Looks like the Park Hyatt Beijing is slated to be open in time for the Olympics!
If you have the guts to go out to China for the Olympic chaos this year, this hotel will get you high to help you get away from the craziness.
Er, high in the sky, that is: the new hotel will be in the Beijing Yintai Centre, the tallest skyscraper on Chang'an Avenue -- and its restaurant on the 66th floor will be "the highest restaurant in the city, featuring international cuisine and 360-degree views of Beijing."
The whole thing is pretty far up there; the lobby is actually on the 63rd floor of the building.
According to the website, the 237-room hotel isn't taking reservations just yet -- but you should give 'em a ring just to be sure.
The Opposite House opens this month in Beijing and it appears awash with comfort, style and, just for fun, loads of movie references.
The property's 99 rooms are said to be the largest in Beijing, with more than half being over 230 square feet. Rooms are simply decorated with natural wood floors and white bedding--ultimately looking like a set from The Karate Kid got a luxurious and contemporary upgrade, replete with rain showers, flatscreen TVs, mood lighting and free Wi-Fi.
How do you say "Desperate much?" in Chinese? That's what we would say to a few of the hotels that have been offering reporters cold hard cash in return for favorable coverage of their properties.
The main offender is the Gehua New Century Hotel, which is the 2008 Beijing International Media Center and official host of the non-accredited media. The hotel was offering reporters 200 to 300 yuan ($145) and more for favorable coverage.
Once verified by the public relations department...media can claim 500 yuan for a "positive" article on the hotel of 100 to 500 words in length and 1,000 yuan for an article of between 500 and 1,000 words.
"We want to extend our reputation through the opportunity of the Olympics, it is necessary to promote our brand," PR manager Zhao Xiaoda told Reuters by telephone on Monday.
"I understand it is different from international practice. It was a decision of the PR department not the hotel."
Well at least the PR director is being honest about it. However, there is some concern that the practice might be happening at other Beijing hotels. So be on the lookout for any glowing Beijing hotel reviews this summer.
We've had a good look at many of the big chain hotels in Beijing recently--you know, because of that big sports thing comin' up--but we've been neglecting the cute boutique hotels (that aren't called boutique because most of China doesn't know about that yet).
One little place in the Dongcheng district of Beijing has caught our eye: the Tianxiang Heritage Courtyard Hotel. It's got just 22 rooms and is tucked into a quiet side street, but anyone who finds it seems to love it.
Are the 2008 Olympics going to be a huge flop or what? We say this because we think it's really weird that the most popular hotel in Beijing (according to TripAdvisor reviews, at least) isn't even booked out on the night of the Opening Ceremony.
This #1 hotel is the Holiday Inn Central Plaza Beijing, and it's popular despite being located in a less-than-convenient spot (most people say taxis are cheap and easy enough that the exact location doesn't matter).
Apparently the big attraction at this hotel is a concierge named Storm Li, whose good deeds are described in literally dozens and dozens of detailed TripAdvisor reviews.
While its spawn Aloft is procreating all over North America this summer, W Hotels will continue to open their exotic locations abroad. And the W Hotel Hong Kong will open a "selection of rooms" in August, just one week before the Olympic Games begin in Beijing.
Despite the annoying cutesy descriptions on the W Hong Kong's home page like this one--"In this eastern Manhattan, energy streams like hot tea at dim sum where W Hong Kong sits among modern splendour, oriental markets and colonial cool"---we're actually rather impressed by this hotel.
It could be the exotic location in Hong Kong but it could also be the presence of a swimming pool at 700 feet above street level. This time, we really agree with the W's overusage of "Wow."
Despite the fact that the Summer Olympics are a mere two months away, the predicted hotel boom for Beijing hasn't quite happened yet.
News reports are saying that the good luxury hotels are almost booked out but the other tiers are struggling:
According to Zhang Huiguang, director of Beijing's Tourism Bureau, around 77 percent of the city's five-star hotel are booked during the Aug.8-24 Olympic Games, while those in lower placed hotels are also experiencing a low turnout.
Some reasons for the slow or no bookings? A crackdown on visas and expensive room rates. A five-star hotel room now starts at $531.
A lot of us worry about our WiFi connections when we travel, but usually we are worrying about how much we will pay and whether it's indeed WiFi and not the dreaded ethernet.
However, guests headed to Beijing for the Olympics might have a completely new type of concern. From the AP:
A U.S. senator accused the Chinese government on Thursday of ordering U.S.-owned hotels in China to install Internet filters that can spy on international visitors coming to see the summer Olympic games.
Sen. Sam Brownback, a Kansas Republican, made the charge at a Capitol Hill news conference where he and other lawmakers denounced China's record of human rights abuses and urged President Bush not to attend the Olympic's opening ceremonies in Beijing.
Brownback said he has received memos from two U.S.-owned hotels about the internet spying order. So far, there's been no response from China. Thus we say plan on leaving your computer home when you head to Beijing for now.
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by Jenna
A lot of us worry about our WiFi connections when we travel, but usually we are worrying about how much we will pay and whether it's indeed WiFi and not the dreaded ethernet.
