Hotel Landmark Canton — Hotel in Guangzhou City

For starters, I made a boo-boo and booked the wrong dates via Agoda. Thankfully, with the help of Agoda and the good graces of the hotel, we got them changed just the day before checking in. Tried asking for the newly refurbished rooms over the phone at the same time, but was told they were all taken, but that we could try our luck while checking in.

On the actual day, car ride from Baiyun airport to the hotel took about an hour (55km distance or so) partly delayed by traffic jams exiting the airport and nearer to the Yuexiu district center where the hotel is at. Asked the front desk on the renovated rooms and he explained the river view types (that we booked for) are all taken up, but that there are other types that are refurbished. Checked out the river side room type that has not been renovated (entire floor and room reeked of cigarette smoke) and opted for the refurbished ones facing the cityscape which was great as there is a large park and plaza below and the 27th floor is a great vantage point overlooking the city. Wanted to check if there would be a rebate or free breakfast given the "downgrade", but was told it was actually a free upgrade, i.e. newer rooms are charged at a higher price, so that was a service that we were thankful for.

The rooms itself were all tastefully furnished though some parts were rough around the edges (toilet mirror frame has already worn out probably coz it was cheaply done). The corridors outside the rooms were well designed too with miniature vintage tables and chairs and screens and other models, with historical motifs, on ledges below the corridor wall sconces.

Amenities-wise, we didn't try anything except the laundry room which is also beautifully designed and well-equipped with new washing machines and dryers and ample common space where I played Weiqi (Go) with my 6-year old. There are several restaurants (western buffet on the 39th, two different Cantonese restaurants on 2nd and 3rd) that we didn't try, but the reviews on the Baidu app seems positive.

Last, but not least, we... never got outside of a 1km radius from the hotel. Just because it was so convenient. The ladies were engrossed with the wholesale centres nearby while I explored the Beijing Road and its pedestrianised streets with two kids in tow. And right across the park/plaza opposite the hotel entrance is a high-end shiny new mall that is at best 50% occupied for now with ample choice of branded multi-region Chinese food and fusion dining options, that are for now still not overly expensive.

TL;DR? We'll come back to Hotel Landmark Canton if we go Guangzhou again. However, hopefully we can venture further than 1km from the hotel...

Our offices in Qingdao and the UK would like to report the following:

It all started with a good manager, a very nice woman, with whom we had an agreement which I promptly paid. However, Candy came after us and demanded that I pay again. Fortunately, the kind female manager was present and put a stop to Candy's behavior. Afterward, she went on vacation and that’s when our nightmare began. It seemed that Candy had personal issues with us, which we interpreted as racism. It is important to mention that the night manager was fantastic; he took his time to listen and did everything he could to make us happy when we couldn't shower and our video meeting with Europe got cancelled.

After booking this hotel for our employees in preparation for commencing a large framework agreement at the Canton fair, we are now contemplating terminating the process and finding a new hotel partner in Guangzhou for both our overseas staff and local employees.

During our stay at the hotel, we had to change rooms 5 times due to various issues: 2 rooms had broken AC units, one night there was a broken refrigerator resulting in damage to our belongings, and two nights where there were issues with the showers. Our two managers were fantastic; they helped us get better rooms while the restaurant staff were lovely.

Now onto the problem - Candy clearly seemed disturbed; she threatened us with various actions which disrupted what other professional managers had arranged – those who stepped forward to help by listening and providing discounts during busy holiday periods.

We would have had no issue paying half of today's cost if it weren't for Candy’s threatening manner which left us feeling uneasy. We made the decision to check out as long as Candy works here since it makes us feeling unsafe at this hotel.

We hope this matter can be resolved without further ado so that all of her colleagues are safe from such experiences going forward.

Lastly but not least – big thanks for sending over the fruit plate; it was greatly...

The best I could say about this hotel is that it's close to bars, the metro, and the river. This place is a relic of 1980s Soviet-style China, a veritable dinosaur in Guangzhou now. Ok if you are a domestic tourist used to it, avoid if you're better travelled. I stayed here for a weekend trip.

The good:

Nice views (if you pay extra for the river view, which I did) Standard amenities at a 4-star price point (safe, bathrobe, towels, working lights, toiletries, non-smoking rooms, gym and activities rooms) Easy to get to given it's next to a metro station

The bad:

Very dated decor that has been ill-maintained as well (the grout and finishings are all of a sub-standard quality), very strange room layouts, windows could not be partially opened, and even the power points are crooked Opening times and rules associated with some of the gym areas were omitted in advertising (links back to attention to detail and sense of professionalism below) There is no lobby lounge to speak of (the one with a prominent sign is also somehow a bar)

The ugly:

When I first arrived they had somehow managed to lose my booking and so I had to make a call using roaming to the website to double confirm and reissue a 'voucher' The employees are a grumpy bunch, don't expect anyone to hold eye contact, or smile, or say please, or thank you - in Mandarin or in any language -- you are guaranteed to get better (or at least more pleasant and/or polite) customer service from an AirBnB or a youth hostel -- don't expect general competence from the front desk either, no explanation of the general facilities at check-in or any standard procedure comms (including check-out times and cleaning times) -- you NEED to speak Mandarin to these folks, maybe only one in ten could understand Cantonese or English - a rarity...