Viking China

[travelfirst]

We are going on the 6th of April, Bejing to Shanghai.

Do we need any immunizations to go to China?

I went on a Viking cruise in Europe and loved river cruising.

[dpump]

Na. When I went just made sure my Hep A,B and tetnus was up to date.

[no fuss travel]

As Deb said I would make sure those shots are up to date. I would take your regular cold medicine with you, antihistamines etc so you know what you are taking if the need arises. Have a wonderful trip. We still talk about ours and how much we enjoyed it.

[travelfirst]

I checked and my tetanus is up to date. I did get Hep A when I went to Venezuela in 2000 so will have to see how long that is good for.

I always take all those "in case" things....
Guess I will have to watch the weight this time.

'No fuss travel' are you in Vancouver BC?
I am on the Island and was wondering how I can get a Visa for China.

I booked with Viking and I don't want to have to mail my passport away.

[Romeosc]

[quote name='travelfirst']I checked and my tetanus is up to date. I did get Hep A when I went to Venezuela in 2000 so will have to see how long that is good for.

I always take all those "in case" things....
Guess I will have to watch the weight this time.

'No fuss travel' are you in Vancouver BC?
I am on the Island and was wondering how I can get a Visa for China.

I booked with Viking and I don't want to have to mail my passport away.[/quote]


We used the passport service recommended by Viking with no problems. Wife's passport would expire 4 months after trip but per Visa requirements we updated at same time!

We took drugs on plane to make sure we did not have a fevor when exiting plane, since they did thermal scanning upon deplaning.

[wallygator]

[quote name='Romeosc']We used the passport service recommended by Viking with no problems. Wife's passport would expire 4 months after trip but per Visa requirements we updated at same time!

We took drugs on plane to make sure we did not have a fevor when exiting plane, since they did thermal scanning upon deplaning.[/quote]

I have coworkers that have also mentioned the thermal fever scanners. I will check out the meds.
We plan to also use Viking's visa site we travel April 2010 would mid March be on target?


Thanks

[Romeosc]

[quote name='wallygator']I have coworkers that have also mentioned the thermal fever scanners. I will check out the meds.
We plan to also use Viking's visa site we travel April 2010 would mid March be on target?


Thanks[/quote]

We were paranoid about mandatory N1H1 quarantine for 7 days!

This is the best trip we have taken in over 30 years!

We just wish we had more free time to shop and explore!

[wallygator]

[quote name='Romeosc']We were paranoid about mandatory N1H1 quarantine for 7 days!

This is the best trip we have taken in over 30 years!

We just wish we had more free time to shop and explore![/quote]


Will mid March be in line for our visa's??

[Romeosc]

[quote name='wallygator']Will mid March be in line for our visa's??[/quote]


I would allow 4-6 weeks even though it only took 19 days for ours!

[wallygator]

[quote name='Romeosc']I would allow 4-6 weeks even though it only took 19 days for ours![/quote]


Thanks and "HAPPY NEW YEAR"

[Atlanta Cruisers]

Happy New Year everyone! Thanks to you who have already done the trip for all the valuable info. We are going to Beijing two days early and staying an extra two days in Shanghai. Last got the shots in 2000 when we went to Kenya, so probably have to update those. We got the H1N1 shots last week, and will follow your instructions and take meds before deplaning. Keep the good ideas coming! Rona

[Romeosc]

[quote name='Atlanta Cruisers']Happy New Year everyone! Thanks to you who have already done the trip for all the valuable info. We are going to Beijing two days early and staying an extra two days in Shanghai. Last got the shots in 2000 when we went to Kenya, so probably have to update those. We got the H1N1 shots last week, and will follow your instructions and take meds before deplaning. Keep the good ideas coming! Rona[/quote]


Since you will be in Shanghai for a couple of days.... check out local shopping. There is an amazing underground mall of small shops under the street at "People's Park". We found it by accident when we went down stairs to cross street!

