Weekly new hotels roundup - China, Portugal

This week saw three properties open their doors in China, including the reopening of the landmark Shanghai Peace Hotel, which has been painstakingly restored by Fairmont during a three-year closure. The hotel, which originally opened in 1929, was once known as the "Number One mansion in the Far East" and is the highest-profile hotel in China.

Fairmont Peace Hotel
Shanghai, China

The 270 rooms of the Fairmont Peace Hotel retain touches of "1930s elegance" (and the Jazz Bar remains), but overall, the place has been given a total revamp. New additions include two Chinese restaurants, a skylit swimming pool, a spa and a new presidential suite in the rooms that were once home to the hotel's flamboyant founder, Sir Victor Sassoon.
http://www.fairmont.com

Hotel Nikko Shanghai
Shanghai, China

JAL's hotel chain continues to gather pace this week, with the opening of the 382-room, 25-storey Hotel Nikko Shanghai. All rooms feature deluxe marble bathrooms, iPod docking stations, 600-thread count sheets and flat-screen televisions, while the hotel's food and beverage options include Japanese, Cantonese, Chinese and Western cuisine.
http://www.nikkoshanghai.com/

Hilton Beijing Airport
Beijing, China

Hilton's new 322-room property is the first five-star airport hotel in China. It offers two full-size ballrooms, a 25-meter indoor swimming pool and seven restaurants and bars - one of which is the longest bar in Beijing.
http://www.hilton.com

Meliá Braga
Braga, Portugal

Braga is the fifth largest city in Portugal and its latest hotel will add a further 182 rooms to its growing tourism business. The hotel offers indoor and outdoor pools, a spa, two bars and a Portuguese restaurant.
http://www.solmelia.com

Merchant Hotel
Belfast, Northern Ireland

This week saw the completion and launch of a significant new part of the five-star Merchant Hotel in Belfast, effectively doubling the size of the property. The extension has added new rooms (none of which are under 42 square meters), a spa and rock sauna, a rooftop gymnasium, a rooftop garden and a jazz bar.
http://www.themerchanthotel.com