China - Uniworld, Viking, or Avalon?

[j-9]

Hi all,

Have started to research China for April 2012, and have seen that Uniworld, Viking and Avalon all have similar itineraries and prices. I have no experience with river cruising or these companies, so would be interested in hearing people's experiences. There seems to be positive reposnses to Viking, but I don't really see anything for Avalon and Uniworld. Anyone travelled with them recently? Are there other companies we should consider?

We would be looking at 11 or 12 day itineraries, between Shanghai and Beijing. I see that Uniworld has one tour with a longer river portion, which appeals to me.

Thanks

J9

[Turtles06]

Hi all,

Have started to research China for April 2012, and have seen that Uniworld, Viking and Avalon all have similar itineraries and prices. I have no experience with river cruising or these companies, so would be interested in hearing people's experiences. There seems to be positive reposnses to Viking, but I don't really see anything for Avalon and Uniworld. Anyone travelled with them recently? Are there other companies we should consider?

We would be looking at 11 or 12 day itineraries, between Shanghai and Beijing. I see that Uniworld has one tour with a longer river portion, which appeals to me.

Thanks

J9

 

Fourteen months ago, my partner and I were in exactly your position -- we wanted to go to China for a land tour/river cruise, and though we are experienced ocean cruisers, we'd never been on a river cruise and had zero experience with any of these companies.

 

I read extensively here on CC and wherever else there was info. Of the three companies, the least info available, at least in terms of China, concerned Avalon, and I soon ruled them out. I spoke extensively by phone with reps from Viking and Uniworld. Quite frankly, I was astonished by the different experiences I had talking with these companies. The Viking reps were responsive and knowledgeable. Not so for Uniworld; I came away (after talking with two different reps on two different occasions) really underwhelmed.

 

Also, the fact that SO many people here on CC have visited China with Viking and have come back to rave about their experiences was very significant to us. The existence of the "Viking China" threadzilla here on this board says a lot. There just isn't the same amount of "personal" info available for Uniworld in China. I finally concluded that while these other companies have great reputations in Europe, Viking has the best rep in China.

 

We decided to go with Viking and we are so glad we did. We took Viking's 11-night Imperial Jewels of China trip two months ago. It was the most extraordinary trip we've ever taken; Viking did a phenomenal, first class job. The company clearly has made it a priority to make this trip an amazing experience.

 

Besides six nights on land (Beijing, Xi'an, Shanghai), Imperial Jewels has five nights on the river (between Chongqing and Wuhan), which really was plenty. But if you want more time on the river, Viking also offers Cultural Delights, which has 11 nights on the river. (I think that would have been too many, but that's me. I know others have loved that trip.)

 

Obviously, in terms of which company to use, we made a personal decision based on the info available to us, and we are so glad we took the trip we did.

 

Whatever you decide to do, I hope you have a great trip!

[suspaul]

Totally agree with Turtles06, we too returned from Vikings Imperial Jewels of China mid May 2011 and couldn't have asked for a better company to do business with. Won't bore you as we had the same itinerary as above, however we began in Beijing and ended in China. Great guides all along the trip, we got to see what was important to us, loved the river portion, just beautiful and our ship, Viking Emerald was super. Tho we have not tried Avalon we have done a European river cruise with Uniworld and thoroughly enjoy it also, another good company. However, we may be Viking converts as we've already booked their Rhine Getaway for this December to visit the Christmas markets from Basel to Amsterdam. Whichever you choose, enjoy your trip to China, it is a remarkable country.

Susan

[suspaul]

began in Beijing and ended in China

 

we ended in Shanghai! must be the heat.

S

[j-9]

Turtles06 and Suspaul, thanks for this info. A couple more questions, if you don't mind, as you have both done the itinerary we are interested in.

 

How are the land tours managed? I know the river boat holds a couple of hundred people, but I can't imagine tour groups of that size?

How large was your group for the land portion and excursions?

Do you stay together for the whole trip?

