How Wonderful Is The Beijing W Hotel?

The Beijing W Hotel surely must stand for ‘wow’ hotel. From the minute you escape the Beijing summer heat and wander into the brightly lit lobby, you will be amazed. Funky neon lights create the semblance of a trendy nightclub, whilst a saxophonist serenades guests enjoying afternoon cocktails.

W Beijing Chang'An lobby
W Beijing Chang’An lobby

Location

It’s the epitome of cool and just a stone’s throw from Jianguomen Gate, and only two stops on the Metro to the Forbidden City and Tiannamen Square.

Bedrooms

Our room was a ‘wonderful room’ and boy, did it live up to that title. Sometimes on web booking sites, the pictures of the hotel room are not reflective of the actual type of room you will be staying in. Not so in this case. I booked through hotels.com (as I needed one more stay for a free night) and the pictures were spot on.

a white background with black and white clouds

The room was possibly the most amazing room I have stayed in outside a luxury beach resort such as the Residence in Tanzania and the Evason Zighy Bay.

W Beijing Hotel room
W Beijing Hotel room

As you open the door, your eyes feast on views of the skyline, followed by a pick n mix of equally fascinating attractions. You can feel like a movie star as you soak up the view from your daybed lit by movie set lights, or laze on the oversized super-king size bed.

W Beijing hotel room daybeds
W Beijing hotel room daybeds

The decor is hip with a bright blue panel adding a decorative touch to the bedroom and a selection of pre-set lighting options on your bedside panel. Select from low to bright to night.

That same panel also has buttons to open and close both your sheer curtains and the fuller curtains. Boy, I have been spoilt on this trip as frankly I am never going to want to open my curtains by hand again!!

W Beijing Bedroom and bathroom
How lush is that bed at the W beijing?

Bathroom

The piece de resistance is the incredible in room bathroom. A huge round tub takes up a platform to the side of the bed and is adorned with a smaller sink, make up area and dressing table. A huge mirrored light continues the movie theme. Ladies will love the other full length mirrors dotted around the room.

Finally, the toilet and shower are enclosed in their own separate cubicles. Of course, if you want some privacy, you can pull the curtain separating the bath from the bedroom but why deny yourself a city view while bathing?

W Beijing bathroom
W Beijing bathroom

Even if you hate everything else about this hotel, the room alone is worth a visit. If you plan on proposing, or want to treat your loved one to a weekend away, then this hotel should be a contender for your cash.

Facilities

W Fit Room

The fit room is on an elevated floor with views over the city. There’s weight machines, a boxing and mat area and plenty of cardio machines. The ability to people watch is also a nice distraction during your workout.

Each station has towels and fresh water is available in a fridge. It’s air conditioned although the air con could do with being a little stronger.

W Beijing Fit Room
W Beijing Fit Room

W Pool

The pool is stunning. It has an unusual tiled pattern which looks super cool. It also has a whirlpool and day bed area should you wish to chill out.

Note that swimmers need to wear a swimming cap which you can borrow from the lifeguard.

W Beijing swimming pool
W Beijing swimming pool

Food and drink

The W lounge

The W Lounge is in the lobby and exudes cool. Bright neon lights and comfy seating areas attract the in crowd (and us!).

W Lounge Beijing
W Lounge Beijing
W Lounge
W Lounge – I’m not sure I am cool enough to hang out here!

Yen

We dined in Yen and were not impressed. The menu was a little too wild for our taste with chicken feet, intestines and other animal parts we prefer not to eat.

Our dish of noodles, vegetables and chicken was lacking in taste although the service was good.

a blue and white sign with white text

The kitchen

There was a further restaurant offering dinner buffets and breakfast in the basement but we did not sample this. The buffets seemed quite pricey a around 250 yuan.

X25 Bar

This is a sky bar on the 25th floor with a dance floor and DJ. There’s a bar area and table service and the lighting is ridiculously trendy.

You can catch views of the city and its landmarks lit up by night, not to mention beautiful people watching. It seems it’s not uncommon for Chinese couples to enjoy a night out on their phones and iPads, rather than actually talking to one another!

X25 Bar W Hotel Beijing
X25 Bar – possibly named for the average age, but don’t worry. We are down with the kids!

The service

The service in the hotel was fantastic in every respect bar one. The check in was especially slow and laborious.

SPG Rewards

A member of SPG, guests can earn SPG Rewards on both their room and spend in the hotel. For more information on SPG Rewards, check this post out.

You may also wish to consider applying for the SPG AMEX Reward credit card, details of which can be found in this post. I bagged three free nights with my sign up bonus.

Verdict

This hotel is certainly one of the more expensive hotels we looked at in Beijing. However, the W Beijing Chang’An is one of the hippest places I’ve stayed, albeit possibly targeted at a younger demographic than us.

Mirrored bathroom at the W Beijing
Nothing like a selfie in the bathroom – too many mirrors to resist!

If you plan to visit, I recommend you make a night of it and enjoy the facilities of the hotel. This hotel is meant to be the star attraction and not your base.

W Beijing city views
W Beijing city views

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About Anne

Anne is the founder and editor of Frommilestosmiles. If she isn't travelling, she is thinking of travelling or planning her next trip. She has visited over 90 countries on six continents and sampled everything from backpacking to bank bursting travel. Her mission is to help you enjoy more luxurious travel without the luxury price tag through the use of airline and hotel rewards and other money-saving travel tips

4 comments

  1. When in China do what the Chinese do. Chicken feet and other innards are everyday snacks and apps for us Chinese, too bad you were not able to enjoy these tried and true dishes.

  2. Donald Osborne

    Do they supply gas masks? You’ll need one if you’re visiting Beijing. The pollution will take years off your life.

    • Yes that was definitely one of the aspects of Beijing I did not like. Stay tuned to find out our recommendations for coping with some of the challenges of travelling in China. Pollution is one of the, although I did find Beijing similar to LA (but I’ve not been back there in twenty years and am hoping it has improved,)

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