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5.0
#6 of 232 hotels in Yangshuo County
Location
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Value
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The Secret Garden is a boutique hotel and restaurant near the Yulong River in the stunning Yangshuo countryside. Our hotel consists of Qing Dynasty buildings that have been beautifully restored in order to preserve the historic character, while providing customers with a unique and inspirational environment in which to relax or explore.
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I travelled to Guilin/Yangshuo for 4 nights and spent some time debating where to stay (Guilin vs. Yangshuo and then noisy Yangshuo town vs. a quiet village). I'm so glad I chose to stay at the Secret Garden because I was looking for a quiet place with beautiful views. The hotel turned out to have a great location, very personal service and has been built in a unique traditional style with various areas to explore!
The hotel is in a small, traditional village surrounded by fields, mountains and close to the Yulong river yet has all the basic needs to help you feel at home. With great English speaking staff, decent Wifi and even delicious home made Western food (and of course safe, yummy local food) on the menu it makes your stay very comfortable. I found all the staff to be very helpful, (Faye, Peter and my driver among others) - they were a great help to advise on tours and will arrange everything for you which was important to me as I travelled alone and have no Chinese language skills. I recommed that you make the most of their tour suggestions and also take the time to explore the surrounding village.
One piece of advice that I can suggest is that due to the boutique nature of the hotel, sometimes the reception staff are not sufficient to deal with people visiting the restuarant, asking questions about tours, calling in on the phones etc. so don't be afraid to directly order your food with kitchen staff or ask other staff around for some help - their English may not be as good but if you can convey what you need then they will be very happy to help you!
Whether alone or with friends and family, I would definitely go back for more!
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Date of stay: September 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Ian F, Owner at Secret Garden Boutique Hotel
Responded 18 Oct 2013
On behalf of Faye, Peter, Mao (your driver) and the rest of our Secret Garden family, thank you for your kind words. We will be here waiting for you when you do 'come back for more'.
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Place is nestled in rice fields at the base of a big hill around 10 mins outside of Yangshuo town center. Location is perfect for relaxing along the less crowded Yulong river - ideal for swimming and/or bamboo rafting. Staff is friendly and can book everything needed to complete your trip upon arrival. We chose to rent a gas-powered scooter in order to quickly make our way to small villages, scenic lookouts, and swimming holes.
Secret Garden Cafe offers very tasty food including western selections at good prices. Flip to the back pages of their menu to read about activities and recommended places to visit in the area.
Will def. be back to stay longer next time!
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Date of stay: July 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Ian F, Owner at Secret Garden Boutique Hotel
Responded 7 Aug 2013
We are all glad you enjoyed your relaxing stay with us and look forward to welcoming you back at the Secret Garden on your next trip.
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Me and my wife stayed for three nights in this lovely courtyard hotel and we had a great experience. The hotel offers a real good service, delicious food / breakfast, large well equiped rooms, and the staff is superb! Recomended!
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Date of stay: May 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Ian F, Owner at Secret Garden Boutique Hotel
Responded 9 Jul 2013
Thank you on behalf of all our staff at the Secret Garden for your kind words. We all try our best in everything we do. We look forward to welcoming you back in the future.
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The other reviews pretty well nail it, so I'll just add a few bits. First, I was struck by the artistic design of the place and the incredible attention to detail (of which the owner is rightly proud). With the mix of old and modern, just eye candy everywhere. Second, extremely friendly, warm, helpful staff. I was nervous when we arrived and learned that Fay and Ian weren't there, as I was expecting Fay to arrange activities for us, incl Li river trip from Yangdi to Xingping (highly recc'd). No worries, the staff (I remember Lulu's name who was great, but why can't I remember the name of the lady who arranged stuff? She was really terrific.) is fantastic and managed everything seamlessly. No confusion, no worries. We did meet Fay on our second day and she was lovely as well. The village is gorgeous, and a highlight for me was walking out to the rice paddy at night and watching the stars reflect off the water, mountains all around, and several weird kinds of frogs making their noises.
While the village is free to explore, I think some of the locals don't always love tourists poking around the alleys where they live, where you can see in their homes. Our Mandarin-speaking friend thought one man said we shouldn't be there, and his wife then started arguing with them. While I'd heard there isn't the western sense of privacy in China, I think it's a little different in a village where locals can start to feel like tourist entertainment if we aren't careful. I'd say explore away, but be mindful that these are people's homes and if you suspect you're infringing on family space, poke around elsewhere. That said, we loved being in the village, and felt quite welcome there. One old lady waved us into her home to see some lovely woodwork and a shrine to Mao--she then asked for payment which seemed utterly reasonable--very fun, and again, don't be shy about exploring, just be sensitive.
