We had a short (2 night) stay in Hotel Nikko for a conference before heading onto Beijing. This hotel was lovely. The staff was excellent and spoke very good English. The room was very well-appointed. Buffet breakfast was as expected with lots of international choices and very good American coffee.

Solid choice for a Western-style hotel in Dalian.

Hotel Nikko Dalian is well situated in the middle of Dalian. The room was large and had everything you would expect from a luxury hotel. Smoking however is still a problem here. Even though I had a non-smoking room, it smelled of cigarette smoke, which seemed to particularly stick to the sheets. Internet was relatively slow. The breakfast buffet was of reasonable quality but offered an enormous array of choices. The hotel is in walking distance from many shops, a Chinese market and Chinese, as well as, Western eateries. Be very aware for traffic whenever crossing the streets however. I was attending a conference at the Dalian World EXPO center. The hotel, although recommended by the organizers, was too far from that venue. The distance is only about 10 km, but it can take well over an hour (and occasionally much more than that) in rush hour to get there. The EXPO conference center is located in a modern, newly built up and well kept area on the coast. Better to stay in that area if you have your business there. Check-out was excruciatingly slow, with irritating mistakes about use of the minibar. Overall the hotel was good, but for a 5-star hotel I would rate it just average.

I must admit I'm partial to Japanese hotels - the clean lines, modern elegance, and uber-efficient service always make me happy, and this hotel was no exception. The food (in particular breakfast buffet) was delicious and abundant, with Japanese, Chinese, and Western options every day. The only downside was that although there was a 'non-smoking section,' it was really hard to avoid the smoke as the room was really one giant circle, which is tough for a spoiled Californian like me who's accustomed to clean air. The lobby is lovely and a nice meeting and lounging place, with free wifi which is handy if you only bring an iphone with you (the rooms also have free internet if you bothered to bring along your laptop to plug in). The central location was also handy.

If you are coming from especially from Europe, breakfast can be a headache for you in hotels in China.In Nikko you do not have to worry about it at all..