[PINEY10]

What kind of meds do you take to avoid issues with the deplaning?

[gooch47]

I'd think any type of med that reduces fever would be what they are talking about: Motrin, aspirin, etc.

[PINEY10]

Thanks much

[Peregrina651]

[quote name='gooch47']I'd think any type of med that reduces fever would be what they are talking about: Motrin, aspirin, etc.[/quote]

Is there any evidence that this really works?

[gooch47]

Well, it works with a "real" fever, so I have to think it would also work with just elevated body temperature.

[no fuss travel]

[quote name='travelfirst']I checked and my tetanus is up to date. I did get Hep A when I went to Venezuela in 2000 so will have to see how long that is good for.

I always take all those "in case" things....
Guess I will have to watch the weight this time.

'No fuss travel' are you in Vancouver BC?
I am on the Island and was wondering how I can get a Visa for China.

I booked with Viking and I don't want to have to mail my passport away.[/quote]

Sorry, I haven't been on the site for a few days. We used a company that will stand in line for you at the Chinese embassy and they are guaranteed to obtain your visa for you instead of being turned away because you are too far back in the line up for the day. It cost a little more but was worth it because I didn't have to waste my time standing in a line up. The company our travel agent used was bonded so it was perfectly safe. It only took a week to get our visa using them. Yes, I am in Vancouver.

[travelfirst]

Thanks for the reply.

I wonder if I would have to go over there or could I send my passport by courier.
I don't want to have to take the ferry over and wait in line all day if I don't have to.

[no fuss travel]

If you used a travel agent to book your trip, ask them to arrange for visa. That is how we got ours. Our travel agent knew a reliable company. All we had to do was deliver our passports and a certified cheque to the travel agent and she did the rest of the work for us. We had our passports back in 3 days with the China visa.

[travelfirst]

I booked through Viking and we can get the Visa through them but have to mail our passports to the States. I would sooner get them here.

[gooch47]

Well, I guess that answers my question. We got our booking package from Viking and it included application forms for our visas. I was wondering if you had to use their company. We prefer different one.

[Romeosc]

[quote name='no fuss travel']If you used a travel agent to book your trip, ask them to arrange for visa. That is how we got ours. Our travel agent knew a reliable company. All we had to do was deliver our passports and a certified cheque to the travel agent and she did the rest of the work for us. We had our passports back in 3 days with the China visa.[/quote]


I used Priceline.com and they beat the lowest offer I had from others and I got a voucher for 2 free nights at a hotel booking later.

Unfortunately the fees on the free rooms was $34!

[Dale]

[quote name='travelfirst']'No fuss travel' are you in Vancouver BC?
I am on the Island and was wondering how I can get a Visa for China.

I booked with Viking and I don't want to have to mail my passport away.[/QUOTE]
There are many companies that will get a visa for you. We used the one Viking recommended, figuring Viking knew they were reliable. It worked well for us. We had everything back within a week.
No matter who anyone chooses, there’s someone out there who will say they could have gotten it for you, faster and cheaper.

[quote name='Romeosc']I used Priceline.com and they beat the lowest offer I had from others and I got a voucher for 2 free nights at a hotel booking later.

Unfortunately the fees on the free rooms was $34![/QUOTE]
Like they say, “there’s no free lunch“.

[kkbay]

We will be on the first Viking cruise to China of 2010 (March 28). I'm sure it will be cold. Anyone gone on this particular cruise in late March? How was the weather? Of course, this seems to be a particularly cold winter, so we plan to check weather forecasts before we leave. Also, we will arrive in Beijing at 10:40 PM and have to be up and at 'em the next day for the beginning tours in Beijing. Anyone else have trouble adjusting to time zone change? Any suggestions? We had little to no problems in Europe, but this is a little more drastic.Flying out of Minneapolis on Northwest Airlines. Anyone have experience with them?
Thanks,
KK