Garden Hotel Guangzhou
We just came back from a 3-day stay at the Garden Hotel in Guangzhou and must say that this property is a real study in contrasts.
We took the train from Hong Kong into Guangzhou and were pleasantly surprised to find that the Garden had free shuttle service to the hotel – very handy. There is also free return shuttle service back to the train station. Service was fantastic – we had a porter waiting for us the second we stepped off the shuttle bus; he watched over our luggage as we checked in and brought our bags upstairs.
The hotel driveway is fabulous, especially at night when the fountain is lit up.
Front desk clerks were pleasant and efficient, likely trying to distract us from the fact that there were 2 huge cameras pointed right at us at the desk. But not surprising – this is China, after all. The lobby was also crawling with security guards.
The main lobby area itself is absolutely stellar. Take a minute to enjoy the massive goldleaf mural behind the front desk, as well as the architectural splendours of the building itself (look up at the ceiling in the main foyer – beautiful).
The shops on the main level are quite nice as well, very chi-chi (ie. expensive) for the most part, but there is also a delicatessen and souvenir store. The delicatessen came in handy, as continental breakfast was not included.
The bar/lounge in the main lobby is very impressive, with lovely d¨¦cor, a decent menu and good selection of beer and spirits. Great for people watching. The view of the waterfall outside is also top notch. Note, however, that the bar offers a selection of cigars for purchase and the non-smoking section is pitifully small. The wait staff assume you want to smoke unless you specify otherwise.
With all the grandeur of the lobby area, we were shocked at the state of our guest room. It was noticeably old and very dated. The bed sheets sported brown spots and other obvious signs of wear; the room smelled of something I can only liken to nail polish remover; our room safe didn’t work properly; there was a problem with the adjustable thermostat. The bathtub tiles and grouted areas around the sink were covered in mold and mildew. There were large signs on the mirror and in the shower warning us not to drink the tap water. Housekeeping provided us with 2 small bottles of water each day so that we could at least brush our teeth and drink, but these didn’t go very far. Suggest you go over to 7-11 as we did to pick up a couple of 1.5 litre bottles of water.
The pool has also seen better days. It’s a good size, relatively clean, but it suffers from the same mold problem around the caulking as the bathroom does. The in-room guestbook indicates that towels are available poolside – there were none both times we swam, so bring your own from your room.
Overall, our stay at the Garden wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t great either. We found it interesting that the owners have obviously spent a lot of time, effort and money ensuring that the public areas of the hotel look spectacular, yet the guest rooms (the most important part of the property!!) are in serious need of cleaning and upgrading.
From what I’ve read of other reviews posted, looks like an upgrade to an executive suite is the way to go if you want to get the most out of your stay at the Garden Hotel.
I stayed at the Garden for 5 nights. The hotel has been recently remodeled and is magnificent! The hotel combined many rooms to make much larger rooms. It is competing with the new Shangri-La and under construction Four Seasons and Ritz-Carlton hotels.
I stayed on the Executive floor with a wonderful room and amenities.
The neighborhood is convenient to shopping and restaurants.
Stay there for the first time for 3 nights at Elite Room City View (much larger than the Superior one). A deluxe room is more glam though with classic touch.
The room has a nice bathroom and bath tub with shower. Toilet amenities are the ‘etienne aigner’ products. Double King size bed is comfort, with 4 comfy pillows. Room is well-lighted in modern-minimalist style, flat-screen TV, mini bar, free coffe/tea and mineral water. Broadband access is fast and free of charge.
Breakfast is filling, varieties are wide from local chinese & dim sum, japanese sushi & miso soup, or continental styles – with choices of fresh fruit juices, cereals, yoghurts, chesee, jams, cakes, croissant, sandwiches and bread in the buffet.
A plus is that the guests can choose their own fresh vegetable to cook and try the various sauces/spices. The breakfast venue is on the other side of a garden pool with stone waterfall and a bridge, suitable for couples romantic moment or family gathering in spring or winter time.
Staffs are attentive though with some language barrier. Location is premier, easy to get taxis with minimum fare to go to anywhere in the city. Checking-in & checking-out are sloppy due to overcrowded guests and, perhaps, language problem; but a relieve for the guests on queue who may enjoy the magnificent lobby view.
Overall, it is a decent high-end hotel and one of the best choosen by the executives in Guangzhou nowadays.
Came down for a visit with some government agencies. Right during the middle of the Trade Fair resulting in most rooms being sold out except for the expensive ones as the Garden. This property has been around but the recent remodeling has been very well done. Rooms are very nice, I was in a suite, and completely equiped with all mod cons.
We ate at the Chinese restaurant, the more casual one which is separate from the main Chinese restaurant. This one has the various noodle specialties from the South of China in addition to the usual Guangdong/Cantonese treats. Recommended and not expensive.
