Hôtels familiaux de Jiangsu, Chine

I arrived in pouring rain. I thought I could walk to my hotel but it was impossible in the downpour. I didn’t want to bother any hotel owner.   I didn’t and still don’t  have an eSIM that can make local  call but thanks to Trip.com, there is a link that I could call the owner for free.  I didn’t advise the owners my arrival time so they were off running errands.  I called the owner to pick me up and thankfully he answered. He was busy but gracious enough to turn around and picked me up. It knew Zhouhuang requires a ticket but I didn’t know that no cars, nor motorcycles, nor bicycles are allowed. Without him I would have arrived the hotel easily.  I always like to meet the owners instead of employees . They were very helpful and answered all my questions. They are honest people who dedicate their  blood and sweat to their business. The owner even offered to walk me to the bus stop  to Suzhou which was my next destination.  This  operates two hotels with 9 in one and 6 in the other. The one that I stayed in with 9 rooms is in a  lively and busy area . Just outside the hotel is a restaurant and there are plenty of places to eat. Inside the hotel is a peaceful oasis where you won’t hear any noise. The location is the best. The other hotel is in a quieter neighborhood a few minutes away. Each of the 15 rooms has it’s own personality, is different and has its distinctive decoration. The owners said they decorated them themselves. I love the decoration and especially the lighting.  After you reserve a room, be sure to contact the owner for the exact address in case you want to arrive on your own. I think it is best to request the owner to take you there because he/she will lead you to the ticket booth to buy tickets. There are a number of bridges so heavy big luggages can be a bit of a challenge .  If you arrive after 5 pm, you can enter free of charge as no one is there to check your ticket. . But once you are inside, and if you choose to leave the area after 8 or 9 am until 5 pm, you have to pay to come back in. You can buy a one day or in my case 3 days pass.  Do check with the owner for up to date information.  The room was quite clean. There were hot water all the time. There were other guests during my stay but they were not noisy at all. I barely heard them. I slept very well during my 3 nights there.  Zhouhuang is really beautiful. There are many canals, bridges, boat rides, good food of all kinds. I had some of the best meals there. In fact , I ate in the same restaurant that serves dumpling twice. One night I had grill (BBQ) meat just outside the entrance for 4 yuans. .  There is decent size supermarket just outside the turnstile and not too far away is a much bigger supermarket. It was there where I bought half a Peking duck for only 32 yuans . The seller sliced the meat and separated the meat from  the bones. The bones he fried so it was crunchy.  It was delicious. There is a theater that offers performances. The night view is great. If you step out your room, you will be overwhelmed in a good sense by the exciting surroundings.  This hotel definitely is one of the best that I have ever stayed in. Look at the beautiful pictures and find one that you like.  I stayed only 3 nights and one of those days I went to Tongli. In my opinion, one should spend at least 2 to 3 full days in  Zhouhuang (and especially this hotel ) savor the ambience. I don’t think Tongli is worth the time because it was twice as expensive and there are not that many canals and boat rides. It is much quieter and has fewer things to see. . The worst is that the sightseeing places require you to show your ticket. After 2 places, I lost mine ticket and I  couldn’t get in the rest of the places. It is unnecessary to require proof of entrance because you can’t enter the area without a ticket. 

Nous avons réservé la chambre familiale avec 2 chambres à coucher pour notre voyage en Nanjing et l'hôtel n'est pas vraiment décevant. L'hôtel est très propre et proche des attractions de Laomendong. Toutes sont à pied. Les attractions proches sont également très nombreuses et facilement accessibles à courte distance. La nourriture et le restaurant ne sont pas un problème. La chambre dispose de toutes les installations et, surtout, de lave-linge gratuite, ce qui est important pour mon voyage familial pendant de longues journées, car nous n'avons pas besoin de porter beaucoup de vêtements. Le propriétaire est amiable et a donné des suggestions à nos lieux de visite aussi. Le petit déjeuner est inclus. Même si simple, assez bon pour commencer pour la journée sans avoir à chercher de la nourriture avant de sortir. En général, une bonne et agréable expérience avec notre séjour.

La chambre était agréable et la réception était très accueillante. Quand j'ai vu qu'il s'agissait d'un lit double pour deux personnes, j'ai été surclassé dans une chambre twin gratuitement. Le ménage a été très minutieux et les articles jetables ont été remplacés. près de Pingjiang Road et il est facile de prendre un taxi. Pratique, le seul inconvénient est que la route est en construction à proximité, ce qui rend la marche un peu difficile.