 

What is the activity level of the excursions? I like to walk and explore, rather than see it all through a bus window. Can you describe your experience?

 

Can you describe the passenger mix on the trip? We are 50-ish Canadians and appreciate the chance to meet people from different parts of the world and with different life experiences.

 

Thanks again

J9

[Turtles06]

Turtles06 and Suspaul, thanks for this info. A couple more questions, if you don't mind, as you have both done the itinerary we are interested in. You will love it.

 

How are the land tours managed? I know the river boat holds a couple of hundred people, but I can't imagine tour groups of that size?

How large was your group for the land portion and excursions?

Do you stay together for the whole trip? From the very start, you are assigned to a group that is the size of one busload (34 total in our case); your Viking tour escort is with you for the entire trip -- on the bus (where he/she is the guide in the big cities), in the hotels, and on the boat. The only time you see everyone else on the trip is at meals on the boat. The touring during the land portion of the trip is all staggered, and you pretty much feel as though you are only traveling with the group on your bus, which is a very manageable size. (Also, on the land portion of the trip, groups were split among different hotels, and didn't even fly together on the same flights.) In the 12 days, you pretty much get to know everyone in your group. It never felt as though we were with a huge group of people.

 

 

What is the activity level of the excursions? I like to walk and explore, rather than see it all through a bus window. Can you describe your experience? LOTS of walking, never fear. You're only in the bus as transport, to get to and from your hotel, restaurants, airports, and to get to the various sites. (For example, the first day in Bejing you spend the entire morning walking through Tiananmen Square and then through the entire Forbidden City. After lunch, you will walk around the Summer Palace. You will have walked miles that day. The next day, you will climb the Great Wall.) Don't worry, it is definitely not a trip in which you will feel as though you were sitting around too much looking out a bus window!

 

Can you describe the passenger mix on the trip? We are 50-ish Canadians and appreciate the chance to meet people from different parts of the world and with different life experiences. On our trip, mostly Americans and then Canadians, middle-aged and above. I think you would hit the demographic sweet spot. :)

 

Thanks again

J9

 

Answers in red. Hope they help!

[j-9]

This is sounding amazing! I think I'm sold. Just wondering what the weather was like when you went? Not too hot? Rainy? It sounds like you went in the April/May timeframe?

Also, I think we are going to have to start in Shanghai due to avialability of rewards flights - will that make the river a bit rougher or the engines noisier? Do you know if we should avoid the front cabins on the lower deck?

And speaking of cabins, which deck were you on and how was the view from the veranda? Wondering if the lower decks are fine or if we should go for a middle.

 

Oh just remembered another question - what is the tipping practice in general? Is there a recommend amount for the different people through the entire tour? On the ship do we need to have cash for envelops or is there a on-board account that it can be charged to?

Thanks again for all the help.

J9

[suometar]

We were on the June 1-12 Shanghai to Beijing trip. the weather was warm and humid, but not terribly so. We were in cabin 205 on the lowest deck, and in the front. Had no problem with noise or anything else, for that matter. The view from the veranda was just fine. But how much time are you going to spend in yur cabin, anyway? There is an observation deck at the back of the boat, if you want a panoramic view

 

Tipping: Viking suggests a daily gratuity of $10-12 per day per person for the Viking guide that will be with you for the duration of the tour, and $10-12 per person per day for the ship's staff. In addition, there are local guides which shoud be tipped $1-2 per person, per day. The gratuities for the ship's staff can be charged to a credit card, but the Viking tour guide gratuity shoul be in cash, either dollars or local currency.

[Turtles06]

This is sounding amazing! I think I'm sold. Just wondering what the weather was like when you went? Not too hot? Rainy? It sounds like you went in the April/May timeframe? We arrived in Beijing on May 12 for the Viking trip that began on May 15. We had good weather, with varying temperatures. Some days it was warm (in the 80s, a couple of days on the river when it hit 100), not overly humid during the land part of the trip. We had very little rain, a couple of cool/misty days on the river (and two very hot ones). If you are looking at May (or late April), be sure to AVOID a trip around the beginning of May, which is a nat'l holiday in China and everything will be super crowded because of domestic tourism.

