GB

Wondering if anyone has any information on the new Westin Chaoyang opening in May? Location for tourist sites?

moondog

I'm really excited about this hotel and think it is destined to become the premiere Starwood property in town (even, taking St. Regis renovations into account) until the W arrives. It is located across the street from the Kunlun.

It was originally supposed to open this spring, but now they're saying "May/June".

Starwood Lurker II

Hi everyone,

Here are some additional information on Westin Beijing Chaoyang which you might be interested.

The Westin Beijing Chaoyang is ideally located in the heart of Beijing and only a 25-minute journey from Beijing Capital International Airport. The 34-storey hotel forms part of a large mixed-use complex in Liangma He, which comprises office towers and extensive luxury retail shopping.

All 550 guest rooms and suites are oversized and furnished to the highest standards including Westin’s signature Heavenly Bed and Heavenly Shower. Every guest room and suite offers high speed wireless Internet access and facilities to make every stay a renewal experience. The five–star accommodation features Jinmao Presidential Suite, Executive Suites, Renewal Suite, Deluxe Rooms and Workout Rooms which are equipped with workout facilities.

The Westin Executive Club Floor guest rooms and suites provide guest with the ultimate comfort and conveniences. Complimentary breakfast, all-day refreshments, snacks and evening cocktails are available daily, while personalized butler services complete the experience.

The dining and entertaining scene features a 3-meal restaurant, serving delights from around the world with international buffets for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and additional 6 upscale restaurants, bars and lounges.

the westin beijing chaoyang
1 xinyuan nan road, chaoyang district, beijing 100027, china

Thank you and have a nice day!

[email protected]

JohnSIN

Let me first apologise for this long post but I tried to provide you fellow Flyer talker with as much info on the property as possible, and tried what I could during my one night stay.

Pictures on Flickr: CLICK HERE FOR PICTURES

Westin Chaoyang location is just opposite the Lufthansa Centre on Beijing 3rd Ring road.

It is very close to the Airport Expressway and fairly close to the Great Wall Sheraton (about 3 large blocks away). The connectivity will be greatly improved once Beijing Metro Line 10 opens, with a station right in front of the hotel: Liangmaqiao. The building is modern and not particularly remarcable. The surprise really starts when you step inside. The lobby is spacious with a large 3 floor atrium.

Check-In
I am escorted from the front door to the reception by a bell-boy.
The receptionist is extremely friendly, efficient. I manage to chat with the FO Manager, a Swiss who is now in Beijing taking care of his little front of the house team. As platinum, I am given a Westin Renewal Suite.
Asked by the receptionist if I would like my "bathologist" now, I take a while to understand that there is a bath butler and the service is complimentary in the suite. Beijing Accent + Neologism means lots of misunderstanding.
I am asked if I want to check-in in the executive lounge on the 34th floor but to be honest, I am too keen to check the room, so I will proceed with the reception in the lobby. The occupancy rate of the hotel is 20% (I asked) and this is the opening day (a bit confused as the web site states July 1st. surely it is one of the opening days but not THE opening day). Escorted to the room by a hostess.

The Renewal Suite
100sqm of pure pleasure. Brown theme, very comfortable. Remind me of the Westin Chosun in Seoul. Very calming and stylish. Large bay window with day and night curtains activated by a little wall switch (played with that a bit and got tired). Room on the 15th floor provides a nice view (although to be honest it is Beijing unremarkable neighbourhood and office towers rather than anything special but from up there, it looks great).
Three large TV screen, one in the lounge, one in the bedroom (on a pedestal that dissapear when you press a remote control) and one in the bathroom, wall mounted to provide entertainment when using the bathtub.
Marital harmony is preserved with 2 washbasins. The shower is gigantic and provides the tropical shower head. It can easily fit 8 people... I wonder exactly who came up with the specifications or who had the idea of so many people in the shower at the same time. The bed is heavenly, as expected.
There is an OSIM massage chair which looks a bit out of place (not very design) but a nice distraction once I have finished playing with the windows electric curtains

Not all in working order as I arrive and 2 technicians are trying to fix the Bose stereo. Not needed I tell them as I am only going to watch TV and have not got my CD collection in tow. I can of course expect these little things to happen especially during the first couple of days. Not a problem, all fixed quickly and efficiently.

Executive Suite

34th floor of the hotel, it provides tea, and cocktails with canapé, check in/out, private meeting rooms, computers stations with internet access (with a view) and a great lounge to laze around, read paper and sip cocktails. Very stylish and modern, a coherent look in the hotel.
The lounge staff is very attentive. I have to fight to keep my tray of uneaten nibbles to myself and be able to finish it (no waste please, these are good). Gin & tonic is ordered and I learn that there are 2 platinum staying today (10th July). They have apparently been waiting all day in the lounge for poor us to turn up. I get to read the FT (that is Financial Times, not Flyertalk) and the economist while sipping my G&T.

