Holiday Inn Chang An West Beijing — Hotel in Beijing

I didn’t have very high hopes when I booked this hotel, in the main I was surprised. The overall good experience was seriously marred by some bizarre happenings. Mr. Manager if you want to play like a real hotel you need to train your staff better, most are very pleasant some are downright rude and obstructive. The first snag was before I arrived; the hotel sent me a confirmation email 2-3 days before and suggested an airport pickup would be less hassle than getting cab. I readily agreed and used the link /reply in the email to attempt to do this. The mail bounced. So I had a fluent Chinese speaker who is actually from Beijing call the hotel and attempt to arrange. You would have thought it was asking to arrange a moon landing. They eventually said they had it and would email. They didn’t. I sent 3 more emails and made 3 more calls and in the end never received an acknowledgement. At the airport eventually (after 30 minutes) I spotted a little guy hiding at the back of a crowd with my name on a piece of paper. The check in was ok but the thorny issue of a deposit raised its ugly head. I am always a bit puzzled by this deposit obsession when you tender a valid credit card on check in. They explained to me that they would take 5000 RMB On the Friday night I signed for dinner on my room number and was put in an embarrassing situation when they told me “You have no more money on card”. They meant that the 5,000 had been reached. I went with waiter to front desk and girl spoke very little English. So she fetched a female supervisor who was rude in the extreme and told me “you have to pay- no money left” I asked her why they took my credit card on check in if they offered a pay as you go system? She just ignored me. I then told the first girl I didn’t want to speak to her and get me a manager. The guy who arrived simply pressed a button and all was fixed. The dragon lady just glared at this! The executive room was nice it was newly refurbished and clean and the room cleaner was very efficient and attentive to needs. The Executive lounge was very nice too and it was the better option for breakfast, even though there was (significantly) less choice. The gym left a lot to be desired and a lot of the equipment was broken and didn’t work. The lady who was the attendant was very pleasant. I didn’t use the pool as it looked decidedly grubby. The spa was something of a joke poor service noisy and grubby and kids running in and out from pool area. I ate breakfast once at the Italian restaurant, and surveyed it for dinner- breakfast was ok; the dinner buffet looked a little sparse to be honest. The Chinese restaurant was ridiculously expensive and I didn’t eat there. The Thai restaurant on the ground floor was excellent with very authentic Thai food including some dishes which are seldom on menus outside Thailand. I ate there three times and had several different dishes, only one was disappointing (the Satay). I walked by a lot of the other non-executive rooms on way to gym etc. they looked pretty grim, not refurbished and quite grubby and they corridors stunk of cigarette smoke. The public areas of the hotel are meant to be nonsmoking and there are large no smoking signs everywhere but they seem to be just for ornamentation. People stroll into the hotel smoking away and nobody asks them to extinguish. They stand by reception desk and light up. It is things like this that adversely affect hotel ratings. This could be a good hotel but it’s spoiled by a lot of niggling things. I endorse the view that this is not a well situated hotel for tourist things although it is only 5 to 10 minutes walk to the MRT station and a few...

We spent ten nights at the Holiday Inn Chang An in Beijing. The hotel is located in a quiet residential area. It’s a great location because it’s away from the noise and congestion of the city center. We booked a room on the Executive Club Floor. It offers great benefits such as: complimentary breakfast (at the Club or in the hotel restaurant, Florence); complimentary coffee/tea service throughout the day; complimentary afternoon tea with snacks; complimentary laundry service (four items per day); and complimentary happy hour with top-notch liquors and a hot food buffet. Our room was nicely furnished with a king bed, small sitting area and work desk. It had a water boiler with complimentary tea and coffee. Due to being on the Executive Floor, we also were allowed up to six sodas per day from the mini-bar.

The staff at the Executive Club did an excellent job! They made us feel welcome and they were very helpful. Each morning they offered to have noodle soup made for us and brought up to the Club from the main restaurant. In the evenings, they quickly learned that we liked sliced lemon with our beverages and spicy chili sauce to accompany the evening buffet. So, as soon as we arrived in the Lounge, these items were immediately brought to our table. We give our sincere thanks to each of Zoe and Alice and their assistant, Wendy, as well as the trainees – Sunny, Anita and Alice!

Other staff members were warm and friendly too. We ate at the Florence Restaurant on several occasions. The chefs prepare delicious foods – both Chinese and Western – and all dishes are served with a smile. Our housekeeper did a great job and the laundry service was excellent. While not all staff members speak English, there were enough personnel to assist us and/or we could communicate with a combination of limited English and sign language. We don’t speak any Chinese so we can’t fault staff for not speaking sufficient English.

The nearest Beijing subway station is Wu Ke Song (Line 1) and it is a 10-15 minute walk from the hotel. The walk is quite easy as there’s a wide, tree-covered boulevard to one side. Exit A is the closest one to the hotel. Once you get to the top of the stairs at Exit A, you’ll see an overpass. Walk in the opposite direction of the overpass along Fuxing Road. It is two long blocks (and two lights) before you reach the intersection of Fuxing Road and Yong Ding Road. You can see the Holiday Inn; it’s a short distance on Yong Ding Road. We used the subway to reach all major attractions in Beijing. One advantage of being outside the city center is that we often were able to get seats on the subway (something unheard of on many other subway lines).

We highly recommend the Holiday Inn Chang An West and we will continue to return to it when we next...

To start of, as an Associate General Manager for one of the largest Insurance and Financial Services firm in the world, my expectations are high. I also understand the most valuable asset of an organization is not only its name, but its people.

I certainly felt for the days I am in this wonderful hotel, regardless of the position and title, each and everyone of them is truly trying to make you feel at home. For example, the room cleaning/laundry service will put a hand-written note on my bed each day to make sure the room was done to my standards and the newly washed/ironed clothes are done to my likings.

Now, the Executive Lounge... what can I can... it's for sure one of the best team in the industry. Nancy, the manager for Executive Lounge made everything possible for me. I actually had to leave this hotel and visit another HolidayInn property, and Nancy had made a call to the Front Office Manager of that establishment and took care of everything, including my suite upgrade. Also, one morning I opened my room door, and I see two bottles of Pepsi in front of my room, with a note says: "Mr. Miao, here's the Pepsi that you like, have a great day!". I mean, that's amazing... how did she know I like to drink Pepsi??? Since their hotel only use Coke products... it was a wonderful feeling.

Then, there is the dining team... the manager Ms. Guo and Ms. Wang really went out of the way to make sure my needs are met. For example, I like to eat "hand-tossed" noodles in the morning... and once they are out... they will try to find the noodle for me... even it means they have to buy it on the street. I am speechless....

I just want to share with the world that this team let by Chitty, the Assistant General Manager, and Mr. Chu #the GM# are truly world class. If I am in the hospitality industry, I would have no hesitation to hire them all. Each one of them is doing their job... not just to meet the job descriptions... but with a heart. They truly "care" for their clients. They have created an environment for me that feel like they know me as a "guest or a person"... and not just another "statistics."

It is my honor to post this review... and keep up the great work guys. You may not be a 5 star hotel... but your service is...