HowChinaWorks

In China, you have a wide choice of accommodation options. You can choose star-level hotels, vacation resorts, economical chain hotels, youth hostels, or low-end hotels. Differences between them are reflected in both quality and price.

Different types of hotels:

1. Star-level Hotels
Star-level hotels in China can have between one to five stars based upon the design and size of the hotel, its furnishings, the quality of its service and its management. Management of the ’stars’ standard falls to The Chinese National Tourism Administration, however the number of stars granted a hotel might not be a very precise indication of its service level. In fact, stars give only a very rough idea of the quality of a hotel, so it is always better to visit the room you are going to stay in before making any payment.

1-Star Hotels
A one-star hotel must have a front desk and at least 15 guest rooms. They must have basic facilities and a lodging notice posted. 70% of the guest rooms must have a hot shower, and there must be separate bathrooms for men and women located on the same floor. Do not expect English service, Internet hookup or breakfast service.
Cost for these hotels is around RMB100-120 per night, depending on the city and location. You can probably negotiate the price.

(example one-star room)

2-Star Hotels
Two-star hotels usually have comfortable facilities, better quality and better service than 1-star hotels. They must have at least 20 guest rooms and their rooms must be both comfortable and clean. Rooms have private baths and some 2-star hotels may also offer breakfast. Some staff may speak some English. If you are lucky, you may find Internet hookup in the room and actually be able to use it without technical problems.
The rates are around RMB140-160. Rates are often negotiable.

(example two-star room)

3-Star Hotels
Guest rooms in 3-star hotels are equipped with an air-conditioner, color TV, telephone, double curtain, a desk, and at least one couch as well as a private bathroom. They offer better quality soap and shampoo, and perhaps that there are supplies like coffee maker, hot water maker and hair dryer, made available. Hot and cold water is available 24 hours a day and Internet access is usually available as well. You will find in the room a pricelist of the various services offered by the hotel. The front desk will also have information on local transportation and a map of the local scenic areas. They should provide a 24-hour room reservation service and a safe for the guests’ valuables. They offer breakfast and other meals. Some of the staff can speak basic, everyday English.
They charge around RMB180-350, prices differ widely between large and small cities.

(example three-star room)

4-Star Hotels
Four-star hotels are only accredited in provincial capitals and major tourist destinations. The standard of quality varies greatly between provinces and between hotels. At some 4-star hotels you may feel like a king/queen, yet after visiting others you might prefer to stay at a comfortable 3-star. These are supposed to be luxurious properties that translate to mean at least 70% of the guest rooms must have a refrigerator, carpet and good sofa, etc.
Hotels above the 3-star standard are supposed to have restaurants, bar, coffee shop, banquet hall, conference rooms, laundry facilities, business center, a 24-hour baggage service, an 18-hour foreign currency exchange service and 24-hour room service. They are supposed to provide excellent Chinese and western food and have a number of staff speaking good English. Unfortunately, this criterion is not always met.
Cost at these hotels is around RMB400-650. Prices are not usually negotiable but promotional discounts may be available.

(a very nice example of four-star room)

5-Star Hotels
The quality of 5-star hotels in China varies greatly from one hotel to another, however the standard calls for a 5-star hotel to be a luxury property with spacious and soundproof rooms. Hotels above a 4-star level must also be in a prime location such as the city center or at an international airport. It is also expected that the hotel would have a great view, a large lobby, a health club, a spa – in short, they offer their guests the best comforts. Their staff should also provide excellent service and have professional English skills.
In larger cities like Beijing and Shanghai, there are many well-known international chains and among these may be found the Hyatt, Sheraton, Holiday Inn, Four Seasons, Hilton, Marriott, Intercontinental, Shangri-La and Kempinski. Those chains will offer you the expected luxurious services but in most cases without local charm. You might as well be staying in Berlin or Chicago, and their prices will tend to be higher than the local luxury hotels.
Some local 5-star hotels can rightly be called luxury hotels but a large number of the local 5-star are only meeting the US or European 4-star standard. As usual in China, you should check out the room before taking it. If you are planning to enjoy a bit of luxury in a local 5-star, take five minutes at the airport to buy one of those little luxury hotel guidebooks; it is worth the small investment and you might find one of these hidden gems.
This is the most expensive hotel category, so expect to spend between RMB700 to RMB3000 per room per night. Prices are higher in high-volume business cities than in other cities. Prices are also higher than usual during exhibition times.

(example 5-star room)

” Important Note
For most hotels in China, check-in is generally after 2:00 p.m. and check-out is usually by noon. A later check out can be arranged, but an extra charge (typically half of the daily room rate) may be required. It is wise to take your hotel/room card with you when you leave the hotel. It contains the telephone number and address printed in both Chinese and English and could greatly facilitate your return to the hotel.

2. Vacation Resorts
It’s very hard to distinguish between star-level hotels and vacation resorts in China. A lot of hotels also function as vacation resorts, however most professional vacation resorts are in Hainan and Qingdao, close to the sea or nature. Others are mainly found in bigger cities or in tourist cities. Their quality varies greatly from one location to the next. Check on the Internet for recommendations and ask for suggestions before you go there.

