High life: China family of 8 pay US$140 a day to live in luxury hotel, say price and comfort mean they might stay forever

A viral video show the hotel living room equipped with a TV, sofas, chairs and tables. The room can been seen filled with daily life supplies like clothes, food and water.

Several family members are seen standing around a table sharing fruit.

“Today is the 229th day of our stay at the hotel,” a member of the family, Mu Xue, says.

“The room costs 1,000 yuan per day. Our family of eight live very well,” she said, adding that it was a long-term rental rate given by the hotel.

Due to the fact that the price was all-inclusive, there were no extra charges for parking, heating, water and electricity.

“We feel happy living here, so we plan to live in a hotel for the rest of our lives,” said Mu.

In a separate clip from Star Video, Mu said that her family have owned six properties and are in good financial health.

Screenshots revealed that Mu has completed several deposits including ones of 100,000, 35,500 and 50,000 yuan.

The cost of living in Nanyang is unclear, but according to the mainland real estate information platform, Anjuke, the average rent for an apartment with two rooms in Shanghai has reached 20,000 yuan a month.

“I never thought this way of living would help save money. I just feel that it makes everything convenient,” Mu told Star Video.

The story sparked a heated discussion on mainland social media.

Some people were captivated by their unconventional lifestyle, while others could not understand their choice.

One person said: “As long as they are happy, that’s fine.”

“I would also want to live in a hotel if I was rich,” said another.

“Eight people squeezed into such a hotel suite, is it really comfortable?” asked a third.

While another online observer said: “This is ridiculous.”

Stories about people living an unconventional lifestyle often divide opinions in China.

In May last year, the story of a 29-year-old man in southwestern China who lived in a tent in an abandoned car park reignited a debate about the “lying flat” culture and its growing appeal among the country’s young people.

Tang Ping, or lying flat culture, is one which involves a personal rejection of societal pressures to overwork and over-achieve

In September 2022, a young couple in southern China who gave up renting an apartment to live in a camper van went viral.