This article is reprinted from US Credit Card Guide, original author: KUKU

Hotel Overview

First, a quick introduction to the hotel:

Official Description (Excerpt)

  • The hotel is located in the bustling commercial area of Haicang District, one of Xiamen’s most vibrant neighborhoods, adjacent to the Haicang District Government Hall and Haicang Sports Center. Set along the beautiful Haicang Lake, it offers a peaceful setting where, at dusk, you can stroll along the running path by Haicang Bay, occasionally passing local anglers and enjoying a moment of tranquility.
  • The surrounding area has well-developed infrastructure and is encircled by upscale residential communities. Shopping centers including Zhengyuan Xinduhui and Aluohai City Plaza, as well as Haicang Citizens Park and the Haicang District Culture and Arts Center, are all just a short distance away.
  • The hotel faces Xiamen Island across the water. It is about a 10-minute drive to Songyu Pier for ferries to Gulangyu, the “Garden on the Sea.” You can also take a 10-minute ferry from there to First Wharf and continue on to Zhongshan Road Pedestrian Street. The hotel is about 20 minutes by car from the International Cruise Terminal, 30 minutes from Xiamen Railway Station and Xiamen Gaoqi Airport, and 40 minutes from Xiamen North Railway Station.
  • DoubleTree by Hilton Xiamen Haicang features multiple banquet and meeting venues of various sizes, all equipped with smart audiovisual systems and supporting facilities. Its grand pillarless ballroom, the Wanyue Ballroom, covers 1000 square meters with an 8-meter ceiling and can accommodate up to 950 guests.

Author’s Notes

  • Address: No. 208, Binhu 1st Li, Haicang District, Xiamen
  • Hotel rating: 4.5 stars
  • Opening date: May 11, 2017
  • Location: In Haicang District, Xiamen; getting to Xiamen Island requires crossing the Haicang Bridge.

Floor Layout

The DoubleTree Xiamen Haicang building has 22 floors in total.

  • B2: Hotel parking
  • Floor 1: Hotel lobby, lobby bar, all-day dining restaurant (breakfast area), and Mianjuxuan specialty restaurant
  • Floor 2: Yuxi Chinese Restaurant, Wanyue Ballroom, meeting rooms
  • Floor 3: Fitness center, swimming pool
  • Floors 5-21: Guest rooms
  • Floor 22: Executive lounge

Award Redemption

This stay happened to line up with a Hilton status challenge/promotion for retaining Diamond status (renew with 1-3 stays). Since I had canceled my AMEX Aspire credit card, I needed to requalify. Unfortunately, I drew the 3-stay requirement. I had already completed one stay on January 1, so I still needed two more. I figured I’d find time for a nearby staycation.

Originally, I meant to redeem for the DoubleTree in Xiamen Wuyuan Bay, but I accidentally selected the Hilton Xiamen Haicang Zhengyuan instead—the two look very similar in the English app. Both cost 20,000 points per night. After checking in, though, I felt that this Haicang DT was actually pretty solid.

Check-In Experience

Most Hilton properties usually call Diamond members before arrival—though Diamond status is everywhere these days—to ask whether any elite benefits are needed. I never got a call from the Xiamen Haicang DT, so I called the front desk myself and asked, but there did not seem to be any particular arrangements. I then emailed guest services and mentioned that I was planning to post a stay report. A hotel manager quickly called back and said they would provide an upgrade depending on availability.

Driving down to B2, you can find the hotel by heading toward elevators No. 10 and 11:

This is the front desk:

This is the main entrance:

Room Upgrade

Based on room availability, the front desk proactively upgraded me to a corner suite. Since the hotel was quite busy over the weekend, I was already very satisfied as a Diamond member. The corner suite was room 1815 on the 18th floor. The rough layout is shown below (the trapezoid red star in the lower-left corner of the image):

The front desk agent also told me the lounge hours and mentioned afternoon tea from 3 to 5 p.m. Since I checked in fairly late, I definitely planned to try it the next day, and I requested a 4 p.m. late checkout. The front desk readily agreed.

