Holiday Inn Shanghai Dishui Lake By Ihg

“Welcoming, friendly and relaxed with a local feel and flavour.”

My wife and I visited the growing Shanghai Lingang area to reunite with our son who works nearby to the hotel in China , and to meet his wife and granddaughter, so we event there for a traditional holiday/sightseeing tour. Lingang is a developing part of Shanghai, approx 40kms from the CBD, and whi… more

My wife and I visited the growing Shanghai Lingang area to reunite with our son who works nearby to the hotel in China , and to meet his wife and granddaughter, so we event there for a traditional holiday/sightseeing tour. Lingang is a developing part of Shanghai, approx 40kms from the CBD, and whilst not on the international travel circuit, but caters predominantly for the local clientele, esp families with nearby venues such as Ocean Park, Dishui Lake, the Space Museum and Nautical Museum nearby, and Disney Shanghai about 25kms away. The welcome at the hotel was lovely after a long flight, very friendly staff who catered for us, even though we had no local language skills. (Apart from Hello and Thanks). We had a 2 weeks stay in a suite, which gave us room to spread ourselves. As mentioned, the hotel predominately attracts local stays, and suitably the amenities reflect this. It’s not a spot to sit in your room and watch English language TV, but my wife and I enjoyed being able to share and see the different culture in the dining area and hotel. A big buffet option, with omelette and noodle station, and many local delicacies available. The staff coped with our language barrier very well, and always looked to help. Even on the first morning where I tried to work out which jug had black tea, the staff ensured there was a little sign written on it for my stay. It was a nice, local set of options, again suited for their regular guests. We also enjoyed afternoon tea with a variety of petit fours, fruits and biscuits which were great. We also had dinner in a few nights, and when looking for a change from local fare, the steak was cooked excellently, nice and juicy (but would have been perfect if the pepper sauce was a little creamier and peppery) and the burger vey filling. But I reckon you should be adventurous and try some of the local offerings…..whether at breakfast or throughout. It isn’t like a western hotel with room service, but the dining options go until 9pm. The local guests are also familiar with the incredible number of delivery options which get delivered to the lobby ( which is common throughout) The Manager made sure to welcome us each day, and encouraged his staff to talk with us throughout, encouraging them to practice their English skills. They even allowed us a large checkout to cater for our return flight. The location was ideal for our needs, and allowed us to experience more of a Chinese feel, than being at a Western hotel ‘transplanted’ in the region. The area surrounding the hotel gave us easy access to local restaurants, malls and transport (and predominantly was close to family). Some recommendations for visitors to Shanghai generally - Google Translate allowed us to convert signs, and communicate with staff/drivers , and explore Alipay Tour Card to allow you to purchase items as China is well on the way to being cashless, and these payment systems allow you to pay, book things, order meals at restaurants, etc. They have limits on how much to load, so look into it before you go. But at the hotel, a standard credit card/ bank travel money card worked. All in all, it was an ideal place for us to stay for our particular trip. We weren’t there for a big tour/exploration of Shanghai, but needed a place in Lingang we could rest, feel very comfortable and welcome, and allowed us to experience more of the local way of life. A clean, bright friendly hotel with staff that looked after us, even though we weren’t their traditional guests. We loved it as “fish out of water’ and felt relaxed throughout. Thanks for a great stay, and looking forward to returning to enjoy an unspoilt, local, pleasant experience.

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