3. Economic Chain Hotel
These have been increasing rapidly in the past few years in China, along with the growth of international travelers. They are not aimed at the foreign market but rather are targeting the increasing Chinese market. The aim of these chains is to offer people a nice and clean but simple accommodation at reasonable rates. Indeed, an increasing number of people choose the economic hotel chain because they are clean as well as cheaper than the star-level hotels.
The economic chain hotel style is very simple. Although they have all the usual hotel facilities, everything is of medium or low quality. Most of them have Internet access and they offer breakfast and other meals as well. Typically you will also have a shower and/or toilet corner in the bedroom.
This type of chain hotel may be found all over Chinese cities, and they are getting more and more white-collar customers, from families to businessmen. They also offer monthly-rental rooms with a discount, which is particularly useful when you are trying to settle into a new city. They also offer lower rates for single travelers.
These hotels are an excellent option if you wish to keep your budget fairly low. The foreign traveler however, should keep in mind that these hotels are aimed at the local Chinese market and therefore offer minimal customer service with usually a non-English speaking staff (but a phrasebook can go a long way with staff not used to seeing foreigners). Of course, for the traveler wanting to try out their newly learned Mandarin, this is a place of choice, as you will meet all kinds of Chinese people (with a limited command of English).
Economic hotel chains charge between RMB90 to RMB350, depending upon location and time of year. In the largest Chinese cities (Beijing, Shanghai and a few others) you will see the higher prices while in most other cities you should find a double room for RMB120-200 and a single room for RMB90-160.

(A nice but fairly typical Economic Hotel room)

4. Youth Hostel
Youth Hostels are getting more popular in China, their main customers being students and backpackers. Typically they will find 2 types of rooms: private rooms and dorm-style rooms. The dorm-style layout is often four, six or even ten bunk beds in a room with a communal shower and toilet facilities on the same floor. Private rooms can include a shower. In popular tourist areas you can probably find someone who can speak some English in youth hostels.
The appeal of Youth Hostels is that they offer low rates with simple, but pretty clean and safe facilities. In practice, private rooms in Youth hostels are similar in style and price to rooms in Economic hotels, however for the traveler who wants to travel on a budget, the price of a bunk bed in a dorm room is hard to beat. A bunk bed in a dorm room will run between RMB25 to RMB80, depending upon the city.

(Not all Youth Hostel are as clean as this one)

5. Low-end Hotels
Low-end hotels are typically run by a family in a local neighborhood. They are usually outside the city centre or near universities. They offer the cheapest price and the most basic (low quality) facilities. Safety depends greatly upon the neighborhood, but if you have some valuables with you, you should probably skip these local hotels (or keep your valuables with you at all times). Though the price could be as little as RMB15-25 they will typically cost around RMB40-50 for a room. Some of these hotels however, will not accept foreigners, as most of them do not have the proper license for lodging foreign tourists.

(TV is a perk in low-end hotels)

How to book a hotel room

1. Book the hotel by phone call
If you can speak Chinese or you have a friend who can, you can call the front desk to ask what types of rooms they have available at your dates. If the room you want is available, ask for the price and a discount as well. They will need your personal information and the more expensive hotel might also ask for your credit card number in order to secure the booking (but they will not charge it). Before hanging up, take the time to check that they have your arrival date and departure date correct. Errors are common with Chinese hotels when booking over the phone. If there is a need, ask the hotel if they do pick-up service from the airport or train station, and the cost. Some hotels will do it for free while others will charge you.

2. Book the hotel online
Booking a hotel over the Internet in China is not much different than elsewhere. First choose the type of hotel you want, then check that the type of room you want is available on your dates. It is important to remember that website “star” ratings are not necessarily the official stars of the hotel. In most cases it is just a ranking made by the website itself.
It is not recommended you prepay for the booking of a hotel you don’t know yourself. As mentioned before, it is always better to visit the room before making payment. Some booking website ask for full payment upon booking while others only take your credit card to secure the booking, in which case you are required to pay upon arrival. Read carefully the booking condition of any website before booking. If you are booking a hotel you just picked off the Internet you should really make your booking via a website that only secures the booking but does not take the full payment.
Since every major city in China has hundreds of hotels, it is most practical to first decide on your budget. What kind of hotel do you want and what are you ready to spend? Low-end hotels will never be advertised on the Internet. Youth hostels are usually easy to find online, either on their own website or on a booking website. Economic chain hotels tend to have their own websites, but they can also be advertised on booking websites. “Elong” is a good place to find them, since this website is aimed mainly at Chinese customers. Vacation resorts use booking websites in the low season to fill their rooms and some bargains are possible then. Of course star-level hotels are widely available on booking websites.
As you have read in previous sections, the star system in China is rather unreliable. Indeed a bad 3 star hotel can charge the same as an economic hotel and offer a quality of service and accommodation lower than the economic hotel. In many cases an economic hotel is a better bargain than a 2 star hotel.
The Internet can be a great way of finding a good 4 or 5 star hotel. “Tripadvisor” is your friend when you are looking for upper quality or luxury hotels. Thousands of travelers are reviewing hotels and posting their own pictures of the hotels. “Tripadvisor” uses these reviews to rank the hotels by cities. Looking at the reviews can allow you to find a good bargain or save you from booking a bad 4 or 5 star, or simply save you from booking a hotel which is undergoing major renovateing!
Some upper or luxury hotels will also offer long-stay package rates for stays longer than 2 weeks, but the practice is not widespread. In major cities, however, if you are planning to stay 2 weeks or more it might be worth checking directly the hotel websites, especially for the ones that have good reviews.

Below are some links for booking a hotel online.

• http://en.venere.com/china/ A famous worldwide booking site
• http://www.elong.com/hotels/ The largest Chinese booking site.
• http://www.asiarooms.com/china/ A large selection of hotels for Asia but not always the best bargain.
• http://www.booking.com/hotel/cn/ A worldwide booking site with usually good bargains in Asia
• http://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g294211-China-Vacations.html A worldwide famous collection of hotel reviews made by travelers. The review can be extremely up-to-date.