Viking China

[Harry Cane]

There was a good bit of walking, but I don't recall seeing the stick people except at the docks. We had some elderly people in our group--well into their 70s--and did OK, even in Tibet. There were a couple of places they just stayed on the bus, but not that many.

 

Re the comments on the Passport to China series, I agree with them all. I was surprised to learn Xian had more than the terra cotta soldiers. The wall area was really interesting.

 

My only complaint about the whole Viking trip is that we didn't have enough time for ourselves. Maybe I'm being too picky since it's hard to cram as much as we saw in two weeks otherwise, but if we hadn't arrived in Beijing early in the day (we made our own air arrangements) we would have had no time for shopping. I agree we could have used less time in the shops (we were in the rug shop for ever!) and, at least for the Roof of the World trip, lounging around the dam. That was a long wasted day.

 

Watching the series makes us want to go back, at least to Beijing and Shanghai. At the latter we spent a total on one day.

[Lady Meer]

After watching Samantha Brown's first episode which showed Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City - I'm becoming concerned that one of my traveling companions might not be able to keep up on the tours.

 

Thanks

 

On our trip in May a lady had a wheelchair plus attendant for the day in Tiananmen Square and Forbidden City. This was organised by our guide and I am sure it was $50 per day which we thought was really good value - you wouldn't get a day's service in the UK for that - I was tempted myself ;) .

[Abe]

Thank you all for the info on the stick people and wheelchair availability. I guess if the walks look too intimidating, our companion can also choose to stay on the bus.

 

Your help and advice, as always, is appreciated.

[Lucky Granny]

We have just returned from our Imperial Jewels tour on the Century Sky and would like to add a few comments. The trip was absolutely wonderful – we did not know there were so many interesting things to see in China and to learn about the people. We wished we could have stayed longer. Our main complaint about the trip was the feeling that we had to hurry everywhere – but that is the only way to see the many things that we saw.

 

Our guide, Frank, was also wonderful. He volunteered so much information about his family so we could get an idea of the way Chinese people live and how much their lives have changed in the last thirty years. Apparently Viking does a really good job of hiring guides because everyone seems to think theirs was wonderful.

 

From what I have read on this board and from what I have experienced, I believe every trip is a little bit different from the last. Our tour was influenced by the fact that there were only 125 people on the boat – so the warnings about dining room noise were not applicable. Also, China has upgraded everything for the Olympics so we never were required to use Chinese bathroom facilities – there was always a Western one available and never a very long line. The Olympics were also responsible for vendors being removed from many places that we went – the fake Rolexes we wanted to buy were very difficult to find.

 

Some people have posted that there was not enough time for shopping and others have said there was more than enough time – this is totally a matter of opinion. We did not think we were allowed enough shopping time and always had to rush with the guide waving at us to get on the bus. What Viking considers “shopping” is their arrangement wherein you eat a meal at a place where you can buy very expensive items, which very few people wanted- and which you certainly cannot bring to your grandchildren. With this arrangement, you waste a bit of time and also get a meal which is not as good as it would have been had they taken you to a real restaurant. The embroidery factory and the jade shop are not what I consider “shopping” because I cannot buy anything there for my grandchildren.

 

The vendors that sounded so oppressive and aggressive are not really that bad unless you visit the Silk Market in Beijing (which we had to skip a Viking meal to do because we were about to go home with nothing to bring anybody). At most stops, there were just a few women, all selling the same thing – once you buy what you want, the others are offering nothing more. It was fun to laugh about the kites that were two dollars going down to one dollar, and then two for a dollar, and then six for five dollars, and then eight for five dollars. We just would have liked to have had more time to deal with the vendors – but it is my guess that the guides are really insulted that you prefer to buy that cheap stuff to bring home rather than the real works of art that their country produces.

 

About the money – we went armed with more brand new $1 bills than we needed. When the Rolexes went down to five for $10, I needed a ten dollar bill rather than count out ten ones. When the Olympic caps were seven for $10 – same thing. We used a number of ones for tipping but also needed a lot of fives and tens. American money was good for most every thing – it is easier to bargain when you have a good grip on how much you are offering. However, some places did not accept American money – taxis come to mind. The ATM dispensed yuan in 100’s, which is about $15 dollars so it is easy to get a little bit of Chinese money when you need it. The hotels would change 100 yuan bills for smaller denominations. One problem we had was with changing an American $100 bill into smaller American money. It was easy to change for Chinese money and, if you used it to make a purchase, your change would be Chinese (counterfeit?). I would suggest bringing only smaller bills – ones, fives, tens, and twenties. I spent about four hundred dollars in cash but, then, I am a shopper. I had hoped to use credit cards more than I did but was discouraged from doing so by Frank. Their approved shopping locations , museum gift shops, the boat and the hotels were the only places he thought it was safe to use them.

