Reviews of 9 Dragons House (Xinmao Hostel)

30 September 2011 Frank Chun Keung would recommend this property

Liked: The manager Ms Au Yung and her staff are very friendly and helpful, and there is a very comfortable balcony on the third floor and it is open for all the hostel guests, easy to talk to other travelers! The cafe charge u reasonable price for everything! I think this is a really nice hostel and I would love to go bad with my other fds and my family!

Disliked: I am pretty happy with this hostel! So nothing I really dislike!

25 September 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: Great location. Fantastic Great Wall tour. Staff were very helpful. Stayed there twice in two months and would stay there again. Ask for a double on the second or third floor.

Disliked: The food in the cafe was a little inconsistent.

19 September 2011 Pedro would recommend this property

Liked: Friendly place for staying a few days in Beijing. Very friendly staff..

Disliked: It is not the cleanest place in Beijing..

15 September 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: Friendly and helpful front office staff.

Disliked: Hostels bathroom is on another level...airconditioning is poorly maintained ..

12 September 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: the staff is kind and helpful, the location is very good, there are enough showers and toilets; wi-fi and air-conditioning are provided; the hostel organises various sightseeing tours

Disliked: the table, chair and beds in the room were a bit dusty, and there were some stains on the sheets of one of the beds

11 September 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: good location

Disliked: just one bath room for dorm people. and Toilet and shower and sink is all same room. That mean if a person using bathroom other person can to use any of those. and not enough plags(?? to get charge thing) for a dorm room.

06 September 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: There is a nice atmosphere and the reception staff are very helpful. They run a fanstastic trip to the Great Wall.

Disliked: The rooms could do with a revamp - they are looking very old and tired. We stayed in other hostels around China that were a similar price and the standard of the rooms was much better. The hostel advertises that is books train tickets which was a major factor for us but they no longer do. The restaurant staff were not particularly welcoming or helpful. The cook sat in the restaurant watching TV and smoking for a good 10 minutes after we had placed our order one evening, and another time we were told we couldn't have a rice dish because they had run out of rice - is this possible in China? It was clear it was the cook that couldn't be bothered to make it.

30 August 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: The service was overall good: The location is central and near the subway station, we had a climatized room with WiFi and TV, and the hostel organized a nice trip to the Great Wall. Besides that the staff at the reception desk was helpful, in particular one of the girls who spoke good English and was very friendly.

Disliked: The bathroom could have been cleaner and some of the staff did not speak English and was unfriendly at times, although when insisting they managed to find solutions to our issues.

30 August 2011

Liked: location

Disliked: staff

29 August 2011 Christopher would recommend this property

Liked: Walk 100 metres down a hutong and there it was; deceptive front leading into the hoste. Internet 4RMB per hour with a honesty box to pay into. Staff were helpfull; and knowledgeable; we booked two tours (great guides) and bought maps. Most of the staff spoke/understood basic English. The "milk tea" in the restaurant was superb; just how I like it.. Many foreign tourists to chat and mingle with. Hostel is near to the metro and bus routes so easy to get to places, Out of the hostel, turn left and at the end of this road cross over to the DIY cafe and pastry shop. Upstairs we had 4 lovely cakes and 2 large latte for 40 RMB (thats less than £4 - great value as you watch cakes being prepared through the glass vewing window. Hostel has cycles to hire.

Disliked: Restaurant area very dark and with smoking allowed; it wasn't a very nice place to eat.. Room was "tired" and could have done with a paint-job. One lady on reception was quite rude and uncooperative; everyone is entitled to a bad day, that may have been hers. No lifts but a friendly Chinese guest helped us with our luggage; we were en-route to the DPRK so had a few gifts for the tour guides.

25 August 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: nice accomodation, friendly staff

Disliked: nothing

23 August 2011 Ian would recommend this property

Liked: I was impressed that the Hostel refunded money paid for a Great Wall Tour as I was sick even though I only gave 1/2 hour notice that I was not coming. Good location close to the Metro.

Disliked: Restaurant staff are lazy and unhelpful. Internet access was patchy in parts of the building.

21 August 2011

Liked: to get in touch with other travellers in dorm rooms - excellent!

