Huayi Farm sits on a small peninsula on DianShan Lake in Qingpu district of Shanghai.
Huayi Farm Resort sits on a small peninsula on DianShan Lake in the Qingpu district of Shanghai. By car, it takes about one and a half hours to arrive from downtown. It is conveniently located near Zhujiajiao, but to be honest we didn’t feel a need to leave the hotel’s grounds as it was so large that we got lost a few times while exploring. It overall provides a higher end experience that is both dog and family friendly but get ready to pay high prices during the stay compared to guesthouses in the area. I visited with my dog, Dodo, on a weekday while I was on a short holiday for work. While there were dozens of guests staying at the time, we didn’t see many people on the trails and at times we felt like we had the whole place to ourselves.
The rooms
Regular rooms do not accept dogs, but you can always contact them to check in advance. There are two types of Villas available that accepts dogs. The bamboo forest wellness villas are in a cluster a short walk away from the lake. These cost around 2000 RMB per night + tax depending on the season. We stayed in one of these and the facilities were great. The villa came with free snacks and drinks as well as a Nespresso machine. On the top floor is the bedroom, bathroom, and tearoom. On the bottom floor is a large living room/ dining room combo. Each villa comes with a small private garden as well. The other option is the lakeside villas, which are larger and located directly on the lake. These run over 3000. If you bring pets, there is a 500 RMB per night cleaning fee. I opted out of the housekeeping until checkout to avoid paying an exorbitant amount of fees. It was only three nights and we spent most of our time outside so it wasn’t a big problem.
The Surroundings
Features of the area include a variety of courtyards and gardens, an area for picnics, playgrounds for children, a mini-zoo featuring peacocks and deer, a farm, a large field for the dog to run around, and a restaurant featuring dishes with ingredients picked fresh from the farm. The grounds are well-maintained and clean and we seemed to encounter more groundskeepers than actual guests. Dogs are allowed in most of the outdoor areas other than the restaurant. If your dog has separation anxiety like mine, you can opt for delivery for an additional 15% service charge on top of an already expensive (but excellent) dishes that range from 50-500 RMB. I wound up paying 500 RMB for each meal pictured. The hotel is in a remote location and doesn’t allow food delivery, so unless you have a car, you’re basically stuck with eating there.
With the various taxes, meals, service charges and cleaning fee factored in, our three-night stay wound up to be around 9000 + the cost of transportation. Was it worth the high cost? I would say “maybe”, Dodo would say “definitely”.
Pros
- Huge space for you and your dog to run around
- Comfortable villas
- Well-manicured campus
Cons
- Dogs can only stay in expensive villas
- No dogs allowed in the restaurant. 15% service charge for room service.
- 500RMB cleaning fee PER NIGHT
