Sofitel Legend People's Grand Hotel Xian

Huge thanks to our butlers, Derek and Nora, for their amazing service! The hotel's location is perfect, and the coffee at the 1953 bar is excellent. Definitely worth a return visit!

It was raining non-stop in Xi'an during my stay, so the bedding felt a bit damp. Other than that, everything else was great, both the service and facilities were excellent, and the location was very convenient for getting around.

The environment is excellent, and the location is superb. The building style is elegant, and the interior decoration is comfortable. The service is amazing, making it definitely worth a stay. I'd also suggest that the hotel keeps up with its maintenance.

We stayed for two nights, on the 16th and 17th. On the 15th, I received a call from the hotel asking about our room preferences. I requested a room with a good view, non-smoking, and quiet. When we checked in, the staff assigned us room 213. This was the lowest floor I've ever stayed on in a hotel, and it was room number 13! I was surprised that the hotel actually had a room 13! How could an international hotel like this assign room 13 to a foreigner? During afternoon tea that day, besides my husband, myself, and an Asian mother and daughter, all the other guests were foreigners. This made me realize even more why I was so unlucky to get room 13! This hotel has such a unique room number 13, and they treat their own compatriots differently from foreigners! However, the smart toilet in room 13 was broken. It wouldn't automatically lift the lid or flush when you stood in front of it. What was even more unbearable was that as soon as you sat on it, the toilet would make a loud gurgling sound and automatically spray water on your backside. We tried it twice, and it happened both times. Also, the light switch was malfunctioning and didn't work. As a result, our room was changed to room 206. Neither room 13 nor room 06 had a French garden view; you could only see trees outside the window. Room 06 overlooked a concrete platform. I stayed during the off-season, and there were only a handful of guests at both afternoon tea and breakfast. Even during the peak breakfast time at 8 AM, there were only four tables with no more than ten guests. In such an off-season, why couldn't they offer us a higher floor with a better view? The male butler from the hotel called in advance on the 15th to ask about my room preferences; wasn't that just being insincere and fake? The staff's service level was inconsistent. Two female servers at afternoon tea and breakfast simply didn't observe guests' needs. The slim, tall female server in the afternoon tea restaurant had an ice-cold expression and no proactive service awareness. One female server in the breakfast restaurant looked like she hadn't woken up yet, with messy hair, no makeup, and ill-fitting work clothes, completely lacking the demeanor of a star-rated hotel employee. More importantly, this server didn't proactively observe guests' tables. Every time, we had to call her to take away the empty plates. Even more exaggerated, when she took away empty plates, she wouldn't simultaneously take away empty cups, nor would she think to ask. Let's talk about the problems with the breakfast restaurant: First, the flowers on the dining tables were fake! For a 'diamond-level' hotel like this, how can they put fake flowers on the tables? If they want to save costs, there are many ways: place some air plants or soilless succulents, or even small, easy-to-care-for plants. Anything real would be more tasteful than these fake ones. Regardless, a 'diamond-level' hotel should not have fake flowers on its dining tables. This is disrespectful to guests. Second, there was a wide variety of bread, but no chain-type toaster to heat the bread. This is usually a staple at the bread station in five-star hotels. Yet, at this 'super five-star' hotel, you can only eat cold bread for breakfast. Third, the restaurant only provided toothpicks, not dental floss sticks. Nowadays, even very ordinary restaurants offer dental floss sticks. A 'diamond-level' hotel like this should provide guests with dental floss sticks, and ideally, toothpick brushes. Additionally, the steps in the bathrooms of both room 13 and room 06 were damaged. In room 13, the hotel actually used cheap, uneven gray adhesive corner guards, which looked very out of place and clashed with the exquisite French decor. They should have used brass stair nosings! During my two-day stay at the hotel, Ms. Doris Du's kindness, politeness, proactive work attitude, and professional image left a very good impression on me. After we checked in and received our key, she led us to our room. She first gave us a tour of the hotel and introduced its history. On the day we checked out, she happened to be on duty at the front desk. She was the only staff member at the hotel who immediately stood up to greet guests upon seeing them! The only one! This small professional gesture of hers was like the first ray of sunshine in the morning, warming my heart! Recalling my check-in, there was a male and female staff member at the front desk. They did not stand up to greet us when guests checked in. When we received our room cards and got up to leave, they remained seated without moving. This is disrespectful to guests. Staff should stand up to greet guests when they arrive, ask them to sit down, and then sit down themselves to process the check-in. When guests receive their room cards and get up, the staff should also stand up to see them off. Such basic courtesies of polite welcome and farewell were completely lacking! On the day I checked in, I had two items of clothing that needed ironing. The female staff member who was on duty at the front desk that day came to our room to collect them. During the process of opening the door to see her, handing her the clothes, and briefly communicating with her, she maintained an ice-cold demeanor throughout, without a hint of a smile. She was not the only female staff member in this hotel who provided service without a smile. In summary, all these issues, and more, expose the hotel's unprofessional training and inadequate management. Sofitel Legend People's Grand Hotel Xian is not directly affiliated with the Sofitel group; it is part of the People's Grand Building owned by Shaanxi Urban Investment and Operations Group Co., Ltd., and is operated by AccorHotels, a French hotel management group. Therefore, the experience was vastly different from the Sofitel hotels I've stayed at abroad.

Came for the legendary experience, and it did not disappoint. The location is right in the city center, and the overall decor is exquisite and grand, with an old-money aesthetic. The bedding was very comfortable, and the service was thoughtful and warm. Very satisfied! Will definitely choose to stay here again.