You can stay in Beijing REAL cheap ($5-8) if you stay in a dorm. In the off-season you might not even have to share it. Never pay the posted rate.
I am happy to pay 100Y ($15) for my room with 2 beds and 2 windows. Ask for a room with a window or you might get something like my first room. All it was missing was a listing of bail bondsmen on the wall.
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Use the bathroom before you leave your hotel. Beijing has MANY public bathrooms, and they are labelled in English. But you may find yourself doing your business squatting over a hole in the floor in full view of strangers who are doing the same. Plan ahead. Don't end the game with all your timeouts. And carry your own TP.
