Sinorama Gold 8 Yangtze River cruise & Imperial China Tour

[gochina]

Not true. We got our visas in January 2016. We were with a group of a couple hundred people on our Sinorama trip, practically all of whom had to get visas for this trip. None of the people we talked to had ten year visas. They didn't know there was such a thing. The visa applications online are 2013 version and do not have a check box for ten years. You have to check the Other box and then put 10 years on the line below.

I must back up NANSI. We filled out one year multiple and got 10 years multiple in April, 2015 from Houston, TX.

[nansi]

Not true. We got our visas in January 2016. We were with a group of a couple hundred people on our Sinorama trip, practically all of whom had to get visas for this trip. None of the people we talked to had ten year visas. They didn't know there was such a thing. The visa applications online are 2013 version and do not have a check box for ten years. You have to check the Other box and then put 10 years on the line below.

 

Apparently something changed between JAN 2016 and AUG 2016, because it IS true :D

[Jujuju2]

Apparently something changed between JAN 2016 and AUG 2016, because it IS true :D

Or maybe what is standard policy in one consulate is not so in another. Most of the people we were with were San Francisco consulate, and they did not get ten year visas. Well, our friends we traveled with live in NC, and were Wash., D.C. embassy and did not get ten year visas.

 

Enjoy your trips.

[lamchops]

We didn't fill anything special or extra out last year. ALL Visa's are now 10 years! They just come that way :D

 

Sinorama got our visa on our behalf for a small fee. The consulate in Vancouver only issues 10 year visas. This changed from when we first booked to when we applied for our Visas.

[nansi]

Or maybe what is standard policy in one consulate is not so in another. Most of the people we were with were San Francisco consulate, and they did not get ten year visas. Well, our friends we traveled with live in NC, and were Wash., D.C. embassy and did not get ten year visas.

 

Enjoy your trips.

 

We used the Washington DC embassy.

[Jujuju2]

Sinorama got our visa on our behalf for a small fee. The consulate in Vancouver only issues 10 year visas. This changed from when we first booked to when we applied for our Visas.

When we first booked, I was so happy to see that Sinorama was going to get the visas for us. And then I found out it was only for Canadians. Yay Canadians. We are just 30 miles south of the border on the west coast. On our first trip to China in 1998, the Chinese had not even yet thought of visas. On our next trip in 2007, we were lucky enough to be driving between Texas and San Francisco and could get our own visas in person by spending a few days in San Francisco on the way home to north of Seattle.

 

Okay, we are departing on our next big trip tomorrow, so I won't be checking this thread anymore, am going to unsubscribe to keep my e-mails down.

 

lamchops, thanks for all of your sage advice. You certainly made a difference in the decisions we made regarding our pre-trip planning, and I think we had a better experience because of running across you online.

 

Smoochies and happy traveling,

Juju

[jill1349]

Thanks for all of the comments on the Visa. I did a preliminary google and got names of some of the companies but they had not so wonderful reviews. I will need to look into it a bit more before choosing one.

 

Now, another question. Wine. I have seen comments and read reviews that one beer is offered with most meals but can you purchase wine. I'm not a beer drinker but do like my glass (or two) of wine.

 

Thanks for any information.

 

Jill

[lamchops]

Now, another question. Wine. I have seen comments and read reviews that one beer is offered with most meals but can you purchase wine. I'm not a beer drinker but do like my glass (or two) of wine.

 

quote]

 

There was no wine offered for sale that I remember at any of the restaurants that we ate at. I'm sure they were available at the 1 or 2 fancier/hotel restaurants. I don't know if I would bother as I think the wine at lesser restaurants would probably be stored at less than optimum conditions. There was definitely wine for sale on the river cruise though of lesser quality. I remember a couple of Chinese wines (Great Wall) and a couple of lower end French imports. I like wine but didn't purchase any probably because they were overpriced onboard.

 

You only get one 5oz glass of beer with the meals but most of the guys bought beer at each of the stops for about $5rmb each. I had my first beer in 30 years on the trip and it tasted better than I remember beer to taste. It must of been the company and the trip as I haven't had one since.:)

Edited May 5, 2016 by lamchops

[DFLOORLADY]

Thanks for the visa information, we live in Idaho but I go to my Southern California office a few times a year but decided did not want to deal with the Los Angles traffic so we are looking into an agency. Rush Travel Services has a website I plan to call them when it gets closer to the time to apply.

[jill1349]

Lamchops, bummer about the wine. Thanks for the information although not what I was hoping to hear.

 

Jill

[DFLOORLADY]

Was anyone able to use Viber or another messaging site while in China? I have been reading that Facebook is not available, was anyone able to use it? Thanks !!

[Gwendy]

Was anyone able to use Viber or another messaging site while in China? I have been reading that Facebook is not available, was anyone able to use it? Thanks !!

No Facebook last year. There was a way you could unblock it said one of my techie friends. Too much drama, just lived without it for the two weeks. I believe if you are on the ship in coastal ports eg Shanghai or Xiamen you can use Fb. Yangtze cruise no way, Internet is so erratic anyway. You are in some remote areas.

