Four years on from its own Games, Jenny Southan finds Beijing is continuing to develop apace
Sometimes taking a wrong turn in Beijing can lead to unexpected finds. Venture down some of its ancient, low-slung hutongs (alleyways), found in pockets around the city, and you’ll find houses dating back hundreds of years. While the walls may be crumbling and the heavy, carved doors creaky, they give a glimpse into how life has been lived for centuries.
At the same time, all around are the physical manifestations of 21st-century urban planning. The Chinese capital has been fighting hard to become a world-class international city, and when it won its bid to host the 2008 Olympics, it provided an excuse to accelerate the pace of change.
Sadly, this came at the detriment of many historical residential areas – UNESCO estimates that 88 per cent of the hutongs have been destroyed in the past 30 years, with more than 20 sq km knocked down in the five years running up to the sporting event. On the plus side, what remains of the hutongs is now protected, and locals are capitalising on their uniqueness by opening boutique hotels and lively places to eat and drink.
Sarah Keenlyside, founder of travel consultancy Bespoke Beijing, which offers expert guides and custom itineraries, says: “The hutongs around the Drum and Bell towers and Shichahai Lake are seeing more bars opening that are quite classy. A few years ago you’d worry that the alcohol you were drinking in these places was going to be fake, so it is a lot better now.”
China spent US$40 billion on infrastructure related to the Games, so there were huge improvements in the road and rail network, and in power generation. Jon Watts, The Guardian’s Asia environment correspondent, moved to the city in 2003. “For the first four years, it was like living in a construction site – big chunks were being rebuilt for the Olympics,” he recalls. “Then, in 2007-08 there was a halt in the building, and a beautification campaign started with lots of flowers being planted to make it look more livable and attractive.”
Keenlyside became an expat here in 2005. She says: “The landscape of the city has changed. We have two new skyscrapers – the Yintai Centre, which houses the Park Hyatt hotel, and the China World Tower, which has Shangri-La’s China World Summit hotel. The Sanlitun area, where all the bars and restaurants and a new Apple store are, has suddenly sprung up. Now you look out and see a totally different skyline.”
Although many eateries closed after the Games, Beijing is seeing a resurgence of openings, as well as an influx of renowned chefs from the West. Recent additions include the pricey Chinese/French Duck de Chine (complete with China’s first Bollinger champagne bar) in Chaoyang District, and Temple, which serves contemporary European cuisine. Run by Ignace Lecleir, former general manager of Beijing’s Maison Boulud, it is located in a 600-year-old former Buddhist temple in Dongcheng District.
There’s no doubt how much the Games did for the city. Nicholas Mulley, managing director of Greater China for travel management company Destination Asia, says: “The Olympics was probably the best thing the city ever hosted because it was a catalyst for change. Beijing saw the construction and opening of the largest airport in the world, a complete revamp of the highway and rail system, the sprucing up and renovation of all major landmarks, and a lot of hotel openings.”
In 1980 the city had 5,000 star-rated hotel rooms – by 2000, there were 84,000, with another 46,000 (plus 160,000 rooms that did not qualify for a star rating) unveiled by 2008. In 2011 there were 112,013 rooms across 477 star-rated hotels. John Vouillamoz, general manager of the Langham Place Beijing Capital Airport hotel, which opened in 2010, says: “After four years we can still observe a growing demand for luxury accommodation – there are more new four- and five-star hotels opening every month. The Olympics also had a positive impact on the standard of service.”
With all the major hotel brands present, Beijing is well set up for business travellers, and even the Mandarin Oriental, which burnt down in 2009, will be reopening in 2014. Mulley says: “The good thing about China’s facilities is that they are all new and cost-effective. Most hotels have 500-700 rooms but for high-end incentives of about 100 people, [companies] are looking for something a little more intimate, so now there is the option of boutique properties.”
A combination of the global financial crisis and overcapacity after the Games meant there was a drop in business, but Mulley says the outlook is now more optimistic. “Last year, we saw a bit of an upswing and the corporate market is starting to move up to Beijing as that is where the government and a lot of the banks are,” he says. “This year should be 15-20 per cent up on 2011.” Vouillamoz says the cost of living “has increased disproportionately”, but for visitors, the Chinese capital will still feel cheap.
Keenlyside says: “One of the great things is being able to take advantage of the lunch deals – it’s about £13 for a three-course menu. And the subway is probably the only one in the world to have actually lowered the price of tickets – from three yuan (30p) to two yuan (20p) – in a bid to get people to use it more.”
A high-speed train link between the capital and Shanghai was unveiled last summer, and the subway now has 15 lines. Even so, much of the city, such as the 798 Art Zone and Sanlitun, remains poorly connected. “It still has a long way to go before it compares with New York, London or Paris for convenience,” Keenlyside says. There are plans to extend the current 372km of track to 703km by 2015, and 1,000km by 2020, which would make it the most extensive in the world.
Despite improved public transport, the rising number of cars is a serious concern. At the end of 2010 there were almost five million on the road, so last year the government brought in a “licence plate lottery” for new vehicles in a bid to reduce the 800,000 automobiles bought annually to 240,000. Watts at The Guardian says: “It has not been entirely successful as people find ways around it, but there was quite a significant slowdown last year. The traffic is no better, though – maybe worse.”
A condition of Beijing hosting the Olympics was that it improved air quality, and one way it did this was to stipulate that people could only drive on alternate days. Watts says: “There was dire pollution when I first arrived and awareness was very different. Beijingers talked about it as fog, when it definitely wasn’t. There weren’t pools of public discussion of why we can’t see the sun for big chunks of the year and why the air tastes funny.