My Bathologists

Trying to make my way back to my room, I remember that a bathologist awaits. I have to make the difficult choice of which bath I want between a choice of 4 (complementary). The four choices are India, Orient, Mediterranean and Arabia. I choose Arabia which provides aromas of ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, geranium, cumin and amyris (what’s that?). When booking my bath over the phone, I am asked if I want rose petals in the bath (rrrr disgusting). Mrs JohnSIN not being here today, we shall skip the rose petal and go for the real stuff.

30 minutes later, 2 pretty bathologists arrive in my room with what seems to be about 2 tons of material. Besides the bath foam, 1.5 tons of candles are spread in the bedroom and bathroom, including one on a small tray left on top of the heavenly bed (I see a fire hazard, am I the only one?). I am doing my emails when Mrs. Batho 1 comes and give me a "bathologist education letter" (I kid you not) as if she was tendering her resignation (she did it very nicely).
I am then asked to open my burden basket (a little pretty basket which happens to be scented) and take 3 deep breaths. I do not know exactly what is the penalty for non execution, so I abide by the Westin Policy, close my eyes and enjoy the scent of ...something (very nice).
My bathologists then leave the room after telling me that they will be back in 35 minutes. It sounds like my mother telling me she will check if I have cleaned myself (I was then 7 years old). Unfortunately, I have ordered room service and tell them that I shall in fact call them when I am done with my bath and dinner. Of course, watching TV, in a scented bath, in a darken bathroom with 1.5 tons of candles burning in the room is a great way to relax. Heavenly I say.

Room Service
The best room service experience in the world. While the food was run of the mill room service, I was looking for the check on the tray to sign. The waiter tells me that the hotel is not open (what on earth am I doing in this room then!), therefore I do not have to pay/or sign.... now I should not admit to this, I can see the Starwood Lurkers I&II firing emails to the Hotel GM... I will check my credit card statement carefully.
It did cross my mind to order caviar and krug for the rest of the night but then, I don’t like caviar...

Breakfast

I was told at reception that I could use the lounge or the restaurant on the 2nd floor. As a matter of fact, the lounge is not open for breakfast yet, so it is back to the 2nd floor which provides a really nice fresh green decor, very modern (take a look at the pics). Great breakfast although I was the victim of a robbery in the middle of the service. I was excitingly pouring some warm soya milk to dip my you tiao (fried dough that is commonly served for breakfast) into it, when a chef decided to take away those I had already piled up. Scream not, they say, the robber provided immediately a plate of fresh and warm you tiao... nice gesture.

Gym

Very nice Westin workout with plenty of treadmills, cross trainers, weights. The free weights have yet to be delivered but there is anything to keep any gym buff happy for 2 hours. The reception was great and the trainers/gym boys were absolutely great, friendly, chatty etc...(I did manage to workout still). The swimming pool will be open later. I won’t mention any dates as I asked the questions many times to different people and got a different answer every time. The spa looks very nice if not for the air con which made me shiver all the way back to the lift. If you intend to shiver of pleasure in the hand of expert Wherapist, you know where to go.

Concierge

I was not particularly interested in sitting through another mediocre performance of Aida but I really wanted to see the inside of the National Centre for the Performing Arts (the Egg). I asked the concierge after checking to see if there would be tickets available for the Saturday evening performance and if they could arrange for one. The request was made at 1700. At 2130 I received a call in my room telling me that they had passed the closing time and therefore would need to call the following day. Now considering the box office closes at 2030, why did they wait so long to call, I wonder. Concierge tells me they will try as soon as they come in the morning and advise. Of course, by 10, nothing has been done, and I go to the theatre myself, stopping at the concierge desk only to realise they have not looked at the log from the previous evening....mmm

Bell Boys

No, I did not try any of the bell boys, however before anyone has a heart attack in the lobby; it was worth mentioning on little story. As I wiz through the lobby to talk to the concierge, a bell boy about 7 foot tall (or more), with the hands obviously trained to kill chickens by twisting their neck, approaches me at great speed. Obviously some kind of military training is at play here. Am I going to be wrestle to the floor? Am I going to be killed with bare hands because he thinks I am a terrorist (I am wearing a tee-shirt now after all)? He comes within 2 inch of me self and asks if 'there is anything I can do for you?'... Well, stop scaring the hell out of me would be a great start.

Little things

Power tripped in the room, solved in 15 mins by a team of three engineers.
TV remote doesn’t work on the pedestal as sensor has disappeared in the pedestal itself, solved in 5 minutes. Laundry was good and efficient and was returned on time. Check out was great, chatty and friendly.

