Capital of Xinjiang
May 11, 2008
night falls outside the hotel window in Urumqi, the Red Hill (Hongshan park) is visible in the distance.
There were some tall mountains in TianShan mountain range I saw on the way, I have to look up their heights. They were showing Face-off on the bus, it was in Chinese, so kind of weird, but that's some entertainment better than the last bus ride.
Urumqi is a big modern looking city, once I left the street where the bus stop was, the streets were wide, and buildings were tall and well, doesn't really tell you where you are. I suppose this could be many cities in China. Except you still have Arabic on signs next to Chinese names. The taxi ride to the hotel cost 10.5 RMB.
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night falls outside the hotel wi…
When was the last time you had to pay for a broken glass in a hotel?
Well I was told this used to be a 5 star hotel, but now is only 4 star. It's in a tall building on one of the main streets in Urumqi, the staff was friendly enough, and responded quickly to any calls I made to them. The room I had had a view of Red Hill and had a nice piece of rug. There was a sign however saying that the rug cost 3800 RMB and that if they found any cigarette burns you will be charged the full amount! On the 2nd day half asleep I broke a glass in the bathroom, that evening when I returned there was a message on the phone. I called for the message and it was the hotel asking if I did break the glass, and that it would cost me 16 RMB! Hmm, can you put it on my room charge? No, you have to pay NOW! cash or credit card. That's definitely not 5 star service, not even 4 star. And that glass was not worth 16 RMB, but I went down to the cashier and paid it anyway.
The room was clean and bathroom was modern, the bed was comfortable. The restaurant breakfast buffet was abundant and had good variety, there was a chef there to cook you eggs and noodles on order. A free non-alcoholic drink voucher was offered as I checked in. Internet in-room was not free, but was a good price. Business center price cost a little more. My room cost 531 RMB per night which I thought was more expensive than it should be for what's offered. But Urumqi is a big city you probably can find many hotels of equal or better value. I will not stay here again, however.
The room was clean and bathroom was modern, the bed was comfortable. The restaurant breakfast buffet was abundant and had good variety, there was a chef there to cook you eggs and noodles on order. A free non-alcoholic drink voucher was offered as I checked in. Internet in-room was not free, but was a good price. Business center price cost a little more. My room cost 531 RMB per night which I thought was more expensive than it should be for what's offered. But Urumqi is a big city you probably can find many hotels of equal or better value. I will not stay here again, however.
Exterior of the Xinjiang Grand H…
