Beijing Regent was initially a very luxurious experience for us travelling as a family. A great place to relax and spend the night especially after climbing the great wall. However, we did not have a very good experience with their facilities. One of our family members took one of the hotel cups to wash in the basin, without knowing that the handle can be detached from the cup. There was no warning sign either. Because of this, when he emptied the water from the cup, it fell straight out of the handle and there was a crack in the cup. When we checked out, we were charged RMB 280.00 just for this small damage!!

So, if you are checking in this hotel, please be aware of this.

The housekeepers also do not regularly replace the toiletries. If you have less than half a bottle of body wash left, they will not replace it!

The hairdryer in our room was also terrible. I smelled a burning smell as soon as I turned it on. I tried to look inside it, and I saw a small fire coming out of the fan!!

Overall, the outlook is great, but many details need to be taken care of.

I stayed at the Regent Beijing just for one night (I travelled from Europe to Nanjing and made a one-day stop over in Beijing). Actually I booked the Park Plaza (on the same property) via the web, but that was full when I arrived and so I got a free upgrade to the Regent. (I read that in other reviews, so this seems common policy.)

The hotel is really posh, with all the things demanding travellers (which I am not) look for: HUGE lobby, several bars with Piano player all day etc.

The room was very luxurious (e.g. brand new flat screen with CD player - which I didn't turn on because I didn't have the time), with free internet access (if you bring your own laptop).

The location is GREAT: Easy walking distance to Wangfujing, the main shopping street, and also Tian'anmen and Forbidden City(ca. 20 minutes walk).

Only some minor details: The toilet was not really clean when I used it the first time ("yellow stains" on the seat), and the shower tended to flood the whole bathroom... - but that seems to be a general problem with 21st century fantasy marble showers: Beauty goes over functionality...

But for the rest, an overall great experience. I am not giving the best mark because I was really disgusted by the stains in the toilet, which made me think that management might stress superficial poshness more than thorough quality control, but maybe I was unlucky.

Remark concerning the neighborhood (has of course NOTHING to do with the hotel!):

Rapidly developing area, with the last old buildings currently being knocked down to make place for modern high-rise buildings. Many other travelers warn against friendly "students" chatting you up when stepping out of the hotel and yes, this is true, but a phenomenon to be experienced EVERYWHERE in Beijing: These young people just start talking to you and walk with you (no matter what the destination), claim that they are "art students", and suddenly (sometimes after 30 minutes of friendly chatting) they invite you to an "art gallery" where they claim you can buy cheap paintings etc. I never followed them, they are to be got rid of easily enough, but I heard of people who got into nasty situations (Not being allowed to leave the "exhibition" without buying something etc.) So simply DON'T GO THERE. If you are a Chang Bizi (a "long nose" as Caucasians are called by the Chinese), you will invariably have such an encounter in Beijing. On the other hand, I invited one such guy to a quick beer in the many outlets on Wangfujing, and we parted friendly enough. At least he spoke English, which is by far not normal in Beijing...

Initially booked into the Park plaza Wangfujing, but upon arriving it was already fully booked. Their concierge moved me to their sister hotel, The Regent - which was right next door.

It was a great stay, the room was nice, modern and location was minutes from the Wangfujing shopping area. The concierge was very helpful with advice on sightseeing and confirming our onward flights. Very happy!

Took me a long time to post this review but I just wanted to tell anybody who is thinking of booking this hotel to just do it !
We also got upgraded from the Park Plaza and we were not disappointed. They even through in breakfast and Club privleges. Make sure to ask because the staff won't offer. The rooms were clean, modern and large. Felt like paradise when returning to this hotel after a long day of touring Beijing. Cozy, comfy beds with great linens and duvets. Very well located but taxis are cheap if you need to get somewhere fast.