Viking China (Part 2)

[Carol From California]

We are also arriving 4 days early to Beijing for our trip this September. Those of you who have been on a China Tour with Viking, did you feel Viking spent plenty of time at Forbidden City or did you wish you would have spent a full day there on your own? I have read that you can rent audio guides at FC. We are planning on spending a day going to the Mutianya section of the Great Wall and stopping at the Olympic Park. The other days we would like to see: Jingshan Park, Beihai Park, Temple of Heaven and Lama Temple. Did I miss anything that you highly recommend? Ohh, we would also like to eat at Made in China and Black Sesame. We are on the Roof of the World tour so I believe we will still see Summer Palace with Viking. Thank you ALL for your contributions!

 

I think Viking gives you plenty of time at the Forbidden City. The bus dropped us off and we walked and walked in the FC until we reached the other end where we met the bus. Someone in our group had a pedometer and said we had walked over 5 miles. The FC is very large and it did feel like we were walking for a long time! I don't think you need more time there on your own. Our Viking guide gave us plenty of information with the audio speaker as we went through it. Black Sesame is still closed, FYI. We did drive by Olympic Park and the Birds Nest as part of the Viking tour.

[Peregrina651]

Caribill...that was helpful. We will ponder. Appointment for China Visa is on Tuesday. Then I understand I send off to Viking for them to apply for Tibet Visa. Any comments?

 

Cruise Critic is great for some information but not for all. I would ask this one of Viking directly. It is important to get the right information and for that you should go right to the source, especially when it comes to visas. Viking says that it the passengers responsibility to get the correct visas and they don't refund your money if you get it wrong.

 

If you are using a TA, your TA will have to make the call to Viking.

[Lola911]

Cruise Critic is great for some information but not for all. I would ask this one of Viking directly. It is important to get the right information and for that you should go right to the source, especially when it comes to visas. Viking says that it the passengers responsibility to get the correct visas and they don't refund your money if you get it wrong.

 

If you are using a TA, your TA will have to make the call to Viking.

 

Thanks for trying to help Peregrina, but I am looking for answers for those who have been on the Tibet portion. We are responsible for getting our own China Visas which I am making application for on Tuesday, but Viking applies for Tibet Visa for us. Just wondering how it all went with past Roof of the World people. Thank you.

[sisterpower]

My sister and i are in Beijing now, landed last night (osaturday) we arranged a two tours through tour-bejing.com, today we spent five hours with our english speaking guide and driver on a private tour i arranged a month ago today we went to the Panjiayuan marke, a private tea ceremony and Wangfujing snack street we bought great souveniers. Tomorrow we are going to the lama temple and the temple of heaven. Tour-Beijing can do any type of tour just send them an email.

[Kohola]

We are also arriving 4 days early to Beijing for our trip this September. Those of you who have been on a China Tour with Viking, did you feel Viking spent plenty of time at Forbidden City or did you wish you would have spent a full day there on your own? I have read that you can rent audio guides at FC. We are planning on spending a day going to the Mutianya section of the Great Wall and stopping at the Olympic Park. The other days we would like to see: Jingshan Park, Beihai Park, Temple of Heaven and Lama Temple. Did I miss anything that you highly recommend? Ohh, we would also like to eat at Made in China and Black Sesame. We are on the Roof of the World tour so I believe we will still see Summer Palace with Viking. Thank you ALL for your contributions!

 

In addition to what you have listed I would recommend seeing a market both during the day and one at night and peruse a Snack Street, even if you aren't interested in sampling.

Visiting China is very subjective as to what you want to experience...some people never venture beyond the arms reach of their guide while others fully embrace China.

 

Personally I would recommend spending extra time at the Forbidden City if you enjoy Chinese culture and history or want time to take photos without the worry of losing your group. Our first visit included the concubine area in the inner courtyard, while on our second visit we went to a more intimate area of the Emperor. The two were totally different reflections of China's past and both were well worth seeing, but impossible to do both on one VRC group tour.

 

The following is part of what I wrote following our 2012 visit to China concerning the Forbidden City...

• Tiananmen Square (square of heavenly peace)…depending on where the tour begins the sun may be a factor. We've been dropped off on either side of the square. Tiananmen Square is the largest in the world, capable of holding a million people. The Chinese tourists are here to walk by Chairman Mao’s body…2 to 3 hours for 10 seconds to pay homage to him. Tiananmen Square and the Temple of Heaven are both located south of the Forbidden City because south represents heaven. There are what I would call squatting ditches around Tiananmen Square which are totally missed by most tourists...with a million people packed into the Square a few "Honey Buckets" aren't going to cut it.

