Pan Pacific London – Review

Standing like a sleek glass-fronted sentinel in the City of London, Pan Pacific London offers a striking departure from the familiar stately bastions in Mayfair and Knightsbridge. Since opening, it’s brought a slice of contemporary Singaporean hospitality to the Square Mile, where high urban energy outside combines with a zen-like calm inside. Offering 237 rooms and suites, a two AA-rosette restaurant, an afternoon tea lounge and cocktail bar, and an entire floor dedicated to wellness, complete with an 18.5m infinity pool offering a surreal, meditative vantage point looking down at the city buzz below. With their retention of the Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star status, for a fifth consecutive year, The Luxury Editor were invited along to experience this Urban Sanctuary first hand, and it doesn’t disappoint, so read on to discover more.

As Pan Pacific’s European outpost, the hotel forms the centrepiece of One Bishopsgate Plaza, an ambitious multi-use development bridging hospitality, residential, and leisure together, and is the first mixed-use skyscraper in the area. The bronze-clad tower stands at 43 stories high, with the hotel occupying the lower floors and sits in deliberate contrast to the 144-year-old Devonshire House, which too was restored as part of the development. Pan Pacific’s DNA has always felt most at home among urban skylines, carving out a reputation for creating sanctuaries within the world’s more kinetic financial hubs, so there is no better fit for its London offering than in the Square Mile.

Location

Being just a two-minute walk from Liverpool Street Station, you have the Underground and Overground converging on your doorstep, along with the Elizabeth Line, which takes you to Heathrow in around 40 minutes and mainline trains connecting you to Stansted Airport, East Anglia and Cambridge.

The area offers a wide range of cultural experiences. Head east and explore the creative energy of Shoreditch and Spitalfields. Walk west to the brutalist Barbican Centre (the conservatory is well worth visiting I love it, and the second biggest in London) or head south to the Tower of London and Tower Bridge. The iconic skyline of the City of London wraps all around the hotel, keep your eye out for the Gherkin, the Walkie Talkier and the Cheesegrater, reminders that you are in the heart of London’s financial powerhouse.

Lobby

Walking into reception, it feels less like a traditional hotel lobby and more like a private residence, thanks to New York design firm Yabu Pushelberg, which designed all communal areas and guest rooms, marrying the hotel’s dual influences of British refinement with the botanical richness of Singapore’s tropical landscape.

Reception lies immediately to the left, and its organically shaped desk sits in contrast to a contemporary take on British linear plaid panelling. Behind it, a custom mural by Moss & Lam offers a playful take on traditional 18th-century wallcoverings, showing an Asian parrot perched on top of a British greyhound. Further murals flow throughout the hotel, depicting Southeast Asian flora and fauna and positioning spaces as verdant oasis amidst the city’s relentless energy. Beyond reception, the Lobby Lounge reinforces this residential format with paintings balancing on art ledges, bookshelves and a dual-sided fireplace, offering a relaxing place to sit and have a coffee, which I did before check-in.

Across from reception, a sculptural timber staircase sweeps upward, taking you to Straits Kitchen on the first floor. Behind that, a corridor guides you to the guestroom lifts. En route, I noticed the small groupings of artwork, further reinforcing that sense of home feeling.

Rooms & Suites

The property offers 237 rooms, including 42 suites across multiple categories, each designed to evoke the tranquillity of English and Asian gardens, through layered colour and tactile materials. All rooms have floor-to-ceiling windows, Nespresso machine, a Dyson hairdryer, and Jo Loves bathroom products.

Deluxe Rooms at (37sqm) embody a familiar English style with calming neutral tones and marble bathrooms. For families and friends, their Deluxe Double Double (41sqm) accomodates up to four guests across two queen-sized beds. Premier Rooms (39-44sqm) include pasel touches, while Executive Rooms are finished in natural wood finishes and have a defined living area.

At the suite level, which are each individually named and designed with individual character. The collection ranges from the Devonshire Suite (52-57sqm), which I stayed in, The Wallbrook Suite 52-57sqm), through to the Bishopsgate Suite (63sqm) up to the very generously sized Pan Pacific Two Bedroom suite, which comes in at 154sqmthe Bishopsgate Two Bedroom Suite (104sqm), and at the apex, the Pan Pacific Suite (119sqm) and its two-bedroom sibling (154sqm). Each is united in its residential format with separate sleeping and living areas, making them more like mini apartments than hotel rooms.

My Suite During My Stay

During my stay, I was hosted in the Devonshire Suite on the nineteenth floor. Entry is via a timber-clad hallway, with a clever little key holder standing on the left-hand side beside a full-length mirror. To the right, the amenities station is tucked into the cabinetry, stocked with premium drinks and spirits, a Nespresso machine, alongside a traditional Asian teapot and cups.

Above the minibar, a ledge displays a selection of titles: “London Hidden Interiors,” “The Gardener’s Garden,” and “A London Year.” A brass hare sculpture stands at attention, and a box (which I haven’t seen before in a hotel bedroom) offers Apple and Android charging cable in case you forget.

Beyond the entrance hall, the suite opens into a corner lounge with a curved velvet sofa. To one side, a focal point Moss & Lam botanical mural of Southeast Asian flora and fauna sits and to the other, an organic form sculptural floor lamp. At the end of the room, a playful touch with a vintage-style record player sits perched on a wood-grain cabinet and across from the sofa, a flatscreen TV sits against the panelling.

