O/T: anybody been to China?

[Lady Whistledown]

Giving it some thought for a holiday, say October or November time. It does look like an interesting sort of place.

Anybody been? Would you recommend it? Can't recall if we have a Seagulls Over Beijing branch

 

[big nuts]

I've been to Shanghai & Hong Kong. Both good places but Hong Kong is a far superior destination.

I know a couple of people who have been to Beijing and haven't reckoned it.

One word of warning I've not seen one blue sky in the 6 days I've been located in China, air pollution and smog is a big problem out there.

 

[Biscuit Barrel]

Giving it some thought for a holiday, say October or November time. It does look like an interesting sort of place.

Anybody been? Would you recommend it? Can't recall if we have a Seagulls Over Beijing branch

I went as part of a round the world backpacking trip in 2003. I traveled into China from Vietnam. I visited Guilin, Nanning and Kunming and then crossed the boarder into Laos.

I traveled on public transport and it was a bit of an effort to get around due to the language barrier. The people are very friendly and proud of their country. I loved the place and would recommend a visit. The countryside is beautiful and the cities are nice and clean.

The only draw backs for me were people spitting every where (including the ladies) and they have no table manners (well, not like ours anyway).

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

Mate's just done three years in Beijing with the Foreign Office. Hated it. The pollution his biggest bugbear.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

I went as part of a round the world backpacking trip in 2003. I traveled into China from Vietnam. I visited Guilin, Nanning and Kunming and then crossed the boarder into Laos.

I traveled on public transport and it was a bit of an effort to get around due to the language barrier. The people are very friendly and proud of their country. I loved the place and would recommend a visit. The countryside is beautiful and the cities are nice and clean.

The only draw backs for me were people spitting every where (including the ladies) and they have no table manners (well, not like ours anyway).

I've heard about the spitting thing, and I'm well aware of the pollution, yeah.

Would look to travel around a bit rather than stay in one place. Got to do Beijing I think just to see the Great Wall, but other than that, various people have suggested they enjoyed Shanghai (and Hong Kong) more.

Thanks

 

[mreprice]

I just got back from a week in Beijing including a two day "Beijing Highlights" tour. I hated it. Thought the forbidden city was nothing special and the pollution horrendous.
However the Great Wall is awesome. I spent two days in Shanghai and thought it was fascinating and Hong Kong is one of my favourite cities. So I would still consider a visit - it is just Beijing that is not worth the effort.

 

[sjamesb3466]

Went for our honeymoon almost 3 years ago and it was amazing. Went for a private tour with China Direct and had our own dedicated driver and guide for 10 days. Started off in Beijing to see the Great Wall, Forbidden City and Summer Palace, then a flight to Xian to see the Terracotta Army. After that moved to Shanghai before spending our last 5 days in the Mandarin Oriental in Sanya on the island of Hainan. A lot of travelling (spent 3 days in each city) but had the benefit of being on a private tour so although there was an itinerary if we were tired or didn't fancy something we could say no or change it to suit how we felt. Having some days on the beach at the end was great too and really finished off a great experience

 

[big nuts]

I'm going back to Hong Kong mid-September and I'm very interested to see Macau as it's only an hour away by boat. It's China's version of Las Vegas so should be interesting.

 

[nicko31]

Taiwan is beautiful, and largely bypassed.

A lot of what China has on a smaller scale, few tourist hoards outside of holidays and weekends

 

[Vicar!]

Twice now and really enjoying it, though if you get a bad pollution day its difficult. Start in Shanghai (stay in the French Concession) you can easily access Hangzhou and its magnificent West Lake from there.

 

[shingle]

I've been several times, I quite like Beijing but prefer Shanghai and love Hong Kong. If you get the chance Yangshuo/Guilin are great places to kick back for a few days, and only an overnight train journey from Beijing. Xi'an on the other hand is an absolute waste of time IMO. I found it really overrated, it's miles from anywhere and other than the Terracotta warriors there's nothing there.

 

[jakarta]

Stayed in Hong Kong for a few days on the way back from Australia, fascinating place although you will have never seen so many people rushing around in your life!

If you do end up in HK then the evening Harbour Tour / Light Show is brilliant.

 

[5ways]

Lived in Beijing - what would you like to know?

 

[severnside gull]

There are any number of organised tours which take in the Great Wall and such and often a river cruise on the Yangtze. Give it a Google and see what takes your fancy. My favourite memory is a six day train ride stopping off at communities on a fairly random basis and comparing sanitary facilities (sub standard to frightening but always "interesting").
Definitely go because although I like Shanghai and love Hong Kong & Macao they are in no way "China".
The pollution is truly awful but that's part of the education of travel and meeting the people more than compensates.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

Lived in Beijing - what would you like to know?

