Best boutique hotels in Shanghai

Bigger isn’t always better, and that’s certainly true for Shanghai.

The city's home to a slew of enormous hotels, which are high in stature -- one in the world’s third-tallest building -- but often lacking in intimacy and character.

When it comes to boutique hotels though, visitors to Shanghai are spoiled for choice. Here are our top six picks.

URBN Hotel

URBN’s studio lounge. The 26-room boutique is China’s only carbon-neutral hotel.

When this 26-room establishment opened on a none-too-gentrified street in 2008, it did so with green in mind -- and we’re not talking cash. URBN is China’s only carbon-neutral hotel.

This boutique hotel recycled and sourced every piece of building material locally. It has its own water filtration system for on-site purification. Environmentally friendly cleaning products, light bulbs and shades are used to cut down the hotel’s energy use.

URBN’s in-house eatery, Downstairs, is run by Shanghai-based restaurateur David Laris. Head chef Siobhán Gough uses local ingredients whenever possible, such as Gouda cheese from Shanxi province.

There’s also a rooftop Champagne bar appropriately named Upstairs, and a fourth-floor lounge called The Social.

Aside from its commitment to the environment, URBN houses an oasis-like, tree-lined courtyard, which is truly idyllic in Shanghai’s blue-skied, humidity-free late fall and early spring.

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URBN Hotel, 183 Jiaozhou Lu, near Xinzha Lu 胶州路183号, 近新闸路, +86 21 5153 4600, room rates: from RMB 1,400 + 15 percent, www.urbnhotels.com

Les Suites Orient

Enjoy sweeping views of the Bund and Pudong skyline at the largest and most historic boutique hotel in Shanghai.

With 168 rooms, Les Suites Orient is the largest boutique hotel in Shanghai.

The building’s foundation and first four floors date back to 1860; the then-Orient Hotel added another 19 floors in the 80s, before Taiwanese management group Les Suites came onboard in 2006. Les Suites Orient soft opened in April, 2010.

Despite its size, Les Suites Orient retains its charm with homey common spaces, a small yet warmly decorated restaurant and eclectic decor that mixes vintage radios with traditional Chinese pottery. All of these make the place feel much smaller.

The river-facing rooms of this Shanghai boutique hotel provide sweeping views of the entire Bund and the curve of the Huangpu River. The night view is particularly impressive when buildings on both sides of the river are lit up.

Offering true Taiwanese hospitality, guests enjoy little touches like Gilchrist & Soames bath products, room key cards that double as Shanghai traffic cards and a bedside control panel for everything from lowering the shades to calling for housekeeping.

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Les Suites Orient, 1 Jinling Dong Lu, near Zhongshan Dong Er Lu 金陵东路1号, 近中山东二路, +86 21 6320 0088, room rates: from RMB 1,600 + 15 percent, www.hotelsuitesorient.com

The Waterhouse at South Bund

The Waterhouse brings travelers a slice of Shanghai’s industrial past.

Located in a former warehouse-turned-military HQ from the 1930s, this Shanghai boutique hotel opened its doors one and a half years ago and is as industrially chic as its architecture.

The four-story, 19-room hotel is the product of three buildings and three years’ renovation that managed to return the space to its former glory while upholding its industrial past.

The hotel’s decor is a purposeful and clear contrast of old and new. Exposed brick, concrete and recycled wood rub elbows with a Tracey Emin neon light sculpture and mid-century-inspired furniture from local brand neri & hu.

Guests can dine at Table No. 1, helmed by Scott Melvin, who used to work at Michelin-starred London restaurant Maize. Offering a modern and seasonal European cuisine, the restaurant sources all its menu items from local farms.

Food isn’t the only way the Waterhouse helps its guests go local. The hotel also provides tours of Shanghai’s old city on vintage bicycles and scooters with sidecars.

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The Waterhouse at South Bund, 1-3 Maojiayuan Lu, near Waima Lu 毛家园路1-3号, 近外马路, +86 21 6080 2988, room rates: from RMB 1,750 + 15 percent, waterhouseshanghai.com