Holiday Inn Chengdu Century City-West Tower

The food was poor and didn’t meet even basic expectations, and the air conditioning barely worked day or night, so the room was really uncomfortable. Staff made it sound like this was an isolated problem, but it seemed other parts of the hotel had similar issues too. This was unfortunately one of my worst hotel stays, and I wouldn’t recommend it.

For anyone meeting at the convention center, the third-floor connection to the intercontinental century city makes this hotel very convenient. It’s also close to Lotte department store. The west tower, Holiday inn Chengdu west tower, is a little older than the east tower. It looks modern at first, but the inside is old, and the hotel was being renovated in October 2018. The bathroom is a little small. Taxi fares varied: from the airport to the hotel around midnight was about 25 yuan, while the hotel to the airport at 6 am cost 60 yuan. Airport shuttle No. 4 also connects the airport and hotel. A taxi to "panda basement for birthing" cost 80 yuan, and to "Hakka residence" it was about 110 yuan.

There’s no lounge, and if you’re entitled to happy hour, it’s held in the bar by the lobby. Smoking is allowed in both the lobby and bar, with ashtrays readily available, which smokers may appreciate. The hotel is just south of the city, near both the airport and town without those road jams. Rooms are good value and breakfast has a huge range, though expect crowds during exhibitions or meeting season.

The standard room felt cramped, though the beds were okay and the shower was great, with plenty of water. Rooms weren’t especially clean, but acceptable. Staff were nice, friendly and helpful. Wi-Fi worked well; wired internet was also available and good. Google wasn’t available, and Whatsapp and other social media were censored. It’s in a central, very rich part of Chengdu, with subway line 1 about a 10-minute walk away. At the nearby Intercontinental hotel, there’s a very good international buffet with drinks, wine and beer included for about 40 Euros. That’s welcome in a city where the Sichuan food is very, very spicy.