There are two types of hotels in China: hotels that make an attempt to cater to Westerners and make them feel welcome; and hotels that are primarily for Chinese people that some unfortunate Westerners stumble into. The Tiantan hotel is the latter. It claims to be rated 4 stars but it really like a 2 or 3 star hotel. The beds are hard, the pillows are filled with some type of weird beads, the breakfast is mainly Chinese (with some attempts made for Western tastes (cereal, egg station, breads). The corridors stink of smoke and most of the literature in the room is in Chinese. If you're Chinese this is probably fine for you, but if you're not and you have some standards, go somewhere else.

We recently stayed 6 nights at the Tiantan Hotel in Beijing (November 29-Dec. 5) and find the hotel to be sufficient for our needs. We had a small dated room with only one small window, but it was clean and had all the amenities that we required. We could have upgraded but there was no need as we were basically only in the room to wash up and sleep. The bed was hard as has been mentioned by other reviews, but by the end of a long day of walking around we were so tired that we really didn't notice it after the first night. Daily buffet breakfast had more than enough selection to fill our bellies, with both Chinese traditional foods, as well as western foods. The hotel staff were very pleasant and helpful throughout our stay.
The hotel is located in walking distance to the subway trains, which is very easy to figure out and gives you access to everywhere you could want to go. There is also a bus stop outside the front doors of the Hotel. Subway and bus fares are very cheap (1 RMB for the bus = 15 cents/ 2RMB = 30 cents for the subway!). Hotel in short walking distance to the Temple of Heaven and the Pearl Market. There was also a post office just down the street. Bank machine is located in the lobby of the hotel. Free internet, flat screen TV and a fridge with inexpensive beverages were all included in the room. There was no alarm clock or radio in the room, so you may want to take your own. However, there was a wake-up service which never failed us.
Give yourself at least half a day at the Temple of Heaven. This is a hangout for many of the locals who are in different sections of the park doing activities which are entertaining to watch and take pictures of, not to mention just taking in the history. We rented the teleguide while in the Temple of Heaven. It picks up the location of where you are within the Temple of Heaven and then gives you a detailed description.
The Pearl Market is a huge shopping complex, but be warned this is not for the faint of heart. The sales people are brutal in trying to get you to purchase from them and will pull at you and follow you. Bartering is the name of the game, so if you are not into that don't bother going in. However, there are bargains to be had, but you have to be prepared to spend time to get your price. They start extremely high, you should start extremely low and go from there. Don't be afraid to walk away, you can almost be guaranteed that they will chase after you and agree to your price. And try different vendors. They all sell the same merchandise but their prices vary greatly.
There is a wonderful bakery across the street from the Temple of Heaven where you can watch them make the goodies right on sight, as well there is a coffee shop upstairs.
For those days (or nights) when you just need a "normal food fix" there is also McDonald's and KFC close by!
Traffic is ongoing. Pedestrians have no right of way - even on a green walk sign, so proceed off the curb with caution and be prepared to run and dodge (it was like a game of frogger!).
If you don't mind a hotel that is not a four or five star and is a little dated, I don't think you would be disappointed.

Stayed there 6 nights. The hotel is located 10 mins walking from Temple of Heaven and Pearl Market. The rooms are good equipped but dirty (actually, I found this very often in Chinese hotels), lot of dust and dirty taps in bathroom. I would be happy if the room had less equipment but would be clean. When you take in count that it is Beijing hotel with a lot of tourists the breakfast was mainly Chinese, the selection of European food was quite small (sufficient when you stay there one or two nights but not six like me). Last but not least I found the prices in the hotel restaurant and bar quite high when you compare it with service you get for your money.

On entering this hotel it did seem quite palatial but the rooms left a lot to be desired. While well equipped with kettle and room safe the cleanliness was poor. Bedding was clean fortunately but the rooms had obviously not been cleaned for a while and there was thick dust everywhere. Some of our tour group had to be moved to different rooms as they were so bad.
Breakfasts were poor. The toasters did not work and fried eggs (which must have been cooked an hour earlier) were stone cold. There was minimal choice and out of choice I would not wish to stay there again. I borrowed an iron and ironing board while there and on check out was accused of stealing them. Did they really think a British tourist would want to take either home in their suitcase!!!!!!!