Gracie Art Hotel 798

Excellent staff, nice clean room and the hotel restaurant serves very good western food.

First off, the map location is totally wrong. Actual location is past the NE corner of 798, near the "D-PARK" complex, near two large round tanks. Our cab driver dropped us 2-3km away, and the hotel was really unhelpful with directions, alas, so it took us a long time to find it. The hotel is visually pleasant but lacking in certain reliability issues. There was no hot water for our first hour there, and the A/C never quite worked well enough to cool the bed area. Once the hot water came back, the temperature in the shower oscillated wildly between too-hot and too-cold. There's nothing right near the hotel (can't even buy water at night) and the 798 district, which is 5-10 min walk away, is most lively in the afternoon. Breakfast was great. One annoying thing was that the hotel participates in "dynamic currency conversion," which is a way for them to make more money without most people noticing, by charging your credit card in your home currency at a high exchange rate. Be sure to opt out, and complain about this!

Formerly the Grace Beijing, but recently renamed Yi House. No website yet that I could find, and the directions from the old Grace website were extremely insufficient -- so much so that our taxi driver dropped us about 2km from the hotel and we had no idea where to go. We called them and they were really unable to give useful directions other than "look for the blue tank" (which is only visible from quite nearby). Turns out the hotel is not actually within the 798 gates, but is near two large round tanks outside the northeast corner of 798, near another complex called "D-Park". They really need a website with a map and better directions. The 798 area is good for seeing art (and is all within easy walking distance), but rather quiet at night. Be aware that the galleries are mostly closed Mondays. There is not much in the immediate vicinity of the hotel (e.g. we were unable to find a place to buy water around 10pm, and ended up paying inflated hotel prices). Our room was stylish but in need of paint touch-ups. The hot water was broken when we arrived (fixed an hour or two later), and the A/C was incapable of keeping up with a hot day in Beijing, so the bed area was always warm even when the couch area was cool. At checkout we were disappointed to find that this hotel participates in a scheme called "dynamic currency conversion". Search the web for more info, but the summary is that the scheme allows the hotel to charge several percent extra without most people noticing, by marking up foreign exchange rates. To avoid this, always insist on paying in the local currency (in this case RMB) and do not allow hotels or other businesses to convert money for you to your card's currency at an inflated rate. Breakfast was delicious - essentially an English breakfast with fruit/yogurt bar, all good-quality ingredients. Chinese options available as well. Wifi was good, but subject to the "great firewall," so most normal websites (google, gmail, youtube, twitter, instagram, facebook) won't work.

a stylish oasis in the beijing art district.however the front desk staff should have some knowledge and understanding of english.on our recent stay i booked two rooms,one for my husband and myself and one for a friend.we were given my friends room and we stayed in hers which was very small for two people.we questioned this with the reception staff but they were not getting it sorted or did not want to! even when we said that my friend has a bottle of champagne with my name on it and a welcome card with my name on it in the room...it was hopeless.this was not a good start to our three week trip to china.the location of the hotel near the art district is fantastic also the restaurant can not be faulted.

Situated away from the city centre in the hyper trendy 798 art complex this gem of a hotel is a real find. The staff are wonderful - truly! Reception efficient, restaurant team amazing, and room cleaning team lovely. They really take care. Bedrooms very good and beds comfortable. The whole space in the hotel is pale grey blue - the Mediterranean meets Manchuria - I loved it. Pared back glamour and an unfussy attention to detail. Excellent food and service. Free entrance to UCCA much appreciated I shall be back! Very good value too.

Nice feel to it. In an art district. Restraunt too heavily focused on beefy western fare. Room is comfortable.

My room was surprisingly large, and well-furnished. Staff was helpful and friendly, wifi was good. The hotel is hard for taxis to find; be ready to put your driver on the phone with the hotel. I arrived at 10 PM, and the bar and restaurant were closed; minibar offered no food, and the neighborhood didn't seem to have any late-night food options, so don't come late and hungry.

My husband and I celebrated our anniversary at the Grace this last weekend, what a wonderful experience. The hotel itself is located in the very trendy 798 District, wonderful to walk around and enjoy the art culture. Inside the hotel is very funky, lots of art and a funky decor. The room was luxurious, the robes were so soft I did not want to get dressed for dinner! We also enjoyed a very nice meal in the restaurant which is worth the trip on it's own. The staff were friendly and helpful and we had a memorable time.

Grace Beijing is a hidden gem. In a sprawling city like Beijing, the 798 Art District where it is located is an oasis of character and laid-back charm, while the hotel itself exudes an edginess, warmth and genuine hospitality that sets it apart from the cookie-cutter 5-star offerings abound. The attention to details throughout the hotel was impressive -- the prosecco upon arrival, the chic candles on whimsical stands in the centre of the lobby, the grand marble stairway with oversized windows, the seductively dim corridors with equally seductive music streaming through... disparate elements coming together in a curious symphony to give one pause: are we in a hotel or an uber-cool private mansion?? The room was tastefully designed, the bed was absolutely decadent, and turn-down service was thoughtful -- our housekeeper had obviously thought enough about us to place our bedroom slippers by the bed... The Mediterranean restaurant in the hotel looked promising, so we decided to give the weekend brunch a try during our stay. Boy was that a great decision. Price was not cheap but excellent value for money. The meal started with a seafood tower that was literally brimming with clams, Alaskan crab legs and lobster halves. The seared tuna was exquisite, and the roast chicken was simply a piece of heaven. Service was attentive yet discrete. This is clearly a restaurant of very very good quality, but without the pretense and stuffiness of "fine-dining" establishments in the city. All in all, a fantastic experience for us at Grace Beijing. We will be back.

The room was fantastic as was the service. The breakfasts are great. The staff went out of their way to help with everything we needed. The coolest location in Beijing - inside the 798 Arts District!