Viking China

[Turtles06]

[quote name='Peregrina651'][B][COLOR=teal]Viking does a great job on covering the Forbidden City and the Great Wall. Personally, if I were going to hire a guide to see the Great Wall, I would not go a second time with Viking but would use that day to see more on my own. [/COLOR][/B]

[B][COLOR=teal]If I had had more time in Beijing, I would have used it to see parts of the city that we did not cover with Viking and to shop and just wonder the streets. I have to admit that because Viking had our time all scheduled, I did not do any reading in advance about what to see and do in Beijing. [/COLOR][/B]

[B][COLOR=teal]There is some amazing architecture in Beijing--new buildings-- and I wish that I could remember where it was that I saw the article on the architecture and the top ten buildings to see in the city. [/COLOR][/B][/quote]

Thanks very much! I'll look for some articles on new architecture in the city.

To be clear about the Great Wall --- I look at it as I do the Pyramids. Just because one has been to Giza doesn't mean, if one has a chance, she should pass up the step-pyramid in Sakkara. The sections of the Wall seem different and magnificent enough, at least based on my reading, that visiting an additional section, if one has time, would be good to do. (We will have a few days on our own before the Viking tour starts, so will see plenty on our own.) Just my personal thinking right now, knowing my own interests. I'm sure others would feel differently, and I certainly welcome all advice from those who have been there!

And "No Fuss," thank you also for letting me know about the Olympic sites, and for pointing that out about the pandas. We were aware of that regarding the trip in this direction, and fortunately have seen the pandas many times in the National Zoo. We might go to the Beijing Zoo if we feel the need to see pandas *in* China, though the reports on Trip Advisor make it seem a pretty dismal place, except for the panda enclosure...

[Romeosc]

[quote name='cruisegal#116']Thanks to everyone who answered my question about how far out hotels are assigned. I would really prefer not to have to change hotels so I think I will just wait to see what hotels we draw before looking into adding the extra nights in Beijing and Shanghai on our own. According to all of you any of the hotels should be fine. It is so hard to be patient.

We have just finalized our air arrangements. Using BA FF miles and flying First Class. I have been saving my miles for this and have earned a free FF companion ticket so it wasn't too bad as far as the amount of miles we needed but oh, the taxes. We will arrive into Beijing around 9:00am on 5/4/11. The start date of our tour is 5/5 but that is actually the travel day of the tour so we will have almost two free days in Beijing before the touring actually begins.

We have an extra six days after the tour ends before we fly home from Hong Kong so we are thinking of adding two extra nights in Shanghai and then spending four nights in Hong Kong. Any thoughts as to whether we should be spending more time in Shanghai? The only place we have been previously on this itinerary is Hong Kong but that was a long time ago -- in 1994 and again in 1998. My husband loves Hong Kong and is pushing for the four nights there. I'm not sure if we are short-changing Shanghai. Any help here would be appreciated.

Thanks again for all your help.[/quote]

In Shanghai, near the museum is an underground city (built as a bomb shelter under most of city during Sino-China war. We found it by accident. You go down steps like going to a subway to cross the 12 lanes of traffic (follow the crowd). There were over 5,000 vendors set up with items for the locals, but thousands of small vendors selling handmade items. Very little english speaking, but we managed! You can come up inside several department stores or just keep walking! One policeman stopped me from taking pictures.... I guess for security sake. We bought over 50 items and a rolling suitcase there to carry our booty! One 90ish gentleman was making keychains and necklaces out of jewelry wire. We drew out our names in English and a young college student helped him translate into Chinese. He made a art piece with our names in chinese and english and he put in a glass picture frame.


We went to Birdsnest twice once when fog was so bad we walked upto it before it was fully visable and later after Great Wall we did a close drive by to see it again! We did have plenty of time at Forbidden city, because we could not go in Tinneman Square because we were there on 60th aniv of Nat'l day and the big shot were reviewing the parade!


We wish we had more time for shopping and we WOULD SKIP OPERA..... whole lot of Screaching!

We were on early flight and had 2 hours to see Pandas at Zoo while waiting for other groups to fly in. They bussed us to Zoo and showed us around and then we went to boat!

[cruisegal#116]

Romeosc -- Thanks for the response to my post. I enjoyed viewing your pictures. I really liked the piece of art you had made with your name in Chinese lettering. That surely makes a very unique souvenier. I have been reading this thread for a while now and recognize your name. You have provided lots of useful info.

We are still going back and forth about how much time to spend in Shanghai after the tour is complete. Right now we are thinking of adding two extra nights before flying over to Hong Kong where we will have four nights. Should we add an extra day in Shanghai? Did you venture out of the Shanghai at all and if so could you tell me what interesting places you visited?

Thanks again.

[Romeosc]

[quote name='cruisegal#116']Romeosc -- Thanks for the response to my post. I enjoyed viewing your pictures. I really liked the piece of art you had made with your name in Chinese lettering. That surely makes a very unique souvenier. I have been reading this thread for a while now and recognize your name. You have provided lots of useful info.

