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Tags: Hotel Delays / Hotel Openings / Shangri-La Hotels / Beijing Hotels / → All Tags

Behind Schedule With Your Hotel? Do a Shangri-La And Hedge Your Bets

Where: 1 Jianguomenwai Avenue, Beijing, China, 100004

Here’s some skewed logic to start your week off. You’re a soon-to-be-open hotel, you’re not sure exactly how long it’s going to take for your paint to dry and your air con to get whirring, and you’re watching other new hotels around the globe getting called out for opening late. What’s the solution?

Well, if you’re Shangri-La, your solution is to hedge your bets. The bizarrely named Shangri-La China World Summit Wing in Beijing was originally slated to open "at the end of the year". And even now, despite Shangri-La just having appointed a GM, they’re not quite sure when it’ll be ready for us to bed down, announcing this weekend that it’ll open "at the end of 2009 or early 2010."

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Tags: Beijing Hotels / Olympics 2008 Hotels / Hotel News / Raffles Hotels / Concierges / Hotel Butlers / → All Tags

IOC Members Are Shacking Up at the Raffles Beijing

Where: 33 East Chang Avenue Block B, E, Beijing , China, 100004

While we are sure golden-boy Michael Phelps is safely ensconced in the Olympic village somewhere, far, far, far away from any distractions that could derail his eight golden medals quest, the International Olympic Committee is kicking it at the Raffles Beijing Hotel.

And they aren't shy about letting you know that either. In fact, there's a press release on this which says that Raffles recruited the best of its employees from around the world to serve at the hotel during the Olympics:

In preparation, Raffles Beijing, which has 100% occupancy during the Olympics, has undergone more than 1,500 hours of Pre-Olympic preparation training since March 2008.

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Tags: Beijing Hotels / Olympics Hotels / Olympics 2008 Hotels / Reader Reviews / → All Tags

Reader Review :: The Raffles Beijing is Beautiful But Concierge is Lost in Translation

Where: 33 East Chang Avenue Block B, E,, Beijing, China, 100004

Every so often we feature a hotel review from one of our readers that we feel should be shared with the rest of you dear hotel guests. These reviews are highlighted because they are timely, about cool hotels in cool places and are relatively level-headed. Think you can submit one just like this? Send it in. Now, we present you with reader P's review of the Raffles Hotel in Beijing. Enjoy.

With the Olympics fast approaching, Beijing is changing by the minute. There has been an enormous amount of development during recent years leading up to next week's games.

Nearly every major luxury hotel chain has an option in this bustling Chinese city - Peninsula, Grand Hyatt, Ritz Carlton, Intercontinental, St. Regis and so on.

On a recent visit to the city, we opted to stay at the newly opened Raffles Beijing Hotel.

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Tags: Beijing Hotel Reviews / Awards / Raffles Hotels / → All Tags

Raffles Beijing Bags Awards From Conde Nast

Where: 33 E Chang An Ave, Beijing, China, 100004

Conde Nast magazines in the US and the UK have been giving out gongs to the Raffles Beijing Hotel (often just referred to as the Beijing Hotel): it made the Hot List 2007 in both countries, plus its Jaan restaurant gained a place in the US version's Hot Table list.

The Raffles Beijing Hotel is in a 1907 building but was taken over and fully refurbished just last year. The location is great for sightseers, less than half a mile to the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square, and many of the 171 rooms and suites have good views over Beijing.

Facilities include an indoor swimming pool (and the fact that complimentary cell phones are available while you're by the pool is apparently a big selling point), a 24-hour fitness center, a library with free snacks, and chocolates on the pillow every night.

Not all recent guests would agree with the Conde Nast awards: a few of the complaints have included unfriendly staff who don't speak English well and a lot of extras on the bill--including the nasty trick of offering two bottles of water in the rooms, one free and one with a horrendously inflated price, yet not clearly labeled. A gripe that can't really be blamed on the hotel is the traffic problem in central Beijing--many guests gave the tip of leaving plenty of time to get to appointments or the airport.

[Photo: yohanes.budiyanto]

Related Stories:
· Raffles Beijing Hotel Comments [TripAdvisor]
· Conde Nast Traveler Hot List Hotels 2007 [HotelChatter]