monicapileggi

easytraveler,

I don't see anyone steering me away from the water towns. And even if they were, that wouldn't stop me from going to a place I'd like to visit. There's tons of options, which is why I'm glad I love to plan my trips!

Hong Kong: No, I'm not a big shopper, but want to see the sights, museums, and do a day trip. One travel agency said there's only 1 flight from Guilin that gets in around 10pm, so that first day is shot. Three days might not be to long for me, but I am keeping my options open.

Monica

thursdaysd

BTW, if you go to Hangzhou, I enjoyed Lingyin Si, the Temple of Inspired Seclusion, as well as West Lake. Both were mobbed by Chinese tourists since I was there on National Day, but that made the temple more interesting. I spent two nights, and felt the town was worth at least that much.

lynclarke

Monica-

I am also planning a trip but the month ahead of you. Two things I noticed. One, if I remember correctly, the XingPing markets are on days ending with 3,6,or 9. And, two, there are more flights from Guillin to Hong Kong. Some people prefer going to Shenzhen because it is less expensive and then taking the train or boat to Hong Kong. I was trying to figure out how to leave Yangshuo and get to Hong Kong in time to fly home but it doesn't look feasible. Looks like I will have to stay one night in Hong Kong. I have not looked for hotels yet. I can't remember where I stayed the last time.

monicapileggi

Hi lynclarke,

Yes, you have the market days correct. I'm planning to visit on that Wednesday the 29th.

I was looking at the cost difference between flying into HK versus Shenzhen and although flying to HK will be more expensive, it's a lot easier and less of a hassle to get to our hotel. I'm booked at the Salisbury YMCA. I wanted a room with a city view!

Monica

monicapileggi

PS: I meant to ask you, what's your itinerary?

Monica

rkkwan

The new direct bus between Shenzhen Airport and Kowloon is a huge improvement over previous ways. $90, every half an hour. It uses the Shenzhen Bay/Western Crossing with very easy immigration for exiting China and entering Hong Kong.

It drops you off at the Elements Mall, and you can get a taxi to the YMCA Salisbury very easily. I think compared to using HKG, it adds under 90 minutes of travel time.

monicapileggi

Thanks rkkwan for the information.

Monica

wiselindag

Hi Monica and Lynn,

RK - Is the reverse also true for the express bus (i.e. Kowloon to Shenzhen?

We are doing many of the same destinations starting in Hong Kong, traveling to Hangzhuo, Shanghai, Xi'an, Beijing, Yangshuo, and then back to Hong Kong Airport for our return flight. We're going in that direction because we're traveling in early April and wanted to get to Beijing later in the month.

Also, hello Shanghainese - Why do you prefer overnighting in Suzhou as opposed to Tongli? I'm also wrestling with that portion of our itinerary.

Best regards,
Linda

rkkwan

wiselindag - Yes, we used that bus both ways between Kowloon and SZX. It has its own dedicated ticketing and waiting area in the Elements Mall. Directly opposite Starbucks. Every :15 and :45 during day time.

It takes 90 minutes to get to SZX. Not 75 as their signs say, however.

Shanghainese

Monica and Linda --
To stay overnight in Suzhou is mainly for the easier access to train and bus to travel elsewhere.

I didn't spend the night in Tongli so can't speak for the accomodations, I understand most lodgings are b&b inns in townpeople's homes that are quite rustic, perhaps Fodorites who have stayed there can give us a better idea.

monicapileggi

Well crap, I typed this long message and hit the wrong button! Will keep it short this time.

I've pretty much decided to just day trip to Suzhuo and Tongli (or Xitang) and enjoy the city night life in Shanghai.

I think we’ll probably go the route of Guilin-Shenzhen-Hong Kong. It’s about an $80 savings plus there’s a flight that leaves at 9am, gets to Shenzhen 10am and I would imagine we’d get to our hotel around 1pm? Alternate choice is an evening flight to HK.

Chiefie (a fellow fodorite) and his wife spent the night in Tongli at a tiny inn and loved it. I have the information if interested.