 

Water – bottled water was available everywhere – boat, bus, and hotels at no charge. I am still amazed at the incongruence of the luxury of a five star hotel where you have to get bottled water to brush your teeth. But the disposable cups we brought were unnecessary – everywhere had a glass in the bathroom and, if you can drink from their glasses in the dining room, you can also do it in your stateroom.

 

The boat was more modern than I expected, from the reports written on this board. The room was quite large with plenty of storage space. Beds were great.

 

Laundry service was adequate but, I thought, expensive – over a dollar to wash a pair of socks? The only two choices were “wash and press” or “press only” – neither applies to a pair of dirty socks. I sent some clothing to the laundry and washed some in the room. It dried rather quickly on the balcony except for the day when it rained. There was no iron in the room so everything was wash and wear.

 

We had a problem everywhere with our converter and adapter. Our adapter would not fit into the sockets – it was the right shape and labeled “China” but would not go in. The converter would go in and fall right out – not tight enough – had to prop things around it to hold it and, even then, it would disconnect. On both the boat and at the Westin in Beijing, I borrowed a converter. Another problem was with the plug on my curling iron. The iron itself would run on either 110 or 220 volts, but the polarized plug with one side wider than the other would not go into the Chinese plug that is made for both sides being the same. Try to find an adapter to correct this. Both of the camera battery chargers that I brought will work on either voltage and they had both sides the same small size that fit into Chinese plugs. No problem with them (Canon).

 

We encountered “stick people” at only one stop. The others had steps but not really a lot. The higher the water level in the river, the fewer steps are exposed. There were a few raised door jams on the boat but most were not. There were a number of things to step over in several of the places where we stopped. There was one person in our group who used a cane but was not totally dependent on it – I am sure she went everywhere except I do not know what she did at the Great Wall. That was the biggest physical challenge.

 

Luggage – weights not mentioned (thankfully!) We were told we could have as many carry-ons as we wanted as long as we could carry them all. There was never a problem. On one flight, a germ-killer individually-wrapped wipe was detected in my pocket by a sensor and the agent who inspected it said I would have to throw it away because it had alcohol in it. Some of the restaurants give you their version of a wipe which is just for cleaning off food, not killing germs, and these should make in onto the plane. Other flight inspections did not detect my wipes. Sometimes small tubes of lotion, etc. were detected and other times they were not. Chinese airlines allow no liquids, creams, or gels in carry-ons – no one quart zip lock.

 

Our experience on Chinese airlines was not as good a previously reported. There were no English magazines. Food was inedible. The only drinks offered were coke, sprite, water – maybe one of them had fruit juice – but we did not know if we should drink it.

 

You don’t realized how nice it is to have unlimited refills of your beverage in the States until you go to China with Viking and are allowed one glass of beverage at each meal (not on the boat). If you want more than one, you have to buy it- even water. Most meals off the boat offered the above-mentioned beverages plus Chinese beer. I prefer Diet Coke, which was not available, so I usually drank the beer – it had a good taste and very little alcohol. Occasionally we were able to get Coca Cola Light.

 

This is ridiculously long but I wanted to explain how our experience differed from others we have read about. I repeat that the trip was wonderful – and also an adventure into the unknown on some occasions. I am so glad we went.

 

I will be glad to answer any questions. Just post them.

 

Mary Frances

[bobka]

Mary Frances, thanks so much for the update. Our friends Bill and Audrey were with you on the trip, and we are waiting to hear their experiences. We are going ourselves in October and will heed your advice.

[dpump]

great trip report! we were on the cultural delights early June. Agree w/all you said!

[MSEm]

Enjoyed your review.

I am believe that the China Government may strongly suggest that the tours (Viking and all others) visit the Silk Factory, Rug Factory, etc. I have looked at several other tours and they all offer trips to the same factories.

