Making Hotel Reservations in Beijing

October 7, 2009 on 9:38 pm | In China Business, Hotel Reviews | 1 Comment

When I was in Beijing a few weeks ago, I found it necessary to change hotels because of dissatisfaction with my current accommodations. What I found to be interesting, however, was the difficulty in getting a good rate when making reservations directly with the hotel. I had checked out room rates online with several candidate hotels, including the New Otani Chang Fu Gong and the Holiday Inn Temple of Heaven, and had found good room rates online–both on sites such as Orbitz and Expedia and on the hotels’ own websites. However, when I called the hotels’ front desks directly in Beijing, I was quoted much higher rates. When I told them that I had found lower rates online, they did not seem surprised, and instead encouraged me to make my reservations online rather than with them! So, keep this in mind if you ever need to make a last minute hotel change in Beijing. In my case, I made my reservations for the Holiday Inn Temple of Heaven online (using the complimentary internet access in my room) about 30 minutes before I checked out of the Holiday Inn Downtown. Had I not done so, I would have paid considerably more per night.

Holiday Inn Temple of Heaven Beijing vs. Holiday Inn Downtown

October 7, 2009 on 9:23 pm | In China Business, Hotel Reviews | No Comments

During my recent trip to Beijing to purchase jewelry and Christmas ornaments for my store–www.chinafinds.com, I decided to try out a new hotel. During many previous visits to Beijing, I have stayed at the Holiday Inn Temple of Heaven, which I have found to be an excellent value, if a trifle out of the way. This time, I decided to try out the Holiday Inn Downtown because of its very close proximity to the subway. I reserved a room on the executive floor, with a room rate that was about $15 per night more expensive than the executive floor at the Temple of Heaven, figuring that the increased convenience of the location was perhaps worth the increased cost. However, I am sorry to say that I left after only one night. My reservation had fortunately been prepaid only for the first night, so I hightailed it over to the Holiday Inn Temple of Heaven the next morning where I paid less and got more. The only thing that the Holiday Inn Downtown had going in its favor was its proximity to the subway. It was very close–just a few minutes easy walk. The Holiday Inn Temple of Heaven is also accessible via the subway, but it is a good 10 minute brisk walk. The walk is through quite a pleasant Beijing residential area, however, and was only problematic if it was raining. Overall, I found the food was better at the Temple of Heaven, the rooms were larger and quieter, and the staff seemed better trained and more attentive. It really is an excellent value for accommodation in Beijing.

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