I recently stayed for two nights in Xian at the Good World Hotel in Xian. Mine was a flying trip over three days to check-out the famed Terra-Cotta Warriors [bi(ee) ma yong – in Chinese] plus some of the other sites from this ancient Chinese capital. As a foreign inhabitant of Shanghai, I had never traveled to Xian so on a spare long weekend, along with some very cheap fares, this was it! The hotel was selected in a hurry although I was (in error) influenced by a website review elsewhere. If you are an independent traveler with limited time looking for a medium quality and medium price hotel I suggest staying somewhere near the hub of local transport, sightseeing, restaurants and nightlife. For Xian, this somewhere in the southern half of the old city. Anywhere near the Drum Tower or Bell Tower is ground zero for sightseeing travelers. The northern half inside the old city walls (where the Good World Hotel is located) is away from it all. This was an area that was unbelievably quiet... more