At the Lehe Ledu Liangjiang Holiday Hotel, guests could be greeted by a red panda as part of a special wake-up service — until the government told the hotel to stop the service.
The hotel, located in the mountainous countryside near the city of Chongqing, advertises “red panda-themed holidays,” according to The Times of London.
There are four red pandas kept at the hotel, and guests could have one of them brought to their room in the morning for “wake-up calls.” The animal would stay in the rooms for varying amounts of time, depending on “the red panda’s mood that day,” per People.
This hotel experience has become popular on social media, as travel influencers have posted photos and videos of their visits, per NBC News.
After this wake-up experience went viral and an article about it was published in a Chinese magazine, discussion over the ethics of the experience was started.
It caught the attention of the local forestry bureau, which sent inspectors to find out what was going on, according to The Times. There were safety concerns for the red pandas, which are endangered in China, and the guests.
The bureau issued a statement, saying it ordered an immediate stop to all “close contact” activities with animals. The bureau said it would report back on any findings and could prosecute or issue fines.
Close contact experiences with red pandas
There are many safari experiences in China that promise close contact with animals, but this hotel goes one step further by allowing guests to see the animals in their room, according to The Times.
Red pandas, despite the name, aren’t actually bears; they’re part of the extended raccoon family, per The Times. The only relation they have to the giant panda is the fact they live in the same part of China and are also photogenic.
China banned close-contact activities — paying to be photographed holding a cub — in giant panda breeding centers in 2018. Before the ban, it was a common form of income.
The Liangjiang Hotel seemed to interpret the ban as a special case. The hotel began the practice of taking a red panda to guests’ rooms last year, and since then it has become a popular feature.
Not only are the red pandas available to come into guests’ rooms, the hotel also offers a one-hour morning session and a 90-minute afternoon session with red pandas, per NBC.