Did you get to visit one of Viking River's sponsored schools?

We really enjoyed our visit to the school and meeting the children.

 

Good you made it to the Silk Market in Beijing, that is really an experience.

Were you able to find the "Rolex watches" at the Silk Market?

 

Are group really enjoyed our trip to Wal-Mart in China. Wal-Market is more upscale shopping for the Chinese. There they can buy food from America.

 

Good you enjoyed your trip.

Emily

[Off2China]

Mary Frances - Thanks for the info. We're going on this trip in late September. Just last night we were talking about how much money and what denominations to take, so your advice is appreciated.

 

We have friends who live in Beijing and they have offered to take us to a "less touristy" part of the Wall so we will probably take them up on that and skip the Viking tour that day. They've also offered to take us to some of their favorite shopping places, so that should solve the not having time to shop problem as well.

 

I may be back with more questions. Thanks again!

[jasl]

Lucky Granny.....Thank you so much for your report. We are booked for April next year and I will be watching this thread for more pointers.

[Off2China]

Money question: For those who have already been there, did anyone bother to purchase some RMBs before going (DH is thinking about doing this).

Thanks.

[Dale]

Money question: For those who have already been there, did anyone bother to purchase some RMBs before going (DH is thinking about doing this).

Thanks.

We flew into Beijing. There were ATM's at the luggage carousals where we picked up our luggage.

[dpump]

Originally Posted by Off2China

Money question: For those who have already been there, did anyone bother to purchase some RMBs before going (DH is thinking about doing this).

Thanks.

*********************************************************

Got ours (3 couples went in together to save on the 'fees') at the airport in Seattle before leaving.

[WIT]

Money question: For those who have already been there, did anyone bother to purchase some RMBs before going (DH is thinking about doing this).

Thanks.

You will be starting either in Beijing or Shanghai (Or Hong Kong if you do the extension). All these locations have ATMs nearby. Mid-cruise is another matter. Make sure your password is exclusively numbers. We did bring RMB which we got from our bank.

 

WIT

[Lucky Granny]

Wow, I did not expect so many people to read what I wrote. I will be glad to answer questions.

 

I used the ATM at the hotels. We used our new $1 bills the most when we left the boat as there were not a lot of things to buy and we needed them to tip the driver and local guide. I paid my ship bill with a credit card and, at the end of the trip, since I was out of money, I got RMB's from the hotel ATM for our guide. One person in our group brought RMB's from home - it was only an advantage if you can figure out the fees for that as opposed to getting them from an ATM. If you do not have Viking bus service from the airport, you might need some to pay for a taxi.

 

Off2China, you would do well to go with your friend. It was very crowded on the Wall when we were there and the little old Chinese ladies were flying up and down it - glad it didn't rain that day or it would have been really dangerous. That tour ends early in the day and later there is the dinner we skipped to go shopping. So you could easily spend the whole Great Wall day with your friends.

 

Emily, you might be right about the required tours. The Chinese people are happy with the freedoms they now enjoy but there are still a lot of regulations. We did find the Rolexes at the Silk Market but they were much more expensive. I did get four for $10 at one booth and should have bought more - I think the girl needed money. The others started at as much as $50 each and I was called a "crazy American" more than once as I tried to get them to come down. The vendors there seemed to expect more than in other places. If you can find that guy in Shanghai (ha!) who sold me 5 Rolexes for $10, do all your watch shopping with him.

 

We didn't get to go to Wal-Mart. How did you manage that?

 

We did go to the Viking school and thoroughly enjoyed it. However, school was out for the summer and only some of the students came to school just for our visit. They put on a dancing and singing show and then we went to a classroom briefly. Apparently, because they are not in class every day, they had not had a chance to prepare gifts for us. We were a little disappointed at that and also at the short time we were allowed to stay. It was gratifying that the teacher told our guide that they had been able to buy the new desks in the classroom with money left by Viking visitors. We took gifts which were put in a box and were also offered an opportunity to put money in a collection box. The students sang for us and then asked us to sing for them. We sang "Itsy Bitsy Spider." It would have been fun to stay longer.

 

I would recommend that you attend the tea drinking demonstration on the boat. There is a little ceramic figure they will demonstrate which can tell you if your water is hot enough to make good tea. It is called a "pee man" and I brought ten of them home because they are so cute. Probably cost 2 or 3 for a dollar.

