Kara

I'll be making a stop in Taiyuan and Pingyao this summer. I've never been. It will be a quick two days. Any thoughts and/or insights for a first timer?<BR><BR>Also, I've stayed at the Peace Hotel a couple of times in Shanghai and I'm looking to try something different, get away from the Bund and Nanjing road craziness. Of course I like the views, BUT...I was thinking of the Jin Jiang Hotel....I like the area. Any thoughts on this hotel or maybe another suggestion? I noticed that they have different buildings? Is there a building I should avoid? <BR><BR>Thanks for your thoughts!

Peter N-H

Don't waste time in Taiyuan, but head straight for Pingyao. Take a comfortable Iveco minibus from the long distance bus station rather than the rather less comfortable minibuses from outside the railway station.<BR><BR>If your baggage is light enough, have yourself dropped at the turning to the Qiao Jia Dayuan en route. This is a well-preserved multi-courtyarded mansion originally the home of a wealthy merchant, and used as the set for the Zhang Yimou film 'Raise the Red Lantern'. There are several other mansions, some even larger, in the surrounding countryside, but you probably won't have time for those (but the Wang Jia Dayuan might be your next choice if you do).<BR><BR>You can flag down passing busses to continue your trip to Pingyao. The temple just outside the city walls is quite early has some marvellous statuary. Wandering the (largely unpaved) streets of the town is as rewarding as visiting the ancient banking halls and trading houses. On one occasion I found children practising their arithmetic on the doors of an old mansion, and wandering in was invited to join a family for tea.<BR><BR>I don't have any notes or book in front of me, but there's one street in the centre of town which has been tarted up, and right by the bell tower in the centre is a restaurant with local foods, and a few rooms to rent where you can sleep on an original kang (internally heated brick bed) under an arched brick roof. Local specialities to try include those with the Shanxi fondness for vinegar (on sale by the litre at the roadside), tomatoes, potatoes, and flour made from ground beans.<BR><BR>Just outside the northeast (?) corner of the city, a small airstrip offers flights in an old passenger biplane over the city, flown by a former air force pilot whenever there are enough takers. Under Y100 per person, if I remember correctly.<BR><BR>Why do people waste their time on the Yangtze when they could be seeing all this?<BR><BR>Peter N-H<BR>http://members.axion.net/~pnh/China.html

Kara

Peter thanks for your insights! Happy traveling, and yes, I agree with you, about the Yangtze. I look forward to exploring Pingyao...and if I'm daring, seeing it from the air. <BR><BR>Anyone have any thoughts on Shanghai hotels; Peace vs. Jin Jiang? <BR>

Peter N-H

Message: More information needed, as everyone's idea of 'good' is different. If your idea of 'good' is 'five stars' then you're out of luck. You'll need to give some idea of price and level of comfort for anyone to be able to help you.<BR><BR>Peter N-H<BR>http://members.axion.net/~pnh/China.html

Peter N-H

The reply above is bogus, pasted in wholesale from another discussion on hotels near Tian Tan above.<BR><BR>I wouldn't stay at the Peace unless their rates came down a lot. Period charm it may have, but it also has period plumbing and the service is fairly hopeless. The Jin Jiang I don't know at all, I'm sorry. I've stayed at the Grand Hyatt (which I highly recommend you try visiting to see what rate you can get over the counter), and the New Asia Thompson, which is a fairly standard five star, now taken over by somebody else, I hear (Accor?)<BR><BR>Peter N-H<BR>http://members.axion.net/~pnh/China.html

Louis Chiang

Based on my information, you want to stay in Jin Jiang Hotel (North Building)- built in 1929, but it is locally rated 5 stars. Also nearby, there is Jiang Jiang Tower, built in the ninties and rated locally five stars. I, myself, is trying to decide which one to stay Jin Jiang (north) or Jin Jiang Tower. Within the compound of Jin Jing Hotel (North and South Buildings), there is Jin Jiang Groverno (wrong spelling) Hotel that Nixon stayed in '72. By the way, you do need to avoid Jin Jiang Hotel (South Building.