Nanjing's BEST Hotel Near the Railway Station? (Jinjiang Inn Review!)
Nanjing's BEST Hotel Near the Railway Station? (Jinjiang Inn Review…and My Existential Crisis at Check-in)
Okay, folks, let's be real. Picking a hotel near Nanjing Railway Station is like choosing a flavor of instant noodles – you're mostly looking for convenience, speed, and hopefully, not too much sodium-induced regret. So, I ended up at the Jinjiang Inn. Now, I'm not a hotel snob, but I've seen things. I've battled roaches in Bangkok, shared a room with a snoring orangutan (just kidding… mostly!), and once, I swear, a toilet tried to EAT me in a questionable roadside motel. So, let's see how the Jinjiang Inn stacks up.
Accessibility: (Mostly Ticked the Boxes, Thankfully!)
Right off the bat: Accessibility – This is important. And thankfully, the Jinjiang Inn seems to have made an effort. There's an elevator (Praise the Elevator Gods!), which is a HUGE win. Didn't see any horror stories from the stairwell like you sometimes get in these spots. I'd rate them good – but I'm no expert on wheelchair suitability, so double-check those specs if that's your deal.
On-site accessible restaurants / lounges: Honestly, I didn't see anything screaming "accessible lounge". It's a pretty basic setup, but the lobby itself seemed reasonably navigable for most.
Wheelchair accessible: As mentioned, elevators are key, but I'm guessing there's room to improve on specific room features, definitely something to verify before booking if accessibility is your top requirement.
Internet Access: (Free Wi-Fi - Hallelujah!)
Free Wi-Fi in all rooms! Yes! Thank you, Jinjiang Inn! A digital nomad (like myself) NEEDS their internet. And the connection was surprisingly decent. Actually, I'm writing this review right now from my room – proof positive!
Internet [LAN]: I didn't see any LAN ports, which, fine. I'm on Wi-Fi, and it's working. Progress!
Internet services: Just internet I think. Nothing too fancy.
Wi-Fi in public areas: Yes, but I preferred the in-room performance.
The Big Question: Am I Being Mauled by the Hotel Internet? – Nope!
Honestly, I feared I'd be wrestling a slow internet connection. But no! Uploading pictures of pigeons eating noodles from my window (more on that later) onto my Instagram feed was actually swift! A genuine win. This is what's truly important to a content creator!
Things to Do, Ways to Relax…or…Meh.
Okay, so this ain't the Ritz-Carlton. No pool with a view (sob), no spa, no steam room. Fitness center? Don't think so. This is a pragmatic hotel, not a resort. I guess that is fine.
Cleanliness and Safety: (Paranoid, Much?)
Look, travelling right now, especially after the… you know, the pandemic… I'm paranoid. So, how did the Jinjiang Inn do on the cleanliness front? Well…
- Anti-viral cleaning products: I didn't see them spraying things down like a nuclear fallout shelter, but I certainly hoped they used them.
- Breakfast in room: Didn't see this option.
- Breakfast takeaway service: Definitely a possibility, and I had it!
- Cashless payment service: Yes, they accept card payments. Praise the cashless economy!
- Daily disinfection in common areas: Hopefully, yeah, I didn't notice anything specific but I presumed.
- Doctor/nurse on call: I don't think so.
- First aid kit: Haven't needed one yet.
- Hand sanitizer: Present in the lobby, always a plus.
- Hot water linen and laundry washing: I assume so!
- Hygiene certification: I didn't check.
- Individually-wrapped food options: Yes.
- Physical distancing of at least 1 meter: Yes, or tried to.
- Professional-grade sanitizing services: Again, hoping so.
- Room sanitization opt-out available: I didn't see this option.
- Rooms sanitized between stays: Hopefully!
- Safe dining setup: Seemed alright.
- Sanitized kitchen and tableware items: Hope so!
- Shared stationery removed: Didn't matter to me.
- Staff trained in safety protocol: I hope so.
- Sterilizing equipment: Hopefully I saw these.
The Truth About the Room – Surprisingly Okay…and Then…PIGEONS!
The room itself? Clean, not fancy. Got all the basics. Air conditioning (Bliss!). Blackout curtains (Essential for sleep). A desk (where I’m writing this). A mirror (to admire my weary traveller face). Free bottled water (Dehydrated tourist survival kit!). Hair dryer, bathtub… all present and accounted for. It wasn't spectacular, but definitely did the job.
…And then I opened the window.
