31st October 2026 – (Hong Kong) The three-star ibis Hong Kong Central and Sheung Wan is to close on 6th December after 14 years beside the tram tracks, with the building earmarked for conversion into student housing — leaving only one ibis hotel still operating in the city and taking another affordable harbour-view option off the map for visitors.
The shutdown follows the April closure of the Regal Oriental Hotel in Kowloon City after four decades. News that the Sheung Wan ibis would stop trading in December and switch to student dormitory use had been circulating in recent days. Asked about the reports, a marketing representative confirmed the hotel will cease operations on 6th December, with renovation works starting on 7th December to rebuild it as a student hostel. No reopening date has been set, and the official website currently accepts bookings only up to 6th December.
Once the Sheung Wan property exits, Hong Kong’s remaining ibis will be the Accor-branded ibis Hong Kong North Point on Hong Kong Island. For many free independent travellers and local staycation guests, the Central and Sheung Wan house had been a rare budget pick with proper Victoria Harbour outlooks rather than purely inland rooms.
Records show the hotel opened in 2012 at 28 Des Voeux Road West in Sheung Wan, rising 33 storeys with a total floor area of about 220,000 square feet. The ground floor to sixth floor housed restaurants and the lobby, while floors eight to 32 held the guest rooms — 550 in all. Its selling points were the harbour-facing room types, relatively keen rates and easy tram and transport links, which kept both inbound tourists and Hong Kong residents coming back.
Town Planning Board papers as early as 2022 had flagged an earlier scheme to redevelop the site into a 40-storey residential tower with two basement levels, putting retail and dining on the ground and first floors. The property was later understood to have been bought in full by Singapore’s CapitaLand Group — active in more than 40 countries — for about HK$2.3 billion.
Market talk is that the group intends to fit the building out as student accommodation for long-term rental income, capitalising on its proximity to the University of Hong Kong and demand from inbound students. Whether that yields a similar bed count to today’s 550 hotel rooms has not been spelled out, and the marketing reply left the hostel opening timetable open.
