BLCU Conference Center Accommodation and Rates

Planning to stay in BLCU Conference center anytime soon? Here are some information I gathered on how to reserve and book accommodation at the BLCU university's Conference Center.

 

The Conference Center seems to be easier to book than that of Dorm 17 and other school dorms probably because it's quite pricey for it's room size. But the advantage of booking here is that you have less hassle, and you can actually book your room once you arrive in Beijing (although a slight chance of no vacancies can also happen).


How to Book

You first need to contact them in this number: 0086-10-8230-3778 and inquire if you can reserve for a room on the specific dates you intend to. I think they only have single rooms for booking. You also need to pay the reservation fee of 2,000 RMB to be sent via Bank Transfer. The bank details will be sent to you upon confirmation of your booking.

Requirements

The only requirements you need are a photocopy of your passport, your admission notice, and in some occasions, your photo. You can fax them at this number: 0086-10-8230-0070. 

Cost

I wasn't able to inquire about the daily rates (I'm sorry), but my classmate did mention that he was spending around 4,000 - 4,500 RMB each month for a single room. With this, I think you can about estimate how much it will cost you to stay in the Conference Center. Best of Luck!

BLCU Conference Center

Beijing Language and Culture University has several dormitories that cater to foreign students from all over the world. Aside from this, BLCU also has a business and conference center known as 会议中心 (Huìyì zhōngxīn). The Conference center also offers high class accommodation for foreign students - with free daily breakfast and hotel-like services.

 Exact Location

The Conference Center is located in the Northern part of the BLCU campus. It is right beside the school's track and field and directly across the Dining Hall. It is also about only 5 minutes away from the student classrooms. Due to it's location and class, the Conference Center is known to be a pricy accommodation option for foreign students. It is usually more expensive than renting a much bigger room from a flat in nearby apartments.

 Laundry and Kitchenette

The Laundry Room is located at the 7th Floor which is opened from 7:30 am - 9:00 pm. A laundry card is needed in order to access their machines. Cards are sold at 50 RMB with a 10 RMB deposit. Each wash will cost you 4RMB and if you use the dryer it will cost you around 8RMB.

The Kitchenette is also located in the 7th floor and is opened from 11:00 am - 2:00 pm and 5:00 pm - 9:00 pm.

Bottled Water

Bottled water is available for orders at the Front Desk. 50 RMB is asked for the Initial bottle deposit. You need to purchase a water pump at 45 RMB and each refill will cost you 12 RMB.

Breakfast 

Breakfast is served daily at the Ground floor (which is a Chinese Restaurant). It's not a superb breakfast but it's a simple breakfast with egg, bread and some vegetables. It starts from 7:00 am - 8:30 am.

Telephone Services

In order to access their room phone, you need to purchase a calling card at rates from 20, 50 and 100 RMB.

 Generally, the Conference Center is for students with a higher budget, or those that ran out of rooms from other dorms. You can opt to stay for only a few days until several months depending on your choice.

 If you want to know about the details on Conference Center Room Reservation, Accommodation and Housing Costs you can visit my article on BLCU Conference Center Accommodation and Rates.

BLCU Dorm 17 International Students House Accommodation and Rates

Ever wondered how you can reserve accommodation for BLCU university's Dorm 17 International Students House and how much it will cost you to live there? Here are some facts I gathered from Dorm 17 to help you answer those questions.

How to Book a Room in Dorm 17

To be frank, Dorm 17 is the most difficult dorm to book. I've heard that agents from different countries book these rooms ahead of time and they book in bulk. They pay for everything and then recruit students who are willing to pay extra to get a sure room. This is by far the most used, and most guaranteed way to get yourself a room in Dorm 17. The price difference is not that big, but it might be around 8-10 RMB/day higher than the Dorm's original rates. Each country has its own agents. In mine, I've heard there's one in Manila but I never really got clarified about who and where it's located. If you know of any, maybe you can share it with us in the comment box below.

Can I book for a room by myself?

If you want to take that risk and try to book for a room yourself, you can, but it does not guarantee you a 100% slot. You can call Dorm 17 at this contact number: 0086-10-8230-3285 and Look for Miss Heng. The office hours are from 8:00 am - 12:00 noon in the morning and 2:00 pm - 5:00pm in the afternoon from Monday to Friday.

What are the requirements?

The requirements will include a photocopy of your Passport, your Student Visa and your Acceptance Letter. They usually ask you for the student acceptance number which starts with a letter S, followed by a random mix of numbers and letters - this is found in your acceptance letter as well. You also need to pay for the reservation fee of 2,250 RMB to be sent via Bank Transfer. The bank details will be sent to you after they have received your requirements and confirmed that you already have a slot.

What are the rates?

