Jinjiang Inn — Hotel in Shanghai

I had the distinct misfortune to have a layover here en route to a warmer climate. I was quite surprised at the land mines placed in my way through. ||If you're coming in for a 24/72 hour visa you could be in for up to a five hour wait or more!!! Easily! I got lucky, two and a half hours. One agent, four minutes average cycle, do the math. At 4:30am I was in line with thirty five or so. If you get in the regular visa line, after waiting in that line for an hour or two, you'll be shown the back of the short visa line. I saw this. With over one hundred fifty people on line for one agent! Please don't make this mistake! Get on the short time visa line!||Once in the airport I was informed there were no ATMs for foreigners. I don't present cash for exchange. Especially for a short day layover. It's just too much local currency. I would expect an unfavorable rate in any airport and certainly if you're forced into this scenario the rate could be expected to be unfavorable. I pushed on. ||I bought a short time SIMM card for my iPhone. About 18.00 usd. Ok, whatever. ||I wanted to ride the maglev which is how I found this hotel. I was able to use a credit card to buy the train trip. Smooth... Things are looking up! ||When I arrive at the first station I see NO English identifying this as anything. From my preflight research I recalled that the hotel was just a few minutes into Shanghai. I got off. Wandering the area there was really no evidence of this hotel. No English. Having now done it I can tell you just turn right outside the station and walk about a half mile and it's on the opposite side of the street. ||I got in the lobby strictly on the basis of a guess involving the TA map associated with the hotel page. It was odd, however, instead of a distinct route I had to pick one of two different directions presenting dotted lines. Now, I've been traveling the world for years and this was a first. ||The hotel rapped me for an extra ten bucks usd for early check in at 9am even though I was checking out at 4pm. Thanks! ||As soon as I got into my room I saw that my iPhone was nearly dead. This was wrong so I looked into what was running. The SIMM card installed a program with a very generic TV screen as it's icon. The phone was hot is was being used so much! I deleted this "TV" and the iPhone stopped running (tracking me).||There was a mall across the road so I went in for some food. For the first time ever I saw that no one would accept a credit card! Not a high end restaurant nor Burger King! I tried at least six. I was so freaked out and starving I went back to this hotel. The directed me to a bank, on the way to the hotel called Construction Bank. They had two ATMs! I grabbed 20 bucks worth of local currency and turned on Trip Advisor to show me some local restaurants. No good! Scrambled. Every map showed two opposite directions for every selection. I was able to find something and went back to the hotel for a much need rest after 16 hours on the road out of NY. My iPad was actually weird too! I shut it down. Knowing that this country leads the world in Internet censorship and having already deleted the most heavy handed tracker I've ever had on my phone I was grateful to get back on that train and get out of there!||Now, I didn't do anything I needed to hide from the host country. I just am naturally averse to any invasion of personal freedom/ privacy. As a matter of fact I threw away the Chinese SIMM card as soon as I landed in Kuala Lumpur! My electronic stuff went back to normal with a card from the airport at KL!...

I would recommend staying someplace else for most people. The water in the shower just straight up smelled like sewage. I know China is not known for clean water, but this was not a problem in Beijing or the countryside where we stayed before, plus Shanghai supposedly has potable tap water, so I think it's a problem with this hotel, though I admit I haven't stayed in others in Shanghai. Even though it's near the maglev station, it is actually hard to find since it is on the side of the regular subway. At least when we were there, all doors from that side to the maglev side were closed. A lot of things, like the bathroom door, were kind of broken. I guess I might suggest this if you're on a tight budget and need to go to the airport quickly after waking up... otherwise stay someplace else either in a different area or pay more someplace else...

I arrived Pudong, via a late flight, took the Meglev train to Meglev station, this hotel is walking distance and most economical. Reception hostess understand very little English, the hotel was showing as fully booked on internet site, but was told at reception that rooms are available.||Rooms are small, they say it a "non smoking" hotel, but the room was stinking of cigarette, had to change the room. also upgraded to double bed, as single bed rooms are really small.||Breakfast is chinese at extra cost. There is a small convenient store just outside the hotel, find every...