LIN TONG HOTEL

As my main purpose for traveling to Shanghai was shopping and sightseeing, I didn’t really need to check in at a 5-star hotel. Lin Tong is in the heart of the old Jewish area, north of New Pudong across the river, so it’s far from the maddening crowd – and unbeknownst to many cab drivers, so make sure to bring a map with Chinese characters and with the hotel highlighted on it. However, it’s a mere 5-minute walk, through interesting 1930s buildings and quaint old-school shops, to the nearest Metro station. Make sure to get rooms on the top floors as these are newer. We were first booked in a room on the 4th floor, which had faulty airconditioning and had a cigar smell stuck to its curtains, upholstery, and beddings. However, the friendly though non-English-speaking staff courteously had us transferred to a higher floor where rooms were much better – it even had a hot-and-cold water dispenser, and the toilet was relatively clean. I couldn’t say the same for the bed, as it was rock hard on whichever hotel floor. What I did was I bundled up the comforters to make it a bit bearable. When we arrived at the hotel at around 1 A.M. (we had a midnight flight), the lobby’s ashtrays were overflowing with cigarette butts, the lights were dimmed, and the ladies at the front desk seemed ornery (we must have disturbed them from their sleep). Thankfully, the area was cleaned up in the morning. The housekeeping staff would gladly replenish toiletries when asked, and a big plus is the free WiFi inside the room, which helped us a lot in planning our sightseeing trips. There’s a restaurant on the ground floor which we never tried because there didn’t seem to be any patrons. However, a bakery, a 24-hour convenience store, and a medium-sized grocery are only a few minutes’ walk away from the hotel, so it’s easy to fix up one’s own breakfast with hot rolls, deli meats, fruits, and coffee mix. Just a block away is a restaurant serving spicy crawfish (a large aluminum tray for just 100 yuan) until about 2 A.M., and that alone makes staying in Lin Tong worthwhile!

Suitable for budget travelers looking for a cheap, clean and simple accommodation.Conveniently located within 5 minutes walk from Yang Shu Pu Road metro station (Line 4). Staff was friendly and helpful and able to speak a simple English. House keepers tidy the room everyday. Surrounded by several old flat buildings and shop houses but quite OK as easily to find food and fruit stalls, supermarket, pharmacy, saloon and several convenience shops. Room rates was reasonable (around USD25 to USD30 at November 2008). To find this hotel is a bit difficult but please make sure to get this hotel contact no and contact them in order to assist you if you have difficulty in finding this hotel.