The food at the hotel was excellent, with some outstanding Chinese incl local dishes as well as noodles, burgers, pizza for the kids or those who for some reason don't want to eat Chinese food in China. This was the best place we ate with our daughter the whole trip. (She (12) also loved catching little frogs around the paddies.)
We totally skipped Guilin, thankfully, and only passed briefly through Yangshuo on return from the river. The latter has a pleasant western shopping/dining district but is easily skippable--no need to go in unless you want nightlife/excitement (this hotel is very quiet). We did the light show on the river which was terrific, at least if you like that sort of thing--to me it's a bit like bringing the Can-Can to the Grand Canyon, kind of misses the point of being in such a beautiful natural environment. But most people would love it, and our daughter certainly did.
If I owned a hotel, I'd want it to be exactly like this.
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Date of stay: June 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Ian F, Owner at Secret Garden Boutique Hotel
Responded 9 Jul 2013
Wow. We could not be happier than if we are your favorite hotel ever. Thank you for being so thorough and for your advice to other visitors. Thanks also from Lulu and Tanya, who were very happy to be able to help with your travel arrangements.
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After reading website description/story and reviews of the place I was so much looking forward to staying in this hotel... I was not disappointed. Lovingly restored old traditional house with all modern conveniences... It is in perfect harmony with the beautiful surroundings - carst mountains, rice fields and lush vegetation. New modern pieces of art harmoniously complete the picture... Food is delicious and staff lovely and extremely helpful... Do come, stay there and you won't be disappointed!
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Date of stay: June 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Ian F, Owner at Secret Garden Boutique Hotel
Responded 9 Jul 2013
Thank you so much, 'unique and beautiful' are definitely what we have tried to achieve in our Secret Garden. We are so happy that you enjoyed all aspects of your stay with us.
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We visited the Secret Garden during Chinese New Year and loved the hotel, the food and the setting. The management and staff are fantastic and it is a welcome reprieve from Guilin and Yangshuo town. It is convenient enough to town to access bars and restaurants but far enough away to feel the solitude of rural Chinese life.
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Date of stay: February 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Ian F, Owner at Secret Garden Boutique Hotel
Responded 6 Apr 2013
Thank you for choosing to spend Chinese New Year with us. We are happy you enjoyed the experience and look forward to welcoming you back in the future.
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This boutique hotel truly is unlike anywhere we have stayed before. Gorgeous buildings, lovingly renovated, in a picturesque location. It's not often that I would rate a hotel as the highlight of my trip, but this was everything we dared to hope for. Whilst we relaxed in the beautiful courtyard our kids raced around exploring the amazing buildings and gardens. It was hard to tear ourselves away for a bit of sightseeing at nearby attractions.
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Date of stay: January 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We stayed here for two nights recently. The hotel is a refurbished house in an old village surrounded by karsts and paddy fields. The staff were incredibly friendly and helpful. They helped arrange drivers and activities. I highly recommend this place, particularly for people who want to get away from the more touristy Yangshou. If you are looking for something a little different and want a taste of rural China this is the place to go.
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Date of stay: November 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We stayed here for 4 nights during the October national holiday and were hoping to escape the heaps of tourists travelling during this time. This was the perfect place. With only a couple of rooms, even though the hotel was fully booked it never felt crowded. As it is not in Yangshuo but in a little village a few km from Yangshuo we could easily escape the huzzle and buzzle of the national holiday. We really liked the hotel's lovely design (traditional buildings with a modern touch) and the staff, especially Faye, were super helpful. Food was just great! We def recommend this place for a getaway from the big Chinese cities, noise, pollution, stress... Here you can really relax and see and feel a very different Chinese lifestyle.
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Date of stay: October 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We were so glad to have stumbled upon the Secret Garden, it was a real treat. The hotel is beautifully restored, obviously with an eye to preserving the original character of the buildings, but still with all the modern luxuries - just enjoying the peaceful ambience was a real pleasure of our trip. However, there is still loads to do in the Yangshuo area, and Faye was awesome at suggesting and arranging our outings, transport in and out of Yangshuo is easy to arrange with her, and much cheaper than anything we were quoted in Yangshuo itself. The restaurant offered great Chinese and Western options, as well as imported wine to enjoy in the evenings. Absolutely perfect, thankyou!!
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Date of stay: October 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The nearest ATM is in Yangshuo town, so about 7or 8 Km but, yes, we do accept credit cards in the restaurant so you should be able tosettle up your final bill without getting stuck with too little or too much cash.
There are more places to choose from in the Yangshuo County area.
PRICE RANGE
£26 - £33 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
LOCATION
ChinaGuangxiYangshuo County
NUMBER OF ROOMS
7
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