The service is very good and if it matters, the English speaking staff are plentiful and fluent. If you’ve not been to Guangzhou recently, cabs are in very short supply and you can wait 20-25 minutes during top time. If you are on a tight schedule, it makes sense to hire a car and driver from the hotel.
The pricing for me was a reflection of the lack of rooms during the Trade Fair, the largest event in Guangzhou as it relates to hotels room. Worth looking into but check the price first. Location is decent, near Martyrs Park.
The Garden Hotel is a good hotel to stay in. It is well located, well serviced by transportation, restuarants and shoppping malls. The neighbourhood is safe and clean.
Surprisingly, service standards is above the norm, and English speaking staff were well-versed with courtesy and warm hospitality. By any measure, this 5-star rated hotel is not expensive and way below international standard rates and is well worth the stay.
We were on the 7th floor non-smoking floor – this is the first time I have seen a cleaning and floor crew stationed on a floor, where the crew monitors the guests’ entry and exit into their rooms. When we had put some empty cartons for clearance outside our door, it was cleared promptly and we also noticed rooms are cleaned very quickly after the guests had checked out or left for the day.
The only complaint we had was the loud noises from the street the hotel is on – excavators digging away day and night – isn’t there a noise pollution law in China? The hotel really need to do something to block off the noise particularly on lower floors.
The location was convenient for work which is why I chose it. A new Westin just opened in the area, so I’ll probably stay there the next time.
The rooms were ok. A typical hotel room; reminded me of a Holiday Inn. Unfortunately, the shower curtain smelled like mold and really irritated my asthma. The beds were incredibly hard. I nearly broke my tailbone sitting down. Hard beds don’t normally bother me, but the first night took some getting used to. It had internet access, minibar, room service. The rooms were pretty quiet.
The workout room and outdoor pool were nice. The staff was very friendly and helpful. I’d stay here again, but will probably check availability at the Westin first.
I stayed at one of the recently renovated rooms (I don’t know if all have been renovated) at executive level, and must say that the room was one of the best I’ve experienced in China.
Room was spacious (with separate living room), clean and modern. Broadband worked allright, and the living room had large flat screen TV with DVD player. Location is the best in Guangzhou.
Service is better than average chinese service level. Highly recommended for business travellers (who on earth would come to Guangzhou for vacation?).
I have stayed at this hotel numerous times. There is a complimentary shuttle service if you are arriving by train from HK. The hotel has one of the grandest reception area in the world. The standard rooms are of good quality, free wi fi, flat screen tvs, clean and spacious rooms. You can pay a little more and upgrade to the suite which is to die for.
Good buffet breakfast. I have tried all the restaurants in the hotel and are of good quality. There is a revolving buffet restaurant on the top floor which comes with a price tag of approx US$60 but its worth it. There are lobsters, sashimi, alaskan crab etc. Just remember this is no buffet at the Ballagio but no doubt this is the best buffet in GZ.
The Garden hotel is a popular hotel amongst foreigners and locals. This also means the reception hall can be quite busy and can sometimes resemble a train station. The restaurants in the hotel can often be full with locals in particular on weekends so either get in early or book ahead (its usually fine on weekdays). You must book the revolving restaurant as its often full everynight. We were once told there was a 2 hr wait dispite being hotel guests.
There is one annoying thing about this hotel. The hotel has one queue for all (check in, check out, other reception enquiries). I had to queue a total of 7 times for the one night I stayed at the hotel. For such a busy hotel, they should have specialised queing lines. The queues are not long and they is always plenty of staff on, but it is annoying having to queue for little things or if you are in a rush to check out.
Overall, my stay at the hotel was great and I will be back.
I had the lucky chance to stay one night at this hotel when I travelled to Guangzhou for business purposes and I must say that it was one of the best hotels ever experienced in my life!
My room was large, with three separate environments (studio, bedroom and bathroom) and it was highly comfortable.
I also appreciated the sauna and the breakfast.
The only negative thing (but seems to be a common problem in China): the smelling water coming out from the shower… it stinks like mud!
Absolutely excellent hotel—definitely the best in Guangzhou. I’ve stayed there on many different occasions but I am currently living at their long-term residence in the East (or West…?) tower.
The rooms are impeccably clean and (from what I’ve seen) very clean cut and modern. The lobby is constantly abuzz but the rooms are always quiet.
The fitness center (open 24/h) and the spa are also very decent, same with the restaurants (there’s a Japanese restaurant that is overpriced and does very well convincing you of its authenticity until you taste the food..) The breakfast is also quite good, even though they try a bit too hard (Or not; although I’m never quite ready for things like paté and caviar in the morning…)
Tip: If you plan on traveling out of Guangzhou, there’s a travel agency on the main floor that can do all the booking for you at v. decent prices.
The only thing that would be worthy of improving on is consistent pricing. I’ve managed to get extremely low prices before (559CNY/night) and will sometimes have to pay 800CNY+ without any specific reason.