I stayed at the Aman at Summer Palace for a week in July with my 14 year old son. I guess each traveller will have to weigh up cost versus the unique nature of the hotel. For me the uniqueness won. In a country not yet noted for fantastic customer service, the Aman staff are all well trained and happy to be of service. The architecture gives a feel of old China and the gardens are tranquil and beautiful. Another differentiator is the ability to enter the Summer Palace, located next door, at dawn and dusk (even have a picnic breakfast there). My son and I explored the backroads of this UNESCO world heritage site, long after the crowds had departed and it was magical. Knocking on the backdoor of the Aman after another circuit of the Summer Palace was a highlight. The restaurants were pricey yet served delicious Chinese fusion cooking. We also loved the cinema in the basement where we watched a private viewing of the Last Emperor, the day before we visited the Forbidden City

I guess you can really test a luxury hotel like the Aman when something goes wrong. It was not our original plan to stay here a week, we were in fact on our way to Mongolia. However my son suffered an epileptic seizure in the middle of dinner at the hotel. He had never experienced one of these before and I was very upset and unsure what to do. The hotel was exceptionally helpful during this crisis. They had first aiders on call immediately and quickly called an ambulence. The night manager accompanied us to the hospital and stayed for hours, translating documents and comments from nurses and doctors. The General Manager, Christine Hodder was also very helpful, getting documents couriered over from the hospital so that we could start a complex insurance claim. I was a little worried that after such a dramatic event we might feel awkward returning to the hotel but once again the staff were very kind and welcoming, putting my son at ease. He finally got to eat again the dinner that was disrupted by the medical emergency. I really can't praise the level of care and attention to detail enough.

I have stayed at many average luxury hotels in Beijing but this was exceptional. We stayed 3 nights with two other groups of friends to celebrate some special birthdays and they went out of their way to make this memorable. Expensive - yes but an experience like no other from the exceptional guides, amazing remote Great Wall experience with a lunch location in a rustic location we will never forget. The dinner at sunset on the Wenchang Tower topped it off with amazing food from the executive chef. We would highly recommend Aman Summer Palace if you are prepared to let them show you something special rather than the ordinary. Our guide Jerry Mao was intelligent and engaging - highly reccomended. Apple who arranged our celebration was discrete and ensured everything was perfect.

Stayed at the Aman at Summer Palace hotel for 2 nights during a two week trip around China. We had stayed at one Aman property before (Amansara in Cambodia) and thought it was amazing not only due to the property itself but also the guided trips they offered to Angkor Wat and surrounding temples included in the price. The Aman at Summer Palace is very different in that respect as not only are no excursions included in the price of the rooms but the price of any excursions that they offer is extortionate (e.g $750 for a private trip to the Great Wall), so much so that even the staff apologised to me when I went to book the trip about how expensive it was.

Unfortunately this was one of the many other instances where we were effectively gouged on prices that led to me not giving this hotel a full 5 out of 5. Don't get me wrong, knowing the Aman chain I expect the room rate to be expensive and you are paying for the Aman experience something I am more than happy to do, however, everything that you would pay for at the hotel (with the exclusion of the spa treatments) was significantly expensive (eg. cheapest bottle of wine was c.$100, cheapest meal at the Japanese fusion restaurant was $125 excluding wine). This really put a dampner on what would otherwise have been a fantastic experience.

Ignoring this aspect and on the assumption you are well aware of the minimum costs you can expect to pay for your trip then the experience was fantastic. The hotel is right next to the Summer Palace with its own private entrance. The main buildings are new but the rooms are all in old buildings from the palace converted into rooms. The layout of the hotel is gorgeous and you really feel like you are royalty staying in the palace. The service from staff was attentive and we did not really experience any issues with the level of English speaking staff during our visit.

The rooms are great and as would be expected beautifully designed and well appointed. We stayed in the Deluxe villa which was the smallest of the villas. Our only criticism was that given the restrictions of using the old buildings the rooms are relatively small inside and space is reduced even further by the amount of furniture that is in the room. This meant that one of our suitcases had to be in the bathroom in order for us to be able to have it open. The bathroom was great with two separate sinks and a separate toilet and shower. The bed was comfy and not too soft which was just how we like it.

In terms of the food we ate at both the Japanese and Chinese restaurants as well as the breakfast provided by the hotel. Breakfasts (included in the room rate) were great (as with all Aman properties there is no buffet here!) and we experienced no problems with slow service. The Japanese restaurant was reasonable, however, it is quite restrictive that you can only select one of the fixed tasting menus. I like to try new foods but am reasonable fixed on things I don't like and this (self-imposed) restriction meant that there were various parts of the menu that I wasn't able to eat which was a bit galling given the price we were paying. The Chinese restaurant was good too, we had the Peking Duck which between 2 was huge. The duck was cooked well and the duck stir-fry you have after the duck pancakes was super but we found the pancakes a bit too greasy and fatty.

Overall, we had a very good experience at this hotel. The room size restrictions were necessary in order to get the authentic look of the property so we were able to overlook these. If only they could get to grips with the pricing of food and drink this would have been a much better review. It is interesting to note that we also stayed at the Amanfayun property while in China and did not encounter the same issues regarding costs.

My teenage daughter and I went for afternoon tea before visiting the Summer Palace.

How to get there
It took us about an hour by taxi to get to the Aman from where we were staying at the Peninsula hotel in the center of the city. To return to the city, we easily found a taxi as we were leaving the grounds of the Summer Palace (around 3:00 on a summer weekday). We also noticed you can take a pedicab to the nearby subway station.

Reservations
We made reservations but there were only two groups having tea while we were there so a reservation may not be necessary.

Access to Summer Palace
There is a "secret" door between the hotel and the Summer Palace but it is only available to hotel guests. To reach the Summer Palace, you will have to walk for about 5 minutes...exit the hotel, turn right and then right again.

Hotel, tea, cost
The interior of the Aman is luxurious and quiet. The bar area where tea is served looks out at a garden and pond. There is a nice selection of teas and the assortment of sandwiches and sweets is amazing (for China) and tasty. See photos. The cost is 198 yuan per person (around $30 US).

Next time
On my next visit, I will walk through the Summer Palace before having tea since it would be really nice to relax at the quiet Aman after dealing with the heat and crowds of the Summer Palace.