Commune by the Great Wall

The room was incredibly comfortable, and the tatami added a lovely touch. The service was excellent, especially from Coco, Lynda, Sunny, Ella, Kathy, and Olivier. They were all so warm and welcoming, and the customer service and little gifts were a delightful surprise.

A hidden gem at the foot of the Great Wall! The room was clean and comfortable, Lynda was incredibly thoughtful, and it was super convenient to walk up to the Wall. A perfect experience!

The hotel room was unique and stylish, offering a great stay experience. Breakfast was also quite good. After the meal, taking a look at the bamboo house, red house, communal kang (large heated brick bed), and mountain dwelling was particularly pleasing to the eye.

This hotel is great for a weekend getaway with kids. Juyongguan Great Wall and Shuiguan Great Wall are nearby, with Shuiguan Great Wall being closer and less crowded, though a bit challenging to climb. The hotel is nestled in the mountains, offering a pleasant environment with individual villas dotted up the hillside. Our room was quite far, so we needed to drive to the lobby and restaurant. The hotel also offers many family-friendly activities. On our second morning, we participated in a valley hike, which was essentially a mountain climb – it requires some stamina. There were also quite a few downsides. Given how spread out the rooms are and how far they are from the lobby, one would expect butler service, but there was none. Moreover, it was very difficult to get through to the front desk from the room phone. For a self-proclaimed 'family-friendly hotel,' there weren't even children's slippers in the room. After finally getting through on the phone, it took an hour for them to be delivered. Why weren't they provided directly at check-in when they saw we had a child? The room itself was fairly large, but the bathroom lacked air conditioning/heating, and the shower was open-concept. This design might be fine in Sanya, but in Yanqing, showering at night was absolutely freezing. There was also water pooling, and when staff came to check, they said it was because the floor drain was too high, and nothing could be done, which was a bit frustrating. We had two meals at the hotel restaurant; the food was good, albeit a bit pricey. We also ate at a farmhouse restaurant down the mountain where the iron pot stewed fish was delicious – I forgot its name, but it had “Tell Old Mo I want to eat fish” written on the wall. Despite the downsides, it's still a good place for a weekend with kids. The hotel has an outdoor pool and a children's splash pool, which were closed due to the cold weather. We'll definitely bring the kids back in the summer.

We stayed at the Red House 2. The main building is red and boasts beautiful common areas and a huge balcony. The room looked exactly like the pictures on the booking page, with windows on two sides and lush greenery all around. Breakfast was quite relaxed, not overly strict with timing, and the Jianbing Guozi (savory crepes) and beef noodles were both delicious. There were also plenty of activities for kids. Unfortunately, we happened to be there during a wedding and it rained, so some activities like archery, go-karting, and foosball weren't available. There are many other interesting accommodations here, like the Bamboo House and Earth House. I hope to have a guided tour someday.