Crowne Plaza is a good hotel with a good location, right at the top of one of the main shopping streets.

I stayed there recently in 3 rooms, with my wife & the kids as we explored Beijing for 6 days.

Check-in is a little bureaucratic & not the fastest but it is fine, with pleasant staff. The rooms are comfortable, flat screen LCD TV, CNN, HBO etc. Internet works well, bathrooms are clean with all the expected amenities.

When we were short of stuff in the bathroom, housekeeping turned up fast but it has to be said their English understanding is rudimentary. However, sign language worked fine & they were very helpful.

The breakfast is extensive but the pastires are doughly & the staff are a little too enthusiastic in the clearing of dirty dishes sometimes. Try the cappuccino at breakfast - it's much better than the black sludge!

The walls of the rooms are VERY thin - even to the extent smoke from adjacent smokers seems to seep through. If you do not smoke, ensure you get a room on a non smoking floor.

Overall a pleasant stay & we would recommend this hotel for trips to Beijing.

Stay at Crowne Plaza Beijing a few times from 2005 to 2007. Best mix of price, service and location in Wangfujing area in Beijing.

Great location. Walking distance to the Forbidden City and Wangfujing Shopping District. Good restaurants around.

Try to get a corner room for big windows facing west or south. Hotel reception staff has been very friendly and helpful.

The Crowne plaza is a good standard 5 star hotel. Location is good. You can walk to major tourist sights. Has a big atrium which gives you an airy feeling.
Rooms are clean, however already a bit aged when it comes to furniture.
During my stay quite a few travek groups used the hotel, so check-in was slow and breakfast room very crowed.

Selected Crown Plaze on the basis of TripAvisor.com reviews and found the hotel first class. Very clean and ALL staff spoke English including concierge and room attendants. Well located just one block away from the centre of the shopping district. Become a Priority Club member (free) and stay on the 'Club' floor and get free internet and light dinners. Has a great swimming pool and spa for the kids. Massage provided as well.

Surprisingly the centre of Beijing is close to all the tourist venues. In particular the Crown Plaza was very close (20 minutes by car) to Forbidden City,Tiananmen Square, Lama Temple. Also near local Hutongs - local housing, local restaurants (meals for $2 per person), local shopping strip. Right next to China Merchant Bank where we could change money and had about 8 cash machines which took VISA Card. Note most places take cash only - so being near a bank was very important.

We ate at local restaurants, but not open markets as advised by our local Beijing guide Qing (pronounced Ching) who guided us for 8 days. We found Qing on TripAdvisor and she was amazing. We have three children and Qing and her driver made the trip a lifetime highlight. Contact Qing on [--].

Qing also took us skiing, which was very cheap and of course the Great Wall, Acrobatic and Kung-Fu shows, Antique market, Vegetarian restaurant. Having a local Beijing Chinese guide is the way to go - you save the daily fee many times over by not getting lost and also buying local goods at local prices - Qing made bargaining a lot more equal. Importantly Qing did not send us to shops like other guides. She refused tips or commissions - refer to other TripAdvisor feedback for confirmation. Beijing far exceeded our expectations. PS. Shanghai was a disappointment by comparison.