Where to stay in Kaifeng: Gulou or the Longting lakes?

Stay around Gulou, the Drum Tower, if you want the night market and old-town food outside your door. Stay in Longting, near Longting Lake and the Qingming Riverside Landscape Garden, if the parks and evening shows are why you came. The new district around Kaifeng North Station only makes sense if you are driving or catching a very early train.

Area	What you are next to	Typical nightly rate	Pick it for
Gulou / Bookstore Street	Drum Tower night market, Bookstore Street, Daxiangguo Temple	¥180–250 budget chains; ¥280–380 mid-range	Eating, walking, a first visit
Longting / Qingming Riverside Garden	Qingming Riverside Landscape Garden, Longting Lake, Wansui Mountain	¥200–260 budget; ¥300–450 mid-range; ¥600–1,000 lake-view rooms	Parks, shows, families
Old Henan University campus	Iron Pagoda, Wansui Mountain	¥80–180	Tight budgets
Kaifeng North Station	High-speed station, newer buildings, easier parking	¥160–300 budget; ¥300–500 mid-range	Driving, early departures

Rates swing hard between weekdays and festival weekends, so check before you commit.

You can also compare all the main booking sites side by side.

What Gulou actually gets you

The Drum Tower night market is downstairs from most of the hotels on and around Gulou Square. Bookstore Street is a 50-metre walk, Daxiangguo Temple five or six minutes on foot, Kaifeng Prefecture fifteen to eighteen. Qingming Riverside Landscape Garden is 1–2 km away, a ¥11–15 taxi or a shared e-bike ride. The trade-off is noise: ask for a room away from the street, and read recent reviews for the words "soundproofing" and "window" rather than trusting the lobby photos.

What Longting buys you

Proximity to the gates, chiefly. The Pullman Kaifeng Jianye on Longting North Road is about 1.6 km from Qingming Riverside Landscape Garden, has 186 rooms and an indoor pool, and was quoting from roughly $105 a night. The DoubleTree by Hilton on Zhengkai Road sits in the same district from around $65. One warning: a hotel name containing the words "scenic area branch" does not guarantee a walkable route to the ticket gate — water and walls get in the way. Trace the route on a map before booking.

Time it right

The city's chrysanthemum festival runs 18 October to 17 November in 2026, with flowers planted across the whole city rather than in one park, and rooms fill early. Kaifeng North Station is 15–16 km from Gulou, about 30 minutes and ¥30 in a taxi; Songcheng Road station is 9.2 km, roughly ¥20; the ordinary Kaifeng railway station is 2.8 km, about ¥8.

Last checked: 2026-10-27