Originally Posted by
ElevatorEnthusiast
I really, really want to go to Shanghai and Beijing soon (especially Shanghai), but this seems more likely in 2024. The visa aspects seem to be somewhat challenging (and I would want to stay longer than 144 hours for the Transit rule - only 6 Marriotts - that's not enough!), and I think I would have to remain home for a bit in order to go through that process, and you all know how often I'm home ;-)
Rule of thumb for China is to go to the newly built hotels. Ones 20 yrs old, even if renovated, are often crumbling. Even 8-10 yrs old is considered old. BJ and SH has a lot of these older types but other cities - equally awesome - have newer built ones. I typcially stay in 2nd to 3rd tier cities because the hotels are so awesome and I have homes in the tier 1s.
But Marriott and Hyatt do both have incredible properties in BJ and SH... And with high speed trains, you can get to other cities like Suzhou in 30 minutes (PH Suzhou is my favorite hotel. Been there about 70 nights in last year + just to rest. Going back there next week).