voco Sanya Dadonghai by IHG

A new 2025 IHG hotel in the bay of Dadonghai and the brand I had never tried before made me curious. Arrived late at night, so there was only 1 person at the reception that despite speaking no English made (or had it been decided in advance?) a proper room upgrade and an abundant fruit plate eligible for a diamond member status. There was no vocal recognition, if it is important for members, or a beverage compliment though. Vendor ATMs were empty and all bars closed already at the time of my arrival - good to have had a mini bar with some cold drinks after a nearly 10-hour flight and an argue with a taxi driver that wanted 230 RMB for a brief fraffic-free late night drive from the airport (download DiDi app!). The room with a seaview (not that spectacular compared to other options in the area) overlooking a kids and a normal pool (1.5 meter depth) is modernly equipped and spacious and has all the basics you might expect from a local 5-star experience. Main drawbacks: no European power sockets and the very socket location (no socket near the mirror) and the lack of shelves for clothes - for 1 person like me it was ok, but for a couple especially with a kid it would have been a challenge. BTW, there were many families with children - all Chinese - at the hotel. However, if I had to choose a hotel in Sanya to go to with the kids, I would choose another option. Food and service were good. Location quite far from the sea and retail, at the side with ugly beach, but surrounded with the best hotels in the bay (Shanhaitian Autograph Collection, Mandarin Oriental, Marriott) makes voco another compromise. Overall, voco felt like a proper 5-star hotel, but wo a perk or a vibe that could make it attractive enough to crave to return. P.S. Tried to go to the beach via 2 downward hotels and the Landscape Beach Hotel (Liking) had a closed gate from the pool area that would open only by a guest card...