We are still going back and forth about how much time to spend in Shanghai after the tour is complete. Right now we are thinking of adding two extra nights before flying over to Hong Kong where we will have four nights. Should we add an extra day in Shanghai? Did you venture out of the Shanghai at all and if so could you tell me what interesting places you visited?

Thanks again.[/quote]

You COULD spend a week in Shanghai and not see it all. Hotels will give you a card with places to go so you can show cab driver. Cab drivers and locals over 40 speak NO English. Young people do and it is very safe to wander streets at any hour. The bargains are great. One friend had 5 sets of custom made golf clubs made and shipped home for gifts. Custom suits and silk garments made in a day! I am ready to go back..... but wife wants an African Safari this year.

[Romeosc]

[quote name='cruisegal#116']Romeosc -- Thanks for the response to my post. I enjoyed viewing your pictures. I really liked the piece of art you had made with your name in Chinese lettering. That surely makes a very unique souvenier. I have been reading this thread for a while now and recognize your name. You have provided lots of useful info.

We are still going back and forth about how much time to spend in Shanghai after the tour is complete. Right now we are thinking of adding two extra nights before flying over to Hong Kong where we will have four nights. Should we add an extra day in Shanghai? Did you venture out of the Shanghai at all and if so could you tell me what interesting places you visited?

Thanks again.[/quote]

You COULD spend a week in Shanghai and not see it all. Hotels will give you a card with places to go so you can show cab driver. Cab drivers and locals over 40 speak NO English. Young people do and it is very safe to wander streets at any hour. The bargains are great. One friend had 5 sets of custom made golf clubs made and shipped home for gifts. Custom suits and silk garments made in a day! I am ready to go back..... but wife wants an African Safari this year.


PS we bought 6 "Pecking Chicken" wood toys for $0.80 as gifts for kids.... the neighbors went crazy. Wish I had bought a thousand!

[lawcruisefamily]

My family will be on the same trip with you! I have just joined cruise critic and am enjoying all of the posts and the great tips, for the trip. Looking forward to seeing you!

[seanf]

[quote name='caribill']I have not gone yet, but previous posts by others in this thread (you may want to go back and read them) say:

1. Xian - Yes it is worth it
2. Beijing - No, it is not worth it[/quote]The Opera is now held in a theatre and I would recommend it. In my opinion it was not the best meal of the trip, but as a chance to experience something different it was well worth the price

Sean :)

[JackieSue66]

We leave 9/27...got the hotels today, they all look great ( except for the one possibly in Xian...just out of the way it seems)
Shanghai-The Grand Hyatt-Pudong
Xian-Kempinski
Beijing-The Westin Chaoyang

Getting Excited:)

[Romeosc]

[quote name='JackieSue66']We leave 9/27...got the hotels today, they all look great ( except for the one possibly in Xian...just out of the way it seems)
Shanghai-The Grand Hyatt-Pudong
Xian-Kempinski
Beijing-The Westin Chaoyang

Getting Excited:)[/quote]

We stayed at the Sofitel ...... It was wonderful.... unfortunately we weren't there except to sleep and eat breakfast! It was a long bus ride to dinner show.

[cwind]

Myself and my wife have our visas today and are ready to venture on Imperial Jewels out of Beijing in 2 weeks ,anyone else here going.By the way THANKS for all the great info.I,ll keep in touch John from Burlington,Ontario,Canada

[Romeosc]

[quote name='cwind']Myself and my wife have our visas today and are ready to venture on Imperial Jewels out of Beijing in 2 weeks ,anyone else here going.By the way THANKS for all the great info.I,ll keep in touch John from Burlington,Ontario,Canada[/quote]


Have a wonderful time.... We did the Imperial jewels last October and loved it. We are thinking of going back to China ([URL="http://slickdeals.net/?sdtid=2088962&sdop=1&sdfid=9&u2=http://www.smartours.com/beijing.shtml"]http://www.smartours.com/beijing.shtml[/URL]) and spend some more time!

[Maddle]

Doing the Doc Dance tonight! They arrived in this afternoon's mail.

Question: In the booklet marked "cruise voucher" there is a copy of the contract, and then two vouchers for the transfers to/from the airports and hotels. There is no card-stock "ticket" with my name on it. Everything else seems to be in order - am I looking for something that doesn't exist?

Additionally, the itinerary booklet refers to "final document package" - is there more to come, or is this it?

Of course, I will call Viking tomorrow about these things, but I was wondering if anyone could put my mind at ease this evening - I just missed them by about five minutes (no kidding) when I realized I needed to check these things out.

We are leaving July 21 to start July 22 - anyone else on this cruise/tour with me, (Imperial Jewels of China, Shanghai to Beijing?)

