Joy City Hotel & Apartment

Breakfast was pretty good, with a decent amount to choose from, and the place was spotless. The staff were courteous and spoke English. We were given a room on the 18th and top floor for the same price as our booking, but a string of small maintenance problems made it hard to enjoy: the door didn't sit properly in its frame, so the security lock couldn't be used, the latch was loose, the wardrobe sensor light kept flashing instead of working properly, and the bedside lamps were badly fixed and couldn't be adjusted. For a hotel presented as five-star luxury, I expected more care. It's fairly central and only a 5-10 minute walk from Xidan station, served by two metro lines. There are several large shopping centers nearby, though the area itself is rather dirty and chaotic. Joy City, in the same building, felt gloomy and run-down.

The staff were so attentive and polite, and their service made my stay really pleasant. The location is very convenient too. Thank you, and I hope others get to stay here!

The room was spacious and clean, and having Dayue Department Store connected to the hotel made it easy to shop and find somewhere to eat. Xidan Station on Metro Line 1 is about a five-minute walk away, which was handy for sightseeing. The gym is open around the clock, though it is shared with the public and can get crowded at certain times. I also found the lack of signs and instructions for the laundry and gym confusing. The air conditioning temperature didn't change when I adjusted it.

The rooms were very clean, and we had a complimentary minibar on the day we arrived. The hotel is right by the shopping center and about a five-minute walk from the metro. I booked partly because there was a pool, and I really wish I'd checked the reviews first. It belongs to a gym in the shopping center, not the hotel. We went with the children, but there were no free lanes, and each lane had five to ten children swimming. It was extremely noisy and felt like a swimming lesson. My kids didn't want to swim amid the noise and all the Chinese children swimming as if in a competition. I was very disappointed.