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Am I crazy to get rid of Xian from my itinerary?

Am I crazy to get rid of Xian from my itinerary?

Old Jun 24th, 2005, 01:41 PM
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Am I crazy to get rid of Xian from my itinerary?

I'm thinking of skipping Xian from my China trip. Am I crazy? I only have 11 nights and this is the plan: Beijing (3 nights), Xian (1 night), Lijiang (3 nights), Guilin (2 nights), Shanghai (2 nights).
Should I get rid of Xian? I'm only going to see the terra-cota warriors and then getting back on a plane. If I get rid of it, where should I add the extra night, Shanghai?
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Old Jun 24th, 2005, 02:02 PM
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NO,NO,NO. Do not omit Xian. "Only going to see the terra-cota warriors" should be a highlight of your trip.
I have no idea what Lijiang is all about so cannot comment on whether you should stay there for 3 nights. I was underwhelmed by Shanghai. Just another fairly modern big city to me.
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Old Jun 24th, 2005, 02:12 PM
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I have been to both Xian and Lijiang. I think the terra cotta warriors are fascinating and wonderful. If I were doing this trip and were inclined to drop Xian I would either drop Xian and stay a night in Yangshou ( the drop off point of the Li River Cruise from Guilin, wonderful scenery, fun West Street area) or I would keep Xian, drop Guilin, and add the extra 2 days to Lijiang/Dali (If you read my trip report you will see I loved Lijiang/Dali.

What is it that you are doing in Guilin? I am assuming this is your first trip to China so it would be a shame to omit something as grand as Xian.
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Old Jun 24th, 2005, 04:40 PM
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Do not omit Xian
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Old Jun 24th, 2005, 11:45 PM
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Totally agree with the above posters that Xian is not to be missed. Shanghai very much underwhelms me as well, esp if you are going in the summer when it could be beastly hot, and the air pollution is quite bad at almost all times of year. It is a huge, huge modern skycraper city with a tiny bit of preserved colonial archtecture. If you want a modern city (with small colonial bits as well), go to Hong Kong, much better, more to do, less traffic, and you have that lovely harbour.

Xian is so much more than “just” terra cotta warriors. Do some reading. They have preserved their entire city wall and you can walk a good bit of it, and have lots of preserved areas of the old town, including the drum tower, the beatiufl area around the main mosque, and areas near the city wall entrance. There is alos the pagdoa and an excellent musuem, not to mention some of the best souvenir shopping in China, IMO. I could easily and happily spend 3 days there, but you could do two full days and one night (early am flight out and late PM flight back the next day), or two nights with an early morning flight out.
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Old Jun 25th, 2005, 01:02 AM
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As other who respond, I think that Xian is a must. As Cicerone said, the museum there is exceptional. Not far from there is aa village- museum from matriarchate time, very interesting.

I did not visit Lijang, so, I do not know if you can take a day from there.

I liked Shanghai, but I think that 2 nights are enough there.

Probably you go to Guilin to take a cruise on the river. It is very beautiful view, and something special. However, depend on your schedule, maybe you can spend only one night there?
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Old Jun 25th, 2005, 04:12 AM
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Xian represents some of the oldest culture in China and, as others have mentioned, should not be missed. Xian also has a thriving Muslim quarter which is worth a visit.

Lijiang is a totally different cultural experience from Xian. Lijiang = Beautiful River and it is certainly a beautiful spot. But remember that it is also very "lush", which means quite a bit of rain. Lijiang is more the middle period of Chinese history and more "minority" culture. If you plan to spend so much time in Lijiang, you should also read up on Joseph Rock and the "bird" language as well as try to access some of his National Geographic articles - he was a botanist and you will understand why so many of Lijiang's beautiful flowers, like rhododendrons, grow in the US.

Shanghai should not be missed, IMHO, as it is another different cultural experience. Modern China is trying to "strangle" Hong Kong and develop Shanghai - you should see what China is trying to accomplish in its mad dash into the future. You will not understand what all the hoopla is about, unless you visit Shanghai and especially the Pudong area. When you go to Pudong, just remember that not too long ago, it was just a muddy flat area of no value whatsoever.

China is not just a huge country, it is also very diverse. Enjoy each area for its own uniqueness.
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Old Jun 25th, 2005, 06:15 AM
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Glad everyone agrees with me! Happens so rarely in my life. All this talk makes me anxioius to return. Must mention the Hutongs in Beijing. This is also a great memory for me. Try to get a tour that will take you inside a home.
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Old Jun 25th, 2005, 01:58 PM
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If I were going to eliminate any place from your itinerary, it would be Shanghai-it really didn't do much of anything for me-hot, very congested city-there appears to be a real anti-Western bias there as well.
Xi'an, on the other hand, should NOT be missed-apart from the terra cotta soldiers, one of the most fascinating places I've ever been in the world was the Muslim Quarter of Xi'an around dusk.
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Old Jun 25th, 2005, 02:32 PM
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<there appears to be a real anti-Western bias there as well>

