Hotel4Real!

I’d always had mixed feelings about Moxy as a brand. On the one hand, it had never failed me as a cheap yet reliable accommodation especially for solo travels, but in the meantime I had never been wowed in any way by any Moxy property, and had not really considered it as an option hotel when I was not travelling alone unless other options in the area didn’t exist or truly sucked – this was exactly the reason why we (there were 3 of us) decided to try the Moxy Ningbo Old Bund, as there were literally no other option within walking distance of Ningbo’s attractive old bund area, packed with actions and nightlife. Expecting, well, not much from the stay, I was actually very happy that I gave the hotel and the brand another chance.

We arrived at the hotel by taxi, but were surprised there was no way for any vehicles to access the hotel’s only entrance/exit, as it was right on the riverbank boardwalk and hence blocked off. The walk itself was not bad, maybe 3 minutes, but it was slightly annoying for us as we had luggage and it was raining. We later picked up a rental car, and not surprisingly the hotel did not offer free parking, or in fact, any parking. We were directed to park in a nearby underground parking facility for a small fee (around CA$2 per night), and like the taxi situation, trips to/from the parking lot involved a short walk.

We arrived a few hours before check-in officially started, however check-in went smoothly. The welcome gift option included breakfast for two, and the gentleman at check-in gladly made it three for us. He also offered us a welcome drink each (more on that later), and found an upgraded river view room that was ready, so we were sent on our way upstairs.

On our way, I couldn’t help but notice how the hotel went all out with their Moxy “extravaganza” in the public areas. A good example would be the elevators, both of which were wrapped into different themes. I found it cool, but after a while it got trippy, especially the disco-themed one. Not only that, the hotel also added a good amount of local elements, such as the light fixture that showcased Ningbo dialect in our hallway. We later found out it meant “you’re welcome”, which was a bit confusing to see in a hotel hallway, but still better than nothing I guess.

The design extended to our room, just to a lesser extent. In fact, the room featured a mix of the typical Moxy “efficiency” items, such as the clothes hooks instead of a closet, a fold-up desk and chair etc., as well as nice conveniences you’d find in a traditional hotel, like a mini bar and a coffee station.

The view was as nice as it could get, with the river barely yards away from our window, and the buildings put on a mini light show every night. Most importantly, I think the biggest plus was that although our room was the same size as the regular rooms, it was still very roomy for a Moxy. All three of us were able to lay out our stuff without getting into each other’s space. Don’t get me wrong – it was still nowhere near the size of a typical Marriott room in APAC, but it was more than enough for the money and its target audience. The hotel also offered a larger corner room, although you would have had to give up the view for it.

The bathroom was pretty standard and slightly smaller that I would have preferred, but it was very well put together in typical Moxy colours. I really liked the light around the mirror, which in my opinion elevated the overall look of the washroom quite a bit, but I would have liked it even more if it could change colours – truly a first-world problem.

Bar Moxy was located on the main floor next to the lobby, and this was unfortunately where the problem started. The first problem was that the bartender was almost never there. On our first night, two of us went downstairs to redeem our welcome drinks, and the front desk had to call him up from the back. It took him 10 minutes to show up, and when he did show up, it was somewhat obvious we interrupted him half-way through something important. He told us we could get two simple mixed drinks, meaning one spirit and one choice of juice. We put our order in, he delivered them, and before I could tell him there was another person joining us, he very quickly disappeared to the back again. We unfortunately had to go through the same process again when our third friend showed up a moment later. However, this time, a different bartender showed up and told him to order anything from the menu, and he ended up scoring a fancy cocktail for free, while the two of us sat there all jealous with our vodka and pineapple juice. Later that night, when we were playing pool in the lobby, the bar staff decided it was too late, and without any communication, they abruptly turned off the lights. We would have appreciated some advance notice, instead we had to leave our game unfinished and cut our time short at the bar.

The hotel operated a small restaurant that was very busy during breakfast, but mostly dead for the rest of the day. Breakfast was good enough, with the typical hot and cold Chinese/Western spread, a live noodle bar, plus a Korean section. Service was meh – the servers were more interested in chatting between themselves than actually helping. In fact, courteous service, or the lack thereof, was a theme throughout my stay. Apart from the gentleman that checked us in and another lady at the front desk, the vibe of the rest of the front desk/F&B staff members we encountered were simply standoffish, nonchalant and Gen-Z. We constantly felt like we were “bothering” them whenever we asked a question, requested for something, or even existed in the lobby. For a Moxy, this was inexcusable, as the brand wanted their guests to use and have fun in the communal space rather than spending too much time in the tiny rooms. We felt so uncomfortable after the first night trying to enjoy ourselves in the public areas that we decided to go out the second night, even though we really did want to play pool and use the arcade while sipping on some fun drinks.

Everything considered, did I enjoy my experience at the Moxy Ningbo Old Bund? Absolutely. Hard product-wise it was one level above other Moxy properties I’ve experienced, and value for money was great in Ningbo’s central area. Was my stay perfect? Unfortunately not, but fortunately, the whole thing was very much fixable. With some more courtesy from the team, it could have been the perfect Moxy we’ve all been looking for. For now, it’s just good enough.

RealScore

Service: 6.5

Design and Room Size: 9.0

In-room Amenities: 7

Bathroom Size and Layout: 8

View from (my) Room: 9

Hotel Location: 9

Available Guest Facilities: 7

Food Quality: 8

Food and Beverage Service: 4

Executive Lounge Quality: N/A

Final RealScore: 7.83

Final RealRating: A

Hotel is built/opened: 2024

Total number of rooms: 118

Length of stay: 2 nights

Membership level at check-in: Titanium

Room type experienced: Premium Room (better view)