dragon0419

 The monument is in the central portion of a very large pedestrian mall. From the JW Marriott, where I always stay, its a 5 minute walk. There a couple of Starbucks and McDonalds within 2 minutes of the monument. Its a great place to hang out in the morning to see seniors exercising, people going to work, and many tourists. Change is always happening here at the center of downtown.

 Great location! After a 17 hour flight and arriving close to midnight,  I was cheerfully greeted and quickly checked into my room. Fairly large room, nice and clean, witha free computer and internet service. Breakfast was both western and chinese and very delicious with many varieties. The hotel is connected to a large pedestrian mall which made it very nice to go exploring early in the morning before I met my local guide. Everything that I wanted to see was within walking distance or a short 5 minute taxi ride . The hotel provides a free shuttle to the airport. I had to catch the 6:45 am shuttle to make my early flight. Breakfast starts at 7 so I thought that I would have to buy something at the airport. To my pleasant surprise, when I checked out, they had already prepared a packed breakfast for me to take to the airport. That was really thoughtful! I highly recommend this hotel.

 Square Street is a very large area in the center of Old Town where people gather to talk, rest, have some refreshments, dance with the ethnic Naxi ladies, take photos, and even ride a horse.

Due to the very large subway construction project running alongside the hotel, it was a bit inconvenient to get across the street. But in a very short 5 minute walk is a very nice shopping center with KFC and Starbucks. If you go below the road and down the stairs near the KFC you'll find a very large underground shopping center. The river is also a 10 minute walk from the hotel. Saw a very nice fireworks at the river. I actually walked down to cross the overpass to Orange Island. It took about 25 minutes. I had a very nice suite with a living room, walkin closet, tub, shower and king size bed with two TVs and even a bar area. It was quiet at night and everything worked fine. They have a very nice spa and massage center in the hotel. Got a foot massage 2 of the 3 nights I was there. The Bar street and Walmart is within a 15 minute walk of the hotel. Great location.



Ask about the free shuttle service to the airport.