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China - 6 week trip - 9th May to 21st June 2012

China - 6 week trip - 9th May to 21st June 2012

Old Sep 8th, 2011, 02:49 AM
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China - 6 week trip - 9th May to 21st June 2012

I have just booked a flight from London to Shanghai for 9th May and wish to spend 6 weeks in the country. I would really appreciate help with planning an itinerary. Do I go for an all-inclusive escorted trip or go solo. I am worried about the language problem. I am a 66 year old lady - travelling alone. Would be grateful to be pointed in the right direction. Thanks.
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Old Sep 8th, 2011, 03:04 AM
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www.ctrip.com

#1 for this personally would do an escorted trip

for safer better experience if you are new.

you might also learn see lots more.

travel.state.gov for a heads up on safety there

insuremytrip.com always wise for me.

Vareful many scammers never wire money always pay with CC

Happy Travels!
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Old Sep 8th, 2011, 12:00 PM
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There are several reports here from people who have gone to China independently.

Language is less of an issue than you may think. In the big east coast cities there should be plenty of English signage. Everywhere the few people who do speak English will go out of their way to help you. If you have a guide book with Chinese characters for the place names, a good guide book, and some experience of foreign travel you will be fine. Make sure to take the card for your hotel with you, andhave the hotel staff write your destination in characters if it's not clear in your guidebook.
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Old Sep 8th, 2011, 06:54 PM
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I agree with thursdaysd, who helped convince me (another solo female traveler) that I could travel independently in China. As she notes, there are a number of trip reports from those of us who have done so. For my very, very long report, click on my name and scroll down to the trip report section.
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Old Sep 8th, 2011, 09:06 PM
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Of course, I should have written "a good phrase book", not "a good guide book" - that was already taken care of by the need to have Chinese characters for place names.

So glad it worked out for you, kja.
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Old Sep 9th, 2011, 01:19 AM
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Thank you thursdaysd andkja: You have put my mind at ease! I shall be starting in Shanghai and intend to work my way from Shanghai to Beijing - Xi'An - Chengdu - Guilin - Lijiang - Dali - Kunming - and back up to Shanghai for the final few days. Would train travil work for me or do I need to fly? Can you also recommend a good phrasebook? How many days should I allow for each place? A ballpark figure would be appreciated. I shall certainly read your reports and then try to sort out accommodation and internal travel. Which currency is most useful, or should I take a mix of currencies? All tips and suggestions are gratefully received. Thank you.
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Old Sep 9th, 2011, 05:55 AM
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Suggest you start with some guidebooks (try your library or hang out in your local bookstore with some coffee). Besides Fodors, look at Lonely Planet, Odyssey, Insight etc. Your itinerary needs work, and you might decide to drop the more touristy places after some research. (You have Gulin in the wrong place in the order.)

Soft sleeper class on Chinese trains is very comfortable these days, and you may meet some locals not involved with tourism. Start at seat61.com. Generally you do not buy tickets much ahead of time, nor reserve hotels aside from some special cases which will become clear from the TRs. My Chinese TRs are at wilhelmswords.com.

For money you will get yuan from ATMs. Can't recommend a specific phrase book , but do make sure it has characters and not just pinyin - I don't think I encountered anyone who knew what to do with pinyin.
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Old Sep 9th, 2011, 07:31 AM
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With 6 weeks in the country (BTW, please first make sure you have a visa that allows that long a stay), you can afford the time to take trains on many of these routes. The route from Xian to Chengdu, and Chengdu to Kunming are famous mountain routes with great scenery. And you can now train from Kunming to Lijiang, no need to fly.

From Shanghai to Beijing, you should try the new day-time highspeed rail. Beijing to Xian you can either fly or take the overnight train. After you finish with Yunnan province, then either fly or train to Guilin. From Guilin to Shanghai, you should probably fly as it's long and not that interesting to train.
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Old Sep 10th, 2011, 12:32 AM
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Thursdaysd and rkkwan: Thank you so much for all your helpful information. My first port of call will be to read the TR's and then the library and bookstore and check out some suggested itineraries. As far as I know, UK citizens are allowed 90 day visas for leisure trips, but I will check this out. Train journeys really appeal to me as a mode of transport. How many days do I need in Beijing and Shanghai?? Thanks for the advice on phrase books - this is the kind of info I would not know about, left to my own devices. I shall carry on with renewed enthusiasm as a result of your replies!!
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Old Sep 10th, 2011, 05:59 AM
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With 6 weeks in China, I think you can afford at least 5-6 days in Beijing. Plus perhaps an overnight or 2-day trip to Chengde northeast of the capital. Shanghai is mostly new buildings, and can be done in 2 days. But many cities and watertowns around Shanghai which you can do daytrips from.
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Old Sep 11th, 2011, 02:57 AM
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I'd like to comment as a woman of a certain (ahem) age. I suggest you might want to consider a combination of a tour and going solo. You would be fine by yourself in the major cities, such as Beijing and Shanghai, but you might be more comfortable with an escorted group in some of the other places you want to visit. I went solo to Guilin and Kunming with phrase book in hand and two recently completed semesters of Mandarin. I loved it, but I felt, quite frankly, a little too alone sometimes. I also came close to ordering monkey brains for dinner (after hearing about that episdoe, one of my Chinese colleagues commented, "Ellen, you must have been in a very fine restaurant!!).

Being with a tour in places away from the coastal areas may help make sure you don't miss out on the good stuff. I went with a small group of Chinese to visit Long Shan (Dragonback Mountain--a stupendous day trip from Guilin) and wasn't able to follow much of the commentary and history the guide was providing. There was someone on the trip who knew about as much English as I knew Chinese, so he helped translate bits here and there. The scenery was outstanding, but it would have been better with some context.
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Old Sep 11th, 2011, 11:18 PM
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EllenLM: Thank you for your input. How can one find out about tours in English in the off-the-beaten-track places. I agree, I would get more from the trip if I had some guidance and explanations along the way. Ideas greatly received. How long were you in China?
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Old Sep 12th, 2011, 08:08 AM
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A former frequent poster here who wrote guidebooks to China held that Chinese tour guides were taught propoganda and you were better off with a good guidebook. (Of course he wrote one...)

I took a couple of guided tours from CITS, the government agency, mostly because the outfit I had used for Russia arranged them. You should be able to find a travel agency, CITS or other, most places.
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Old Sep 16th, 2011, 04:08 AM
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Wonkyknee, I've been to China several times and am in the process of relocating to Beijing for work. The longest I've been there as a tourist is 2 weeks.

How to find English tours? Great question, with no easy answer. I'd start with the hotel concierge. He/she will undoubtedly first steer you to a private arrangement, probably for you to have a driver and a personal English-speaking guide. I'd push gently to say you really want the benefit of a small group for the interactions. It's true, and you'll save a boatload of money by joining a group.

The suggestion to use CITS is good. Yes, they'll promote the propaganda, but I've found that to be the case in most countries. With CITS, it's not been too heavy-handed.

Another option would be to post the question on various message boards, such as this one, but I'd suggest you set up an alternative email account to receive them since you will be bombarded with individuals offering to be your guide in every city/location you name. You can probably sift through the responses to figure out the legit ones and then ask for references.

I hope you have an outstanding journey!
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