L'hôtel se trouve sur Ping Jiang Road, juste à côté de la rivière, ce qui permet d'accéder facilement au quartier commerçant. Vous trouverez également des restaurants à quelques pas. Notez qu'étant situé au bord de la rivière, là où les voitures ne peuvent généralement pas accéder, vous devrez probablement descendre sur la route principale et marcher environ 5 minutes jusqu'à l'hôtel. Cet hôtel peut ne pas convenir aux groupes avec de jeunes enfants, des bagages volumineux ou aux personnes âgées. L'hôtel lui-même est vraiment charmant. Vous serez accueilli par un personnel chaleureux et sympathique, qui se fera un plaisir de vous aider avec vos bagages ou de vous donner des conseils sur la région. Il n'y a pas d'ascenseur, vous devrez donc porter vos bagages jusqu'aux chambres du 1er ou du 2e étage (le personnel m'a aidé avec les miens). La chambre est très propre et les équipements sont neufs. Les toilettes sont également neuves avec chasse d'eau automatique. Les portes des toilettes et de la salle de bain sont cependant translucides. On ne voit pas ce que fait la personne à l'intérieur, mais la lumière passe au travers ; il n'est donc pas conseillé de partager la chambre avec une autre personne sensible à la lumière, surtout la nuit. Sinon, tout le reste est parfait à cet endroit.

Dans les jardins Ruiyuan et Chiyuan de l'hôtel, les lotus sont en pleine floraison. Les toits en forme de cornes, les pavillons et les kiosques au bord de l'eau deviennent des cadres naturels qui subliment à merveille l'étang en fleur. Les couches de feuilles de lotus vertes offrent une fraîcheur estivale, tandis que les lotus à fleurs doubles se reflètent dans l'eau, s'épanouissant délicatement, comme de belles femmes drapées de voiles, roses sans être vulgaires, et charmantes sans être voyantes. La brise légère fait danser les fleurs et emporte leur doux parfum. Entre les ponts incurvés et les galeries, les silhouettes des pavillons se reflètent dans l'étang. Le jardin classique et les lotus rouges de l'étang se complètent mutuellement, et chaque pas est une source d'inspiration poétique.

I booked Hanyuan because it is within walking distance to my folks home. And my grandma used to work at Nanjing Agricultural University, which the hotel is affiliated with. I read others’ reviews and knew it is an old facility. I did not have unrealistic expectations. We arrived late at night. Taxi driver dropped us off at the side entrance that has numerous stairs to the door. We had lots of luggage. As we got out of the cab, we saw some staff member in the lobby looking out. Instead of coming out to help us, he walked away. My husband, myself and our seven year old all carried/dragged multiple items up the stairs to get into the hotel lobby. We checked in and decided that we would need to add a bed for the kid. House keeping came quickly to set up the bed but was reluctant to provide pillows for the additional bed. I had to repeatedly ask before they agreed to bring an extra pillow. Don’t understand why there is such resistance to equip the additional bed with pillow- after all, we did pay for the additional bed. Everything else was pretty good during our first three-day-stay. We then went away to visit families elsewhere for a week before coming back to this hotel. This time, our car drove onto the ramp at the front entrance. As soon as we entered the building, lobby manager came to offer us help. He helped us deliver luggage to our room. We are very appreciative of his assistance. We ran into some issues at the front desk this time. They asked for our passports again and took our pictures for a second time. When I mentioned that we were just here a week ago and all information was taken already, we were told that all information has been erased as we checked out. When we checked in/out the first time, we informed front desk that we were making the hotel our base camp and will be coming in and out a few times. It’s strange that they would delete our information and redo everything all over again. Again we need to add a bed. House keeping brought a roller bed which has a stained mattress pad. I asked them to bring a clean one, they said they could not. They said they didn’t have any clean pads. They said the only option is to remove the pad and put the sheets directly on the mattress. They further suggested that since the sheet is clean, dirty pad doesn’t matter and that every mattress pad under bed sheets has urine stains. His words made my stomach turn but I was too tired to fight so they went ahead put sheets on top of the mattress pad that has a big yellow stain. Again I asked for pillows for the additional bed, they refused at first, upon my insistence, they agreed to bring pillows. They also took out a blanket from the cabinets under television and put it on the bed. When the seven year old was ready for bed, I opened the blanket and realized it’s cover is dirty. It’s dusty and has multiple stings of hair on it. I called house keeping, a lady quickly bought over a clean duvet cover for the blanket but refused to take away the dirty one. She insisted that we keep the dirty duvet in the closet. I did not understand her rationale but there isn’t anything I can do. So that dirty duvet cover stayed in the closet. Maybe I should not have come back to this hotel.

