Giant neon sign on Hong Kong hotel sparks heated online debate, residents slam ‘tacky’ bright colour
- Tsuen Wan residents say new sign featured on refurbished Grand Bay View Hotel caught them by surprise
- Hotel defends design, which features its new name in six simplified Chinese characters
A giant neon sign on a recently refurbished waterfront hotel in Hong Kong has sparked heated discussions online, with some residents in the quiet residential area of Tsuen Wan criticising its bright colour.
The Grand Bay View Hotel, a serviced apartment complex with 435 suites, on Tuesday defended the design on its exterior wall, which features its name in six simplified Chinese characters.
The building, located on Castle Peak Road in Tsuen Wan and overlooking Tsing Ma Bridge, has been under renovation since it was acquired by Hong Kong-listed Magnificent Hotel Investments from the late “retail king” Tang Shing-bor’s family last year. It was previously called Bay Bridge Lifestyle Retreat.
Some residents, commuters and runners on the nearby promenade said the sign had caught them by surprise after it appeared last week.
Nancy Chan, who lives in the adjacent Golden Villa, said the colour was “too tacky”.
“It looks like the design of some inns in mainland China in the 1980s,” the businesswoman said.
Chan suggested the hotel should make the colour of the sign softer to minimise nuisance to nearby residents.
Another resident, who only gave the surname Chu, said the colour did not coordinate well with the hotel’s original design and its surroundings.