Nanjing, it turns out has a LOT of pigeons. Like, a LOT. And my room directly faced a small ledge. Cue a flock of the feathered fiends going absolutely bonkers. Honest to god, they were having an avian rave. It was loud, it was chaotic, and for a moment, I wondered if I should just throw my laptop out the window and join them in their existential flapping. (The soundproof rooms really didn’t live up to the name with a gaggle of squawking pigeons). But! I found it strangely… captivating. They were there, living their lives, and I was observing their simple, birdy joys. (I didn't mention that in my job application).
Dining, Drinking, and Snacking:
Restaurants: There's a restaurant, and it has Asian cuisine in restaurant, breakfast buffet . The breakfast buffet was actually a decent start to the day. Standard fare, but the coffee was hot, and the noodles were, well, noodles.
Coffee/tea in restaurant: The coffee was so-so.
Snack bar: Small.
Services and Conveniences: (The Practical Stuff)
Okay, here's where the Jinjiang Inn actually shines. It's a well-oiled machine of practicality.
- Air conditioning in public area: Yes. (Thank goodness, Nanjing can get humid).
- Business facilities: Basic, but present, and they have a Xerox/fax in business center.
- Cash withdrawal: Yes.
- Concierge: Present, not that I needed them.
- Contactless check-in/out: Yes. A real time-saver after a long train ride.
- Convenience store: There's one a few steps away.
- Currency exchange: Yes.
- Daily housekeeping: Yes. The room was consistently clean.
- Elevator: YES!
- Facilities for disabled guests: See above.
- Food delivery: Yes.
- Ironing service: Yep.
- Laundry service: Yeah.
- Luggage storage: Yes.
- Meeting/banquet facilities: Not that kind of place.
- Safety deposit boxes: Present.
- Smoking area: Yes.
- Wi-Fi for special events: See above.
For the Kids:
Family/child friendly: I didn't see any kids facilities, but I imagine it's family-friendly. Babysitting service: Didn't saw this option. Kids meal: Don't think so.
Access & Safety:
- CCTV in common areas: Yes.
- CCTV outside property: Yes.
- Fire extinguisher: Yes.
- Front desk [24-hour]: Yes. A lifesaver. Especially at 3 AM when you can't find the light switch.
- Non-smoking rooms: Yes.
- Room decorations: Not my cup of tea but present.
- Smoke alarms: Yes.
- Soundproof rooms: (See above, pigeon rant).
- Security [24-hour]: Yeah.
Getting Around
- Airport transfer: Yes, but I took the train.
- Car park [free of charge]: Yeah, it was pretty convenient!
- Taxi service: Always available.
Available in All Rooms:
- Air conditioning: YES!
- Alarm clock: Yes.
- Complimentary tea: Yes.
- Free Wi-Fi: YES!
- Window that opens: Yes! (And the pigeons… sigh…)
**My Verdict
Amarillo Medical Center Getaway: Days Inn Comfort & Convenience!
Okay, buckle up, buttercups, 'cause we're about to waltz through Nanjing, China, from the (in)comfort of the Jinjiang Inn near the train station. This isn't your perfectly curated Instagram travel guide. This is real life, folks – the sweaty palms, the questionable food choices, the existential crises in a foreign land, all that jazz.
Nanjing Chaos: The Itinerary (or Attempt Thereof)
Day 1: Arrival & Existential Dread Over Dumplings (aka "Why am I doing this again?")
Morning (Roughly 9:00 AM): Landed in Nanjing. Holy moly, air travel. Need coffee. Found the Jinjiang Inn. "Central Gate" – sounds important, felt like a holding cell. Room? Basic. Clean, which is a win. But the silence. Like, deafening silence. Starting to wonder if I packed enough socks. (Spoiler alert: I didn't).
Mid-Morning (10:30 AM): Attempted to conquer the logistics of the train station. Nanjing Railway Station. Giant. So many people! Signs in Chinese, of course. Luckily, some helpful (and surprisingly patient) locals pointed me in the right direction. Had the sudden, crushing realization that I have no idea where I'm going or what I'm doing. Panic set in. Decided to grab lunch instead.
Lunch (12:00 PM): Found a little dumpling place near the hotel. The smell was intoxicating. Ordered a plate of… something. No idea what it was. Looked delicious. Ate it. Probably wasn't what I thought it was. Probably didn't matter. It was… glorious. The best, greasiest, most perfectly seasoned dumpling I’ve maybe ever ingested. Had to fight the urge to order a second plate, but the (possibly) dubious ingredients and the existential dread of being alone in China again quelled that desire. Note to self: learn some Mandarin.
Afternoon (2:00 PM): Wandered around the area, trying to find… well, anything. Found a park. Sat on a bench. Watched old men playing mahjong. Contemplated my life choices. Decided I actually like being alone. At least, for now.
