It's not that the Banyan Tree is unaffordable, but the Yaojia Waterfall Village offers better value for money

Yaojia is a niche hotel/boutique lodging group with a national brand, currently having 6 locations across the country, three of which are near the Huangguoshu Waterfall in Anshun. Among them, Wangpu and Fanshe are actually next to each other, so I only experienced the better Wangpu. The other one, Waterfall Village, is directly inside the scenic area, separated from the top luxury Banyan Tree by just one wall, as can be seen from the photos where both of their doorplates are adjacent. This stay was booked using a 🐬 voucher, costing 769 yuan and including a complimentary dinner. Upon arrival, I was upgraded to a luxurious 98-square-meter courtyard king room, which is equivalent to staying in a private hot spring room for about 500 yuan. It's fair to say that the value for money is maxed out. Note that all room types above the courtyard room come with a private soaking pool, and the regular booking price for the luxurious courtyard king room is only about 1400 yuan. Compared to the basic room type of the neighboring Banyan Tree, which is around 4000 yuan, the value for money is very high, making it a perfect alternative to Banyan Tree. The hotel was originally an abandoned old house next to Banyan Tree, and it is also a successful renovation project. Although the public area is not large, it is still very photogenic, especially the infinity pool courtyard. As a small boutique hotel, it also provides round-the-clock butler service with a quick response time. The luxurious courtyard room is nominally 98 square meters, probably including the area of the front and back yards. It is close to the lobby, the main entrance, and the restaurant, and being on the first floor, there is no need to carry luggage. The front yard doesn't have much landscaping, but upon entering the room, it's actually a large open space with a dining table for two at the entrance, a wardrobe mini bar, then the bed, and near the backyard, there is a small table and tatami seating area. The whole house is not carpeted, with a fresh wooden tone, and the facilities are quite new. There's a welcome fruit plate, a handwritten card, a small fridge that's free but with not many drinks, loose tea provided, and no capsule coffee machine. The backyard is quite spacious, with the Banyan Tree view just beyond the wall. The size of the soaking pool is good, feeling slightly larger than those in the Banyan Tree suites, and you can fill it with water until it overflows, which is very fast. The issue of insufficient hot water during the initial opening of this hotel should have been resolved. Additionally, my favorite feature is the rotatable design of the soaking pool faucet, which makes it very convenient to clean the entire pool by just rotating the faucet. Most importantly, privacy is well protected. I visited a few empty rooms on the second floor that were being cleaned, and from an aerial view, the soaking pool is completely out of sight, which is actually better than Banyan Tree in this respect. The bathroom is very spacious, with a man-made stone bathtub that I haven't seen before, double sinks with good lighting, equipped with a Toto washlet, and a round showerhead that is installed too low, giving an average experience. The service is attentive, the decor is elegant, and the location is excellent (Banyan Tree's rooms and lobby require a shuttle to the entrance, while this place is just a ten-meter walk away). The value for money of this private hot spring room is truly high. Booking a basic room during the off-season has a good chance of being upgraded. It's worth a try. I liked it even more when I stayed at their Wangpu location later on, but I'll write about that slowly.