72 Best Hotels in Beijing, China

The Minzu was built in 1959 as one of Mao's "Ten Great Buildings" to celebrate a decade of the People's Republic—this paean to China's unity has welcomed many dignitaries over the years, but with the rise in the number of luxury hotels around Beijing, the hotel no longer attracts any significant visitors, and the only reason to stay here—other than price—is if you have business in the area. A lack of international brand recognition means it lies slightly off the usual tourism radar, despite its location near western Chang'an Jie, relatively close to Tiananmen Square.

Modern, minimalist design—pure white interiors, freestanding bathtubs, individual courtyards—meets old Beijing at this intimate four-bedroom boutique hotel within the quaint alleyways (hutong) near the historic Drum and Bell towers. This is the perfect refuge for the style-conscious visitor looking to escape the big city bustle. Or, indeed, those wanting to experience Beijing's increasingly forgotten traditional surroundings while having access to the benefits of contemporary technology, such as iPod stereos and in-room Wi-Fi. Service is discreet; guests get their own front door key, so you'll soon feel like a local wandering home. The owner also operates Cafe Sambal, a Southeast Asian restaurant nearby.

The epitome of blissful indulgence, this luxury hotel (part of the famed Aman chain) is spread out across a series of carefully renovated ancient Qing Dynasty courtyards—it even has its own private entrance to the Summer Palace—with guest rooms decorated in restful earth tones (lovely traditional wooden screens and bamboo blinds) and grounds that are positively stunning. Luxury and peace are the order of the day as guests enjoy breakfast overlooking a reflecting lotus pool, stroll the boutique, or relax in the excellent Aman Spa.

An iconic 1901 residence houses the original lobby and historic rooms, and a newer addition offers rooms with amenities for business travelers at this hotel, formerly part of the Raffles brand; it's now overseen by the luxury NUO group, which has ensured that the standards for service remain high.

For dining, choose between classic French and international, while the Writer's Bar is replete with large leather armchairs and a polished wooden dance floor dating back to the 1920s.

From the folks behind the Opposite House, EAST is a business hotel with pizzazz, from the contemporary, light-filled guest rooms done out with oak floors and huge windows (the corner rooms have the best views), to Xian, a hip bar, lounge and music venue with delicious wood-fired pizza and a connoisseur’s selection of single malts. Business travelers who need to be close to Wangjing, the airport or the 798 Art District couldn't ask for more; those hoping to hit up all the sights should probably look elsewhere. There's a vast mall next door with plenty of shopping and eating.

Even the most modest "deluxe" rooms at the Four Seasons Beijing come with state-of-the-art tech, bathtubs with city views, and clever architecture that seems to amplify the already generous 46 square meters (500 square feet) of living space. Overlooking the embassies of the United States and Japan, Four Seasons Beijing occupies a business-minded part of the city. The see-and-be-seen Italian and Chinese restaurants, Mio and Cai Yi Xuan, here could be destinations in their own right, and the serene internal tea garden matches the tranquil bliss of the spa that surrounds it. The megabar EQUIS is a lacquered nightlife destination for the rich and beautiful of the city. This level of quality and service comes at quite a cost, of course, but if you enjoy the finer things in life and are OK with paying dealy for them, you'll feel right at home.

The wow factor at this top-notch hotel—close to Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City—comes from its huge glass facade and extraordinary lagoon-like swimming area: above its lush vegetation, waterfalls, and statues, a "virtual sky" ceiling imitates different weather patterns. Guest rooms, decorated with comfortable cherry-wood furnishings, and many with floor-to-ceiling windows, aren't quite as inspired, but they're still grand and Hyatt enough. Big draws are the seven restaurants and bars, most notably Made in China, one of the best places in the city for Peking duck. The hotel is part of a mammoth complex that includes an upscale shopping mall, cinema, and a wide range of places to eat—so the wows keep coming.

Even the smallest rooms at this big-brand boutique-style hotel come with walk-in wardrobes, freestanding tubs, and six-head showers, and if you can stand the very bachelor-pad brown and slate interiors, you'll reap the benefits of being just a stroll from the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square. Standards of service and comfort are as you'd expect from the brand, and west-facing rooms on floor 10 or higher even come with Forbidden City views. The hotel opened in 2008 for the Olympics, and by now the rooms are showing the odd sign of wear and tear, but it's still a great option, especially for first-timers to the city. The Fizztastic champagne brunch, held every Sunday, is certainly worth a splurge. Breakfast at Vascos is a bright, sunny affair with excellent home baked pastries.

