We went for the standard delux type of room and it was fine. (the one just above the economy) It is a fairly dated hotel but well maintained -our room looked like it had been part renovated. I don't think the functioning of the shower had been touched as it seemed to have a mind of its own. Good enough though -it was clean, just a little worn round the edges.

Breakfast was ok - a strange mix of Chinese and European. Nice little cafe round the corner -compass cafe - where you get get juices etc(not much of a food selection) and you can use the internet for free. Also they arrange tours to the Great Wall, acrobats etc which seem to be a lot cheaper than the usual hotel packages -plus you don't get dragged into factories en route. The hotel didn't have our reservation from Expedia when we got there but they sorted out a room for us anyway. By the time we checked out, 2 days later, the booking confirmation had come through. You will still need 500 yuan for a deposit, even though payment has been made.

You can see the Forbidden City from the window in the bedroom and it is only a short walk away from Wangfujing street, Tianamen Square, Bai Hai Park and the Forbidden City. It's about 12 Yuan in a taxi to the restaurants by Hou Hai.

Taxi to the airport -the hotel will arrange one for you BUT it will be double the price it usually is and you need to check whether it included the road toll charge. We had little choice as we had to be at the airport at 4.30am and didn't want to take the risk of flagging one down on the street. If you are going to the airport at a normal time, taxis pass by the hotel all the time, so probably better to get one that way. A good hotel -we stayed at Novotel before which was nice, but I think Redwall suits the tourist's needs more.

The top floor bar as described on the web site is not completed..... Great location, but some cab drivers don't know where it is & won't take you. ALWAYS carry the hotel card in Chinese.
The Chinese rooms are noisy, very small, but have a soft bed. Strange, because the western rooms have beds that feel like you're sleeping on the platform mattress.....very hard! Request extra quilts and another sheet and that will help a little bit. They also turned off the AC in the middle of the night. The western rooms are large, clean and pleasant. Management staff was very helpful.
Breakfast is $9.00 USD...decent. Take advantage if you prefer western food, because that's it! Unless you are a fan of fish heads or fried duck heads, you're out of luck in the food dept.
There is a TGIF Friday's near the Embassies, which may save your life!
The hotel bell boys make their money from referrals, so if you have an event you wish to attend, don't let them talk you into another venue. They sent us to an accrobat show that was very amateurish and expensive.

The Red wall is literally around the corner from the Forbidden City and only a ten minute walk from Beijing's main shopping street. A taxi from the central train train station cost only 16 Yuan.

The hotel check in procedure involved relaxing in some comfortable armchairs with a glass of iced water whilst the staff dealt with all the paperwork and took our bags to our room. We were asked to pay an 800 yuan deposit on arrival for mini-bar use, etc. Whilst some reviewers have complained about this, I don't really see what the issue is. The hotel simply cancelled the credit card transaction when we left.

Our room on the first floor, 3201, was clean, reasonably sized, with big twin beds and a two seater couch. The air conditioning was very efficient, but quiet. The mini-bar fridge was big enough to put all our own drinks in - there is a cheap shop to the right of the hotel front door with bottles of beer, soft drinks and chocolate. But the mini-bar prices aren't too bad if you can't be bothered with the 10 metre walk to the shop!

The bathroom had one drawback - the shower tray was only a couple of centimetres high, which meant everytime you had a shower, the water overflowed and the whole of the bathroom floor got wet.

The Red Wall was good value for money, clean and comfortable. Our one dinner in the hotel was delicious - just make sure you eat early. The room was well appointed, clean and comfortable. Whilst there are mixed reviews for this hotel, we had no problems and would definitely stay there again if we returned to Beijing.

During a 3 week stay in China and Tibet, this was the noisiest
hotel of all. The doors of rooms close really loud! If you don't hold the door- and who does- it SLAMS shut. The room had a dirty sock on the floor from a prior occupant, that despite being impossible to overlook, obviously was. The breakfast buffet had dirty dishes, and was always out of some necessary eating utensil. This was our first hotel in China, so I feared that was just the way things would be, but our other hotels were much cleaner and friendlier.