Beijing Trip ?s
 

My husband and I just booked a trip to Beijing for a week for the end of June. We are staying at the Peninsula. I went to Beijing about 5 years ago with my mom. I of course want my husband to see all the sites, but I was wondering if anyone has any input on how things have changed since we were there last, in terms of restaurants, shopping and spas (my interests of course!) and if anyone has any recommendations. Also any insights on the hotel would also be appreciated. Thanks!

mistybaby - You will love the Pen. My husband and I stayed there for 5 nights in Sept 2004. Had a junior suite on the club floor. Fantastic. Large, beautifully furnished room. The club floor amenities were very nice; quite decent breakfast in the morning and a lovely afternoon tea service. Don't miss eating at Jing restaurant in the hotel. Had some of the best dinners of our 2 1/2 week trip to China there.

As for shopping, I don't have much to say. I found it rather disappointing. Hong Kong was much, much better for the type of Asian items we were looking for. We wound up buying only very small items in Beijing. There is a really fun flea market on Sunday mornings called the Panjiayuan Market. We only bought a small terra cotta teapot, but wandered around for the better part of 2 hours just soaking up the atmosphere and looking at everything for sale.

As for sightseeing, I assume you will be making a trip to the Great Wall. I would highly recommend the Mutiyanu section of the wall (rather than the more touristy Badaling section.) It is about a 2 hour drive from the Pen. We liked the fact that the wall at this section was virtually deserted during our visit (a Monday morning in late September). We got some great shots and could really get into the experience of climbing the Great Wall uninterrupted by hordes of tourists.

If you have more specific questions, I would be happy to try to answer them; just post again.

When you are not traveling with a tour, how do you get around Beijing and its environs including the section of the Great Wall you mentioned. Foreigners can't rent a car, can they?

Jam40 - how were the prices in the hotel's restaurants? Did you find any other good restaurants? Did you happen to use the massage services in the hotel (if so, price/quality)? I was in Hong Kong last year, so I got to do plenty of shopping there...I was more curious on how the markets in Beijing currently are and if there are any new ones or better ones than from my last visit. Thanks for your help!

International Driving permits are not valid in China. Foreigners need to take the Chinese driving test (both written and on the road). Most people hire a car and driver through the hotel or negotiate a rate with a taxi driver.

Over the past 5 years, BJ has changed temendously. The Silk alley is gone and was recently reincarnated as a 5 storey indoor "sterile" mall type building, not far from the original site. Prices are double what they were a year ago, so imagine compared to 5 years!!! It is the one target of gov't crackdown on pirated goods. They are still there, but not as good quality and not as easy to get. (Have to wait while they call for better ones to come in from some guy with a parked van on the street).

Ya Xiu (formerly called Qi Lin on Gong ti bei Lu) is now the home to endless tour buses. Ironically it is where expat residents still shop, but we begin every transaction with "I live here". If you are on a tour, take off the tag identifying you as such. (it just adds another 100% mark up to your price!)

Hong Qiao (pearl Market) is Ok, and if you are patient and know your prices, you can get the best quality/low price ratio for bags. Here, look through catalogues and they will call and send up the ones you request. They are also targeted for fakes, so they are hesitant to let you thoroughly inspect. Maybe they will let you do it in the stairwell.

Panjiayuan, The Dirt MArket, also has had a face lift, but has managed to retain its flavor of "junk on mats on the floor" in a lively atmosphere. Prices are ridiculous, so bargain hard and watch your wallett.

Sanlitun barstreet market is gone, but there is TONG LI studios on a small parallel alley behind it (to the west)..a boutique/faux upscale place with prices that rival a shop in SOHO. To the east, in a parallel alley is the Na-Li "mall" again, with a boutique feel to it. Aside from the gourmet doggie treats, there's not much you can't get elsewhere and cheaper, but the enviornment is more relaxing.

