Hello!

I spent two weeks with my family in China over the summer.

In Beijing we stayed in the Novotel which was fantastic. Really clean, good breakfast, nice rooms etc. Also in a good location- literally 30seconds walk from the underground station which is useful.

In Xian, we stayed in the Howard Johnson Plaza hotel which was simply out of this world. Proabbly the best hotel that i have ever stayed in in my life! We did book the Bell Tower originally (also a good hotel- very clean etc) but it fell through. Why not ask the agent if the Howard is available because it wasn't much more than the Bell Tower. Even if you can't the bell tower is good anyway.

In Shanghai i would definetly recommend the Peace Palace, it is amazing. It's a charming old hotel which has a fantastic atmosphere. It's really famous and lots of famous people have stayed there. The location is absolutely ideal. You can't go wrong there!

Hope that helps a bit!

Regards,

LimeLolly.

Thanks for the info Limelolly

Thats okay!

Have you taken the plunge and booked it yet?

Would be interested to know what you've gone for in the end.

If you need anymore help just ask

Limelolly.

Hi Limelolly,

I've read so many reviews my head is spinning!! Some of them seem pretty much of a muchness. The ones in Shanghai were so confusing - for instance you are one of the few people who liked it. There seemed to be lots of reviews for the Peace Palace that said bathrooms and carpets were dirty, which is a real off put for me. Plus I've read that it was really noisy and we want to stay somewhere a bit quieter.

I think we've decided on Marco Polo (Beijing), Regal East Asia (Shanghai), Guilin Bravo (Guilin) & the Bell Tower (Xian).

As long as the hotel is clean and breakfast is OK other than not I'm not too bothered as we'll be out most of the day and we have 5 days in Hong Kong at the end of the holiday and are splashing out and staying the Penniunsula Hotel so I'll get all my pampering done there!