• From the Square, you enter the Forbidden City which is remarkable…each dynasty destroyed and rebuilt the City until the Ming Dynasty in the 15th Century. The numbers five and nine are represented everywhere. Each TE handles the tours differently, our first guide Terry was into facts and dates, while Jin our second was more of an overview type of guide. In the Forbidden City, Terry took us into the most crowded areas because he felt that was the most important, while Jin skirted the crowds and allowed you to face them during your free time. The Forbidden City is comprised of over 8,000 rooms in a walled community about half a mile across in either direction so there is no way to see, but a small portion. On either tour we saw the temples in the Outer Courtyard, but went on opposite sides of the Inner Courtyard. And in both cases we spent almost no time in the Imperial Garden Area.

• The design of the Forbidden City, from its overall layout to the smallest detail, was meticulously planned to reflect philosophical and religious principles, and above all to symbolize the majesty of Imperial power. Some noted examples of symbolic designs include:

• Yellow is the color of the Emperor and the land. Thus almost all roofs in the Forbidden City bear yellow glazed tiles. There are only two exceptions. The library at the Pavilion of Literary Profundity had black tiles because black was associated with water, and thus fire-prevention. Similarly, the Crown Prince's residences have green tiles because green was associated with wood, and thus growth. The walls are red representing fire.

• The main halls of the Outer and Inner courts are all arranged in groups of three – the shape of the Qian trigram ☰, representing Heaven or Sky. The Main Halls are located on the highest piece of land in the Forbidden City and when looked at from above form the Chinese character 土(tu) which means earth. The residences of the Inner Court on the other hand are arranged in groups of six – the shape of the Kun trigram ☷, representing the Earth.

• The sloping ridges of building roofs are decorated with a line of statuettes led by a man riding a phoenix and followed by an imperial dragon. The number of statuettes represents the status of the building – a minor building might have 3 or 5. The Hall of Supreme Harmony has 10, the only building in the country to be permitted this in Imperial times. As a result, its 10th statuette, called a "Hangshi", or "ranked tenth" is also unique in the Forbidden City. The dragon is located in a superior position to the phoenix to symbolize the Emperor's power in every location except one, the Hall of Celestial and Terrestrial Union...Joining of Heaven and Earth where the Queen is King. The Imperial Dragons have 5 claws per foot, in case you’re wondering.

• The redundancy of the buildings provided the Emperor a chance to vary his routine. The average life span of the Emperor was only 38 years. The stress of the job, possibility of assassinations, and keeping up with 3,000 concubines definitely took its toll. The Emperor would pick a concubine for the evening during dinner; she bathed and came to the royal quarters in her birthday suit to ensure she carried no weapons. The Emperor and his mate for the evening then had 2 hours together before she was whisked away and he could be moved to another location to ensure his safety. The eunuchs ensured the 2 hour limit was strictly enforced.

• There are large crowds here so it only takes an instant for you to get separated…it’s very difficult to catch back up with the group even though you can see the VRC pennants waving because of the mass of humanity.

• That’s when your name tag with the TE’s phone number comes in handy…any tour guide and most Chinese will call the number on the tag for you so the TE can come and get you.

• We wasted a lot of time waiting for two lost souls on our last trip because they never called. The guide supervisor happen to find them wandering and took them to the exit to wait. We had people get separated from the group both times we visited the FC. The first time the system worked, but the second time it was a dismal failure. Yes, the procedure was explained to everyone prior to going to the Square on both occasions.

 

The VRC visit to the Summer Palace only takes you along the flat area of the Park. There is plenty to see on the hillside on your own if you're interested.

 

Depending on your guide you may or may not receive a lot of information concerning the layout of Beijing in reference to Fengshui which is fascinating to me. Even the Cube and Bird's Nest are located on opposite sides of a bisection of the city from north to south through the Forbidden City to achieve harmony. The Temple of Heaven is circular, but halls on the FC are rectangular because round represents heaven while the halls represent earth. Even the Cube follows this pattern.

 

Could someone tell me the cost of the optional Summer Palace tour and how the logistics are handled to get you from lunch to the Palace? Do the people going on the tour shift to the buses going to the Summer Palace and everyone else go back to their respective hotels?

[mee]

I have been following the various posts about US and Chinese currency. Does anyone know if Canadian currency is accepted in China? If I have to buy US dollars before my trip I might as well buy Yuan.

 

Thanks for any information you may have.

[Lola911]

I have been following the various posts about US and Chinese currency. Does anyone know if Canadian currency is accepted in China? If I have to buy US dollars before my trip I might as well buy Yuan.

 

Thanks for any information you may have.

