This hotel is also known as the Oriental Bund Hotel if you book through a third party travel site, as we did. Hotel staff actually recommended this manner of booking, rather than directly through the hotel. This hotel was probably the Queen of Shanghai when it opened some 15 to 20 years ago. It is a world class business hotel in construction and layout. Unfortunately, time is quickly passing it by. Other newer hotels have emerged, but none so nice, (with such a low price), are in this immediate area. We booked the river view room, and the view is still spectacular. Nearby construction will at some point block the view, but fortunately, the pace of construction seems to be extremely slow. You may still have another year of unobstructed river views. The room is huge. Even with the king bed, the space is luxurious. Added to that, an office alcove is located to the side, equipped with a rather large desk and wired complimentary internet. This makes the room more into a junior suite, without a door to the office area, however. A full closet, with bathrobes and slippers, glass shelved electric kettle area, a refrigerator stocked with the typical minibar beverages, (but enough room for your own purchases), and a well appointed bathroom stocked with plenty of those complimentary toiletries, indicate that this hotel was meant for serious business travelers in its heyday. We paid about $90 US per night for our 5 night stay. This is an absolute bargain for this kind of accommodation, and was an outstanding headquarters for our Shanghai stay. Staff is reasonably friendly, (considering that this is Shanghai), and when you check out, they WILL send a housekeeper to your room to make sure that you have not looted the minibar. Therefore, allow a little extra time for checkout. The hotel restaurant, while billing itself as western, does not really offer any western items for dinner. The breakfast is also likewise more Chinese than western. Nonetheless, I found an adequate array of items so as to not leave hungry. My Singaporean Chinese wife rather enjoyed the selection of Chinese items. If you are taking a taxi to the hotel to check in, the address, 386 Renmin Road, is not the front door of the hotel. That address will actually put you in front of a nondescript array of shop stalls, and could be disconcerting. Not to worry, as the actual entrance of the hotel is around the corner on Yong An Lu. The lower floors of the building seem to be used for light industrial, and the hotel lobby is on the 8th floor. If you want your hotel to be located in the upscale district surrounded by trendy bars and nightspots, this is not the hotel for you. If, however, you want to see life in Shanghai today, then the Xingyu is centrally located. From our room, we could see rows of small flats, and walking to the north, you can examine these modest homes. About 3 blocks to the south is the Yuyuan Garden, and surrounding it, what I call the Yuyuan Garden Shopping Center. This is important if you want to know where the closest Starbuck's is located, as well as money changers who seem to offer fair exchange rates. About two blocks west of the hotel is the entrance to the Shanghai Metro Number 9 line. It is very inexpensive, and quite easy to buy the single ride tickets. In the upper right corner of the ticket machine is a button to select English. We used the Metro quite a lot, and it is probably the best way to get around as there are currently 10 lines with more seemingly on the way. In summation then, until the new construction blocks the view, the Xingyu Hotel offers plenty of amenities at an extremely valuable price. Despite these limitations, we would definitely recommend the Xingyu Hotel for your first visit to Shanghai.

Wow, for a change a Chinese hotel where the rooms are nicer than the lobby. Booked a 2 bed "Executive Business" bed for 3 people, through a prepay hotel website. Cost was about $73 a night (no breakfast). We got a large room (1044) with a queen and a single bed (bigger than a twin). It's an interior room, overlooking the buffet restaurant, but with a window that actually opens. Had no problems on check-in. My voucher was accepted and I left a credit card deposit. Check-out was fast (once I got to the counter; 6-8 min wait for 3 families in front of me). Had to wait about 2 min for the standard "maid visits room to make sure we didn't steel anything" check. We passed. I paid the 2RMB for the phone call I made, and we were out of there. Staff English is limited, but they there was always someone nearby they could get to translate if needed. In the room - TV - lots of channels, several of the usual English travel channels. Transmission was a little laggy, but not bad. Beds - Bedding was very nice. But I always forget how firm Chinese beds are. Maintenance - A couple little things didn't work; two lights out, one dimmer not working, sink draine slow. I'm sure all would have been fixed if we'd called, but we didn't feel like dealing with it. Fridge wasn't cold, but probably wouldn't have been fixed. Worst problem was the lack of air conditioning (yes, in December). It was 22-24 celsius the whole trip; too warm for us to sleep well at night. Toiletries/amenities: Shampoo, lotion, bath gel, toothbrush, comb, razor, shower cap, "vanity kit" (nail file, q-tips, cotton balls), shoe mitts, Nescafe, teas, 1 bottle of water per person per day. Location - You're about a block from Yu Gardens. Nearest metro is a bit of a walk. Best things for me location wise: The alley life From Yu Gardens to Renmin Rd/Zhonghua Rd, between Fangbang Middle Rd and Fu Xing Dong Lu. Amazing true "old, neighborhood, Shanghai". The ShiLui Pu Cloth Mart at the corner of Renmin & Dongmen (just know your fabric or get scammed on "cashmere").