Monica

monicapileggi

Just realized what I wrote. A 9am flight would mean getting up around 5:00am or so to drive to Guilin to get to the airport on time.

I guess we'll go directly to HK on the 5:30pm flight.

Monica

monicapileggi

Do the Z trains (4-person compartments) have locks on the doors? I wanted to book the 2-person deluxe sleeper compartment, but for some reason, they are no longer available on this train (only on the T trains, which I understand are not as nice/comfortable as the Z trains). So, my cousin and I will buy all four beds. While I have read that it is safe to share the compartment with strangers, I would not sleep comfortably and don't want to arrive in Shanghai dead tired from lack of sleep.

Thanks!

Monica

PeterN_H

Soft sleeper compartments do indeed have locks, but note that if you simply buy four berths you may well simply be sold four consecutive tickets, which won't necessarily put you in the same compartment. It might be two and two or even one and three. There's often a fair bit of swapping around goes on once everyone's on the train, and in the past I've moved (I'm usually travelling solo) in order to allow families to be together. Sometimes there are problems because lower berths cost a little more than upper ones, and people will only swap for the same kind of berth.

I was in Chengde for the fourth time in October, and while it is possible to do it in a day it would be too much of a rush to be comfortable as thing stand at the moment, and a long day indeed. You might find the mini-buses in use on this route at the moment to be a bit battered and grubby for your taste, too (although this is China, so one needs to be ready for such things). However, at the new bus station to the south of Chengde's centre they are forecasting that when the new highway is completed ('sometime before the Olympics' as with everything else) there will be a new fleet of buses and travelling time will be down to about 1.5 hours. The current meandering route through Gubeikou is very pretty, but certainly neither direct nor fast. The change should come well before you arrive.

The other Chengde alternative is by car. Cars wait at the entrance to the Jingshen expressway opposite the CTS Hotel on the east side of the northeast third ring road. These take three or four people for around ¥100 pp and get to Chengde much more quickly than the buses (perhaps 2 to 2.5 hours). You could pay for the whole car if you wished. And, of course the same service is available coming back (from outside the Chengde Dasha).

These are, of course, 'hei che', and not legal, and can't be booked in advance; and it does seem from a glance through the above that you're attempting to put together a very highly detailed itinerary of clockwork precision. This can be tricky in China, where a little more flexibility is advisable. But good luck.

But to revert, the new highway may make Chengde possible as a more comfortable day trip. Taxis there are used to doing a deal to take you everywhere off the meter, waiting for you at each site, and depositing you back at the bus or railway station. My approach has been in recent years to take a bus up there (quicker than the train), spend one night, and then take the afternoon train back (the N212 at 13.30) because it's a gentle, comfortable winding ride with views of bits of the Great Wall, getting you back to Beijing at 17.48. Tickets for the Chengde-Beijing trip can also be bought in Beijing itself, although I just usually wander into the Chengde station, which is where the bus from Beijing drops you anyway.

Just be aware that if you try to get all your plane and train tickets before you even reach China you're going to pay a great deal more than you need to (as much as double). That's the price of precision planning, but up to you if you want to pay it.

Peter N-H

monicapileggi

<b><i>Author: rkkwan
Date: 01/31/2008, 03:52 pm
The new direct bus between Shenzhen Airport and Kowloon is a huge improvement over previous ways. $90, every half an hour. It uses the Shenzhen Bay/Western Crossing with very easy immigration for exiting China and entering Hong Kong.

It drops you off at the Elements Mall, and you can get a taxi to the YMCA Salisbury very easily. I think compared to using HKG, it adds under 90 minutes of travel time. /<b><i>
</i></b></i></b>

I've been going over some notes and wanted to get clarification: The $90 is Hong Kong dollars, correct?

Thanks,

Monica

rkkwan

Monica - It was HK$90. Now, with the USD/HKG devaluation and fuel prices higher, it's gone up to HK$100.

Or 90RMB.

monicapileggi

Thanks!

I am planning to buy my airline tickets in September and still haven't decided on how to get to HK. I'll just choose when the time comes and with whatever choice of flight schedules are available.

Monica