Hotel4Real!

In 2010, Renaissance Chengdu opened its door as the first Renaissance hotel of the area. Today, almost two decades later, the hotel had seen no major renovation, and had maintained most of its original flavours. That might be appealing in some cases, but for a contemporary-branded hotel like a Renaissance, it was not really a selling point. Then why did I book here? Well, the main reason was the price. At ~CA$80 per night taxes in, it was hard to turn down a full-service Marriott with a lounge, close to major points of interest, and easily accessible from train stations and airports via the subway. So, I still decided to see for myself, with my expectations already low.

In my past experience, lower expectations can sometimes yield pleasant surprises, but I didn’t expect the entrance to the hotel being one of them. Even today, this car port still felt current or maybe even a bit futuristic. Other than that, the arrival experience was pretty standard to sub-standard. There was one doorman when I arrived, and even though he was seemingly idling, he did not greet me or offer any help. The check-in process was easy, and although the front desk agent specifically mentioned (not sure why) that they typically offer studio suite upgrades to Titanium members, there was none available and I was given an executive room on the club floor. I asked if the original room had a good view, and after knowing my preference he gladly switched me to the other side of the building, and I was sent on my way up.

My room was on the 29th floor, and even though judging by the floor plan it was one of the smaller rooms, it still felt very spacious. The room decor felt okay, but the plain style and brown-beige colour palette were noticeably older, and the random signs of wear and tear like the peeling carpet, crooked outlet covers and stained seats did not make it better.

I did mention the room felt spacious, however that was not including the bathroom area. I found the bathroom a bit on the tighter side, and notably the bathtub was absent, which was not exactly common for premium hotels in China, especially an older one. Being an older hotel, there was no smart tech stuff to be found, and the shower heads had seen better days. In fact, the rainforest shower was leaky and barely usable.

I used the lounge for evening food and drinks, and the offering was good enough. There was a good variety of alcoholic drinks, however a few things were out of stock, and a few others were upon request only. Food was okay if I were anywhere else, but for Chengdu, the available options felt a bit too generic. The lounge did get very busy, and apparently there was a waitlist by the time I left, but the team was very courteous and attentive, and the service did not feel rushed at all.

The same cannot be said for breakfast in the main restaurant. For a premium hotel, the buffet was simply too small, and local options were again few and far between. Service was a disaster – it was pretty much a free-for-all with no organization or flow control. I had to defend my table with my phone or something personal every time I stood up to get more food so that my table would not be taken by someone else, and yet it still happened twice during one meal. Based on my observation, the sole (yeah that’s right, sole) server attending the whole service was trying his utter best so koodos to him, but why the hotel staffed the restaurant with one single person during the busiest period of breakfast was beyond me.

Whereas normally when hotels get older they get creative in making guests happy, it didn’t seem like the Renaissance Chengdu tried too hard. While I was happy with the rate I paid, with a lower expectation coming in, I still walked out feeling like the hotel had merely “met” my expectations. Hopefully I’m wrong, but in a market like China where everyone is going above and beyond just to stay afloat, I think setting the bar low and putting rooms on sale signify the beginning of the end.

RealScore

Service: 7.5

Design and Room Size: 7.0

In-room Amenities: 8

Bathroom Size and Layout: 8

View from (my) Room: 8

Hotel Location: 7

Available Guest Facilities: 9

Food Quality: 7

Food and Beverage Service: 6

Executive Lounge Quality: 7

Final RealScore: 7.54

Final RealRating: A

Hotel is built/opened: 2010

Total number of rooms: 346

Length of stay: 1 night

Membership level at check-in: Titanium

Room type experienced: Executive Room