Huh? In Shanghai?
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Old Jun 25th, 2005, 02:33 PM
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Yup. Experienced it myself, even.
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Old Jun 25th, 2005, 02:41 PM
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What happened?
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Old Jun 26th, 2005, 07:47 AM
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There are two bits of information that we need in order to give our "expert" advice: 1) is this your first trip to the PRC?, and 2) what time of year do you plan to go? Nonetheless, I'll go ahead with a preliminary opinion much like that of "easytraveler." I have not been to Lijiang, but I have been to Kunming and vicinity. One aspect of your itinerary to consider is how spread out it is for eleven nights. You would be spending a lot of time in transit, going from the far north to the far south. Were this MY trip and these were the options given, I would go to Beijing, Xi'an, Guilin, and Shanghai. Deconstructing what you suggest and adding my own "two cents' worth," I would go in a semi-circle from Beijing, Xi'an, and Guilin to Hong Kong (direct flights from Guilin). You ask specifically about Xi'an and, having just been there (for at least the third time) in February, 2005, I urge you to think of this city as being the venue of many more interesting sights than just the terra cotta soldiers. The Grand Mosque, downtown, is about a thousand years old and the surrounding Muslim area is a fascinating warren of streets and vendors. Right in the heart of the city, also, is the thousand-year old Bell Tower. There is a fine museum in Xi'an and there are ancient pagodas. It would be a shame, in my view, to go see the warriors and just get back on the plane. It would be worse to omit Xi'an altogether. ZZ
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Old Jun 26th, 2005, 05:54 PM
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Wow, Thanks for everyone's help. You've all convinced me to keep Xian. Thx. Now I need to decide if I am being too agressive with the itinerary. Need to buy the plane tickets in the next couple days, so I'm going to need to make my decision quickly.
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Old Jun 30th, 2005, 06:31 PM
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Contrary to the other posters, I would recommend that you do skip Xian. My wife and I visited China for our honeymoon in October, 2004 (Shanghai 2 days; Suzhou 1 day; Beijing 5 days [Jinshanling to Simatai Great Wall - fantastic]; Xian 2 days; Yangshuo 4 days; Hong Kong 3 days). We did it on our own (no tour), and it was a fascinating trip. As for Xian, we thoroughly enjoyed the Muslim Quarter and its night market, biking on the city walls was a pleasant way to spend the afternoon (and to look down into unexplored sections of the city), and the Terrracotta Warriors are an impressive sight. HOWEVER, it was by far the most polluted city we visited in a country with significant pollution problems. I ended up with a lung infection, and slept in a chair for the last week of the trip (I'm 34 and in decent shape; some antibiotics cleared up the infection when we got home). Furthermore, we found the dining options in Xian to be very poor (we're not gourmets) and two different cabbies there blatantly tried to rip us off (we took cabs in every city we visited); we actually had to jump out of one cab. Admittedly, our knowledge of Chinese history is extremely limited, and maybe we did not appreciate all the cultural and historical sights in and around Xian, but we're fairly seasoned and hardy travelers, and the pollution in Xian was simply overbearing. Moreover, while the Terracotta Warriors are tremendous feats of artistry, I found them somewhat overhyped; basically, what you've seen in the pictures is what you get -- rows of clay figures under a huge industrial hangar. The awesomeness of it fades somewhat quickly, and if that's the sole reason you're visiting Xian, I don't believe its worth the trip. My wife and I had strongly considered Lijiang/Dali before going, and if we had to do it over again, we would have skipped Xian and gone there.

As for some recommendations:
(1) Take the subways in Beijing: while not extensive, they are a fun, inexpensive, and easy way to get around and experience life as a native.
(2) Explore the Back Lakes in Beijing -- join in the ball room dance lessons on Saturday nights, get a dirt-cheap 20-minute body rub, and visit the restaurants recommended in the guide books.
(3) Tour the Hutongs
(4) If you need to choose, visit the Summer Palace over the Temple of Heaven.
(5) Jinshanling to Simatai Great Wall - stunning, and highlight of the trip; absolutely worth the long ride, and you get to see a nice bit of the countryside along the way. We hired a private driver through one of the hostels (even though we stayed at the Grand Hyatt) for I believe $90 for the day, and it worked out great -- he brought us to the airport when we were done.
(6) Yangshou over Guilin - touristy, yet not the same level of trap as Guilin, and it offers all sorts of great cruising, hiking and biking options. Although you'll fly into Guilin, take the local shuttle vans from Guilin to Yangshou - another great day-in-the-life experience. And look up Sam (of Uncle Sam's) if you need a guide on a bike trip.
(7) Longsheng Rice Terraces: they're worth the rough 3-4 hour ride from Yangshou; beautiful, and you will be introduced to a unique ethnic community based around the terraces (I forget their name).
(8) Be prepared to get lost a few times, and just laugh about it (we ended up in some pretty comical situations).

Anyway, these are just my opinions. No matter what you do, you'll have a great time, and Xian definitely has something to offer. Enjoy.



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