 

Canadian dollars are not accepted anywhere in the world outside of Canada. It sounds like we should have a few USD with us...could come in handy.

[rhskls]

We visited the Forbidden City on June 26 and the temp was in the 90's so the 3 hours or so that we spent was plenty but you certainly only get to see a small part. If the weather is cooler it would be great to do more.

We spent about $350 in yuan and about $300 in U.s. Many vendors would take U.S. We also took $240 in US cash for our guide. We tried to pay drivers and local guide with Chinese.

[caribill]

I have been following the various posts about US and Chinese currency. Does anyone know if Canadian currency is accepted in China? If I have to buy US dollars before my trip I might as well buy Yuan.

 

Thanks for any information you may have.

 

Canadian $ would be accepted at airports and hotels for converting into Yuan.

[sisterpower]

They will take USD for trinkets/shopping. You will need Yuan for the taxis.

 

RMB and Yuan is basically the same thing. Renminbi is the official name for the currency, and yuan is the main unit of currency.

 

My current experience regarding the above is that you will pay slightly more for the use of US money as opposed to Yuan but it does depend on the market. Examle of this is when purchasing a purse at the Wanfujing market the cost was 10 yuan ($2 canadian approx) or $5 US. My current experience is bring or exchange at the hotel cash into Yuan and carry an exchange card. I am staying at the Ritz, most of the staff speak pretty good english and will run to help you.

[systables]

My sister and i are in Beijing now, landed last night (osaturday) we arranged a two tours through tour-bejing.com, today we spent five hours with our english speaking guide and driver on a private tour i arranged a month ago today we went to the Panjiayuan marke, a private tea ceremony and Wangfujing snack street we bought great souveniers. Tomorrow we are going to the lama temple and the temple of heaven. Tour-Beijing can do any type of tour just send them an email.

 

We will be in Beijing a day early of day 1 with vikings layover day. So we think that we would like to take a tour of both the temple of heaven and the lama temple on our layover day but we also think we should keep our tour to 5 hours max. Does the tour-Beijing tour group you used provide customized tours for a private tour for two for 5 hours, did you think they did a good job, and what type of fees would it costs? Or does anyone else can provide other options they used on their layover day?. Thanks.. Dave

 

Sent from my ASUS Transformer Pad TF300T using Forums mobile app

[sisterpower]

We will be in Beijing a day early of day 1 with vikings layover day. So we think that we would like to take a tour of both the temple of heaven and the lama temple on our layover day but we also think we should keep our tour to 5 hours max. Does the tour-Beijing tour group you used provide customized tours for a private tour for two for 5 hours, did you think they did a good job, and what type of fees would it costs? Or does anyone else can provide other options they used on their layover day?. Thanks.. Dave

 

Sent from my ASUS Transformer Pad TF300T using Forums mobile app

 

Tour-Beijing.com did a fantastic job, we had two 5 hour tours that i personally arranged with them, the tours included driver, english speaking guide and lunch, the total cost was $350 US paid using pay pal. My sister and I really enjoyed having the guide all to ourselves and no worries regarding transportation. They can do various tours all you need to do is ask.

[irocks]

Kohola, you are a wealth of knowledge. Thank you. Have you ever thought about leading tours to Beijing? I think you would be great!

[Lola911]

My current experience regarding the above is that you will pay slightly more for the use of US money as opposed to Yuan but it does depend on the market. Examle of this is when purchasing a purse at the Wanfujing market the cost was 10 yuan ($2 canadian approx) or $5 US. My current experience is bring or exchange at the hotel cash into Yuan and carry an exchange card. I am staying at the Ritz, most of the staff speak pretty good english and will run to help you.

 

10 Yuen = $1.70 CAD or $1.60 USD. The diff is not much. We travel quite a bit and I always look up what currencies are acceptable in a country. For instance, we were just in Vietnam and we used USD everywhere b/c it is acceptable. We never changed our money to Vietnam $. But when in Hong Kong...only their dollar is acceptable and same in Brazil with their currency. You don't bandy about with USD nor CAD, but as suggested you could take your CAD with you and change at the airport/hotel. Personally, we go to our local exchange and get the foreign currency before we leave town. Any exchange is going to charge you a fee. P.S. For 2 bucks...let me at those purses...lol

[Kohola]

Kohola, you are a wealth of knowledge. Thank you. Have you ever thought about leading tours to Beijing? I think you would be great!

:) I'm always glad to pass on what I've learned from the people of China to anyone interested. Since you're spending an additional four days I thought you might like to know a bit more than your guide will probably tell you. I wouldn't want some foreigner trying to tell me about China.:D

A few tidbits that I was surprised to learn from the people I converse with in China. They watch Ellen and think she is great. The Blacklist is one of their favorite shows and they're in love with Neymar of Brazil. I'm glad to ask them anything about life in China.