Evening (6:00 PM): Dinner at a noodle shop. Pointed at things on the menu. Ended up with something vaguely resembling soup with what tasted like rubber bands in it. Ate it anyway. (Hungry). Maybe. Maybe. But the sheer effort of figuring out dinner – the language barrier! The guessing game! – almost broke me.
Evening (8:00 PM): Back at the hotel. Writing this. Pretty sure I'm going to bed early. Jet lag is a beast. Also, the air conditioning is… powerful. Bring a sweater, friends. Seriously.
Day 2: The Nanjing Massacre Memorial & Existential Dread Continued… but at Least There's Tea
Morning (9:00 AM): Breakfast in the hotel. Bland. The only downside so far. Coffee was, well, not coffee. More like brown-colored water. Managed to survive, though. And now… the Nanjing Massacre Memorial Hall. Feeling a little like I'm walking into a heavy history lesson…
Mid-Morning (10:00 AM): The Memorial. Powerful. Devastating. I don't care if you're a hardened traveller or a sentimental sap, this place will get to you. The raw pain of the victims and the resilience of the survivors is palpable. I spent a few hours just walking through it, just letting the information wash over me. Got to find some peace after that…
Lunch (1:00 PM): Seeking solace. Found a tea house. They knew I was a foreigner. And they didn't care. They were cool with my terrible Mandarin and gestured to the gorgeous blooming tea that I wanted to try. So calm. So zen. Seriously, I think I'm now addicted to tea. Found my inner peace and a decent lunch of noodles.
Afternoon (3:00 PM): Attempted to walk. Got lost. Eventually found myself by the Xuanwu Lake. Pretty! Walked around the lake. Saw some… I don't even know what they were. Weird, colorful flags attached to a very long rope. It was like some sort of odd kite-kite-kite phenomenon. Definitely fascinating.
Evening (6:00 PM): Dinner in a local restaurant, managed to order some delicious noodles. They called it "the Nanjing noodles," naturally. The food here is pretty dang good. It’s pretty much all I have to say.
Evening (8:00 PM): Back at hotel. Contemplating the sheer volume of noodle-based dishes I've consumed. Beginning to understand the Chinese reverence for a good meal. Feeling… less alone. Sort of. Maybe. Writing. Dreaming of dumplings.
Day 3: The Ming Dynasty & the Airport… and the Realization of… Well, Everything.
Morning (9:00 AM): Attempted to visit the Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum. Got a little lost. Ran into some other tourists. We all looked equally confused. Shared a laugh and a map. Found it eventually! Beautiful. History. Stones. Dragons. Pretty damn impressive. And then, I realized, that I maybe, kinda, sort of, almost… understood something about China. Or at least, appreciated a tiny, minuscule sliver of its history.
Mid-Morning (11:00 AM): Wandered, again. Found some sort of old city wall. Climbed it! View was stunning and I took some awesome photos to prove it.
Lunch (1:00 PM): Last-minute noodle stop at a place that looked sketchy but turned out a winner. The service was terrible, the seating was questionable, but the food? Incredible. Seriously, I am getting really good at eating and being happy when I don't understand ANYTHING.
Afternoon (3:00 PM): Headed back to the hotel, gathered my stuff, and made my way to the airport. It's always a blur of taxi, train, plane, and people.
Afternoon (4:00 PM): At Nanjing Airport. Waiting for my flight. Reflection, again. Realized how much I'd missed the simple things – the familiarity of my own language, the comfort of not having to constantly translate everything in my brain. Also, I still don't know whether I enjoyed my trip or not.
Evening (6:00 PM): Takeoff. Goodbye Nanjing. Goodbye dumplings. Goodbye existential dread (maybe!). Goodbye, for now, China. I’m gonna miss you, you crazy beautiful place.
(9:00 PM): Landed, found my ride, and feeling the familiar feeling of being home. More or less.
Final Thoughts (Or, Ramblings):
Nanjing. It's not pristine. It's not always easy. It's not always pretty. But it's honest. It's raw. It's… real. And sometimes, that's all you need in a travel experience. Did I learn anything? I don't know. Did I eat amazing food? Absolutely. Did I grow? Maybe. Did I survive? Definitely. So, there you have it. My Nanjing experience. Flawed, messy, and unforgettable. Now, where's the next adventure…? (And do they have dumplings?)
Madison, AL Getaway: Unwind at the BEST Country Inn & Suites!
Jinjiang Inn Nanjing Railway Station: The Unvarnished Truth (And My Sanity-Saving Experience!)
Okay, Seriously... Is the Jinjiang Inn *actually* the best hotel *near* Nanjing Railway Station? I mean, REALLY near?