1. **服務周到，賓至如歸** 這次入住體驗非常棒！公寓工作人員的服務態度特別好，從入住到退房，每一個環節都讓人感到貼心。前台小姐姐熱情又耐心，還主動幫我升級了房型，房間視野超好，真的非常感謝！ 2. **房間乾淨舒適，設施齊全** 房間打掃得非常乾淨，床品柔軟舒適，睡得很香。浴室也很寬敞，熱水充足，洗浴用品質量不錯。細節做得很到位，住得很舒心。 4. **位置便利，周邊配套齊全** 酒店地理位置很好，附近有商場和地鐵站，出行非常方便。晚上還可以在周邊散步，感受城市的夜景，整體氛圍很放鬆。 5. **性價比高，推薦入住** 這次入住感覺物超所值，無論是房間設施還是服務質量都很滿意。下次來這個城市還會選擇這家酒店，也會推薦給朋友！

The hotel is lovely. Especially the service from the staff. Most of them speak English and are always willing to help. If anything goes wrong they make sure to correct it and leave you satisfied. Rooms are quiet and spacious. The breakfast is good , has bit of variety of western and Chinese food. The highlight for me was the food truck by the patio. It sells affordable and delicious hotdogs and very yummy ice-cream. there is a small water show in the evening as well . It’s also near a mall so many food options. A little far from the subway or train station but I’ll still give it a 10/10!

Five-Day Stay in Nanjing Check-in Experience We arrived early at around 6 AM due to the difficulty of booking train tickets during the holiday season. Although check-in was at 3 PM, the staff kindly accommodated us with an early check-in for an additional fee. Accommodation We stayed in two types of rooms during our visit: Single Room - Spacious and located in a peaceful, quiet area of the property. RV Room - Situated near the camping area where families and friends gather around a large bonfire for singing, BBQ, and games. **Ratings** Staff: 8/10 - Friendly and accommodating throughout our stay. Shuttle Service: 10/10 - The driver was exceptionally pleasant and always smiling. Since my daughter has asthma and walking long distances is difficult for her, we frequently requested shuttle service between locations. This was especially helpful as ride-share drivers typically drop off at the entrance, which is quite a walk from the rooms and facilities. Breakfast: 10/10 - Excellent variety of traditional Chinese dishes. They were accommodating when my husband requested takeout. Cleanliness: 10/10 - Both rooms were clean, including the beds, towels, and bathrooms. As my daughter’s asthma is triggered by dust, I was pleased that the rooms were clean enough that she didn’t experience any sneezing or symptoms. We all slept well for the entire five days. **Things to Consider** It’s highly recommended to have your own car, as the property is quite far from the city center. If you enjoy nature and outdoor activities, this place is ideal. Activities include: - ATV rides - Fishing area - Playground (note: adults are charged rather than children, so it’s more economical for only one adult to enter) - Small animal area featuring rabbits, ostriches, and llamas (15 RMB entry) - Train ride (30 RMB) The coffee shop has a wonderful atmosphere and aesthetic appeal, making it popular for photos. The property itself is spacious and perfect for leisurely walks. There’s also a temple nearby, approximately 20 minutes away by car. **Challenges We Faced** My daughter developed a fever and experienced diarrhea during our stay. When I called the front desk for help, the staff member wasn’t very accommodating and suggested my husband go buy medicine. This was difficult for us as foreigners who don’t speak the language well. I felt sad and helpless, especially when we couldn’t get any taxis or cabs to pick us up. We wanted to take her to the hospital, but no cabs were available. However, the next morning, a staff member spoke with me who was extremely kind and accommodating. They even offered to drive my daughter to the hospital, which I declined because we needed to catch our train and she was feeling better after taking medicine. They drove us to the South Railway Station and thoughtfully gave my daughter bags and drinks. It was a very kind gesture that we truly appreciated.

Tout d'abord, l'hôtel est idéalement situé sur Pingjiang Road. Vous pouvez profiter de Pingjiang Road à seulement deux pas de là. L'hôtel propose également des coupons cadeaux pour les salons de thé, les bars et les restaurants. la chambre, ce qui montre qu'ils sont très attentionnés. Le parking est très pratique. La chambre est très propre, sans odeur et bien équipée en équipements, c'est calme au milieu de l'agitation ! Frère Cao à la réception est très attentionné et attentionné. Je reviendrai ici la prochaine fois que je viendrai à Suzhou.