Tai Pan foot massage, behind the Canadian Embassy on Xin Dong Lu (enter the parking lot for "best soup" and it is to the left/rear) is hands down the best foot massage place. Save body massages for Thailand where you can be naked and not massaged through your clothes AND a towel.

mistybaby: I'm sorry but I can't help you much with other restaurant recommendations. We ate at Jing a couple of times; can't recall the prices, although I am sure it was more expensive than restaurants outside the Pen (just a guess on my part.) We ate at a noodle restaurant that is part of a HK chain that was very good and very reasonably priced. Cannot recall the name (something silly like the Hello Cafe). It is located in the Oriental Plaza mall - a huge mall within easy walking distance of the Pen. FYI: There is a large grocery store in the same mall which we used to stock up on snacks and things for the room.

Did not use any of the massage services while we were at the Pen.

As for the markets, we went to the aforementioned Panjiyuan Market as well as the Pearl Market. I found the Pearl Market a huge disappointment because I was not interested in knock-offs - either handbags or fake pearls. (I went because one of my work colleagues knows one of the pearl sellers and I promised I would stop by and say hi.)

Emckee: It is fairly easy to get around Beijing using taxis and the subway. The subway is not particularly extensive (which was surpising) but it is easy to use (we do not speak any chinese and were able to figure things out.) It was surprisingly uncrowded most times; did not have to fight masses of people to board. The tube in London is much more of a challenge crowds wise. Do not expect taxi drivers to speak english; have your hotel write in chines characters the location you wish to visit. Traffic is a nightmare in Beijing; be prepared for a lot of sitting in traffic jams (that's one reason we took the subway alot even if it meant walking a fair distance from the station to our ultimate destination.) Overall, Beijing is much easier to navigate than I thought it would be.

Hey...I just got back from Beijing. I would HIGHLY recommend contacting this guy, Lei. We "found" him (or he found us?) our first morning in Beijing...and he turned out to be a godsend. He knew all the right places/times to go, and there were virtually no crowds. His email is [email protected]

He is extremely reasonable, speaks great English...and he's enjoyable to be around!

He can also arrange for someone to pick you up at the airport.

You're going to have a great time!

We were just in Beijing mid-May. One of our highlights was walking by the East Gate of the Imperial Palace we stumbled upon the area of Donghuamen Night Market. We had heard about the Mongolian Hot Pot restaurants in this area. We found a very nicely decorated one that was totally full of locals. That was one of the best and most fun meals we had in Beijing. Don't think anyone spoke English, but our waiter showed us what type of foods to order i.e. vegetables, beef, chicken and what sauces to select. We had the best meal and probably spent $8 for 3 people including beer. Didn't think to write down the name of the place, but the Insight Pocket Guide Beijing guidebook mentioned there were several in this area so we asked a few times and found it. I believe it was on Wangfujing Road. Very nice location.

jam40,

Hi!

I have been reading your posts on fodors and have been very informative.

I have a question about the Peninsula hotel. My husband has a weak stomach and I would like to be next to some American chains like McDonalds (in case his stomach acts up). Is there a Mcdonalds near the Peninsula or other Western chains?

Someone said the Grand Hyatt has a mall attached with American restaurants and wanted to know if it is the same with the Peninsula.

Would you choose the Peninsula over the Hyatt?

Also, I am more of a traveler than my husband. Is Beijing really that dirty as the posts say?

If you had to do it over, would you go back to Beijing? Was the Great Wall truly a once-in-a-lifetime type of experience to see ?

Did you use any of the tours from the Chinese Culture Club that someone recommended on the posts? They seemed very unusual and interesting.

Thank you for your help!

Radiance - Sorry to be so long in responding to your post. I hope you are still checking this thread.

To answer your questions, there is a McDonald's located within easy walking distance of the Pen. It is at the corner of a large pedestrian area (I'm sorry, the name of the road/area escapes me now, but the hotel will be able to direct you. It in at most a 10 minute walk, and probably less, from the hotel.) The Pen does not have any American chain restaurants attached to it. As noted in an earlier post, I highly recommend the Pen's Jing restaurant. FYI, it is not Asian food; it is more European cuisine. The Pen does have a traditional Chinese restaurant, but we never ate there. By that point in our trip, we were tired of eating Chinese food. I do not recall whether or not there are other American chain restaurants near the Pen.