Have you ever tried to explain what an attributive clause or an antecedent is to high school student learning English who is asking in Chinese?:confused: :eek: Google is a life saver;)

[xcentric]

We are also arriving 4 days early to Beijing for our trip this September. Those of you who have been on a China Tour with Viking, did you feel Viking spent plenty of time at Forbidden City or did you wish you would have spent a full day there on your own? I have read that you can rent audio guides at FC. We are planning on spending a day going to the Mutianya section of the Great Wall and stopping at the Olympic Park. The other days we would like to see: Jingshan Park, Beihai Park, Temple of Heaven and Lama Temple. Did I miss anything that you highly recommend? Ohh, we would also like to eat at Made in China and Black Sesame. We are on the Roof of the World tour so I believe we will still see Summer Palace with Viking. Thank you ALL for your contributions!

irocks,

 

My wife and I will also be taking the China/Tibet tour in September. We'll be arriving in Beijing 9/11 with the tour starting 9/12. Are you taking same tour?

 

George

[systables]

Tour-Beijing.com did a fantastic job, we had two 5 hour tours that i personally arranged with them, the tours included driver, english speaking guide and lunch, the total cost was $350 US paid using pay pal. My sister and I really enjoyed having the guide all to ourselves and no worries regarding transportation. They can do various tours all you need to do is ask.

 

Thanks sisterpower. I believe you are saying that you paid about 175.00 total per day for a 5 hour tour for the both of you. Is that correct? And that included lunch. And did the 175.00 include the admission price to the various sites you visited. Or was the admission fees to the sites an extra charge?

 

Sent from my ASUS Transformer Pad TF300T using Forums mobile app

[irocks]

Hello George, I am sorry to say we must be the tour right after yours because our tour begins in Beijing on 9/22/2014 . Please keep us updated during your travel with any helpful hints.

[sisterpower]

Thanks sisterpower. I believe you are saying that you paid about 175.00 total per day for a 5 hour tour for the both of you. Is that correct? And that included lunch. And did the 175.00 include the admission price to the various sites you visited. Or was the admission fees to the sites an extra charge?

 

Sent from my ASUS Transformer Pad TF300T using Forums mobile app

 

All admission fees were included with the tour, we liked being just the two of us and the guide we set the pace at one point we wanted to stop at a matket and our guide was very accomodating. Tour-Beijing.com has a great website you should check it out if you send an email they generally respond in 24 hours unless it is the weekend when they are closed.

[didicruiser]

irocks,

 

My wife and I will also be taking the China/Tibet tour in September. We'll be arriving in Beijing 9/11 with the tour starting 9/12. Are you taking same tour?

 

George

 

While my DH and I are on Uniworld, we arrive 9/11 also. Are you interested in sharing a day tour on 9/12?

Edited July 8, 2014 by didicruiser

[irocks]

We will be staying at the Fairmont Peace Hotel in Shanghai and would like to see the night light show while in Shanghai. Is it best to see it from the Riverside Promenade on the Pudong side of the river or along Huangpu Park on the Huangpu side of the river?

[Peregrina651]

LIST OF ROLL CALLS

2014

July 15 Jewels

July 17 Jewels

July 27 Delights

August 14

August 24 Jewels

September 4- Jewels

October 3—Roof/Tibet

October 15 Jewels

 

 

2015

March 18 Delights

May 17 Jewels

September 12 - Roof/Tibet

 

If your roll call is missing from this list, please let me know via the e-mail link in my signature file below.

 

If you start a roll call, please post the link here on Viking China.

[Lola911]

LOL My roll call is a bust - October 3 Roof of the World. I think we have the Emerald to ourselves!

[caribill]

LOL My roll call is a bust - October 3 Roof of the World. I think we have the Emerald to ourselves!

 

Don't feel too bad. Probably less than 3% of those cruising ever post to Cruise Critic and the percentage may be even less for river cruising.

 

That's the reason this thread is so popular as it covers many Viking River cruise experiences in China.

[sisterpower]

Leaving Beijing today for Xian, yesterday i walked left at the Great Wall it was muvh less busy than the right. The people of China are wonderful many just stare at us but a smile will get a big smile in return. We have one lady in our group with a bit of a mobility issue, she can walk short distances on her own but long distances can be challenging, she was saying how she let Viking know in advance and they had arranged a wheel chair and pusher both our Bejing tours. At the great wall the pusjer helped to actually walk up a portion, she was estatic, cost was $20.