ANAGED by The Peninsula Hotels, The Peninsula Palace Beijing is a premier address for business and leisure travellers. It occupies a prime spot in the centre of the capital, a short stroll from The Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square. The hotel's shopping arcade is a showcase of luxury brands. Or visit the shopping areas of Wangfujing and Dongdan. This crisply renovated top Beijing business and leisure hotel offers easy access to the second ring road, a fast track to commercial, tourist and diplomatic areas.

The Peninsula Palace Beijing has 525 plush rooms including 57 new suites, all with a range of spoiling amenities including a marble bathroom with LCD TV, and a 42-inch plasma TV in the bedroom. There's high-speed Broadband, a whisper-quiet fax, and information on outdoor temperature and humidity. Business travellers can opt for The Club Floors and enjoy a fleet of comfortable Mercedes Benz and Rolls Royce limousines.

Hold a video conference at The Grand Ballroom if you wish or opt for one of the six function rooms. Banquet facilities can seat any number from 10 to 500. The Fitness Centre offers an indoor heated swimming pool, a fully equipped gymnasium with CYBEX exercise equipment with individual TV monitors, saunas, steam rooms and sports massage.

But why stop there? Pamper yourself at the Clarins Beauty Institute where trained therapists from France provide skin-care advice along with soothing muscle-relaxing massages, hand and foot treatments and more. This is the perfect complement to a wild afternoon Beijing shopping binge at The Peninsula Arcade stocked full with the latest designs. The award-winning JING specialises in Western cuisine with Asian influences while the new Chinese restaurant serves Cantonese in a setting reminiscent of a Chinese courtyard. Beijing is a big "forbidding" city. But who said it had to be tough? Pamper yourself at The Peninsula Palace, one of the best Beijing hotels.