The Grand Hyatt Beijing distinguishes itself in a large city primarily due to a great location and sense of luxury. A large chain hotel, the Hyatt nevertheless prides itself on intimate and excellent service, even for a country where "the customer is God". The staff are fast, intelligent and extremely courteous.

The hotel itself is situated directly over Wangfujing metro station, attached to one of the city's best indoor malls and at the foot of the capital's most famous shopping street, which is a hub for both modern stores and traditional silk shops and tea houses. The hotel is also within easy walking distance of the famous and historic Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square.

The facilities

The Hyatt's Club Oasis spa forms the obvious centrepiece of the hotel's facilities. There's a huge variety of massage, relaxation and beauty treatments, but most impressive is the vast underground pool, decked out to resemble a strange tropical landscape with rock caves and electric stars in the ceiling. The effect is one of great luxury and enjoyable kitsch. Being a metropolitan hotel, the Hyatt also caters for businesspeople extremely well. The recently-expanded lobby includes perhaps Beijing's best chocolate shop.

The rooms

The Grand Hyatt's 825 rooms are spacious and elegant, with soft carpets and leather upholstery, although not too much to mark them out as particularly Chinese. Larger suites swiftly grow to palatial size, and come with their own butler service. Like most large chain hotels, all the rooms are comfortable and clean.