“But there clearly was an effort to clean up and a lot of positive things were done. Many homes that previously burnt coal for fuel were turned on to gas or, in some cases, electric, and the big steel company that was the main cause of pollution in Beijing was relocated and modernised. Overall, the situation is still awful but awareness is much improved.”
The benefits of Beijing’s Olympics were also felt in the UK, which won about £2 billion of contracts to help design many of the city’s major landmarks. The new airport terminal was drawn up by Foster and Partners (there have since been proposals to use this as a blueprint for a Thames hub on the Isle of Grain, north Kent), while engineering group Arup helped with the National Aquatics Centre and power supply was overseen by Scotland’s Aggreko.
Nick Baird, chief executive of UK Trade and Investment, says: “The Olympics definitely strengthened British-Chinese bilateral relations. It also increased the awareness of British excellence in certain sectors and showed China was not as difficult as people feared to do business in.” UK companies present in Beijing include Jaguar Land Rover, Rolls-Royce, Balfour Beatty, Tesco, Glaxosmithkline and HSBC.
Beijing is a highly developed city, and Baird says the tertiary industry accounts for about 73 per cent of its GDP. It’s home to 26 Fortune 500 firms – only Tokyo and Paris have more – and 100 of the largest companies in China. But the Olympics did more than simply boost the capital’s economic standing.
Jennifer Salsbury, senior director of sales and marketing at the China National Convention Centre, which has 64,000 sqm of event space, says: “The Games was accepted as a logistical success so this really heightened awareness for China and its organisational abilities. It gave a kick-start to [the city’s] international convention industry and reinforced national pride.” With all this in mind, it has to bode well for London 2012.
Boutique hotels
Mark Graham seeks out the trendiest alternatives to chain properties
The Orchid
Anyone seeking a real local experience in a traditional hutong need look no further than the Orchid, which opened last year. Despite its somewhat downmarket location, it is a clean and serene place bursting with high-tech features such as Apple TVs and wifi. It also has a roof terrace. There are ten rooms, some with a garden, others with a small courtyard. Rates include breakfast, with a tea selection by Canadian co-owner Joel Shuchat, a former tea trader. The location is handy for the bars and restaurants of Nanluoguxiang, though it can be a half-hour drive to the central business district (CBD).
- 65 Baochao Hutong, Dongcheng District; tel +86 10 8404 4818; theorchidbeijing.com
- Rooms from 700 yuan (£70)
Grace Hotel
This 30-room property in the 798 Art Zone is the first Asian venture for Grace Hotels. It began as the Yi House hotel, a project of former Hong Kong investment banker and art lover Shauna Liu, whose refined design eye gave the interior real character, with thought-provoking paintings and photography. The new management has retained many of its quirky touches and renamed the main restaurant Yi House. All rooms are slightly different and come with luxury linen.
- Jiuxianqiao Lu, 2 Hao Yuan; tel +86 10 6436 1818; gracebeijing.com
- Rooms from 591 yuan (£60)
Hotel G
The hip 110-room Hotel G is close to Gongti, the city’s main late-night fun zone, where Beijing’s young nouveau riche come to party. It is also in easy reach of Sanlitun, where sophisticated restaurants are located, and a ten-minute drive from the CBD. Hotel G’s most sought-after rooms are lofy-style, with raised bed areas and freestanding tubs. Each room has mood lighting, while the lobby has red sandstone walls and twinkling LED lights. Pop art can be found throughout the building, reflecting the cheeky ambience of the place.
- A7, Gongti Xilu; tel +86 10 6552 3600; hotel-g.com
- Rooms from 1,603 yuan (£160)
The Opposite House
The minimalist Opposite House has established itself as the go-to property for the international creative crowd. The theme starts with the orange-and-green exterior while, inside, new arrivals are checked in by laptop-wielding staff dressed in casual clothing. The 99 rooms have wooden floors, neutral décor and deep Japanese-style oak bathtubs. The great location in Sanlitun means there are scores of bars and eateries within five minutes.
- The Village at Sanlitun, Building 1, 11 Sanlitun Beilu; tel +86 10 6417 6688; theoppositehouse.com
- Rooms from 2,645 yuan (£266)
Aman at Summer Palace
The Aman group picked a striking location for its first China venture – the fabulous Summer Palace, the lakeside retreat of the Empress Dowager. Opened in 2009, the 51 rooms now used by guests were where supplicants once waited for an imperial audience, which, depending on the rulers’ moods, could be hours or weeks. Every effort was made to use materials from, or inspired by, the Ming dynasty, while contemporary elements such as a spa and cinema have been added. Marvellous though the palace grounds are, there is not much else in this outer suburb, but that’s part of its appeal – Aman offers the chance to step into a cushioned cocoon with exquisite service and food.
- 1 Gongmenqian Street, Summer Palace; tel +86 10 5987 9999; amanresorts.com
- Rooms from 5,438 yuan (£547)
Brickyard Eco-Retreat at Mutianyu Great Wall
Opened last year, this out-of-town gem is perfect for a Great Wall visit. The resort is located in a village just below China’s most famous structure, with uninterrupted views of the Wall from every room. It is the brainchild of Jim Spear, a long-time China resident who converted a number of traditional homes to international levels of luxury. The same approach was applied at the Brickyard, where every room combines state-of-the-art bathrooms and iPod docks with antique carpets and furniture. It has a spa, and close by are two Spear-operated restaurants.
- Beigou Village, Huairou District; tel +86 10 6162 6506; brickyardatmutianyu.com
- Rooms from 1,380 yuan (£138)