The rate or cost of your stay will depend on whether you have an agent or not and your duration of stay. The longer you stay, the cheaper you need to pay for your room. I went to Dorm 17 to inquire about the rates and these were what I got:

For Single Room booking -
1 month - 180 RMB/night
 4-6 weeks - 140 RMB/night
3 months - 130 RMB/night
5 months - 120 RMB/night

For Double Room booking  -
1 month - 95 RMB/night
4-6 weeks - 75 RMB/night
3 months - 70 RMB/night
5 months - 65 RMB/night

If your agent charges more than that, then that should be their fee. But it should be worth it if you really want a sure room in Dorm 17. I hope I helped!

How to Reserve a Dorm Room in BLCU

One of the most commonly discussed topics about Beijing Language and Culture University is how to reserve or book a dorm room from the Housing Center. This may be one of the most crucial steps in enrolling yourself to BLCU university simply because if you ran out of accommodation, you will have to look for other places to stay, and you can only do this, once you get there. It's a lot better to know beforehand that you have a room to stay in Beijing once you arrive. It can also help you calculate the total cost of your dormitory stay ahead of time.

The steps you are about to read are for Dorms under the Housing center: Dorm 4, Dorm 6, Dorm 7 and Dorm 8. This does not include Dorm 17 and Conference center.

Dorm Reservation Fee
This is the initial amount you need to pay in order for a dorm room to be reserved to you. You can email zhusu@blcu.edu.cn to inquire about the dorm reservation fee. They don't reply immediately, so in the mean time here is a word file that the school sent me about the dorm reservation fees. It can serve as a guide for you.

Dorm 4 room reservation rates for the September semester of 2011 are 4800 RMB for a BIG single room, 3600 RMB for SMALL single room and 2400 RMB for a double room.

There are 2 possible ways to reserve a dorm room in BLCU:

# 1 - Call a Friend
If you have a friend who is studying in BLCU a semester earlier than you, then I would definitely suggest that you ask the favor of dorm reservation. This doesn't only lessen the hassle on your part, but it also reduces cost (from expensive long distance phone calls to the dormitory office). You just have to email your passport and acceptance letter to your friend and then coordinate the best way to send the money. You can send your payment through his/her bank account or atm. When he/she gets home, ask a copy of the receipt and bring it with you on the date of your travel.

# 2 - Reserve the room yourself

This was the only option my friend and I had. Although we had another friend in BLCU who was willing to reserve a room for us, we were unable to send our documents to her on time because of our visa interview.

Okay, so the first step here is to call the dormitory and ask if there are still available single/double rooms in your dorm of choice. Contact the Housing center at this number: +86-10-8230-3300. Just for your information, most of them don't know how to speak English. So try to ask for someone who can atleast understand english. Use the simplest words possible so you can understand each other. Don't forget to get the name of the person who answered. You're gonna need that name again when you confirm your payment.

You may encounter someone who will tell you that there are no more rooms left, don't panic! Try to call again after a few hours, somebody else might answer and tell you that there are still a lot of rooms available. (Trust me, been through this!) :D

Once you've confirmed that there are still rooms available, send your payment via telegraphic transfer. Ask your bank for telegraphic transfer charges. BLCU bank details that we used are as follows:

Intermediary Bank -
INTERMEDIARY BANK: CITIBANK, N.A. NEW YORK
SWIFT/BIC: CITIUS33
A/C NO. 36082562

Account with Institution -
HUA XIA BANK，HO SWIFT/BIC:HXBKCNBJ030

Beneficiary -
HUA XIA BANK, BANK DEPT
ROOM 311, BEIJING INTERNATIONAL FINANCE CENTRE
NO.11 FINANCIAL ST., XICHENG, DIST., BEIJING
100034, CHINA SWIFT BIC:HXBKCNBJ030

Details of Payment -
A/C NO.: 0301123-8194127
BEIJING LANGUAGE AND CULTURE UNIVERSITY
15 XUEYUAN ROAD, HAIDIAN DISTRICT
BEIJING, CHINA

Details of Charges -
Dormitory Reservation Fee of -your name here-.

I find the telegraphic transfer really confusing. But that's how we sent our payment. Also, send your payment in US dollars. Our first transaction bounced back because we sent our payment in RMB. You can send an email to zhusu@blcu.edu.cn just to confirm if the details are correct.

So after sending your payment through telegraphic transfer, fax the receipt, your preference (single/double room, what floor you prefer), your passport and admission notice to BLCU Housing center: +86-10-8230-3589. Then you can call them again to confirm if they have received the payment.

If you have any trouble understanding their English and vice versa, I suggest you look for someone who can speak to them in Mandarin. Try looking for a Chinese-owned travel agency nearby and ask for help. This was what I did when I couldn't comprehend what the person from the dorm was saying.

Finally, after several phone calls to the housing center, we were able to reserve a dorm! I hope I posted enough details and instructions to help you through your dorm reservation. If you have any questions, feel free to comment below!:)