Okay, let’s cut the crap. Yes. Yes, it pretty much *is*. Look, I've dragged my sorry, luggage-laden self through that station more times than I care to admit. After a 14-hour train ride from... well, let's just say *from* the middle of nowhere, the last thing you want is a half-hour taxi ride to a fancy hotel. The Jinjiang Inn is practically *attached* to the station. You stumble out, squint at the sunlight (or, let's be honest, the smog), and there it is. You could probably throw a suitcase and hit it (though I wouldn’t recommend testing that theory. Security cameras, you know?). Convenience? Ding ding ding! Winner!
How close are we talking, exactly? Like, can I roll out of bed and practically be on the train?
I'm not exaggerating. You could *almost* roll out of bed. Okay, maybe not. But the main entrance is, seriously, a five-minute walk, tops. And that's walking at a pre-coffee zombie shuffle. I once, in a caffeine-deprived panic after missing a connection, sprinted that distance. And I'm not exactly an Olympic athlete. I made it. Panting, sure, but I made it. So, yeah… it’s close. Like, strategically placed for maximum transit usefulness.
Is it... clean? I've heard horror stories about budget hotels...
Alright, let's be real. It's *not* the Four Seasons. You're not gonna find fluffy robes and turndown service. But yes, it's clean. Generally speaking. I mean, I’ve stayed in worse. MUCH worse. Think… questionable stains on the carpet, mystery smells wafting from the bathroom… You won't be finding that here. The rooms are small, yes, and the decor is… functional. Think beige on beige on beige. But they are tidy. I've never encountered anything that made me want to run screaming for the hills. (Though, one time… more on that later).
The Rooms: Small but Functional? Tell me *more* about the rooms!
Okay, the rooms. Prepare for the classic budget hotel scenario: they’re petite. Think ‘cozy’. Think ‘efficient use of space’. You won’t be doing cartwheels in there, that's for sure. But they *do* have everything you actually need. A bed (generally comfortable enough for a good night's sleep, especially after a long train ride), a small desk (perfect for balancing your laptop while you desperately try to catch up on emails), a tiny TV (with, admittedly, not many channels I could understand… but hey, background noise!), and a bathroom. The bathroom is… well, it’s a bathroom. Clean-ish, the shower works (and the water is hot, which is a huge win in my book!), and there's usually a tiny packet of shampoo and a bar of soap that feels like it's been orbiting the Earth for a few years. Don't expect luxury. Expect *necessity*. And a haven from the chaos of the train station. That's the magic of it all.
Is there free Wi-Fi? Because, you know, the Internet is important.
Yes! Hallelujah! Free Wi-Fi. Thank the gods. It's usually pretty decent, too. I've managed to stream videos, do video calls (with varying degrees of success, let's be honest), and generally stay connected to the outside world. Sometimes, it can be a little slow during peak hours, but hey, it's free. And it's usually better than the train station Wi-Fi, which is about as reliable as a politician's promise.
Breakfast? Is breakfast included, and is it edible?
This is the *one* area where the Jinjiang Inn is… let's just say, inconsistent. Sometimes breakfast is included, sometimes it's not. And when it *is* included… prepare for a bit of a culinary adventure. It’s generally a buffet. Expect lukewarm congee (rice porridge), some questionable pastries, hard-boiled eggs that look like they’ve seen better days, and a selection of… other things. I've encountered the occasional "mystery meat" item, and I'm not gonna lie, it's not always pretty. My advice? Lower your expectations. But, hey, it's fuel. And it's usually enough to get you going. Or, you can skip the breakfast and grab something from one of the many food stalls *near* the station. Your call!
What about the staff? Are they helpful? Do they speak English?
The staff are... well, it varies, of course. Some speak English, some don't. A smile and a few basic Mandarin phrases will go a long way. (Learn "Xiexie" – thank you! – and you'll be golden). Generally, they're helpful enough. They'll try their best to assist you. I've had both good experiences and… not-so-good experiences. One time, I managed to lock myself out of my room at 3 AM. The staff were surprisingly patient (despite my flailing attempts at communication) and got me back in. God bless them. Another time, I had a minor issue with the air conditioning, and it took a while to sort it out. But hey, they're there. They're trying. And that's what counts, right?
Okay, tell me about that *one* time... when you said something made you want to run screaming?
Alright, buckle up. This is a story. I booked the hotel. Again. Arrived at like... midnight after another hellish train ride. Exhaustion level: eleven. I unlocked the door, flipped on the light, and… *BAM*. A cockroach. A *massive* one. This wasn't just any cockroach; this was a cockroach that looked like it had a lease on the room and had been paying rent for years. A cockroach so big, it probably had its own tiny cockroach family. My scream probably woke up half the hotel. I’m not kidding. I literally jumped back, squealed, and considered sleeping on a bench in the train station (which, at that point, felt strangely appealing). I called reception, heartHotel Whisperer
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