Internship in Beijing - 4 weeks Where to stay?
 

Hi There
My D was chosen for an amazing internship as a physical therapy student. She will be working for a full month at a sports medicine clinic in the Beijing Sports Stadium located on Tiyuguan Road, Jia #2, Dongcheng District in Beijing. She will be there with one other girl from her class.

Our first order of business is to find a longer term hotel or apartment that is walking distance from her clinical site as they won't be driving. I'd appreciate any suggestions. They are looking to be someplace safe, close to their office and if possible, where English is at least spoken somewhat. They are also paying for this on their own...so they are trying to be somewhat frugal.

I found a few hotels, but was hoping for a sort of executive apartment of some sort. The one's I have found are very expensive. Hotel rooms look small and I think a month in such close proximity to each other might be the stuff nightmares are made of.

What is transportation like if they are are farther away? Even a mile or two would be fine if transportation is cheap and easy.

Also, Any advice for first time travelers who are staying a long period in Beijing? Tricks to daily life? Good local places to eat? My D is a pretty intrepid traveler and has been to the Amazon, Peru, Spain and Italy and Nicaragua several times. She is already learning Chinese, as best she can, and looking for weekend trips. She plans to make the most of this amazing opportunity. I'd appreciate any help you have to offer as a nervous mom.

Do you have the complete address in Chinese? I think this is the area just east of the Temple of Heaven, but want to make sure. Due to Beijing's size/traffic, it's definitely best to stay within a decent walk, bike ride, or on a bus or subway line that goes to the place of employment. The more central you are in the city, the more expensive things get.

Serviced/executive apartments are usually just too expensive. Regular apartments want longer leases. For just one month, they might try a sublet of an entire apartment, or spare rooms with somebody needing temporary roommates. www.thebeijinger.com is one good source of listings. Look in their Classifieds > Housing and start with Sublet/Short term category. Airbnb might be an option.

The subway is great, no need to live within walking distance, this is not realistic.

I also thought the subway system in Beijing excellent -- and affordable and easy to use.

@kvchina Here is the full address:

Horizon Sports Med Clinic
2nd Floor Beijing Sports Stadium
Tiyuguan Rd, Jia #2
Dongcheng Dist, Beijing

This was given to my D by her new boss for the month.

I found it on google maps and it is very close to the Temple of Heaven and Yaun Dushis Temple if that helps.

I found an apartment complex about 2 miles away called Rich, Young Beijing Guangqumen Service Apartments.

Also Jin Jiang Inn about a block a way and Jinqiao International Apartment Hotel a little farther away. These are 2 star

Nostalgia Hotel Temple of Heaven gets great ratings and is a mile away...I am leaning toward this one for at least a few nights

I really appreciate your help with this....We are now planning on leaving a week earlier and going to Thailand for the week. Will be traveling to Beijing on the Thursday or Friday before she starts work. That should give us time to find something.

<b>Note to temppeternh</b> - I queried the disappearance of your post from this morning and it appears to have been a mistake (there have been several incidents recently where things got swept up in mass deletes of spam). Can you repost it?

It is indeed close to the Temple of Heaven. Not many expats live in this area, if any. But it is next to a subway stop so getting there by public transportation is not a problem.

@thursdaysd - I vaguely recall the post and it included a link to his website. Probably deleted for breaching the posting guidelines.

@CCT - since the (extensive and very useful) content on the site appears to be free, I don't see why that should be a problem. I quite often link to my blog, and a number of other posters link to theirs, and no-one complains about that.

IIRC, the link was to a section of his book -- meaning that he was sharing, for free, information that would otherwise be accessible only by purchase. I could be wrong.

> Jin Jiang Inn

Jinjiang is a chain of what are known as 'jingji' or 'economy' hotels, often upgrades of formerly incompetently run and mouldering state-owned guesthouses or dormitories, or conversions of office or other buildings. Like several competing chains, they're a sort of Chinese version of Ibis, with typically cheerful pastel colours, pale furniture, walk-in showers but no bath, and all your basic business necessities thrown in, such as wi-fi. Service is brisk but helpful. One English speaker at reception is common (but really not needed). A limited breakfast is sold for a few kuai.

In this category of hotel everything I said previously about bargaining should be ignored. The prices at these hotels are fixed, although a slightly lower rate may be obtained by taking out a paid membership whose cost will easily be amortised over several weeks. In all other hotels bargain as previously mentioned. Indeed, the 'jingji' chains, which tend to be better maintained despite their high traffic, help to put downwards pressure on the pricing of others in the vicinity. I've also found that when I've had unexpected to cancel a booking even for the same evening, when in my view the hotel would be well within its rights to keep my money, I've obtained an over-the-counter cash refund.

That list of general practical information is here:

http://bit.ly/2jldWp7