These pick of hotels are the closest to the Beijing South Railway Station, that also consistently receive high ratings from foreign guests. That’s an important point, as not all hotels will accept foreigners, and not all Chinese hotels are acceptable to foreigners. Example, Super 8 Hotel is located onsite at the station, yet they only accept Mainland Chinese citizens, same goes for the nearby Hanting Express.
There are numerous other hotels within a short taxi ride of the station, and you guessed it most all are Mainland Chinese citizens only, you may be able to book online, but expect a hassle when you arrive to check in.
Skipping all that, I’m going to propose these alternatives, that are foreign guest friendly.
China
Hanting Express
Holiday Inn Temple Of Heaven
Holiday Inn Express Beijing Temple of Heaven
JI Hotel Xuanwumen Beijing
Super 8 Hotel (Beijing South Railway Station North Plaza )
National Chain Hotel
JI Hotel Xuanwumen Beijing
4 Star – The hotel is not exactly near the railway station, but it just steps away from Xuanwumen Station on Line 4 and it takes about 16 min on the subway to reach Beijing South Railway Station with trains leaving every 8 min. The hotel gets great reviews and actually makes a great base for a holiday in Beijing with its easy subway access.SOGO department store is also near the hotel.
Holiday Inn Express Beijing Temple of Heaven
3 star – superb location within walking distance to Temple of Heaven, and again, it’s not exactly close to the station yet it’s only ten to fifteen minutes by taxi (about 30 RMB). You could also walk to Taoranting Station (about 25 min) and take the subway (another 4 min).
Holiday Inn Temple Of Heaven
4 star – not to be confused with the above, it’s about 12 min by taxi (about 24 RMB) from the railway station, you could also walk to Jingtai Station on line 14 (about 10 min) and take the subway (about 4 min) to the railway station.
About Beijing South Railway Station
Trains servicing this station are high-speed trains (G trains) that service destinations including Changchun, Dalian, Fuzhou, Harbin, Hangzhou, Hefei, Huangshan, Jinan, Nanchang, Nanjing, Qingdao, Shanghai, Shenyang, Shijiazhuang, Suzhou, Tianjin, Xiamen, Yiwu.
Chinese Name: 北京南站
Address: Fengtai District, Beijing – about 7.5 km south of central Beijing
Getting there: take subway line 4, take a taxi (from central Beijing about 16 min and 25 RMB), bus line 10 from the airport, or numerous public buses.
The station is quite large, and you will likely experience waiting time for tickets. So keep that in mind. There is no shortage of fast food including Pizza Hut, KFC, McDonald’s, Costa Coffee, Kung Fu and so on.
The process: Purchase your ticket before entering the station at one of the ticket offices to the left and right of either the east or west entrance. You will need your passport. Enter the station through the security check, baggage will be screened and you will be required to show your ticket and maybe passport also. After passing security head to the 2F waiting area, taking note of which gate you will depart the waiting area from (on your ticket) and head down to the train boarding platform.