Cheap and cheerful does it at this value chain close to Sanlitun (Beijing's lively nightlife center)—yes, it lacks a pool and gym, and guest rooms are somewhat small, but the lobby gleams, the beds are surprisingly comfortable, and the free-to-use Macs next to the front desk and a games console are thoughtful touches. This hotel offers both meeting rooms and a self-service laundry room, so both businesspeople and backpackers have what they need. Next to the hotel entrance is a handy tour operator that can help organize trips to the Great Wall and so forth.

Airport hotels have a reputation for dullness—not so with Langham Place, a fun and funky spot next to Terminal 3 that screams style with high-tech guest rooms, luxurious marble bathrooms, and soundproofed floor-to-ceiling windows; the in-house contemporary art gallery and stylish dining options point to this hotel's playful sense of creativity. A pink (and free) shuttle bus will drop you at the airport within minutes, from where you can ride the subway into town. Business travelers are just 10 minutes from the New China International Exhibition Center, but if you want to be near the sights, or among the downtown action, then this is not the one for you.

The wooden entrance to this delightful courtyard hotel, on the site of an old Mandarin residence, is guarded by two menshi (stone lions), an indicator that this hotel offers a classic old-Beijing experience: good, affordable accommodations with few modern updates and little in the way of fancy design. The guest rooms are basic, the windows are large, there's plenty of dark wood and red pillars, and five courtyards offer delightful escapes in the forms of pavilions, rockeries, and greenery. It's all about location here: you're in the middle of an ancient neighborhood, within walking distance of Houhai, and just a block away from many restaurants on Nan Luogu Xiang.

In the heart of the Sanlitun nightlife district and designed by the famed architect Kengo Kuma, this exemplar of 21st-century China has a huge atrium and contemporary art in the stunning lobby, plus spacious and warm guest rooms kitted out with natural wood and Scandi-Asian minimalist chic. The modern and uncluttered style extends to the casually dressed staff, who employ every effort to make you feel right at home. Technology is strongly embraced, too, from the iPad check-in service (no boring front desks here) to the touch-panel lighting and Bose speakers for your iPod in the rooms. Due to the hotel's location, many of Beijing's best bars and restaurants are right on your doorstep; as a result, however, traffic here is some of the worst in the city.

A firm favorite among travelers looking for somewhere hip but still down-to-earth, The Orchid is a serene spot in the heart of Beijing's most vibrant hutong district, with two tiers of flower-strewn terraces, ludicrously comfy beds, a complimentary à la carte breakfast menu, and friendly staff who have an infectious love for their gentrifying neighborhood. The standard Courtyard rooms are housed in Qing-era buildings with lovely wood beamed ceilings, while the best rooms have private gardens (and one has its own terrace with views of the Drum and Bell towers). Throw in some nifty facilities (free Wi-Fi, movies on demand, under-floor heating, cell phones), great events (weekly dumpling-making classes, regular wine tastings), and a walking map painstakingly created by the co-founder that plots the tastiest traditional eats in the area, and you can see why the Orchid's 10 rooms are always in demand.

An easy-to-like (if costly) slice of luxury, this 63-story tower hotel offers plenty of pampering (just imagine your own spa-inspired bathroom with oversized rain shower, deep-soak tub, and heated floors), with large guest rooms that are a tad businesslike but packed with the obligatory modern amenities. Other pluses include the rooftop pool and excellent spa, a 360-degree views of the capital, great service, and easy access to the adjacent Yintai Center shopping mall. The China Grill restaurant serves excellent international cuisine with views to match.

Luxurious (if businesslike) rooms, a prestigious location on the corner of ritzy Jinbao Jie close to Wangfujing, and a spectacularly soaring glass-walled lobby are reasons why the Regent is a top choice for high rollers. The impeccable decor features dark teak woods, beautifully carved furniture, couture bedspreads, sleek daybeds, artist-designed rugs, and mahogany-encased walls. But nothing can compare with the fabulous views out of those floor-to-ceiling windows: witnessing the twilight hour here, as Beijing lights up for the night, can be wonderful. The hotel also houses a branch of excellent Hong Kong restaurant Lei Garden as well as a Morton's steak house.

