ugh... moving to a Cat 3 as of 12 October

http://hhonors3.hilton.com/en/earn-u...ds-update.html

the move from Cat 2 to 3 is the death blow for value with HH. having a 100% increase between those 2 categories is ridiculous.

This should resist your urge to stay out there.

Had a good experience with the DoubleTree Beijing on a 5 night redemption stay in late October, before the property moved up to Cat 3.

Location isn't central but with Daguanying station (Line 7) a few minute walk away it was easy enough to get to the Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, Birds Nest and Summer Palace (a number of line changes required though).

Had breakfast on the first day upstairs in the Executive Lounge but the selection downstairs was much wider so switched for the remaining days. Cocktail hour didn't look too interesting and there was a limited selection of food so I skipped them.

At the old points pricing and with the 5th night free the value was unbeatable.

I'll echo this, but for a 4-night paid stay. As an HHonors Gold I was upgraded to a suite, which made things a bit more comfortable. Room had a living room with tv, couch, chair, and coffee table. Desk was in that room, with a long cabinet behind it (fridge was in there). Bedroom had a king bed. Bathroom had a separate tub and shower, and a separate room for the toilet.

I did check out the property a bit, looked at the workout room and pool, and they looked decent. There was a 25m lap pool (with lane ropes), but there weren't lines on the bottom or ends. I ended up going up to the Water Cube for a swim.

From PEK, I took the bus...#7, which leaves the bus terminal every 30 min, and was only RMB24. It took almost 90 min, and made a bunch of stops along the way (the Doubletree is at the 2nd to last stop). Stops were announced, but it wasn't too loud. I followed along with my phone so I wouldn't miss it. The stop was just across the street, and there's an overpass which takes you almost right to the hotel.
Returning, I sprung for a taxi, which was RMB150.

One bonus, with all the jetlag, I woke up at midnight once and was starving. There's a 24 Hour McDonald's right across a side street, which came in very handy.

I visited the lounge just once for the evening drinks; it seemed ok. I don't drink, and had to ask for water, but they did bring some. Food seemed just ok, but for a Doubletree it was good.
I ate breakfast in the lounge 3 days and that worked well for me. They'll make eggs/omelette to order somewhere behind the scenes. I got one once and it took just a few minutes. I had to be out early the other morning to meet a group for a Great Wall hike and left before breakfast started.

If you do stay here and plan to use the subway, I definitely recommend getting a pay-as-you-go card (similar to an Oyster card in London). I think my longest trip was only RMB5, but the card saved having to buy tickets each time.

The concierge here was simply amazing! They helped tell me about the subway card, they added money to my prepaid SIM card, they held my luggage, and were always there to welcome me in and wish me a good day as I left. I'm usually indifferent about them, but I really need to give them kudos here.

For the price, I'd definitely stay there again.

Thanks for the report. But that taxi driver (assuming it was a regular taxi and not some limousine you've booked) definitely overcharged you. Fare from the DT PEK to PEK airport should be significantely below 100 RMB, even with heavy traffic.

No way. I often pay ~Y120 just to get to Jinbao Jie, and the DT is quite a bit further. In fact, with heavy traffic, it wouldn't surprise me if the fare got close to Y200.

You really made be believe I did a mistake, but I double checked.. and I still believe you guys are all paying too much :D

http://www.taxi-rechner.de/taxikoste...+Peking,+China

So, about 80 RMB during the day.. my driver (last year, but afaik nothing changed since then) was only 70 RMB, and I gave him 80 RMB since he was driving regularly on the road even to European standards :D

The linked map references the PEK to downtown, and I still don't believe that 80 is possible. But, this thread is about PEK to Doubletree. There is no way in hell you can pull that off for less than 100.

Yeah, Doubletree is a big difference from DT. We didn't use a cab, we had a driver, when we arrived, but with very bad traffic, it was a two hour trip so I don't think it would have been 70RMB. On our way out, again bad traffic, it took us nearly an hour just to get onto the ring road. No place is convenient to this hotel if you are trying to drive

ok guys, you've convinced me that usually it should be 100++ for a cab ride, guess that poor taxi drivers meter was somehow running slower than it should have..

I just figured out how to drag the pointer in your link to the Doubletree. Doing so pushes the fare to 130. Add in the toll fee, and you're at 140. And, even if you travel at 4a, there's going to at least some time based component to the fare (your app assumes 49 minutes total travel time:D).

Yes, I think at least 120 rmb is needed. I took a cab from Peking University to PEK airport, which costs me 120 rmb (there was some traffic during the moring rush). Given that the Double Tree should be further from PEK, it is reasonable to see a fare around 150 rmb. Maybe overcharged by a few rmb, but definitely not much.

You got a good deal if you were asked for less than 100RMB for going from PEK to DT Beijing. I would only imagine that could happen at midnight. 120~150RMB one way is definitely normal.

Subway should be the best in my opinion to go most of the places around, including to/from PEK to this hotel.

A few years ago I had a big argument with the hotel for not being able to lower the temperature in my room - it was in late November or early December. The room temperature was about 26~27C (80F), and AC was turned off. I was told that the only way to cool down is to open the window. However, with the noise from streets all around, that was not acceptable. I never stayed there since then. Hope they improved their HVAC system.

As to the taxi fare, he used a meter. There was some traffic here/there. I mostly followed along with the Apple Maps app on my phone, so I know that he took a direct route. The concierge at the hotel said it would be about 150.

It was quite warm in the room, but I had completely forgotten about this until I saw your message. I tried to crank the A/C down, heck I put it as low as it would go (I think 18C), but it was probably close to 80F.

There were windows that could open, but you needed to contact the front desk to have them unbolted (or something). With all the pollution, I didn't bother.

It was a little uncomfortable here there, but I ended up just taking off most of my clothes after I got settled in my room every night. Other than sleeping, I really wasn't in my room that much.

Do you have an e-mail address to DoubleTree by Hilton Beijing? I do not see on website of this hotel.