Welcome Amenity

The welcome amenity was pretty good: the classic DT cookie, a fruit plate, and a bottle of red wine from the lounge sent by the manager. I like red wine, so that was already a nice touch. I did not ask for anything else.

The Room

This corner suite was the largest room on the floor. It is divided into four areas: the living room, bedroom, bathroom/vanity area, and walk-in closet.

Living Room Layout

Let’s start with the living room. It is quite spacious, with a separate work desk, a long sofa, and its own TV. Here is the nighttime view:

And the daytime view:

The curtains are all electric and double-layered, and the daytime light-blocking effect is pretty good. A few other details:

Bedroom Layout

The design is very practical, with a separate small sofa, TV, clothes rack, and more.

Bathroom / Vanity Area

Photos speak for themselves:

Every proper stay report needs to include photos of the toilet and the shower setup:

The ceiling-mounted rain shower head (not pictured) had very strong water pressure.

The toiletries were the classic DT Crabtree & Evelyn set.

Lounge and Breakfast

Executive Lounge

The executive lounge is on the 22nd floor and is open from 14:00-22:00.

  • Afternoon tea (snacks + fruit): 15:00-17:00
  • Happy hour (dinner + alcoholic drinks): 17:30-19:30
  • Drinks available at other times (soda, beer, sparkling water, etc.)

Entrance to the lounge:

The view outside the lounge is pretty nice, and you can choose a window-side seat:

Next, let’s take a closer look at the two most important time periods: happy hour and afternoon tea.

Happy Hour

I have to say, the happy hour here is excellent for a hotel in this price range. Filling up is absolutely not a problem, and there’s a wide variety of food. On weekends, it gets completely packed. Diamond members are everywhere. If you’re wondering how to get Hilton Diamond status, check out the AMEX Hilton Aspire:

Drinks area

Salad bar

I just grabbed a little bit:

Afternoon Tea

Afternoon tea runs from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm. They serve light snacks, drinks, and fruit. This was genuinely pretty good. Definitely a thumbs-up. If you check in late on your arrival day and have Diamond status, you can ask the front desk for a 4:00 pm late checkout so you can try the next day’s afternoon tea. Afternoon tea includes pastries, simple fruit, and drinks (soda and beer).

Breakfast

Breakfast is served on the first floor (open from 6:30 am to 10:00 am). At first I thought it was small, since I only saw a small room where people were eating satay noodles, but once inside, it really opened up. The breakfast restaurant is laid out like a long corridor, with seating in every section. In order, there’s the noodle station (satay noodles), the Western breakfast section, the fruit/vegetable and drinks section, and the Chinese breakfast section, with the most seating in the Chinese breakfast area.

Noodle station (satay noodles)

Western breakfast section

Fruit, vegetable, and drinks section

There was a great variety of fruit:

They can freshly juice watermelon or cucumber juice on the spot. Recommended.

Chinese breakfast section

The made-to-order omelet with your own choice of fillings was pretty good:

I just ate a little:

Other Amenities

The gym and swimming pool are on the hotel’s 3rd floor, and can also be accessed directly by elevator from the underground parking garage.

Gym

The gym is relatively small, but overall there’s enough equipment for a solid workout.

Pool

I used the pool when I stayed here last year. It’s on the smaller side, but still pretty good.

Other

There’s a small plaza next door with several restaurants (Picture 4). Linjia Minnan Cuisine is a good option, though the flavors are very Minnan-style: fresh and light.

On basement level B2, there’s a nightclub owned by the property owner, Zhengyuan. It’s open at night and closed during the day:

At the entrance of the Xiamen Haicang Zhengyuan Hilton DT, there are dedicated takeaway pickup lockers, which are pretty convenient. Just scan the code and enter the last four digits of your phone number to retrieve your order.

Ratings for this stay

Elite benefits: 4 stars

Executive lounge: 5 stars

Facilities: 4 stars

Guest room review: 5 stars

Overall rating: 4.5 stars

Bottom Line

Overall, this hotel offers very strong value for the money, and I highly recommend it. Just be aware of the location: traffic can get bad going on and off the island during commuting hours. In general, it’s a great fit for travelers on business trips to Haicang. It’s also a good option for a longer stay while visiting Xiamen if you have a flexible travel schedule.