At this favorite of business travelers and dignitaries, the luxurious interiors combine classic Chinese elegance with modern furnishings, but it's the facilities that really stand out: the health club is equipped with a Jacuzzi that gets its water directly from a natural hot spring, the glass-atrium swimming pool offers a sun-drenched backstroke, and the smart, wood-paneled Press Club Bar has the air of a private club. Add to that some plush rooms backed by excellent service,and it feels like you're getting something more for your money here.

Five hundred years in the making, this beguiling combination of boutique luxury and heritage architecture is one of Beijing's most romantic hotel experiences. The eight guest rooms here are housed in a once-forgotten Tibetan Buddhist Temple, painstakingly restored and strewn with thoughtful art, custom furniture pieces, and major creature comforts. The temple, called Zhizusi, or The Temple of Wisdom, was commissioned by the Kangxi Emperor in the 1600s and was one of a trio of Beijing temples designed to print Buddhist religious texts. Later it became a private residence to a prominent Tibetan Buddhist religious leader. The Dragon Phoenix room, the largest, is in a cavernous former prayer hall with tall ceilings and polished beams (and, most important, cozy under-floor heating). More modern rooms are housed in stylishly restored 1960 annexes, built when the complex was a television factory—Mao slogans inciting workers are still visible hanging from the main temple wall. The hotel is also the home of Gathered Sky, the first permanent light installation by artist James Turrell in China. Guests can attend "Sunset Session" viewings for free, and anyone can go along at sunset every Sunday to view it. Breakfast is served in-room in custom designed "bento" boxes; the Temple Restaurant Beijing shares the complex and is open for lunch and dinner.

No expense has been spared on this stunning, boutique-inspired hotel in central Wangfujing; the public areas have walls of Suzhou silk, staircases of gold-flecked Italian marble, and countless pieces of art, while guest rooms strike a delightful balance of contemporary style and high-tech luxury, with Apple TVs, Bose sound systems, Nespresso machines, Japanese toilets, heated bathroom floors, and a Samsung tablet beside the bed to control the lights, TV, and curtains, and also order various services. The building itself is astonishing—it's a gleaming latticework of copper and bronze, designed to age and oxidize over time. Brasserie 1893, the flagship eatery, is impressively kitted out with a pair of spectacular custom-made Italian ranges. Behind the main hotel building, a cluster of renovated siheyuan courtyards houses the Waldorf Hutong Villa, a palatial suite with its own swimming pool, underground cinema, and a dining room for 12 guests.

Occupying a third of the original Grand Hotel de Pekin complex (with Raffles and the Grand Hotel the other tenants), this venerable hotels retains a modicum of old-world charm, its impressive lobby and enviable location next to the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square making up for the rather outmoded decor. Grandees and high rollers have stayed here since it opened around the turn of the 20th century—Nixon was a guest on his historic visit, and China's long-time premier Zhou Enlai lived and worked in room #1735. The guest rooms, many adorned with classically French touches, are comfortable enough but overdue for a spruce-up.

Located on the city's main east–west central axis and close to Beijing railway station, this white monolith—curved like Miami's Fontainebleau hotel—symbolized the rebirth of China's tourism industry in 1987; these days, reliable service and decent facilities continue to draw tour groups and business travelers. Make sure you ask for a renovated room, as some of the older ones still suffer from the odd problem here and there (especially in the bathrooms). What with the endless hallways and gigantic ballrooms, you need to look hard for special, quiet places, but there are delightful garden nooks and smaller salons with Chinese antiques to escape to. The pool and gym are top-notch, but the hotel's dining options are overpriced, and breakfast can be repetitive. The hotel is only a couple of stops away from Tiananmen Square on the subway.

At the edge of the only remaining scrap of Beijing's once-mighty city walls—there are great views from the lobby coffee shop—this hotel is in a good location, relatively near key tourist sites and the Beijing railway station. It's reliable choice for those wanting clean, spacious rooms and excellent service. Other pluses are the comfortable beds, the well-appointed bathrooms (complete with marble finish, modern showers and tubs; a blind shields the view from bath to bed should you demand a bit of extra privacy), and the three dining rooms, which offer Cantonese, Mediterranean, and Southeast Asian menus.