Like someone else here said, after hours doing research on hotels in Shanghai no one could beat the Oriental Bund on this price range. At first some reviews made us hesitate, but in the end we can say we have absolutely no regrets of our choice. Just can’t understand why it does not get a better ranking. I will now try to cover some main issues that could help when making a decision: LOCATION: conveniently located about a 10-15 min walk from the southern end of The Bund and Yuyuan Garden subway station. Even if not in the central part of The Bund, the proximity to the Old City made us have access to both attractions within walking distance. Early in the morning or in the evening your walk to the subway will also give you the chance of seeing the Chinese involved in group activities such as Tai chi, gym, dancing, karaoke and much more. SURROUNDINGS: you won’t find the glamour of the nicest part of The Bund or modern Pudong with all the expensive hotels. Some said the area looked shabby, for us it was just a normal area in a big city in China. And YES, there is a huge CONSTRUCTION site just opposite the hotel. There are rooms facing the other side of the street but we preferred not to risk and requested a quiet room overlooking the inner courtyard (actually the breakfast area), so noise was never a problem. I guess for a while there is no point in paying for more expensive rooms with river view. ROOMS: our room was excellent, and here goes a hint: for a few bucks more we got a deluxe room and I think it really paid off, since they are bigger and more comfortable. Just the bathroom could have been a little more spacious, but it was clean and in modern style. Beds are not as soft compared to western standards, but that is common in China. No free wifi in the room, just in the lobby on the 8th floor. BREAKFAST: it was included in the rate, which is really a deal in China. Most of the items in the buffet are meant for the Chinese, but westerners not willing to eat noodles or dumplings in the morning can survive on a limited but reasonable choice of tea, coffee, milk, butter, jam, eggs, some fruits, sweets etc. ELEVATORS: could not understand some complaints about having to wait a lot to get a lift and even suggesting to get a room near the reception so as to use the stairs if in a rush. Maybe it’s not a hotel in Las Vegas with dozens of lifts ready at the push of a button, but for us it was never a problem. TAXIS: although most of the times we walked and used the subway, it was not difficult to get a taxi whenever we needed. There is always a guy from the hotel at the entrance that can help you (reception is on the 8th floor). As repeated everywhere, be SURE to have the hotel address in Chinese. Once we had lost it and just pointed to the subway map with the Chinese version of Yuyuan Garden to make us understood. Once getting in the area all we had to do was point to the hotel building, you can’t miss it. STAFF/LANGUAGE: never had problems with staff, some were nice and could speak good English. My experience in other hotels in China taught me it all depends on who’s in charge at the moment and on your luck. There’s a business center that can help you get train tickets, which was really helpful. CHECK IN/OUT: we arrived on an early flight and had previously requested an early check-in, which was possible without us having to pay any extra charge. No problems having to wait. Maybe we were lucky, but everything ran smooth both on arrival and departure. Having read some reviews mentioning the long check-out process we got there 45 minutes before we had to leave for the airport. It took us no more than 10 minutes. My overall impression of The Oriental Bund was very good, and I would surely recommend it to someone staying in Shanghai. Considering standard, location and price, you will hardly find anything better in Shanghai.