Gloria Garden Resort, Qingdao  

The first impression of the hotel is that it is long passed its hey day. The hotel could really do with a major refurbishment and the carpets throughout replaced. There was a slight mix up with the rooms so I couldn't get the Delux room I booked, but the replacement was adequate. The beds were extremely firm and the TV could only recieve Chinese stations and the restaurant was totally Eastern, (no steak available here!) The location of the hotel is quite a way out of the town centre, so expect a minimum 15RMB taxi ride, and it was hit or miss in getting a taxi, the hotel do not call one, you have to stand on the corner and wait for one, the quickest was almost immediate, but I was waiting for 20mins one time (luckily not raining). Very few of the staff could speak any English and I only met one guy with good English. Overall the hotel was exceptionally good value for money though. The staff were genuinely interested in making the staff a pleasent one, even the language barrier wasn't that bad (the menu was translated into English) If you are looking for quiet authencity in a Grand old hotel which is family friendly, this is the hotel to go for. If you are looking for Western standards, or somewhere close to the centre of the night life... forget it.