 

I have to say that our worst memory of China was the food. We still do not know if that is just how real Chinese food is, or if we were eating at particularly bad places. We had a real Chinese food-lover in our group and she appreciated about half of what we were offered. Get your camera ready when you stop for lunch during the Little Gorges boat ride - you have to get a picture of the stiffened quail on a stick, head, feet and all. They only cost $1 - we were sorry we didn't buy one to take better pictures of.

 

I'll be back

Mary Frances

[coasters]

Originally Posted by Off2China

Money question: For those who have already been there, did anyone bother to purchase some RMBs before going (DH is thinking about doing this).

Thanks.

*********************************************************

Got ours (3 couples went in together to save on the 'fees') at the airport in Seattle before leaving.

 

If you are an American Express member, they will exchange currency before you depart without fees. It takes only a phone call and electronic check. (they handle this for you)

You pay only for delivery, with several choices (and costs) depending on how quickly (or not) you need the cash..

Jerry

[Lady Meer]

If you are an American Express member, they will exchange currency before you depart without fees. It takes only a phone call and electronic check. (they handle this for you)

You pay only for delivery, with several choices (and costs) depending on how quickly (or not) you need the cash..

Jerry

 

We took Yuan from the UK only to find the exchange rate was far better at the hotel in Beijing (as mentioned before the rate is the same from hotels or banks).

[amandajess]

Which trip were you on? We left July 9th from Shanghai and our experiences were exactly the same-

[Lucky Granny]

Our tour started July 19 in Shangai. We left from Shanghai on July 21.

 

I supposed the clean Olympic air was responsible for the health of the passengers. I only heard of one somewhat serious condition, which I understood started before the man got to Shanghai. He left the ship on a stretcher, I believe in Wushan, accompanied by the ship doctor and two nurses (dresses in cute little old-fashioned nurses uniforms with big hats) and their guide. He returned to the ship later that day and completed the tour. But we did not experience the group coughing and sneezing that has been reported on earlier trips.

 

We also did not visit the temple that so many earlier passengers enjoyed so much. In fact, we did not go to a single temple in China.

 

About the opera - we attended. The meal was not that great (another meal accompanied by one glass of beverage - you have to buy it if you want more. The opera was confusing - we had little idea what was going on in spite of scrolling screens on either side of the theater that explained the "plot." The colors were bright. The singing was like nothing I have ever heard before - in fact, it took me a few minutes to realize that the noise I was hearing was singing. I would not be tempted to go back but am glad to have had the experience. The Chinese opera has been the subject of most interest to those whom I have told about my trip. The Peking Duck dinner was one of the best we had on the trip, though others here have said it was not good enough.

 

We were distressed to have to surrender our passports to our guide for the entire boat trip and at each airport. They said they need them at the airports to get our boarding passes and that the boat has to be able to prove the identity of each passenger at any time authorities might come aboard.

 

If you are going to Shanghai first and staying at the St. Regis, I do not recommend the Chinese restaurant in the hotel. (You have to pay for your meal that night) The food was scarce and very overpriced. Someone had reported here that free drinks and snacks were available at a lounge on the top floor, so we went to check that out. It is not free unless you belong to some club they have, but the cost is only $15 for all the house wine or Chinese beer or soft drinks you want plus pretty substantial h'ordeurves (sp?). We did not participate because of our regrettable Chinese restaurant plans, but would recommend that you check that out, especially if you are more tired than hungry after your flight.

 

Drinks available at meals tended to be Coke (no diet) Sprite, Water or Chinese beer. In the absence of Diet Coke, I chose the beer - it has a good taste and, as reported here earlier, very little alcohol. It seems I have already said this so maybe I will stop and just check back for questions.

 

Have a good trip if you are going!

Mary Frances

[Harry Cane]

The Opera was at a theatre? Ours was on an improvised stage in the lobby of a hotel. The only way you could follow the act was to read the little handout they gave you describing the three vignettes. The dinner was either at the same hotel or nearby--I can't remember. It sucked, although it did provide us with the best laugh of the trip. The guide mentioned that the duck was carved so well that it was said you could feed all of China. Someone joked "imagine what they could do with a turkey".

 

Also remember buying a glass of wine. It was like $10 and was awful.

