Hotel4Real!

Hi Inn is H World/Huazhu Group’s entry-level economy brand. Slotted even below China’s traditional economy brands like Hanting and Home Inn, the intention is to be the leading economy hotel chain that provides basic, cheap and yet clean and reliable accommodations across smaller Chinese cities, just like Xining, a modest city located in Qinghai province in northwestern China.

I visited Xining as a launching pad for my day trip to Qinghai Lake, and chose Hi Inn Xining Haihu Wanda Sports Center for its location, which was within walking distance to my rental car branch, but not inside the city where all the traffic was. The property itself was actually located inside a multi-purpose high-rise building shared across many different tenants, and only floors 10 and 11 were part of the 43-room hotel. Unfortunately, that also meant the elevators were shared with other levels. While security was not a concern as the guest room corridors were controlled-access, the elevators themselves had seen better days aesthetics-wise – not exactly the first impression I was looking for.

Thankfully, the “ruggedness” stopped once I reached the lobby on the 11th floor, where everything looked modern and clean, albeit fairly simplistic. There was also a set of washer/dryer in the lobby, and some seating. Prior to my arrival, the hotel had reached out to mention a few things, namely the absence of air conditioning or any on-site food options (more on these in a bit). Same was also reiterated at check-in, but apart from of that, check-in was quick and efficient, and I was given an upgraded room on the same floor.

While the room was indeed technically “upgraded”, it was still very much barebones. Apart from the bed, there were minimal amenities or fixtures available – just a narrow strip of desktop attached to the wall, a small round table, and a seat area that very much reassembled the economy “hard seats” available on the slow trains in China. There was also a noticeable lack of a closet, only a few hangers anchored to the wall. I also didn’t find any tea or coffee, nor were they available in the lobby.

There was ample lighting however, and the bathroom was fully equipped, functional and clean. I did find the shower temperature to be a bit unstable, however it wasn’t significant enough for me to really pick on. I also liked how newer hotels, even economy chains like Hi Inn, had started to use mirrors with light strip embedded in them. These did add a premium feeling, and also did a better job at, well, illumination.

Now onto the things that weren’t available. My biggest complaint with the bathroom experience didn’t come from the fixtures themselves. Instead, it was the lack of towels. Yes, for whatever reason, all Hi Inn locations only provide single-use towels that not only sucked at actually drying anything, the texture felt extremely coarse and unpleasant. Yes it did fit the bill considering the brand’s biggest selling point is cleanliness (go figure) and single-use products are, by Chinese standard, guaranteed to be “clean”, but I’d imagine they’d be much more expensive than having regular towels long-term, while being far less environmentally-friendly. In fact, this was such a huge turn-off for me that it alone is enough to turn me away from future Hi Inn stays.

Another thing the hotel didn’t have was A/C. Xining typically does not get hot in summer, but the day I arrived was “atypical” with high temperature in the low 30s. It wasn’t unbearably hot, though I did have to try a bit harder than usual to fall asleep. However, to be fair, with overnight low in the low teens, it got much more comfortable as the night went on. To be fair, it was made very clear in the booking process, and the hotel did do their due diligence to notify guests prior to arrival to avoid last-minute surprises. Considering the fact that the city rarely sees temperatures above 25C, I’d say not having an A/C is, in this case, justifiable. But it was still evident the hotel was used to handling guest complaints related to the lack of any air conditioning – nowadays most people take that for granted after all.

Another omission from your typical hotel facilities would be any meaningful food on-site. To rectify that, the hotel did provide pre-packaged breakfast for two each morning. The content was pretty basic, however – four pieces of pastry and two 250ml bags of milk. While I appreciate the effort, one or two pieces of fruit could have made a huge difference.

To sum up, I left with mixed feelings about the property and the brand in general. On one hand, it was clean, reliable, and cheaper than most other options on the map. I had a good night sleep, and left feeling refreshed and energized. On the other hand, the lack of basic amenities (especially towels) made me regret not spending the extra CNY50 or so and spend the night somewhere else. To me, I think Hi Inn properties would be my last resort, as in I’d still consciously choose them if I were to be in a pickle with no other known dependable accommodations available, but I’d be thinking twice (or thrice) for sure if there were anything else.

RealScore

Service: 6.5

Design and Room Size: 7.0

In-room Amenities: 4

Bathroom Size and Layout: 7

View from (my) Room: 7

Hotel Location: 6

Available Guest Facilities: 5

Food Quality: N/A

Food and Beverage Service: N/A

Executive Lounge Quality: N/A

Final RealScore: 6.36

Final RealRating: C

Hotel is built/opened: 2024

Total number of rooms: 43

Length of stay: 1 night

Membership level at check-in: Gold

Room type experienced: Premium Room (better amenities)