 

 

Also, I think we are going to have to start in Shanghai due to avialability of rewards flights - will that make the river a bit rougher or the engines noisier? Do you know if we should avoid the front cabins on the lower deck? We started in Beijing, so I can't help you here, except to say that the river was flat.

 

And speaking of cabins, which deck were you on and how was the view from the veranda? Wondering if the lower decks are fine or if we should go for a middle. We were on Deck 3, midway between the bow and the atrium. It was a great location, easy to get to everything. Except for a handful of suites, the cabins are all the same size and there is NO reason to pay more to be on a higher deck on a boat like this. (We opted for Deck 3 rather than Deck 2 because, when we booked in 2010 for 2011, no one had yet been on the Emerald and I had no idea whether Deck 2 cabins would hear any engine noise from below. Also, our preference is to have cabins above and below us.)

 

Oh just remembered another question - what is the tipping practice in general? Is there a recommend amount for the different people through the entire tour? On the ship do we need to have cash for envelops or is there a on-board account that it can be charged to? Suometar above has given an excellent answer, to which I would just add that Viking also recommends a daily tip to the bus drivers of $.50-1.00.

 

Thanks again for all the help.

J9

 

Answers in red, hope they help!

[j-9]

You guys are great!

Thanks for all the info, we have booked Viking Imperial Jewels for next May.

J9

[Turtles06]

You guys are great!

Thanks for all the info, we have booked Viking Imperial Jewels for next May.

J9

 

That's great; you'll love it! Be sure to check out the "Viking China" thread for tons of info and if you have more questions.

 

And I see you'll be on the NCL Sun in Dec in the Western Caribbean. We are doing a different Western Caribbean itinerary on the NCL Star in January.

 

Happy travels to all!

[lulubell]

Can anyone elaborate on what hotels Viking is using in Beiijing,Shanghai and Xian.I did not see that posted anywhere:)

[dsr5159]

J-9: We too have booked the Imperial Jewels for May 2012 (going on the May 12 Shanghai to Beijing with Hong Kong extension). Which trip are you taking?

[buckeye82]

My husband and I just got back from the Imperial Jewels trip from Shanghai to Beijing with the Hong Kong extension two weeks ago. Just a couple of additional comments: On the Shanghai to Beijing tour the cruise boat goes upriver. The ship does not dock for the night but keeps traveling because it takes longer for the boat to go in that direction. We were on deck four, two cabins from the atrium and I did notice some noise at night but nothing bothersome. Also, some people complained about being on deck two. They said that they could hear the crew below until the wee hours. That said, it was a wonderful trip! Viking does a great job!

[j-9]

J-9: We too have booked the Imperial Jewels for May 2012 (going on the May 12 Shanghai to Beijing with Hong Kong extension). Which trip are you taking?

 

This is the cruise we are on as well, but we are not doing Hong Kong.

I've been to Shanghai and surrounding areas a couple of times and love it. This is my first trip as a "tourist"

J9

[j-9]

... Also, some people complained about being on deck two. They said that they could hear the crew below until the wee hours...

 

Hmmm thanks for the heads up, I'll be sure to pack my ear plugs just in case.

[Mura]

I'm late but I just saw this so I thought I'd put in my two cents.

 

We did the Jewels trip on Viking in May 2008 and it was wonderful. We had a great guide and wonderful travel companions -- no one was EVER late. Viking also uses five star hotels for their land stays, and the ship was beautiful.

 

My only complaint was that I would have liked more time in Shanghai. Maybe we could have used another day in Beijing, but we did pretty much see what we needed to. But Shanghai was only overnight and we would have liked more time there.

 

But Viking does a super job on China. Our only other Viking cruise heretofore was in 2003, Amsterdam to Basel. That was very good, but the China trip was better. We're doing Avignon-Paris with them in April 2012 and I'm curious as to how that one will compare.

 

 

Mura