My husband and I used Starwoods points (11,500) to book a Westin Room for the second part of our stay in Bejing-March 11-16th. When we got to the hotel it was booked so they upgraded us to a two bedroom apartment in the Residence Tower. The apartment was fantastic in it's layout. We really enjoyed having the kitchen so we could stock it with drinks and snacks and breakfast items. The only down side to the kitchen was it seemed to have a strange odor so we had to keep the door closed when we weren't using it. It also was not fully stocked with dishes/utensils, etc. There were glasses but we had to request bowls/silverware. We did not cook anything but if we needed to we would have requested cooking ware also.

It was really nice to be able to read in a real chair and sit on a real sofa instead of a bed to watch TV. There were actually three TV's - one in each bedroom and one in the living area. The only problem I had with the facility was I could not get a feather pillow and I found the pillow they had to be too bulking for me. I ended up using one off the sofa to sleep on.

We found the staff to be very friendly and attentive. English was satisfactory and if they did not understand your question they were quick to get help from another employee.

We thought the food in Prego, the Italian restuarant was excellent. I had the lasagna and was very satisfied with it.

We also ate the breakfast buffet one morning when we had a long day planned. All of the food was excellent, the fresh squeezed juices were expecially nice.

We ate one ala carte meal at the same restaurant, not wanting the buffet that evening. My husband ordered the Wonton Soup and when it came we discovered the Wonton's had shrimp in them. When I tasted the broth it tasted like seafood so I said he better slice open one of the Wonton's since he is allergic to shellfish. Sure enough it had shrimp in it - this was not noted on the menu so I would recommend if you have any allergies - ask to make sure there is not any in the dish you ordered.

I used the ladies facilities by the swimming pool (and the pool). The jacuzzi had a very nice area where you could put your feet directly over some jets - nice after a long day of walking. The sauna and steam room were also refreshing. However one of the days the jacuzzi was cold instead of hot so I didn't use it.

I used the Spa on the last evening to get a 90 minute Chinese Massage. The spa rooms are incredible - they have a private dressing room with an individual shower/steam room combination that has colored lights that rotate through the color spectrum. The therapist I had was very good although I did note a slight odor on her breath, probably due to a different food diet. I also had to ask her to use more oil/lotion since it did not seem to be moisturizing my skin very well and there was some friction when she was doing my hands. Note - they will ask you if you want a man or a woman so definately speak up if you have a preference.

We had drinks in the lounge and they did a very good job with service and had entertainment - singers and a piano player. The lounge was busy during the week but quiet on the weekend. Definately more focused on the business traveler.

We used the hotel "limo" for our transfer back to the airport on our day of departure. It was a very nice Mercedes and you definately felt luxurious riding in it.

The hotel was not convient to walk to any of the tourist sites but taxis were very inexpensive. It also made it nice that it was very quiet every night due to the location.

I would definately recommend the hotel for business/pleasure combination.