Enjoyed the Nanlin - wished the pool was closer.
Nice room but a/c wouldn't cool it down enough - too hot to sleep.
Good breakfast
Nice to walk about the shops
Good Italian restaurant outside - the Marco Polo - enjoyed the change.

Our travel agency booked us at the Nanlin Hotel. It was one of three hotels we stayed at in the Jiangsu province in China. Upon arriving at the hotel, the exterior was nothing special, and gives no indication as to the well designed and immaculate interior. The first thing you'll notice when checking in is the small spiral staircase just inside the main entrance. The lobby area is very roomy and there is also a small business center where guests can access the internet for a nominal fee. The guest rooms are average sized, but stunning in detail and decor. Our room had these huge wood panels on the wall with Chinese characters. The bathrooms looked to be recently remodeled and are quite nice. The only thing we were not thrilled with was the actual bed. Just like the other two hotels that we stayed at, the bed consisted of what appeared to be just a box springs. The beds are extremely hard. I'm not sure if this is common in most Chinese hotels, but Westerners may have a hard time adjusting to them. Outside, just off the main lobby, is a nice courtyard area with tables and chairs, a pagoda style gazebo and a pond. Nanlin offers an expansive menu for breakfast and it is served in a very large dining room located next to the lobby. The breakfast had an assortment of traditional Chinese food items, as well as several Western choices, such as cereal, eggs, sausage, waffles, french toast and pancakes. I would give this hotel a FIVE STAR rating, particularly if you consider the overall value. The room rates range from $55-$85 USD! For this price, you'll be hard pressed to find a cleaner, more impressive hotel in the area that has the charm and appeal as the Nanlin Hotel. I am returning to Suzhou in April 2009 and have told my travel agent that I insist on staying at the Nanlin again!

The pictures made it look so inviting but in reality it was cold - they could not turn on the heat even though they said that they would and the reason the mattress is so hard is because the bed is just a box spring - extremely uncomfortable. Location is OK but I felt that if we were not in a group there were better alternatives to choose from. I was very much looking forward to seeing Suzhou but all in all it is not what I imagined. It is a very large city and there is really nothing quaint about it at all. Comparing it to Venice - in reality it is not like Venice at all. I would be hapy to answer any questions.

We stayed here as part of a group tour of China. The place was really nice, and I felt it had an excellent location -- an easy walk to shops, restaurants, etc., or for a quieter alternative, the hotel has a nice garden to just hang out in as well. When we arrived in the evening, there was a pianist in the lobby playing nice, relaxing music. The people were really nice. The breakfast buffet the was nice as well, serving a variety of eastern and western breakfast foods. After having been on the road in China for almost two weeks, this was a wonderful resting place (although, I will say, the beds were extraordinarily hard).