Hotels in Beijing
Nov 14th, 2009, 06:54 AM
#1
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Hotels in Beijing
My husband and I will be in Beijing for about 5 days for our honeymoon and need some suggestions on hotels. Neither one of us has ever been to Beijing before and therefore are not sure which area we should even be looking in.
We would like an upscale hotel in a somewhat central area so that we are able to get around Beijing with ease.
I have heard:
JW Mariott
St. Regis
Peninsula
Grand Hyatt
Park Hyatt
Can anyone please suggest the area that would be best for us and/or which hotel they would recommend- even if they are not on list above!
THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!
We would like an upscale hotel in a somewhat central area so that we are able to get around Beijing with ease.
I have heard:
JW Mariott
St. Regis
Peninsula
Grand Hyatt
Park Hyatt
Can anyone please suggest the area that would be best for us and/or which hotel they would recommend- even if they are not on list above!
THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!
Nov 14th, 2009, 07:27 AM
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I stayed at the Peninsula and it's in a great area-walkable to T. Square and the F.City. St. Regis, Raffles and the Gr.Hyatt were also nearby. This Peninsula was not as impressive as the Bangkok hotel however.
Nov 14th, 2009, 08:22 AM
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We were on tour a few years ago and stayed at The Presidential Plaza while in Beijing. It was very comfortable by western standards. Since we were on tour we were escorted everywhere.
If I were you, I'd check into the location.
I hope that you will appreciate China as much as we did for 23 days.
If I were you, I'd check into the location.
I hope that you will appreciate China as much as we did for 23 days.
Nov 14th, 2009, 09:53 AM
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I'm not sure, given the state of the traffic, that anyone 'get's around Beijing with ease' these days. But it's being on or close to a metro station that makes things easier, not necessarily simply being central.
However, of those on your list The Peninsula and the Grand Hyatt are both central and next to (on top of in the case of the GH) metro stations.
I must admit that Beijing would be amongst the last places in the world I'd choose for a honeymoon, and usually I think far too much fuss is made about choice of hotels when surely the whole point of having a brief stay in Beijing is to get out as much as possible, and spend what little time you have in the room mostly with eyes shut. After all, Beijing isn't a resort, and while it has a number of very good hotels (although none can quite deliver the levels of service the same brand delivers in other parts of the world), it doesn't have any you'd travel round the world to try in their own right.
But if you might be spending a little more time in the hotel than most, while the two mentioned above are excellent, and I'd probably chose the Park Hyatt (also right over a metro station--not so central but still convenient) for its tower-top location high above Beijing, you should probably turn to a guide book, do a lot more reading, and widen your range of choices to other hotels that have more individual and memorable qualities.
Consider, for instance, the The Opposite House, not so convenient for the metro, but unless you never stay in top-end properties, in which case most will impress, something that stands out in terms of design:
http://www.theoppositehouse.com
In terms of area you're amidst a mix of bars, clubs, small expat-targeting markets (nail salons, hand-made shoes, etc.), trendy (and not-so-trendy) restaurants, and up-market shopping here. Not, perhaps, real Beijing; but then very little of Beijing is real Beijing these days.
Also consider the interesting Hotel G, not far away:
http://www.hotel-g.com
And there are numerous conversions/rebuilds of traditional courtyard houses/mansions with small numbers of rooms, which may not have every luxury on tap, but at least have, or pretend to have, some local character.
Peter N-H
However, of those on your list The Peninsula and the Grand Hyatt are both central and next to (on top of in the case of the GH) metro stations.
I must admit that Beijing would be amongst the last places in the world I'd choose for a honeymoon, and usually I think far too much fuss is made about choice of hotels when surely the whole point of having a brief stay in Beijing is to get out as much as possible, and spend what little time you have in the room mostly with eyes shut. After all, Beijing isn't a resort, and while it has a number of very good hotels (although none can quite deliver the levels of service the same brand delivers in other parts of the world), it doesn't have any you'd travel round the world to try in their own right.
But if you might be spending a little more time in the hotel than most, while the two mentioned above are excellent, and I'd probably chose the Park Hyatt (also right over a metro station--not so central but still convenient) for its tower-top location high above Beijing, you should probably turn to a guide book, do a lot more reading, and widen your range of choices to other hotels that have more individual and memorable qualities.
Consider, for instance, the The Opposite House, not so convenient for the metro, but unless you never stay in top-end properties, in which case most will impress, something that stands out in terms of design:
http://www.theoppositehouse.com
In terms of area you're amidst a mix of bars, clubs, small expat-targeting markets (nail salons, hand-made shoes, etc.), trendy (and not-so-trendy) restaurants, and up-market shopping here. Not, perhaps, real Beijing; but then very little of Beijing is real Beijing these days.
Also consider the interesting Hotel G, not far away:
http://www.hotel-g.com
And there are numerous conversions/rebuilds of traditional courtyard houses/mansions with small numbers of rooms, which may not have every luxury on tap, but at least have, or pretend to have, some local character.
Peter N-H