With respect to the Hyatt versus the Pen, although I have not stayed at the Hyatt in Beijing, I would not stay anywhere other than the Pen. I am totally in love with the Pen chain of hotels, though, so I am not unbiased in my opinions. We stayed at the Hyatt in Xian as part of our China trip and were disappointed. It was rated as a 4 or 5 hotel and was a 3 star at best. Our room (and we sprang for a nice room since the rates were relatively cheap) was dark and gloomy and smelled of exhaust fumes. It was making me sick just hanging out in the room. Would not go back there (the Hyatt; I would definitely return to Xian.)

With respect to the cleanliness of Beijing, well, you won't see a speck of litter on the streets, but there does seem to be a layer of dirt/grime that sort of covers everything. I was shocked at the level of smog/pollution in the city. The day we toured the Forbidden City the smog was so bad that you could barely see 30 yards in front of you; no kidding. It (the smog) really ruined that day for us. With respect to restaurants though, I never found them to be dirty, and I did not have any qualms about eating at any place. Obviously never drink any water or ice that you may be given in a restaurant. The bathrooms are another story. They are actually fairly decent in restaurants (although that is a relative term). Bathrooms at the tourist sites were disgusting, and I often would walk into a ladies room and walk out without having used the facilities because they were so bad.

Yes, I would go back to Beijing in a heartbeat. I can see how some people might find it a turn-off (smoggy, crowded, etc.) but my husband and I just found the place fascinating. We enjoyed the feeling that we were truly in a different world (a feeling that long ago left us in our European travels.) We were just roam the streets in the evening (very safe)people watching and popping into stores that struck our fancy. We were very sorry to leave Beijing (and for our China trip as a whole to end, for that matter.)

Yes, the Great Wall was an amazing experience. As I sit here and type this reply, I still cannot believe that we were really there. I don't know what arrangements you may have made/are making for the Great Wall, but I would strongly encourage you to hire a private driver, rather than go as part of a group. Seeing the Great Wall is not something that you want to rush. Also, as noted in my previous posts, I highly recommend the Mutiyanu section of the Wall.

I will check this thread again periodically, so feel free to ask additional questions.

You will have a great trip!

Thank you for getting back to me, it was really helpful.

We are going back and forth about the trip, but right now I am leaning toward going, especially after reading your post.

The hotel did say that is had coach tours to Mutiyanu, but the private tour was extremely expensive through the hotel.

The only private guide I saw on the forums was Robinson Li. However some people loved him and other people said he did not show up and sent someone else that did not speak English.

Did you use someone for a private tour?

Thanks!

Radiance: I am so glad that you are still posting here and saw my tardy reply.

As far as getting to the Great Wall is concerned, we used the same guide and driver that we had been using all week. The guide did not really do anything for us once we got to the Wall; made some perfunctory remarks and then let us go off on our own (which was how we wanted it anyway.) As mentioned earlier, I would not recommend him, and cannot even recall what service he was with. (A co-worker whose husband regularly travels to China made the Beijing arrangements for us; we thought we would be getting a great guide because of all of the husband's connections in China, but no.)

I had heard that the Pen charges an outrageous sum of money for a trip to the Great Wall. You might try to call CITS, the official chinese travel agency. I contacted their California office (I live in PA; I think they have only the CA office in the US) to make arrangements for a private guide in Xian. We were very pleased with the guide we were given for Xian and wish that we had used CITS for the guide in Beijing. I imagine that a guide obtained thru CITS would be much cheaper than the Pen, although you do need to be persistant in telling them not to stop at government shops.

As for going with a group, I would do a little more research to find out how much time will actually be spent at the Wall. Depending on traffic, it can take anyway from 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours or more (one way) to get to the Wall at Mutiyanu. You also should consider how much time you personally will want to spend at the Wall. I know some people who go to the Wall, walk for 100 yards or so and then leave. We were not interested in that kind of a visit. My husband and I were on the Wall itself for at least 2 hours and only came back down when we had walked as far as we could go before reaching barricades. It helped that it was an absolutely gorgeous day and the Wall was virtually deserted. I don't know that I would have enjoyed the experience as much if I had had to fight my way up the Wall with 2000 other people.

When were you planning to visit Beijing? We were there in late Sept 2004. Also did Xian, Shanghai and Hong Kong. Loved Hong Kong so much we are headed back there in August.