Philosopher Hotel

all is good,

Very good location in the Shanghai city. There is a basement food street which connected to the MRT. Eatery shops are in walking distance. Shanghai Bund is not far away either. The staff are friendly. The room is clean but small and not for big guys.

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My criteria for selecting a hotel in Shanghai were a reasonable price and that it was close to a metro station not too far from The Bund. This hotel satisfied those criteria. It certainly was popular with Chinese and foreign guests, as I saw many coming and going. One thing to bear in mind with Shanghai metro stations is that they are rarely close to the popular sights you want to go to. You often have to walk quite a bit from the station - a Km or more. Some stations are huge too, and can take you 15 mins of walking from the exit turnstile to the exit to the road. I have in mind People's Park station and exit #8! Metro ticket prices are cheap – often around 3 yuan, and you can use cash/coins at the ticket dispenser. Look at the LED message at the top of the dispenser as sometimes only digital payment is required, despite have coin and note slots. Bags are X-Rayed each time you enter a station. There are a few negatives with this hotel. First of all, the hotel name has been changed to Philife, where else Philosopher Hotel is used in all communication, causing some confusion. I was aware the rooms are tiny, about 6x8 feet, so I chose the Superior Guest room with windows. If your suitcase does not fit under the bed, you have hardly any walking space. If you suffer from claustrophobia, this is not a hotel I recommend, and definitely not a single bed room with no windows. Oh, and bring a bath towel as only large tissue wipes are available. The receptionists are keen to offer you toothbrush, paste and comb though, which you often have with you. Showering in the small toilet/bathroom without getting everything wet should be a game show contest! There is no tea/coffee making facilities in the room, although in the dining area you get free use of coffee and tea machines. There is also a paid drinks and snack fridge. Bottles of water are supplied free in the room. The room was clean and cleaners were ever present along the corridors. I needed help to get the air conditioner working. During my 5-days stay, I had to print out a page of important and urgent document for signing. Thankfully, the hotel reception had a printer but the receptionist on duty was so reluctant and discourteous to assist and the process of wechatting him the page was complicated. I confess it was 6am in the morning and he was sleeping at the desk. Thankfully, the page was printed. Tips for getting to the hotel: the metro station is called Xionanmen. Take exit#1 to cross the road without having to walk to the traffic lights as the road divide is barriered. When you ascend a set of stairs/escalator, you will see food stalls on both sides – KFC on the right and Chinese food stalls on the left. If you turn left and go to the end, you will reach a billiards playing business. Turn right and at the second doorway on the left is the lift that takes you directly to the hotel on the 3rd floor. The entrance to this pathway is shuttered around 9pm. If locked, you can then ascend the stairs/escalator ahead of you to exit, which is the block of building(a mall) next to the hotel building. Turn right and right again until you reach the open space between these 2 buildings. Turn right and go to the end. The hotel entrance and lift is on your left. Only one of the 2 lifts take you to the 3rd floor, ie the hotel. The mall has the usual shops, including Starbucks. I didn’t see throngs of people going to this mall. There isn’t anything of interest around this area but walking towards the river brings you to a ferry jetty. So all in all, a hotel that you would choose for its price and closeness to a metro station.