Small, quiet, and cute, this appealing courtyard hotel—inside one of the city's hutong and featuring a centuries-old date tree, red lanterns, and other such traditional Chinese decorations—may once have been the home of Mei Lanfang, the legendary male Peking opera star known for playing female roles. All guest rooms are furnished with rosewood beds, antique bureaus, and modern gadgets (like satellite TV), but the VIP room, as you would expect, is the largest and best, and worth reserving in advance. If that's not available, request one of the executive rooms. Bicycles are available for free.

Once placing high on lists of top Beijing hotels, this place now does opulence in a rather unsubtle way—gold highlights in the lobby; marble tubs in the luxe rooms; high-priced fine dining—but it still just about lives up to its look: the service is slick, the restaurants are very good (Aria, serving contemporary European cuisine, is particularly special), and the attached mall/cinema is a welcome escape. It's no surprise that during conferences and exhibitions, business travelers pack its modern, well-appointed rooms.

Occupying the upper floors of Beijing's tallest building, the business-chic Summit Wing offers knee-trembling views from its luxurious guest rooms—if you need a drink to steady your nerves, the excellent 80th-floor cocktail bar makes a perfect Old Fashioned. Guest rooms average 700 square feet, each with complimentary broadband Internet access, 40-inch flat-screen TVs, bathroom LCD televisions, iPod docking stations, and Nespresso coffee machines. The 25-meter (82-foot) infinity pool on the 78th floor might just be the highlight of your trip.

An hour from Beijing, Commune is a design-led cluster of villas in wildly contrasting architectural styles set amid the hills and scrubland of the Great Wall; there's plenty of space so it's an ideal spot for families and small groups (and includes private access to the Wall); Bamboo House and Suitcase House are the best of the villas, but overall the service and upkeep is spotty following changes in ownership. Facilities such as a kids' club, pool, restaurants, and spa mean that, even though you're out in the sticks, you won't be roughing it.

One of the capital's newest luxury hotels is in a distinctively curved, tapering tower on the east second ring road; its standout personality extends to touches like Vivid, a rooftop nightclub and lounge, and the skyline views from the guest rooms, enlivened through lozenge-shaped windows. Though this is a business hotel at heart, night owls won't be disappointed, with champagne cocktails in Vivid's rooftop garden a fine way to jump-start an evening at the restaurants and bars of nearby Sanlitun.

More an option for business travelers than casual tourists—meaning it's not too far from the airport and a number of work hubs—this hotel near Wangjing High Tech Park understands that a functional location doesn't have to mean a completely utilitarian aesthetic. A 24-hour fitness center; modern, well-equipped guest rooms; plus a handy café and decent breakfasts all come in very handy.

Expect modern, good-sized guest rooms, a great pool and gym, a sparkling marble lobby, and many convenient dining and shopping options in the integrated U-Town shopping mall (even a German-themed bar that brews its own beer). The locale, within Chaoyang's commercial district, makes this a popular option with those doing business in the area. Beijing's nightlife district and CBD are both short taxi rides away, but tourists keen on being close to the sights will want to look elsewhere. There's nothing special on offer here, but it does everything you'd expect, and it does it well.

The best thing about this mid-range choice is its central location on Wangfujing, Beijing's most famous shopping street, where there's a mix of traditional stores, international chains, and a touristy "food" market—scorpions on a stick, anyone? The standard guest rooms, however, are small, and although the place provides everything you'd expect from a Crowne Plaza, it lacks knockout design details or killer features, as the rather uninteresting lobby makes plain. Craving more space? Try the executive floor, where guest rooms have extra work space and sprawling bathrooms.

Functional rather than fancy, the Day's Inn is about as close as it's possible to get to the Forbidden City without staying in the palace itself, and though guest rooms are tiny, they are definitely inexpensive and relatively comfortable. Built in an unfussy style with the slightest of architectural nods toward the city's classic courtyard houses, it does feature such alluring touches as its grey-brick walls inlaid with traditional carvings of chrysanthemums (the Chinese national flower). Beware of booking the cheaper basement rooms unless you can live without a window. If you have time, visit the Worker's Cultural Palace next door, laid out like the Forbidden City but on a smaller scale and without the crowds.