[go2girl]

We are traveling on the Imperial Jewels cruise leaving June '09. My friend & I both dislike tour company planned shopping experiences. For those of you who have been on a Viking China cruise, which shopping and/or meal experiences would you advise skipping, and why? What alternatives are available?

 

 

thanks,

Shannon

[Grumpy7]

I guess they all go to the same places. How was your Trip?

[no fuss travel]

The included shopping centres are part of the tours, so if you do not want to go to the Great Wall as you will have to visit the Jade factory afterwards, then you cannot avoid them. The silk factory tour was interesting and yes the shopping time was too long but they had some really interesting things to look at while you waited for the shopaholics to finish their shipping. This one you could not avoid as you are either going from the ship to Shanghai or from Shanghai to the ship.

When travelling you have to remember that you are not at home and do not expect things to be as they are at home. The food at times is not fantastic but you will not starve. A lot of people brought granola bars with them to supplement when they did not like the food. Aboard the ship, there was one menu where I did not like anything on it and they made me something off the menu. If you have any food allergies, they bend over backwards on the ship to make sure that you have a meal you can eat.

[Lucky Granny]

That's right, no way to avoid the factories. The embroidery one and the jade center included a meal and we were on our way to or from somewhere. The only way to avoid would be to skip the whole day. It is hard to tell what you will be doing - our itinerary said, for our whole day in Shanghai, that we would eat lunch in a local restaurant and visit a silk carpet workshop, when what we actually did was eat lunch at the embroidery factory. The next day, the itinerary does not mention that we would visit the silk carpet place we did not go to the day before - and you can't skip that day because you end up at the airport to fly to Wuhan. You can always walk around outside or sit on the bus while the others look at the products.

 

Our opera was in a theater - it appeared to be a dinner theater as we sat at tables which could be used for eating, but we did not eat our meal there. Our meal was downstairs in the same building in a very nice dining room. The Peking duck was actually very good - after you accepted the chef carving a duck which still had its head. Our table asked for more duck and we were given another whole plate of it. Earlier in the meal, someone asked for more of something and they brought one, in a lttle bowl. We saw the theater advertised in the China Daily newspaper but I don't remember the name.

 

Each tour seems to have a little different experience from the others.

[Abe]

Lucky Granny - Thank you for your wonderful reviews.

 

We're starting our Viking Tour at the St Regis in Shanghai. Did you by any chance notice if there were any American fast food type restaurants close by that we could hit that first night? I'm sure we'll be so tired from the flight that a quick, inexpensive meal would be perfect.

 

Also, if you had the trip to do over, can you thing of anything you wish you would have brought from home that you didn't. My packing list includes everything but the kitchen sink - but I keep thinking I'm forgetting something.

 

Thank you.

[no fuss travel]

If you are doing Shanghai to Beijing, you will not get the hutang tour. Instead they will take you to the silk rug factory. This is one tour if you are not doing the hutang tour that I would skip. I found this visit to be way too long. We went from Beijing to Shanghai and found that if we wanted to see everything else we had to do the factory shopping tours. Hopefully you will not have any shopaholics in your tour group, so you will not have to spend as long at the factories. We had four in our group, and they held everyone up with their shopping. By the end of the tour, they were not in the remainder of the groups best book. The embroidery tour in Shanghai, beautiful to look at, but if you do not have the right lighting at home and the right decor, I thought a total waste of money. The lunch was included here. They certainly made money from our tour group. The rest of us just wanted to get back to the hotel to freshen up before the acrobat show which was fantastic.

 

Beijing opera, we were like the individual before, we had dinner below and then were escorted to a theatre upstairs to be sat at tables. Since this was the second night of the tour and most of us were still suffering from jet lag, the second act, which if one could call singing, was the one where everyone suffering from jet lag nodded off. The first and the third act were quite interesting with the acrobatics. If you have never seen it before then it is worth going to see, but if you have seen it before then ???????

 

Do not buy jade at the Great Wall if you are thinking of buying some. People on our tour said that the jade at the jade factory was more reasonable for the same item. I didn't buy any, so I wouldn't know. I will admit that I found a nice cool air conditioned spot to wait for the shoppers, and several other non shoppers came and we chatted and it helped to pass the time.

 

I read my previous message, and I could tell I was half asleep while composing it. Hope this one makes more sense.