We booked Yangtze cruise as an add on as it was cheap, not really all that keen. Turned out to be one of the biggest highlights of our trip. Go on the included excursions. Fantastic. Not 5 star but the friendliness and happiness of the staff was great.

[lamchops]

There's another deal available on TZ as of yesterday for the remainder of 2016 and spring 2017.

 

http://www.vacancesinorama.com/tourpage/index.php?id=2016_chgl_14d_en&theyear=2016&cur=CAD&office=vancouver#selectyear

 

It appears Sinorama is now a CC sponsor.

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/search/results.cfm?q=sinorama

 

I wonder if this thread had anything to do with it?

[Ouoat]

We are back from the 20 day tour and wanted to post some thoughts for others

 

[*]Beautiful country with beautiful welcoming people

[*]even tho the tour is very programmed to see what the government wants you to see, you will still get a sense of the 'real" China

[*]the 20 days is tiring; ready to go home 3 or 4 days before then; but sure wouldn't have wanted to miss seeing what we saw during those final 3 or 4 days

[*]every day is jam packed, but even my 86 year old mother did OK

[*]our tour guide was great, arranged a wheelchair for 2 people in our group with a attendant in Beijing for lengthy walks; but know that there are very few ramps so even people who use wheelchairs must go down and up stairs

[*]if you like American Chinese food, you don't need to bring any extra food. You are never allowed to get hungry, you are eating all the time and there is plenty of food. The food does get very repetitive.

[*]tea and sometimes coffee are provided in the hotel rooms. Hotel rooms are better then any I've ever been in in the US

[*]Never felt threatened in any way. People will come up to you and ask to take a picture with you, it's OK, they just are delighted by your round eyes and pale skin.

[*]when getting off the bus at the port to board the ship, pay one of the displaced farmers to help you on the steps if you have any difficulty walking or are carrying your carry on. They look kind of scary [ragged, poor], but are only trying to make some money and those steps have no handrail, are steep and treacherous. One of our group rolled down several steps and was able to stop herself but her luggage went all the way to the bottom, it could have been terrible. The farmers will quote you 100 yhen, they don't really know how to speak English, so tell them 10 yhen or whatever you are willing to give them; they will be happy with anything.

[*]we took a probiotic everyday, a Pepto Bismol tablet with every meal and never got sick. I also tried a taste of street food once in a while to introduce some of China

[*]'s bacteria into my system; the husband didn't. But we were some of the only people who didn't get sick on the trip. It seems like most got sick around the time of the cruise. Our tour guide said it's because we have been touring so hard that when we are finally able to relax, people get sick. The doctor on the ship can do medications and IVs; take advantage of his services as soon as possible if you get sick so you are ready to continue for the rest of the tour.

[*]lots of walking and climbing stairs, but I didn't have any problem even tho I'm 65 years old, don't exercise and carry 40 pounds extra.

[*]take $20 crisp unwrinkled clean US dollar bills with you to exchange at the hotels; they usually have a change machine or you can do so at the front desk. We hardly used any of our smaller dollar bills. You can use them for tour guide tips, but remember they can't exchange them if they are not in pristine condition. Our travel companions had trouble using their credit cards to get money even tho they had notified their credit card companies. You can use your credit card at major stores without problem.

[*]you will be comfortable in crop pants. Chinese don't really seem to care what anyone else wears. A lot of US clothing is made in China so you will see US type clothing everywhere.

[*]didn't ever need to use our smog masks but take one just in case or you can buy one there if you need one.

[*]squat toilets....there is a lot of them, but if you have good bladder control you won't ever have to use one. If you don't have good bladder control and you're a woman who can't squat well; practice with one of the aides for camping that you can get on Amazon. pStyle is a good one.

[*]Get over thinking like an American as it relates to crowding; there are lots of people in China and if they used our body space expectations they would never get anywhere. They are not being impolite or pushy, and are surprised when you show that you are upset by it. You also need to learn not to be "too polite" or you will get behind your tour group!

[*]There will usually be 2 tour guides with your group, a city tour guide and your own tour guide; one will always be bringing up the rear to see that no one gets lost. But don't worry if that should happen, really people are very kind and will help you as much as they can to re-find your group.

[*]Packing----I over packed coffee, snacks, protein bars. Glad we planned to wash out underclothes so that cut back on luggage, we did have some done on the cruise ship. We wore tops 3 or 4 times each, only took 2 pairs of pants. Nice golf shirt worked fine for husband on the cruise. Mostly you're with a lot of other non-formal Americans/Canadians! Some ladies wore short dresses for cruise dinners, others nice top/bottom. Some people packed only the minimum in a backpack with no check in bag and they were fine, a couple of tops, couple of bottoms, one nicer dressier top/bottom for the cruise nights.

If anyone has specific questions, glad to answer. blong32@live.com Bev

[czarria55]

We didn't fill anything special or extra out last year. ALL Visa's are now 10 years! They just come that way :D

 

Hey, Nanci, it's Christie again. I'm wondering if you'd care to meet up for coffee or something at some point since we apparently are in the same vicinity? I'm in Lehigh Acres (Mirror Lakes) and your profile mentions Cape Coral. If so, we can discuss further via email? czarria57@gmail.com. No pressure, just a thought.

