Hi Everyone
My wife and I are planning a trip to Beijing & Chengdu
1. We were wondering if 3 days in Beijing and 2 days in Chengdu is enough to see all the tourist spots, soak in the culture and eat some good local food?
2. Is subway/taxis sufficient enough for both places or should we get a private driver for the day? we both speak mandarin.
Beijing & Chengdu Questions
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1. You can spend a week in Beijing and not cover "all the tourist spots".
2. Yes, your can just use public transportation and taxis. Chengdu's subway just opened its first line and may not be that useful to get to sights. At many top historical sites, you can then just hire its own guides for a small fee if you want to know more about the place.
We just got back from 6 days in Beijing. It depends on how thorough you want to be visi8iting the tourist sights. We took a group tour o the Great Wall and it took about 9 hours, including a stop at the Olympic sights and a jade factory and tea shop. We stayed at the Regent Hotel and found taking taxis to some area to be the best way to go. A taxi ride to the Forbidden City costs about $3 USD. The treffic is horrible as well is the pollution but it was a great time. We splurged for Peking Duck at the 1949 House, cost about $50 USD for the Duck, but it was quite a show and quite a restaurant. Our other meals were very good and less expensive. Enjoy your trip, it's a very exciting city.
You will not sufficient amount of time with your current plan....of course if that is the time you can allocate, then it is what it is. You may want to consider a plan that skips some of the usual tourist traps like visits to jade or cloisonné factories, tea shops etc organized by tour companies as a way to bring clientele that is expected to pay 50% to 100% markups
Instead focus on an itinerary that gives you relatively unique exposure and experiences - e.g. Are you looking for encounter of historic Beijing or modern art China...and build an itinerary that way.
Subways are a good mode of transportation but it will depend on the season / weather conditions
If your trip is in the cold winter months and you have limited time a car and driver can help a lot and make your trip that much more pleasant....
For more info you can check out my blog at http://travel.chinafinds.com