of the Business Traveller Asia Pacific team in the lift

Thought has even been given to the in-room guest handbooks design

Rooms

Floor-to-ceiling windows in all of the comfortably-sized rooms offer unobstructed views of a more peaceful side to Hong Kong, while blackout curtains can be lowered via a control panel by the bed. The suites have an additional lounge area, although the spaces are still fairly modest.

Corner room with views over Shouson Hill and Ocean Park

One thing noticeably missing from all of the rooms is a workspace or desk of any kind.

Meetings and Events

The  B.I.G room has been designed as a relaxed meeting space for small groups, with features such as leather reclining chairs, no boardroom table and a large TV.

However, it is the G.I.G. events space on the ground floor that really stands out. Doubling up as the entrance into the hotel – the large area is ideal for a range of functions from exhibitions to private parties. The industrial design is easily identifiable, with a revolving plate from the original warehouse as a focal piece of the room that can now be used as a moving stage or dance floor (a full rotation takes around two minutes). Meanwhile several screens taking up one wall give guests creative freedom to add an interactive design element to their event.

The G.I.G event space

Food and beverage

The Lo Lounge by reception is a chilled-out space to work, or kick-back and enjoy a game of billiards, with lots of convenient power points to plug-in. Ovolo’s trademark ‘happy hour’ means guests can eat and drink for free in this area until 8pm.

The Cirqle restaurant is light and airy, while still keeping the hard-edged design theme with steel tables topped with thick wood, and industrial-style lights. The al-fresco terrace offers a pleasant outdoor option with great views over the south side of the island.

Cirqle restaurant

Food is directed by head chef Kris Bandel. We sampled some of the fried chicken, crab and fish canapes and would happily go back for more.

The rooftop bar and VIP area is a great little urban sanctuary. More grafitti-style artwork decorates the back of the bar and the outside walls, while bartenders whip up a selection of fruity cocktails. Up one more flight of stairs and guests will find the garden-style VIP area with a range of lawn chairs, which overlooks the bar below.

Ovolo Southside hotel Wong Chuk Hang

The rooftop bar's outdoor terrace

Transport and accessibility

Ovolo Southside is located away from the hustle and bustle of Central, which may well appeal to some business travellers. A free shuttle bus runs from about 7am until approximately 11pm every day, dropping guests at Hong Kong station or Admiralty as well as returning them to the hotel.

However, it’s just as well there’s is a shuttle bus as other transport means are limited. Upon leaving the hotel, we struggled to find a taxi to take us home – never mind a bus. There is an MTR station due in 2016, but until then accessibility is likely to be the main concern for visitors.

Other features worth mentioning

The 24-hour gym is a decent size with a good range of equipment from yoga mats, to TRX harnesses. All treadmills and cross-trainers have screens that are linked up to the TV. Complimentary chilled water, towels and power bars are available for guests post work-out. The addition of antique boxing gloves on the walls is a particularly whimsical design detail.

Vintage boxing gloves provide an interesting design detail in the 24-hour gym

Another feature that may appeal is the self-service laundry room, with all the soap powder provided for free.

Conclusion

Ovolo Southside is edgy and fashionable while still being comfortable and unpretentious, and it has some great features for more creative meetings. But with no workspaces in the guestrooms and a lack of transport facilities, the out-of-the-way location might not be for every business traveller.

Tamsin Cocks

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