Holiday Inn Express Chengdu Gulou — Hotel in Chengdu

We wanted a hotel that we know what standard to expect without costing an arm and leg. As a member of IHG, I did my research of hotels in the city of Chengdu and come up with this one. The taxi ride from the airport was cheaper than many guide books suggested. The check-in was relatively straight forward after a short wait for the room we booked. It was the first time that an Holiday Inn Express hotel that offered a welcome drink, albeit in the form of either a coffee in the lounge or soft drinks.||The room was fair size with all the amenities and the bathroom of a typical Holiday Inn Express design.||After unload our cases, we popped out for a walk to get our bearings. It was very surprise to discover how close we were to the centre of activities. Literally at the end of the street is a new shopping centre complex and on the other side of the complex is the centre. A stroll further down is the IHG’s Crowne Plaza and on the other side of the road is the main pedestrian street with all its shops. Chengdu’s equivalent to Myeong Dong in Seoul. ||The staff at check in were very polite and helpful. They gave us all the information required to go to the Panda Research Centre – number 1 priority of coming to Chengdu plus all the other tourist sites around. As we are not exactly hot and spice people, Sichuan food is definitely out for us, the hotel restaurant provided an excellent range of inexpensive non spice food in the evening. The only complaint I have is that no matter where you are in China, none of the hotels can make and provide a proper cup of English Tea either at breakfast or any other time. I am afraid this Holiday Inn Express is no exception.||Definitely would recommend this hotel for anyone wanted to...

I assisted to book this hotel on behalf of my colleagues who visited HIX Chengdu Gulou from 4 - 6 Sep 2015.

Prior to the booking, I have already paid in full for the hotel via our corporate credit card.

However, when my colleagues arrived at HIX Chengdu Gulou on 4 Sep, the concierge insisted my colleagues to pay for the balance of the hotel reservation.

I have even spoken to the staff on duty and told them to check their system properly as the full sum of hotel reservation has been deducted from our corporate credit card.

After much hassle, they finally agreed to check their system and saw the full payment indicated in the system.

This has caused great unpleasantness among my colleagues when in the first place, this could be avoided if the staff on duty checked the system properly.

In addition, the bellboys were standing around when my colleagues arrived and none of them helped them with their luggage.

We were shocked to expect this from HIX as this is an international hotel brand.

The rooms are very comfortable though and the location is superb.

However, we will think twice before we recommend HIX Chengdu Gulou to others if the service still does...

this hotel granted all my requests and check-in was smooth. They have a beautiful lobby and the bldg is in a great location. They are in a corner of the street, easy to spot and close to a mall and some local stores. I felt safe walking around and we did walk its surrounding blocks. the room was spacious, had a sofa and an uncommon bathroom design and they noted my request on the ihg app to be near the elevator. the bed was comfortable and we had a great view from the window on the 16th flr. The room had a hairblower, but only had room temp control and essentially no airconditioning so i had requested a desk fan in advance which was already in the room waiting for us. It was a good base for our tour to the leshan and panda research center, accdg to the private tourguide we hired. And the taxi was not costly when we visited a popular hotpot restaurant at a busy shopping area indicating it is also close. The staff here have limited english but is otherwise very helpful and we manage to communicate using translation or dictionary apps. Oh and lastly, i must commend this hotel for their magnificent breakfast buffet spread and dining experience. It was...