Hi everyone.
Any suggestions on hotels in Xian & Guilin (around US$85/night including tax)?
Is a guided tour recommended for sightseeing in Guilin, or is self-guided OK?

I stayed at both places last month; Xi'an Bell Tower and Guilin Bravo Hotel - both at USD70 including breakfast. Both were absolutely fine.

We didn't hang around Guilin - arrived latish afternoon, had a walk around the lake near the hotel and ate out, next morning got the boat down the Li River to Yangshuo which had wonderful scenery and was very restful, lunch was mediocre though. Cost Rmb420 pp. We had 3 nights there and then hired a car and driver for the day to return to the airport at Guilin, first visiting the Reed Flute Cave on the way. Sorry, but I am not aware of what else there is to see in Guilin itself.

In Guilin don't miss the evening demonstration of local fisherman that use birds, camarinds, to fish. It was one of the most interesting sites on our trip.

The Li River cruise was much nicer IMO than the Yangtze cruise. You will enjoy yourself.

Yeah, that should read cormorant birds - good one Dave, I forgot to mention them. That was fun.

In Guilin we stayed at the Sheraton. Good location right on the river with night market just across the street. Did a Li River cruise - beautiful scenery. Watched cormorant fishing demonstration - again across the street from hotel, very interesting. Visited Guilin Hospital - interesting look at combination of traditional and Western medicine. Had reflexology foot massage at school just a block from hotel - AMAZING! Visited Reed Flute Caves - beautiful and an interesting hitorical story.

In Xian we stayed at the Shargri-La Golden Flower hotel. We toured the Terracotta Museum with a private guide who was able to take us into the pits (rather than just around the edge on the catwalks) and who also took us to visit the workrooms where restoration takes place. In the evening we ate at Defachang restaurant which has amazing dumplings (in creative shapes) and took in the Tang Dynasty Show. On day two we visited the Shaanxi Provincial Museum to see the mural paintings - they are breathtaking. We also visited the Han Tomb Museum in this same area.

We were part of a small/private tour group.

TC, who did you use as a guide in Xian, and how much does he or she charge? We're in the process of making arrangements for a trip this August. It would be great to have special access at the Terracotta site. Thanks.

In Guilin, I stayed at the Holiday Inn, but wished I had stayed at the Sheraton. In Xian, I stayed at the Hyatt. It had all the amenities--swimming pool, copious breakfast buffet, room fridge filled with chocolate chip cookies. The view from my room was horrid, however.

I went on the Li River tour, but was bored after an hour. Also, my tour boat ONLY had a squat toilet. It is hard to balance on a rocking boat!!!!!!!!!!! The karst formations are beautiful, though.

We toured with a company from Chicago - R. Crusoe and Son. The guide they use in Xian is the daughter of the Minister of Antiquities there. It is how she gets special access. She gave President & Mrs. Clinton their tour of the TerraCotta Museum. I don't know if one can engage her privately.

I would comment on the Li River cruise in this way; there are certainly varying quality boats that do that run. Ours was one of the very best and it was barely acceptable. We had a private deck but even with that there was very little shade, so we stood in the sun for most of the trip. It was very hot. At least our "facilities" were acceptable. We had box lunches from the hotel, but could have used a lot more cold water or drinks. I would not suggest going with the lowest bidder on this outing.

Keep in mind that the Li is not a major river like the Yangtze, Nile, Rhine or Danube, and has very low water level during late fall and winter. When my parents went there last November, the Li is a dry river bed at Guilin, and only a small portion between Guilin and Yangshuo is navigable with very small and shabby boats - and even those are scapping the bottom at many points.

So, if water level is low, the largest and best boats may not be able to do the cruise, and you'll have to settle on smaller boats with fewer facilities.

I guess my tour boat must have been the QE II of the Li River compared to the rest of you. My boat had a dining room (the food was quite good) and a lounge below deck. There were also deck chairs available, and there was an awning you could stand under.