Hotel 2-Star di Hunan, China

Excellent stay at Barenju! The manager really made our stay, helping us arrange and book Zhangjiajie and Tianmen mountain park tickets early and was really responsive online, even giving a discounted rate to the attractions. One morning it was absolutely pouring rain and he even helped us change our time slot to the afternoon so we would have a better experience! He was always friendly, smiley, and helped us with anything we needed. The hotel was a 15 minute straight walk to the East gate which was really convenient. Also, right opposite a long street with really good, authentic restaurants. They have free washing machines and soap you can use to do laundry after hiking! The laundry room on the roof actually has an incredible view of the mountains, its a shame they didn't have a little table or ”hang out” space up there! Thank you for the wonderful stay!

[Parks info below] I'm glad that I checked out this hostel, good value for money. Room was nice and tidy, lots of electricity sources in bed and common area, curtains, hot shower. I shared the 6 beds dorm with just another girl, and you make your own bed. No toilet paper, no free water refill, no light in bed. It's worth the price. If you extend your stay directly in the hostel it's cheaper than the app. The reception area is more cramped but you can socialize there. Most of the people are Chinese but I also met some foreigners. The guy in the reception speaks English and can give you information, in addition to that I recommend you to do your own research. There are two baby cats playing around, and an adult one. You can get to the hostel from the west railway station by bus line 17 for 2 yuan - last bus at 8:40pm + 15 minutes walk. Location is close to the main avenue where there's a lot of restaurants, and a 24-hour convenience store close to the corner with this same avenue. There are two night markets in the city, one on the avenue like 10 min distance walking to downtown direction, more local, and another one on the street in front of the tianmen mountain cable car, more touristy. The hostel is 15 minutes walking to the central bus station where you can get the bus to zhangjiajie park and 15-20 to the tianmen mountain cable car station. [ATTRACTIONS] Zhangjiajie (avatar), tianmen (heaven's gate) and canyon (glass bridge) are 3 different parks in different locations. The entrance to zhangjiajie gives you access for 4 days. I went the 4 days and enjoyed it very properly. If you're short on time, 2 days will do, but plan it wisely based on your priorities. Gates are 1 hour trip distance from the central bus station - 1h30 at weekends. Also, note that before entering the park with passport and face scan, you need to do an APPOINTMENT for that hour. You usually do it there at the gate, but for a saturday all appointments for that hour were sold out in advance and I had to wait for 45 minutes to go in. Recommended to check in advance especially on weekends. There are 2 types of tickets you can get: including all cable cars and elevator for unlimited time for 450 yuan; or just the entrance (including only free shuttles) for 215 yuan - you still have the option of buying each transport at the park (75 yuan cablecar one-way, 65 elevator one-way). At first, I had understood that to see the avatar mountains, the ONLY way was through the elevator, so I bought the all-inclusive. Turns out you CAN go by free shuttle + hike + free shuttle if you start in the east gate. My favorite part was the huangshi village. For tianmen, the entrance is 260 yuan. Choose the route in advance because some sell out fast. Gold advice: go at least one hour or more BEFORE the hour that you have the tickets for. The hour of your ticket just matters before the very last point before boarding the cable car. The line was MASSIVE and it took me 2h30 waiting on a Monday - ended up getting in 2 hours late than my ticket time and couldn't finish the whole loop: took only the red trail and went down to the heaven's gate. About the Canyon, I can't say much because I decided to skip it and save the 210 yuan ticket - note that this price DOESN'T include the activities, you must pay separately. The package that includes almost* everything is 360 yuan. Last but not least, if you go to the 72 Wonders, there's also an entrance of 88 yuan. You can go/come back with the bus 17 - same line that serves to the west railway station, last bus 8:40pm.

I can’t recommend this place enough! Where do I even start? The location is unbeatable—so close to the main gate of the Avatar Mountains. Our room was incredibly comfortable and came with a great view, with every amenity we could possibly need. But the absolute cherry on top was the marvelous owner. She helped us customize an itinerary based on the exact amount of time we had. She was also incredibly thoughtful regarding my mom’s age (64yo), planning a route so she could fully enjoy the breathtaking views without having to walk too much (which was a lifesaver since the park is massive!). We followed it to the letter and we had the best experience! Don’t think It twice! You won’t regret booking this place! Thank you so much; without your help, we wouldn't have enjoyed the park nearly as much as we did. I would stay here again in a heartbeat! Gracias ☺️

The room looked new and was very clean. This hotel is run by a family, and they were always smiling, friendly, and available to help us. The host kindly came to pick us up in the parking lot and even drove us to the city center for our next destination, which we really appreciated. We enjoyed a delicious breakfast in the morning, and also had lunch there. They cooked especially for us, doing their best to make it perfect. I truly recommend this place and their child is absolutely adorable!

