Beijing is no stranger to luxury, or luxury hotels. It may not win a fashion contest with its rival, Shanghai, but it still has its fair share of opulent 5-star skyscrapers and boutique hotels with modern, minimalist design. Couple that with the rich history, must-see landmarks such as the Forbidden City, Great Wall and Olympic Green, and incredible culinary delicacies from all regions of China, and you're sure to have an amazing time.
Seeking the Greenwich Village, sleek design hotel of Beijing? The Opposite House is your place. Get ready to be wowed by this green glass box, the brainchild of architects Kengo Kuma & Associates, with its juxtaposition of modern and traditional elements. The central atrium is flooded with natural light, with fine metallic mesh adding graceful curves and the lobby itself serving as an gallery for changing modern art exhibits. The young, friendly staff checks you in with iPads, and leads you to studio apartments that are spacious and minimalist, with natural wood floors, king size beds, deep oak soaking tubs. Enjoy a drink from the complimentary in-room mini-bar, access free and fast WiFi, and look forward to a little surprise each evening with nightly turndown service. Although there's no spa, the elegantly spare pool is inviting, and we love the setting, surrounded by trees, and walking distance to great restaurants, clubs and boutiques.
The Fairmont Beijing gets consistently great reviews from virtually all guests for three main reasons: service, facilities, and location. Apart from Hong Kong, it can be challenging to find even luxury hotels in Hong Kong where the staff goes above and beyond for guests, but the Fairmont Beijing, through a combination of careful recruitment and training, has managed it. It especially shines when it comes to the Fairmont Gold Lounge, which has its own dedicated concierge staff who are only too happy to assist with coordinating business meetings, sightseeing trips, dinner reservations, shopping recommendations and more. The Gold Lounge itself offers complimentary breakfast, afternoon tea, evening hors d'oeuvres, and desserts. Even standard Deluxe Rooms are very spacious, at 485 square feet, with plush beds swathed in 400-thread count linens and a spa-like bathroom with its oversized soaking tub, rain shower, heated bathroom floors, and Miller Harris bath amenities. We especially love that WiFi is complimentary (with free membership in Fairmont's loyalty program) and the in-room Nespresso machine.
While the St. Regis Beijing is an older property and the rooms aren't as large as at the Fairmont or The Opposite House, it has been maintained beautifully and service is some of the best in the city and overseen by GM and veteran hotelier Yngvar Stray, who previously was GM at the St. Regis Singapore, another well-managed St. Regis. Runners may enjoy an early morning to Tianamen Square and back (about 6 miles total), or take a taxi–most rides are under $5. As per St. Regis tradition, 24-hour butler service is offered to assist with packing or unpacking, complimentary tea or coffee, garment pressing, etc. Since the hotel in in the international embassy district, it's quite peaceful at night, and you'll sleep well in the plush pillowtop bed with its luxuriously soft linens. Swimmers will love the glass-enclosed Roman-style swimming pool, followed by a soak in one of the two natural hot spring jacuzzis. There's even a kids' pool, a rarity in a city hotel. For a little more pampering, relax with a massage at the recently opened Iridium Spa, which also offers saunas, aroma steam rooms, a Vichy shower, VIP suite and Iridium relaxation room. Our favorite meal at the hotel is the copious buffet breakfast, especially the Asian dishes. And if you're there in the early evening, enjoy the complimentary wine hour, with cheese and hors d'oeuvres.
Aman at Summer Palace
If you want to escape the crazy hustle and bustle of central Beijing, and feel yourself transported back to the time of the Chinese Emperors, make your way to Aman at Summer Palace, set in part of the Summer Palace itself with its own “secret” entrance to the Summer Palace. In the early morning before the tour groups come, or in the evening after they leave, you'll be able to enjoy the magic of the palace in tranquility. Note that the location does mean you're about 35-40 minutes by car from the center of Beijing, although in lieu of car service you could walk 10 minutes to a subway station, and then take a 30 min. subway train ride to central Beijing. Courtyard Guestrooms and Suites feature Ming Dynasty-styled furnishings, high ceilings, and plush king beds. Perhaps our favorite part of the resort is the Aman Spa, with its spacious Technogym and separated pilates and yoga studio naturally lit by skylights, underground lap pool, two squash courts, and amazing massages. We also recommend the exquisite French kaiseki cuisine at Naoki (better in our view than the Chinese Restaurant or The Grill) and on a hot day, it's a treat to steal away to the resort's own cinema where you may be the only guests taking in a film. There are also cultural experiences offered onsite, such as Chinese calligraphy. If we had to find fault, we'd say that service, and particularly staff English language skills, could be improved, especially given the high price relative to other luxury hotels in Beijing.
Award Flights to Beijing Using Miles and Points
Cathay Pacific First or Business Class using American AAdvantage Miles + Cheap Flight or Award to Beijing Having recently flown Cathay Pacific Business Class and Cathay First Class, this would be one of my top recommendations. Using American miles, First Class on Cathay is 67,500 miles each way, 135,000 miles round trip, and first class is worth the premium.
The Hong Kong-Beijing flight is just over 3 hours, so you could either buy a cheap economy ticket for about $200 each way, or even get the Hong Kong-Beijing leg included in your Cathay award if you're not stopping over in Hong Kong. Note that with American miles, you aren't allowed a stopover of over 24 hours. Or if you are stopping over, you could use 20,000 British Airways Avios + $46.68 for business class HKG-PEK, or just 10,000 Avios for Economy.
See our post on BankDirect to earn American AAdvantage Miles.
Asiana First or Business Class to Seoul using United Miles + Cheap Flight or Award to Beijing
You'll need to leave from LAX if you want to fly Asiana in first class, otherwise there are business class awards available out of Asiana's three West Coast gateways (LA, San Francisco, Seattle). Seoul to Beijing is just 2 hours, with cheap economy tickets on China Southern often around $200 each way.
Lufthansa Business or First Class via Germany using United Miles
As you probably know, for first class you'll need to have the flexibility to book or switch your flight a few days in advance of departure, since Lufthansa only releases first class awards to United and other Star Alliance partners about 14 days in advance. Here's an example of a mixed first and business class award from LA via Munich to Beijing. This will be a lot more tolerable once Lufthansa finishes rolling out its new business class.
You can earn United miles from either 2 credit card applications plus credit card spend, or from 3 credit card applications. Apply for the Ink Bold or Ink Plus plus either the United MileagePlus Explorer or the Sapphire Preferred, then either earn the additional United miles through spend or by, in about 3 months, applying for the third card (the United MileagePlus Explorer if you already applied for the Sapphire Preferred, or the Sapphire Preferred if you already applied for the MileagePlus Explorer).
- Apply for the Ink Bold Business Card – 50,000 points (50,000 points transfer 1:1 to United miles)
- Apply for the Ink Plus Business Card – 50,000 points (50,000 points transfer 1:1 to United miles)
- Apply for the Sapphire Preferred Visa – 40,000 points (40,000 points transfer 1:1 to United miles)
- United MileagePlus Explorer – 30,000 miles (But possible to match to a 55,000 miles offer and $50 statement credit, with the same $1000 spend + adding an authorized user)
Singapore Airlines First Class or Business Class using KrisFlyer Miles + Cheap Flight or Award to Beijing
You can transfer AMEX Membership Rewards points 1:1 to Singapore KrisFlyer, enabling you to see all award space and book first class or business class at a discount online. Singapore to Beijing is about 6 hours, and you can get a cheap economy ticket for about $225 one way on Jetstar or book an award flight.
If you don't yet have an AMEX card, you may be targeted for a 75,000 signup bonus for the AMEX Premier Rewards Gold Card.
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