Novotel Xi'an Xinxing

Clean modern spacious room. Firm bed and pillows. Great location with a metro exit H right at its doorstep. Hotel breakfast was good mix of local and western options. Appreciated the complementary teatime at the lounge as well the self-service laundry machines. Overall good service and comfortable stay.

Great hotel. Nice, modern and clean. The room was good too. Comfy bed with medium firmness. Great shower and toilet with auto wash. Aircon worked very well. The tv was a projector onto a big projector screen but we had no idea how to use it as it was in Chinese. The lights had some variations but none that let us control the lights we actually wanted on. This could be improved. Location was excellent to the Bell Tower area. Metro stop on the doorstep but a bit of a walk to the actual train line. Muslim Quarter a 10 min walk. Breakfast catered for the Chinese palette. My husband loved it. There was a free laundry room which was very handy and we got all our dirty clothes washed and dried in about an hour. Check out was going well when they gave us a bag of sweets which we thought was really lovely until we realised it was effectively a bribe when the staff (very politely) insisted we do a 5 star review there and then. That request ironically was the one thing I did not like at all. Do not try to force your customers to review what you want them to. Reviews are personal and should reflect their experience plus it’s rude!

The location of the Xi An Bell Tower hotel was extremely convenient for our 2 days trip for exploring the pictoresque old city with its specialities and sightseeing spots. The Xi An city walls and the evening walk to explore Shaanxi specialty noodles was only around 15 miutes walking distance. The hotel lobby and aligning common spaces were clean and comfortably furnished, rooms were sufficiently air conditioned and clean. We could buy drinks at the lobby bar conveniently relatively until late evening. Drinking water was suffiently available every day. Reception staff was very kind and professional in handling our requests and conveniently speaking with us in English. The whole day trip to Terracotta warriors army museum was also timely affordable - we used service of a reliable local driver that has picked us up and returned to the Novotel location.

This was an excellent stay. While I was initially concerned because I couldn't get in contact with a representative before arrival to let them know about our late flight time, it wasn't a problem as the desk upstairs was staffed even at 2AM. Better yet, when we had an issue with our Alipay for the cab and the driver couldn't make change (and wouldn't accept extra payment) the desk was able to break a larger bill so we could get him on his way. Check-in did take a bit of time, I think the girls working nights aren't as used to getting foreigners written up. But they were nice and got us set. The room was spacious and the bed, while fairly hard, was comfortable. The pillows are pretty flat and the bidet had too many buttons with no pictures or English and my phone didn't like to translate it well so we didn't use it. Breakfast was good and some items varied each day which was nice. I wouldn't spend the regular door price, but on Expedia I chose an included option and that was worth it. Also if you need ice they have cups available at the bar, just ask the front desk. I don't know if the restaurant serves regular meals besides the breakfast but there isn't a lack of great options right outside! And there is an entrance to the metro right in front on the main road, super easy to get around.