Through an adjoining doorway into the bedroom, a king-size bed and above the headboard, a backlit artwork depicts oak branches and persimmons, rendered in muted watercolour tones. One of four arboreal themes (oak, elder, elm and maple), species English in origin and brought to life using Asian brushstrokes.

Walls curve gently throughout, and an angular corner window wraps around the space. A rather beautiful, sleek, curved desk is positioned by the window, which provided me with an inspiring workspace as I caught up on some emails. And across from the bed, a second flatscreen TV.

Between the bathroom and bedroom is a large dressing area and wardrobe space with an illuminated, organically shaped mirror that sits above a pull-out drawer keeping safe a Dyson hairdryer and attachments.

Through to the bathroom which is split into three areas, with a separate WC sits behind its door, while the main vanity area occupies the central space, and a dedicated mosaic-tiled wet room houses a tub and separate rainfall shower. Also a mention about the Jo Loves amenities, which are a joy to use, and the neatly presented amenities box, which contains all those things you might forget – hairbrush, shaving kit, dental kit, shower cap and comb.

Being on the 19th floor gives you a bird’s-eye view of the city below. By daylight, Liverpool Street Station’s ornate Victorian facade offers a reminder of London’s architectural heritage, as it sits sandwiched between modern, sleek glass buildings. As day surrenders to evening the view takes on a theatrical glow as the surrounding office buildings become illuminated in light.

Straits Kitchen

On the first floor Straits Kitchen offers an all-day dining experience celebrating Pan Pacific’s roots. Taking its name from the Straits of Malacca, a historic maritime route long-connecting Asia’s cuisines and flavours. Here, the residential feel continues with oversized pendant lights hanging at varying lengths, while tall planters and botanical fabrics on upholstered seating continue the garden theme and a curved banquette creates a distinct seating area.

That evening, we opted for the five-place experience menu. The meal started with a Chilled Native Scallop dressed with soy, chilli, and red curry crisp. This was followed by Jimmy Butler’s Pork Skewer with char siu glaze and plum ketchup, the caramelised meat rich and sticky. The Cornish Crab Pappardelle arrived next, delicate ribbons of fresh pasta cloaked in emulsion with green apple and caviar. For mains, the Hereford Beef Short Rib was slow-cooked and served with sweet soy and stout jus, and finished with vibrant hibiscus onion. The finale, a bitsized Ice-Cream Sandwich layered with vanilla, soy, and sesame caramel centre.

Breakfast

After a very relaxing evening and good sleep, I make my way down to breakfast, which is also served in Straits Kitchen and as polished as its dinner service. Once seated, the experience begins with an invitation to the extensive continental buffet room. Here you will find an impressive spread of fresh fruits, charcuterie, cheeses, cereals, jams and preserves and bakery items to start things off.

Back at my table, I ordered an Americano coffee, which arrived in a delicate, floral-patterned porcelain, along with a Field of Green pressed juice. Hot food items are selected from the à la carte menu, which offers a range of familiar favourites like the Full English Breakfast, Porridge, and French Toast, with subtle Southeast Asian influences like their Prawn and Port Dumpling Wonton Soup. I opted for my usual hotel indulgence of Eggs Benedict, which arrived with a generous helping of hollandaise and perfectly poached eggs that broke open at the first touch of my fork.

Ginger Lily

Time didn’t allow, but Ginger Lily bar is home to one of the UK’s largest rum collections with over 150 white, gold, dark, spiced and aged rums on offer. A carefully curated cocktail menu showcases an eclectic selection of signature classics as well as innovative serves inspired by Singaporean flavours.

SENSORY Spa & Wellbeing

If their first floor feeds the stomach, the fourth floor, SENSORY Spa feeds the soul. Here, an entire level has been dedicated to holistic health and perhaps the most comprehensive spa in the area. Its centrepiece is undoubtably its infinity pool, which reveals itself gradually, first glimpsed as you walk from the changing rooms and then in full as you descend the stairs to the pool deck. Suspended above the cityscape below, the water seems to almost bleed off the glass, while underwater lighting bathes the room in soft diffused glow. As I swam, I couldn’t help but take on a meditative state, and even on that rainy London day, the moment felt ethereal.

As most of my reviews highlight, my good fitness intentions rarely survive beyond check-in, but for those with a more disciplined routine, the gym is fitted with the latest Technogym equipment. In each changing room, you will find a sauna and steam room, and their spa treatments infuse Western and South East Asian traditions and practices, and feature everything from one-of-a-kind 24-hour immersive experiences such as ‘flight mode recovery’, ‘sleep programme’ and ‘human performance’ to ‘seasonal ritual’ and pregnancy treatments as well as Chinese medicine.

Pet-Friendly Policy

As someone who has travelled extensively with cats (read here), I’ve often found that ‘pet-friendly’ policies tend to be a euphemism for ‘dog-friendly’. However, Pan Pacific London genuinely welcomes both species. The check-in process includes a bespoke ‘Paws Pack’, high-spec pet beds and bowls and a Pet Concierge service that covers everything from kitten or puppy yoga, grooming sessions at the nearby Shoreditch Dog House, even dog reiki healing for more zen-seeking companions.

Final Thoughts

Pan Pacific London succeeds in creating its own distinct identity in a city packed with luxury hotels. Rather than competing on heritage or grandeur, it offers something altogether more contemporary and utterly luxurious.