Disliked: cleanliness, especially in sanitaries is not worth price.

20 August 2011 Kurt would recommend this property

Liked: Right beside the subway. Very good value for beijing. Good tour of a secluded area of the great wall.

Disliked: The shared bathroom was not very clean. Cleaning lady spits in your dorm. Not a good common area.

19 August 2011 Rachel would recommend this property

Liked: ·very helpful staff

Disliked: nothing

19 August 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: It had a nice atmosphere and the private room was really nice.

Disliked: Nothing really.

15 August 2011

Liked: One of the staff, Jeff, who made our stay bearable was the most friendly and helpful.

Disliked: Some staff was just rude and nasty - especially that woman( Ms Kao) in charge in the cafe and restaurant. She is arrogant and unfriendly towards travelers from non-white countries. The trip to the Great-wall was not a honest one as it was dangerous and steep. This part of the wall as we found out later was a prohibited area for everyone! There are better and cheaper organizers from other hostels. The room we had supposed to be for non-smokers but the smoke kept coming from the neighbor`s room.

14 August 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: location is amazing and the staff are very friendly and helpful

Disliked: It could be a little cleaner

03 August 2011 Dinorah would recommend this property

Liked: very nice personnel, helpful and sweet... the food was great, big menu and good taste.

Disliked: ...

02 August 2011

Liked: right next to a metro station

Disliked: common space is dark, and at the very back of the property.

30 July 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: beautiful rooms

Disliked: nothing

29 July 2011

Liked: 2 minutes away from Zhangzingsomething Station. Subway 2yuan only,$ any station! Subway closes at 11pm, make sure you arrive at the Airport Expres Station before 10:30. We missed it by 50 seconds, and we had to take a taxi for 150RMB, no choice, it's late at night and raining. Not a lot to see where the hostel is, just below average hutong. There are really nicer hutongs if you venture out farther. TAXI fr airport should not be more than 90RMB. Dont pay more, 1 couple we know was charged 450. Be careful. Annie and Jeff are very accommodating.

Disliked: DIRTY BATHROOM, think Mold from floor to ceiling, you can smell it while you shower. Make sure Room booking says ENSUITE, if you want a Room w/ Toilet/Bathroom. The entire place smells of mold and smoke. People checking out says it's overrated by Lonely Planet. People checking in are disappointed. Even if you are booked, there's no guarantee you have a room. We waited for 6hours in the living area with mosquitoes and really sticky, smelly, grimy couch.

28 July 2011

Liked: No lockers, but if you need to check out early, you can leave luggage at the front desk (at your own risk) but it is free. Close to Subway Station. Jeff and Annie are nice staff, but decide if having 2 nice staff is worth how dirty nasty the facility is. CLOse to subway station. Keep your KEY, deposit is 100RMB, you lose key, you lose your 100

Disliked: FORGET LONELY PLANET!!! At least 5 people I asked (during the great wall tour) said it is overrated and will not book again. 2 of them saw it on lonely planet so they are excited, and DISAPPOINTED when they saw the place. MOLD in the bathroom makes me squirm, and im not even a clean person! ENSUITE means w/ BATHROOM. Private Double= NO bathroom. Private Double ENSUITE has BATHROOM. I had to book twice bec i had NO bathroom in first booking. Cannot amend booking with Hostelbookers, NO deposit refund. you have to email 9dragons to amend but some message gets lost in translation. The common tv/living area - Dont even go there, the couch is grimy and sticky and have mysterious stains. The place is a Hutong but not nice Hutong, there are so many nice ones if you walk further along. All the people I spoke to are Disappointed. I have never been disappointed like this because i am easy to please. I also do not do surveys, but i feel it is my obligation to warn all of you.

28 July 2011

Liked: Location, but be careful, the map in the description is not right check on google maps for the real location on a Beijing map.

Disliked: Twin rooms are not value for money, I travel a lot in China (about every month I come to Beijing and try a new hotel...) and I found others hotels in Beijing with a better chinese hutong style, better price, better rooms. Rooms are overpriced, according to me 50RMB/people would be the max I would pay in that hotel.

27 July 2011 Robyn would recommend this property

Liked: Great atmosphere, friendly staff, great facilities.

Disliked: Nothing