Lijiang Waterfall Hotel Guilin

Lijiang Waterfall Hotel

by solopes

One of the attractions in Guilin is the show that each night, at 8.30 PM, takes place in the rear of the hotel: from the top, a cascade of water descends along the glasses of the wall, with music in the background. It is, indeed, the most spectacular way to … wash windows!

Guilin - good bad, and really not very nice at all

by Macmarsh

"Suggested Itinerary"

If you go to Guilin plan your time carefully. We made some silly mistakes that made our travel a bit awkward. Also be forewarned if you travel in summer it is very hot and muggy. If you are planning on seeing both Guilin and Yangzhou, see Guilin first. The boats only travel one way (from Guilin to Yangzhou). Yangzhou has a lot more charm and deserves time to appreciate after the day trippers have all left so try to spend the night. From Shenzhen (our home) there are only flights to Guilin in the morning or in the late evening.
Day one - arrive Guilin, stroll around the lakes and rivers in the downtown area. (Elephant Trunk Hill Park, Shan Lake, Rong Lake, the Crystal Bridge etc.) This is especially pretty in the evenings. Overnight Guilin
Day two - Wear sensible shoes to go and see Seven Star Park, Reed Flute Caves, Fubo Hill Park) Overnight Guilin
Day three - Take one of the dozens of tour boat downstream on the Li River. While the scenery is wonderful the food is regretable. The quaint town of Yangshuo is worth looking at, but it has too many junky tourist shops. Rent a bike and get out of town for a few hours to see the countryside. Overnight Yangshou (or splurge and stay at the Yazu Paradise Hotel half way between Yangshou and Guilin)

"Beware ..."

We were hassled by touts and ripped off in petty ways several times.
Touts - If approached in the street by a nice young girl speaking English you are about to be scammed. She is not a student, nor is she interested in practicing her English. She is their to lure you into shops & restaurants where she earns commission from whatever you buy. There are many of these "ladies" in the downtown area.

Fake booze. In the Royal Garden Hotel (5 star but not nice) I gave up on trying to get a glass of white wine (all terrible) and ordered a Pernod in the bar. I was served a suspicious yellow colored drink that smelled like Pernod but did not turn cloudy like it should have when ice/water was added. It wasn't Pernod. It was an ancient bottle that had obviously been refilled several times but a some dubious substitute. The bar manager shrugged her shoulders and giggled. Drink beer or a soft drink that can not be tampered with.

English Tour Guides - We hired an English speaking guide for a full day in Guilin. This was arranged by our hotel. She could not speak English and her Mandarin was so heavily accented I couldn't understand her Chinese either. We tried to replace her, but she didn't want to let her boss know she had been fired. She said "too busy, no other guides available" This sentence took 15 minutes to be made clear to us.

Hotel Spas - Bad service, untrained staff, high prices.

"Hotels"

Extraordinaire
Guilin
Royal Garden Hotel,
Very tired old Chinese 5 star now catering to Japanese and American Tour groups. Not good value for the price. Terrible food in the Western restaurant. Staff has little English skills. Rooms with river view are big enough and don't have the rock hard beds that are typical of most Chinese hotels. Location is inconvenient. Very cheesy "ethnic" floor show in the restaurant at night. I would not go back.

Sheraton Guilin
This hotel is also pretty tired, but the service level is much better. The staff is better trained. Food in the Chinese restaurant was pretty good. This is the main convention hotel. Location is good.

Lijiang Waterfall Hotel
Newest hotel in town but the service levels are poor. Location is good. Has an enormous waterfall show every evening at 8:00pm. This can be viewed from the Central Square.

(Halfway down the road to Yangshou)
Yazu Paradise (Hotel of Modern Art)
This is by far the best hotel in the whole area. It is fabulous. The hotel sits in a sculpture garden covering 185 acres. It is very modern and sexy. The food is good and the service is very good, but the sculpture gardens are fantastic. This is also a good choice for families as the sculpture garden has a special section for children and there are art activities for all ages. The down side is the location. It is an hour from the airport and 40 minutes from downtown Guilin (30 minutes from Yangshou). If you are going to do both Guilin and Yangshou, stay here last. A small pet peeve is the ultra trendy all glass bathroom. No real privacy. The beds are rock hard as well. Staff very accommodating. The tour guide for the sculpture garden is a delight. Don't miss the shrine to Teresa Teng, a Taiwanese singer. It is the Chinese equivalent of going to Graceland to do the Elvis pilgrimage.
There are two hotels in the complex, but one of them is currently undergoing renovations. Once finished it will be part of the Relais & Chateaux group.