GreenTree Inn — Hotel in Harbin

I have stayed at other green tree inn properties, but in comparison, the Green Tree Inn - Harbin Central Avenue comes up short. The room which I booked was not the cheapest option, but was very small and cramped. It was difficult to maneuver around with the bed and furnishings taking up most of whatever space the room has to offer. ||||The room's lighting is very poor: only one of the three ceiling lights works, and the reading light above the bed also doesn't work. The room is so dimly lit that it really isn't possible to do any reading or work during the evening. The carpeting is worn, the furninshings old, and the bathroom perfectly matches the size of the rest of the room; it is tiny as well. The shower is in a glassed in area, and if you make the dangerous attempt to turn around while showering, you run the risk of inadvertently turning the water temperature to extremely hot or cold. (or off, if you get off lucky).||||There is internet in the rooms, with the connection and speed adequate, but somewhat inconsistent. Also, the cord was faulty, and when i reported it to the front desk clerk, within two seconds he handed me another one (apparently this is a common complaint). However, upon returning to my room I discovered replacing the cord myself requires moving around a lot of the furniture - which isnt easy in a room this size.||||There was a Chinese-style breakfast included, but the choices were very few, no coffee or juice, and really nothing that would appeal to most western travellers. The location, however, is very good, on a side street just off the walking street. Very convenient. Unfortunately for me, I am here at a time when there is construction going on behind the hotel, which kicks off in earnest at about 4 a.m.!||||On a positive note, the staff was friendly and helpful, and the person at the front desk seems to speak English. Overall, a very good location, but while it is not a particularly expensive hotel, for similar cost you should be able to find better value. Not...

The Greentree was a good budget hotel choice for me. The location is a few steps from Zhongyang Dajie, the central street, so you can't go wrong. Decor is a bit worn and dark, but I found it to be very clean, lots of hot water, and the best part.... They keep the rooms super toasty warm so you don't have to wear layers to bed. The bedding/linen was nice but the bed is the usual rock hard mattress, although there was a nice mattress pad on top of that which helps tremendously. All the room electric outlets are universal (fits every size) so I didn't need to use any adapters. There is a blow dryer in the room too. There is a water kettle, 2 tea bags and 2 bottles of water in the room complimentary. There's a coffee machine in the lobby for $1 if desired, and a microwave. Wifi is available in the rooms but not strong enough to stream video. For everything else, it's ok. TV channels are in Chinese only. The front desk staff was always smiling. No English is spoken, but we communicated through a translation program. The staff will write down where you want to go in Chinese to show your taxi driver. Taxis are easy to flag down at the end of the street. For me, this hotel had everything I needed so I can forgive the decor. The staff recommended a restaurant 2 doors down (exit hotel and go left) called Kun Loun (not sure of the spelling). 2 people can eat there for 28 CNY. Every item on menu has a picture on the wall and its family style - very large dishes meant to share. Plus, tons of options around the...

We changed our flights to arrive in Harbin a day earlier. Unfortunately we were unable to get a room at our intended hotel. After a quick internet search late at night, the only hotel with a room available and at a reasonable price was the GTA - in retrospect, its availability at short notice is understood!||||Hotel staff know little English, but most paperwork has an English component so if you decide to stay here, request the deposit form for easier communication of money transactions. Secondly, they do not accept credit card, so be prepared to pay a cash deposit and room fee.||||The room and bathroom is small and the beds are hard, but that is expected. The room stank of stale cigarette including "fresh bed linen" (we were in a non smoking room), and smoking is clearly allowed as there is an ashtray by the elevator. Consequently, all our clothing now has a lovely smoke aroma and we woke with a sore throat from the heavy cigarette stench. We eventually had to open the window - and even at minus 25 degrees outside, it was a necessary decision to attempt at freshening the room up. The experience was not pleasant at all, and we were both grateful for check out so we could go to our originally booked hotel.||||Water is not supplied, so purchase water before hand. The convenience store a block and a half away sells 1.5L bottles for 4 yuen each.||||It is central and has wifi accessible in the rooms but that is the only positive in our view. Consider other options before locking...