Highly recommended!!! This homestay is located closer to South Gate of the National Park which I believe provides nicer views with much fewer crowds then the main East Gate. The room we stayed at was warmly decorated with everything you need. Shower was comfortable and it was quiet at night to sleep. We woke up to the sound of country birdsong and farm rooster, then looking out to beautiful mountain views and wildflowers blooming with crisp fresh air. The pick-up and drop off services made the whole trip so much smoother and saved us lots of time and money. The owner was super kind and helpful with planning itinerary around weather and purchasing discounted tickets for us. We managed to tick our whole list for Zhangjiajie and are extremely happy. Oh and did I mention the home-cooked farm dishes. They are sooo delicious with the freshest ingredients, at very reasonable prices for a touristy area. Must try the homemade sausages and barbecue! To be fair all of the other dishes were incredible too so you can't go wrong. They were so yummy and satisfying after a long day of hiking and adventures. If you want an true authentic local experience at great value, dont hesitate and book this place. The owner running this place is kind, attentive and most importantly trustworthy. It's a hidden gem! 老板，非常感谢您的细心招待！祝您和全家一切顺利，生意兴隆。如果下次还有机会来张家界玩，我们一定会再次入住观山别院！🫶💯💯

The hotel was just like a typical hotel. just enough to get you resting a few days. nothing too special. but the service, it was AWESOME 🤩. the manager (the chinese dude in the photo) works completely alone yet he manages to clean and take care of all the rooms in the hotel. he is extremely nice and kind. he provided us with utmost hospitality and also provided us with free water at anytime aswell as book and give discounts on our tickets. his service alone makes this hotel deserve a 5 star review. i highly recommend this place for foreign tourists. hope you guys also come here and stay here for a while. [also his cat was really cute :)]

The location is perfect for getting up Tianmen mountain before the crowds. It's a 5 min walk to cable car so you can be there 7.30 and travel alone through the mountain. The streets around the hotel have lots of restaurants and massage places. A foot massage after Tianmen was great. The room was nice enough and clean, it does the job. No elevator so prepare to haul your luggage up the stairs.

First off, I want to commend the staff for their warm hospitality. They helped us book tickets and even planned our routes, which was incredibly helpful. The location is also fantastic, just a few minutes' walk from the East Gate of the Forest Park. The complimentary bottled water and orange candies were a thoughtful touch. However, there were no bath mats, so the slippers were always wet, and we ended up tracking water everywhere. The facilities are a bit dated and could really use a renovation. The hot water situation was particularly frustrating. Coming back after 9 PM, all I wanted was a nice, warm shower, especially in the middle of winter, but there was no hot water. We waited until 11 PM or even midnight, and the water was still lukewarm at best, almost cold. This happened both nights... this definitely needs to be addressed! After a tiring hike, all you want is to relax with a hot shower, but that wasn't possible. There were no bath towels either, but that wasn't as big of a deal. Overall, the service was excellent, but I hope the other amenities can catch up.

This hotel was truly outstanding. For the price, it offered a great value for money. Me and my brother booked a japanese style room which was beautiful. Very clean room. CàiCài was an excellent receptionist for our stay and made sure we felt very welcomed, even before we arrived. Truly great service.

This is the best hostel I’ve ever stayed in! The host is so unbelievably friendly and kind, and the dinner was so good and I got to meet many travellers staying there too! It is my first time travelling solo and I met amazing people here. The hostel is within walking distance from the forest park’s east gate. There are a few restaurants less than a minute’s walk nearby. The hostel itself is very clean with sheets you can change yourself, as well as having a night light and foldable table. Toilets are shared among the same gender, shampoo and body wash is provided. There’s even a rooftop space for you to hangout at. I highly recommend staying here if you’re a solo traveller as you’ll feel so welcome here! P.S. you can book tickets through the host as it is discounted as well!