Just interested in what people think really. I want to go somewhere I've not been before. I don't want to spend two weeks on a beach...we had looked at Borneo, maybe together with another destination on the same trip, but then the other half suggested doing a bit of a tour of China, so I wondered if others would recommend it. Been to Vietnam & Cambodia before so not fazed by weird food etc! I guess people seem to have a perception that it's not the most welcoming of places. Curious as to how you've found it

 

[El Presidente]

Just interested in what people think really. I want to go somewhere I've not been before. I don't want to spend two weeks on a beach...we had looked at Borneo, maybe together with another destination on the same trip, but then the other half suggested doing a bit of a tour of China, so I wondered if others would recommend it. Been to Vietnam & Cambodia before so not fazed by weird food etc! I guess people seem to have a perception that it's not the most welcoming of places. Curious as to how you've found it

Mrs EP works there a couple of times a year, she can fill you in over a G&T soon! I've been to Honkers and loved it.

 

[Bry Nylon]

I've been to Honkers and loved it.

Not entirely sure Edna is seeking recommendations to specialist 'gentleman's clubs' but it's the thought that counts...

 

[Filipino Pat]

Travelled in China for 3 months a while ago. The highlight was Tibet - and October/November is a perfect time to go - clear skies over the Himalayas. You'd need about 10 days and depending upon the tour you take, it might end up in Kathmandu and you could easily spend a week in Nepal (and in fact you could do a trek there if you are into that sort of thing - I walked to Everest Base Camp at Xmas - fantastic, takes 2 weeks). Loved Sichuan Province just east of Tibet as well. No trip to China is complete without a few days in Beijing as well - despite the pollution.

 

[5ways]

Just interested in what people think really. I want to go somewhere I've not been before. I don't want to spend two weeks on a beach...we had looked at Borneo, maybe together with another destination on the same trip, but then the other half suggested doing a bit of a tour of China, so I wondered if others would recommend it. Been to Vietnam & Cambodia before so not fazed by weird food etc! I guess people seem to have a perception that it's not the most welcoming of places. Curious as to how you've found it

China is a wonderful place and much more organised than Vietnam or Cambodia. The food is generally pretty good too. With Beijing I would say you can 'do it' in 2 or 3 days. It is a giant city, 20 million or so people but it does not have that much character as such. It is a giant square. One block of it is similar to the next. See the Great Wall. Mutianyu is where all the touristy pictures of the Wall come from. It is a rebuilt section so in a way not totally authentic but easy to get to. The 'wild wall' is also impressive but much of it is tumble-down. The Forbidden City is amazing try not to go on a weekend and go early. Tiananmen Square is just outside. The Summer Palace you can skip if you're in a rush and the Old Summer Palace is a ruin so don't worry too much about that. Try and see some Beijing opera or acrobatics. Make sure you go to the hutongs for 'real' Beijing. The food is also pretty good and I'm sure the Travel Advisor recommends are okay. Try the famous duck! The Olympic Park isn't that fantastic.

The smog is a big issue, but some days you hardly notice it. You might get a clear few days. My best advice is try and time your trip with a big political event in Beijing - they will clear up the air for the duration.

Shanghai I think also can be done in a few days but I'm not so familiar with it. The best way to travel internally is train, esp between BJ + SH. Very efficient and an experience.

Hong Kong is more like London than Beijing, really interesting place to visit for a few days. Make you escape the 'Western' central part to see the 'Chinese' park of the city in Kowloon. Victoria Peak is fantastic of course but top recommendation is to take a boat out to the nearby islands. You can be in the heart of the big city and in the jungle within an hour it's pretty cool.

BJ and SH people will have pretty good English. If you head off the beaten track a bit English will decline pretty sharply. I haven't been much into the interior so can't really comment.

People are pretty nice really. It is also an incredibly safe place in my experience.

Other point is that the terrain changes dramatically from the North and South. North China is very dry and brown, South China is tropical.

It is a little rough and ready in parts but very good value I think in terms of food / accom etc.

Terracotta Warriors is apparently not that fantastic as you're in a horde of tourists being shuttled past.

 

[Tokyohands]

Yes it's not actually China but someone else mentioned Taiwan which is great. I've been a few times and I waaaay prefer it to HK or the mainland and younger people there have a good grasp of English. The food is awesome, it's cheap and it's not hugely hectic either, also I found the locals to have better manners than their cousins.