My teen son and I will be traveling on a gap adventures tour throughout China for 21 days in July and August. I know that it will be quite hot and humid while we are there and am considering what clothing to take with us and still be able to pack lightly!! What is appropriate attire for visiting temples and monasteries? Can I wear capris or my son wear shorts? We don't wish to appear disrespectful. Your ideas would be appreciated.

You should dress modestly - no bare shoulders, and no shorts. Are capris those mid-calf length pants? (Sorry, male question.) I think they should be OK, but someone else might care to comment. As for your son, I wore lightweight full-length cargo pants in China (and Vietnam) and always found them cool enough. The zipped pockets are also handy for valuables. You will of course have to remove your shoes before entering temples, so footwear that's easy to slip on and off will come in handy. I think it would also be a good idea to observe the same rules if you're planning to visit Mao Zedong's tomb in Beijing - we didn't, but that was very definitely the case for Ho Chi Minh's tomb in Hanoi as a mark of respect.

As long as you pay the admission tickets, you're welcomed.

There's hardly any dress code in most Chiense monasteries and temples. Capris and shorts are fine. Even bare shoulders are acceptable.

It's all about money.

Neil Oz has it right. Best not to take chances in Vietnam and Cambodia. I recall in Phnom Penh some people on my trip not taking any notice and the womnen arroved in shorts and tank tops, and were politely refused entrance.

Not so polite, and who could blame him, was a fellow traveller from Australia, who poured scorn on the women saying it was time they did some homework about what was expected of them in terms of dress. His fury at having to wait outside for 30 minutes while the women raced back to their accommodation knew no bounds, and transformed some to tears.

Needless to say, later that day, the women sat on our cruise vessels madly reading pirated copies of Lonely Planet their husbands, in desperation, had purchsed from them in Phnom Peenh's Russian Market!

Shame they didn't bother before they left home....specially as the infuriated colleague had warned them the night before about what to wear!

Mitch04, that reminds me very much of our visit to Uncle Ho's mausoleum in Hanoi. We were on a small group tour and the tour leader had made it very plain the day before what the dress standard was. We were disgusted when half the group - embarrassingly, all Australians except for a lone Kiwi - boarded the bus wearing shorts (short- shorts in one case) and other inappropriate gear. It being a Sunday, there was a very long line waiting to enter; normally we foreign guests would have been given express treatment, but because of these idiots we were sent to the back of the line by a clearly unimpressed guard, for a 30-minute wait in very hot sun. In fact even that was a concession. He only relented after a long discussion with the tour leader, who managed to mollify him to that extent. The rest of us were trying to pretend that we didn't know our fellow tourists, but we weren't fooling anyone. I'm also amazed at people who turn up as guests in someone else's country without making the most elementary effort to acquaint themselves with local do's and dont's. It's just pig-ignorant.

To be honest I didn't pay a lot of attention to what people were wearing in temples in China, but then I don't recall seeing any foreigners in the few we visited (I'm easily templed-out). I'm sure rkkwan has it right, and maybe I'm being a little over-sensitive, but I'd still err on the side of conservative dress.

The key here is <b>China</b>. If you go to a Buddhist temple/monasteries in most parts of the world, you need to dress appropriately. But those in China are run as tourist attractions with few exceptions. Pay the admissions (at some monasteries you need to pay more than once to get the good part), and they don't care what you wear.

BTW, what I describe generally does not apply to Tibetian monasteries (Lama Temples) whether they're in Tibet or not. For those, cover up.

Nobody's going to get too concerned over your son wearing shorts, it's females being inappropriately dressed around temples that often gets them upset in Asia. Best solution is put a sarong in your bag and if you're out and about dressed for the heat and see a temple you wish to visit just wrap the sarong on your waist, like Asian women do, and presto! you are suitably attired for temples.

Thanks for your responses, I think I dress comfortably and carry the sarong in my bag. It seems such a simple idea, I don't know why I didn't even think of it.

i ahve seen many men turned away for wearing shorts, so i would not chance it..

rhkkmk - You've seen men being turned away from temples or monasteries in <b>China</b> for wearing shorts? I want to know where.

Let's face it, shorts are a pretty unfortunate fashion statement at the best of times, and the young man in question is certainly old enough to have graduated to long pants by now. I stick to my recommendation of lightweight cargo pants or similar.

I agree with you, Neil. I also recommend wearing pants when going to China, and I don't wear shorts going there either. But it doesn't mean one will get kicked out of Chinese temples or monasteries.