Overall Impression

The most important element in any hotel experience is the staff and the Westin Chaoyang has got its priorities right. They were all incredibly helpful, friendly, charming... One listed his passion (displayed on the staff name badge) as Hunting... was wondering if he was talking about guest crossing the lobby and acting in pair with the bell boy. Sure enough people are not yet familiar with all the nooks and crannies of the hotel just yet but then again it is not yet open (or maybe it is). So give it time, the hotel certainly has a lot to offer and the room, facilities are definitely amongst the best in Beijing. As far as I am concerned, it even exceed the St Regis Beijing... the staff is the key. Great stay, fantastic hotel.

Starwood Lurker II

Hi JohnSIN,

Thank you for that wonderful review of the property. As explained by our member, there is a delay due to some license issues with the authorities.

Glad you have enjoyed your stay. Look forward to more reviews from you.

[email protected]

Starwood Lurker II

Hi DownUnderFlyer,

I am afraid the answer is negative my dear.

[email protected]

brain615

Great review - thanks a ton! I am now really looking forward to my upcoming stay in a couple of weeks

bossCJ

I am wondering (and surprised that I haven't seen anything yet) about this HUGE shiny new Westin in downtown Beijing that opened up just in time for the Olympic Games, and had George Bush and the traveling White House as one of their first guests within weeks of opening.

Has anyone had any experiences here?? I'll be staying for a night here tomorrow and was wondering if anyone had much to say about it. I'll be sure to do a trip report on it, as part of my report (my first!) going from Nanjing to IAD (home) and back in a week, going through PEK, NRT, IAD, EWR, SIN, and back to Nanjing (NKG).

bossCJ

Its hard to find much on this hotel. I've looked online and mostly there is the westin website, and that one post here. Even tripadvisor says nothing about it (except for 1 not-so-great review), when there's 60+ reviews for the other westin in town (a great place to be sure, but that one's over on the west side of the city, kinda inconvenient unless u have business meeting down the street at one of the few office bldg's over there.)

The pictures make the place look beautiful. I've been there for a few lunches before during the olympics, but that's about it. I used to stay over at the Great Wall Sheraton on occasion (practically down the street), but the last time I was there (a few weeks ago) it was just looking so dark, drab and worn (except for the rooms which have been renovated, or at least some of them) , that for the same rate I figured I had to give the new westin a try. Looking forward to a great stay! If only the narita airport had one of these (or even a starwood property).

amoeba

I just came back from this hotel and have to say this is one of the most amazing hotels I've stayed in, topping even the four seasons in Maui. The rooms were out of this world and the service phenomenal. Still a bit jetlagged so I'll post a detailed picture review later, however it's safe to say this is now my favorite hotel of all time.

NeverStill

I stayed at the new Westin Chaoyang for a night during an October trip to Beijing. I had been at the Hilton Beijing just across the street (north of Lufthansa Centre) for 3 nights where the service is excellent but the rooms are still tiny no matter how much they remodel them.

As others have noted the rooms are quite spacious and seem to have all the most up-to-date and modern conveniences. My experience overall was not great however. At check-in I seemed to have someone who was new. She seemed to WANT to help me out, but had many problems with the check-in process. She indicated that I had been upgraded since I asked as a Platinum, but I got the room category that I booked. She nearly forgot to give me back my passport and credit card, and while I remembered to ask for my passport back, she came running across the lobby as I was about the enter the elevator with my credit card. They didn't have the Platinum amenity form at check-in, so I told her I just wanted the points. No surprise, the points have never posted. She was going to escort me, so she asked the bell boy and me to wait by the elevator while she did something else for several minutes. It was annoying.

My room, a Renewal room, was oversized and beautiful. It was on a low floor overlooking the 3rd ring road though, so I had some unexpected noise. If you need a quiet room, get one away from the roads.

The bathroom wasn't quite finished being cleaned up from construction as there was a great deal of dirt and construction debris behind the lav, which otherwise seems to float in front of a window.

I had some other minor issues with staff who weren't very helpful if perhaps only because they hadn't yet been trained. The best service experience was the bathologist who came on time and quietly set everything up for me. That was great!

I think once they get the staff up to the level of the Hilton across the ring road, they will be an excellent hotel. I left a note for the GM with all of my concerns.

WestinGM

Dear All,

thanks for all the great comments and support of the hotel. It has been an exciting several months since our opening in August and we look forward to be of service in the years to come.
Please do not hesitate in contacting me for your travel arrangements and/or questions when you visit our hotel via email at [email protected].

be well, be westin!

Daniel Aylmer
General Manager
The Westin Beijing Chaoyang

GeorgiaShrink

The hotel offers (in its Features section) Airport transfers (limited). Has anyone taken advantage of this?

cooperhs

Now that the hotel has moved to cat 4, I'm reconsidering it over the Financial Street, using nights and flights. The biggest advantage of Financial Street is that they will guarantee the renewal room (60 sqm.) for a 1000 point per night cost. Any similar options at this hotel?

GeorgiaShrink

What is the Metro stop just outside the hotel?