[czarria55]

Ouoat, just read your highlights of your 20-day trip above. Very helpful, thanks. I do have a few questions, but will use your email, since you so kindly included.

 

Just to anyone else in general, I tried setting up a new board for our specific tour (October 1, 2016), but sadly, I've had no takers. Just wondering if anyone reading this thread is going on that trip?

 

That's all!! Great resource, this thread!! Thanks to all!!

[DFLOORLADY]

We received our airline tickets and I was pleasantly surprised, we are flying Non-Stop from LAX to Beijing arriving in Beijing at 6:00PM. Going home flight from Wuhen to Beijing then Non-Stop to LAX. Could not of picked better flights.:)

Anyone else on this departure date ?

[pcorzine]

My wife and I (Out of Illinois) are booked on the November 6th 2016 Sinorama Gold tour. Appreciate all the great information here and would like to connect with anyone on our tour????

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[RussNJodi]

You may want to contact Sinorama about your "alternate" travel plans as there are waivers to sign. They do not want to be responsible for you when you strike out on your own during scheduled sites. After they drop you off at the hotel or if you're "sick for the day" ;), you're on your own.

 

Lamchops, would appreciate your experience with this. We are taking the Wild China tour with our kids, and looking at the itinerary, the last day in Shanghai is nothing we have a real desire to see, so was thing kin of heading out to Shanghai Disney on our own. The Sinorama 800 number said that should not be an issue (just don't expect any money back for missing a tour) but I've since read conflicting stories online. (They won't let you, They will begrudgingly let you, they will let you but charge you). Do they explain the policy to you while there?

[lamchops]

Lamchops, would appreciate your experience with this. We are taking the Wild China tour with our kids, and looking at the itinerary, the last day in Shanghai is nothing we have a real desire to see, so was thing kin of heading out to Shanghai Disney on our own. The Sinorama 800 number said that should not be an issue (just don't expect any money back for missing a tour) but I've since read conflicting stories online. (They won't let you, They will begrudgingly let you, they will let you but charge you). Do they explain the policy to you while there?

 

When we wanted to go to snack street, they begrudgingly let us. They tried very hard to convince us not too. Our guide stayed up and waited in the lobby of the hotel until we returned. They are responsible for you and if we knew it was such a big deal, we would of stayed with the group. We tipped him handsomely on our last day.:)

[RussNJodi]

Thanks for that info; will have to figure out the best way to approach this--maybe extend a day on our own dime--did anyone in your group do this?

[mausie777]

thank you for your detailed info about your trip.. we are thinking of booking a 22 days deluxe tour with Panda Vacations - we are thinking of going the first week in May, after the chinese holiday celebrations, sound like you went around the same time?? what was the weather like? trying to figure out the best time to go - April, may or october ?

[Ouoat]

We were in China starting on April 3rd for 19 days. The weather varied a lot between north and south China.

In the north and central area we took a light jacket/sweater with us in case we needed it. A umbrella would be good just in case also, it never rained hard enough for us to need one.

In the south it was hot and humid. In fact, I was way too hot at times even after dark. But I do not tolerate heat well. I took water, a fan, and a "cool cloth" with me where ever a went.

[Ouoat]

Had a few questions emailed to me, here are my replies;

 

The temperatures in the north were in the middle 70's to low 80's, very pleasant, not that humid. In the south the temperatures were in the middle 80's mostly, but very humid AT TIMES. It was comfortable for short excursions outside, comfortable in the bus and the buildings. There was almost everywhere places to sit in the shade and not get too hot, so that made the humidity tolerable. Of course, if you do that, you will miss seeing the site as thoroughly as you would have if you kept going. The only time I was extremely uncomfortable was when we went to an outdoor performance at night in the south when the humidity and temperature remained high. But I had loaned my cool towel and fan to my Mom because she had forgotten hers, plus she was sharing my water, so I think I might have been OK if I had had them to myself. The performance was amazing, produced by the same man who did the Beijing Olympic Opening Nite Ceremonies; so well worth going to even with the heat and humidity. If the weather for your trip is similar to our stay there, I think there would be a few days when your husband will be uncomfortable but generally would be fine.

 

The hotels were all fabulous..think glass walls into the bathrooms [there was an electric shade that you could put down], one place had a TV in the wall at the end of the tub, phones in the bathroom. They were better then any hotel rooms we have ever been in, in the states!

 

The cities there are enormous, think 13 million people or more. So where ever your hotel is there is stuff going on, but the days were so long that you might not have much energy to do anything extra. There were no 'free days' on our tour.

 

If you are intending to take a CPAP machine with you, no worries, just take it out of your carry on when going through security.....they are used to seeing them now, and pass them without any comments/concerns.

[DFLOORLADY]

I was unaware of the restrictions on lithium batteries which can be taken on the plane, I understand that they can only be in your carry on bag, did anyone have trouble getting in on board?