Baoding Hotels

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Just outside of the busy tourist destination of Beijing in China is the Hebei province of Baoding. Unlike the capital city, Baoding is where you will get a feel for the true Chinese people and culture. To help you make the most of this fascinating place, Baoding hotels are centrally located and provide visitors with some excellent facilities.

Baoding is known as a prefecture-level city. In China, this means that it is smaller than a province but contains a central urban area with many smaller towns, villages and rural areas around it. Most of the surrounding areas of Baoding are rural farmland. It is the capital city of the vibrant Hebei province, which translates as 'north of the river' due to its location next to the Yellow Sea. It is halfway between Shijiazhuang and Beijing.

This city has played an important role in Chinese history and has a rich and fascinating heritage. Genghis Khan destroyed the city during an invasion when he was traveling southwards through China and raiding each settlement he encountered. It was later rebuilt around 1227, during the Yuan Dynasty in China and this settlement was named Baoding, which translates as 'protecting the capital.' This is because it was an important location in Chinese history and helped to secure its neighbor, Beijing, from intruders during the Ming and Qing dynasties.

Baoding lies along the eastern base of the majestic Taihang Mountains, although the city itself is very flat. The semi-humid climate can be prone to monsoons in the springtime. Spring is also when the winds blow sand and dirt through Baoding and the surrounding areas. The best time to visit is actually fall when the weather is cooler or summer when it is fairly hot. In these seasons there is little rainfall and wind as well as very little danger of monsoons.

The Jingguang Railway runs through the main central urban area from north to south and effectively separates the different regions of the city. On the eastern side of this railway line you will find the older parts of the city, with a traditionally Chinese feel. On the western side of the line are the modern developments and the more contemporary housing. The city contains a number of stores and roadside vendors that offer locally produced Baoding crafts. These include clay figures, inkstone, pottery and beautiful stone carvings.

Most of the local Chinese people who live in this prefecture-level city are Han Chinese. This means that the language you will hear most while you wander through the city streets is Mandarin Chinese and a phrase book is a good idea. The wonderful and distinctive aromas of the local food can be found throughout the city from restaurants and street vendors. The local cuisine is typically northern Chinese and the products that are specific to this region include kuihai pickles and baiyangdian preserved egg. Lu Zhu chicken is another popular choice, which is chicken that has been boiled and is served with thick gravy. This menu option will be found at most eateries in the city. Another inexpensive option that many street vendors offer is pies with donkey meat, known as Lu Rou Hou Shao.

Baoding hotels offer a comfortable base from which you can explore the city and surrounding areas. You can choose from self-catering vacation villas or contemporary hotels. These are typically located quite centrally in the city to allow you to explore all of the major attractions easily. They are also close to transport links so that you can visit neighboring Beijing too.

Many of the Baoding hotels include hotel restaurants serving delicious local produce and Chinese menus, as well as international cuisine. The hotel rooms are well designed and often include air-conditioning to help keep you cool in the warmer months. Many also provide satellite televisions so that you are not limited to Chinese language television channels.

Some of the Baoding hotels provide leisure facilities too to help you wind down after a long day exploring the city. These include saunas and fitness centers as well as tennis courts and even indoor heated swimming pools. In the evenings, you can relax in the hotel bar and enjoy a quiet drink or some karaoke.

Business travelers will be pleased to find great facilities for them too. Many of these hotels offer hotel rooms suitable for the modern business traveler that contain desks and Internet services. They also have business centers as well as fax and photocopying services to make staying in the city on business a real pleasure.

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