Maddle

[cwind]

Hello Romeosc,I read here that a friend of yours ordered golf clubs.I,m going on Imperial Jewel with Viking in 2 weeks.Where did he find them.I,m a lousy golfer,but there is always hope.Thanks for the info.I know it will be hotttt there.Thanks to all for the GREAT info.

[Romeosc]

[quote name='cwind']Hello Romeosc,I read here that a friend of yours ordered golf clubs.I,m going on Imperial Jewel with Viking in 2 weeks.Where did he find them.I,m a lousy golfer,but there is always hope.Thanks for the info.I know it will be hotttt there.Thanks to all for the GREAT info.[/quote]


He was just an fellow traveler from US staying in same hotel in Shanghai. I know he bought them in Shanghai, because we were discussing outstanding buys over drinks at hotel.

We were there Oct 1-11 last year and weather was perfect except for "Fog". It was actually cleared by cloud seeding on Oct 1 which was 50 aniversary of National Day. The national weather forecaster was fearful of his life if parade was not perfect..... and what do you know, it rained the night before and weather was clear and sunny..... and HE LIVED!

[cwind]

I havr a funny feeling I will be shopping in Shanghai for clubs etc.etc.My wif e is shaking her head already.Got camera and a to of memory cards.Will keep in touch,Can,t wait Thank again

[Romeosc]

[quote name='cwind']I havr a funny feeling I will be shopping in Shanghai for clubs etc.etc.My wif e is shaking her head already.Got camera and a to of memory cards.Will keep in touch,Can,t wait Thank again[/quote]


You're lucky, my wife is the shopping Queen. If it is shiny sparkly or any jewelry she wants it. I am a hoarder buying for the thrill of a bargain! Have a great time.

[wallygator]

opps please

[wallygator]

[quote name='linda joy']stay out of the bars :D and have a great time.[/quote]


Please call and we can say go crazy or else. Just call I'd like to end this OK?

[russy1]

Hi,
I returned 2 days ago from China Cultural Delights and had a fantastic holiday, I will post a review later today but am still in the throws of washing and ironing:( If you have any questions feel free to ask anything:) I am from the UK so I probably won't be able to answer any questions about flights as I flew in and out of London. Ask away;)

[H2Otstr]

If one flies from the East Coast to China, leaving in the am, is it daylight the whole flight over?

On the return trip, leaving in the afternoon from China, is it partial daylight and partial night?

Also, what meals are served since the flights are so long?

[caribill]

[quote name='H2Otstr']If one flies from the East Coast to China, leaving in the am, is it daylight the whole flight over? [COLOR=red]I believe so, but if you arrive in the late evening in China, it will be dark then.[/COLOR]

On the return trip, leaving in the afternoon from China, is it partial daylight and partial night? [COLOR=red]Yes[/COLOR]

Also, what meals are served since the flights are so long? [COLOR=red]Depends on your airline, but at least two meals. [/COLOR][/quote]

see above in red

[bruinbob95]

[quote name='bruinbob95']My wife and I are part of the China's Cultural Delights tour from August 14th through 30th. We just received our airline flight schedule from Viking, and I am disappointed, to say the least. Viking has us arriving Beijing on August 14th at 11:40 PM! I'm guessing that we'll be very fortunate to arrive at our hotel by 3:00 AM on August 15th, the SECOND day of the tour.

I am curious to hear your opinions as to whether or not I am being unreasonable in thinking that this isn't right. I realize that August 14th is an "arrival day", but we're not "arriving" to the hotel until August 15th. The next morning, after breakfast, is a full day of touring, including Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, and the Summer Palace. Very challenging for us under these circumstances.

We're not traveling out of some god-forsaken location -- we leave out of Los Angeles!

Anyway, your thoughts and suggestions are most welcome. I appreciate the sage advice I have received over the years from this board.

Regards,

Bob[/QUOTE]

Some of you asked that I keep you posted regarding my dispute with Viking regarding our air travel arrangements, as quoted above. I am happy to report that Viking has taken good care of us, after I wrote them a letter complaining about our travel arrangements.

They have changed our booking, at no additional cost, to be a direct flight from LAX to Beijing on China Air, arriving at 5:30 AM on Day One of our tour (instead of 11:40 PM). The bad news is that we depart LAX at 1:40 AM! They also changed our return flight which turns out much better for us, leaving Shanghai at 1:10 PM instead of 9:45 AM. This is much better, IMO.

My travel agent had said she had done all that she could to remedy the original situation. I sent a letter to Viking outlining my rationale for why I didn't think they were meeting their contractual commitments by having us arrive (essentially) on Day 2 of the tour. They made these alternate arrangements and contacted my travel agent.

I am very pleased that Viking handled this so well. It is the type of excellent customer service I expected after my previous experience traveling with them on the Grand European Tour. I can't wait for our trip, and now I have some actual time to spend "at leisure" in Beijing on Day One of our tour!

Bob

[caribill]

[quote name='bruinbob95']I am happy to report that Viking has taken good care of us, after I wrote them a letter complaining about our travel arrangements.

They have changed our booking, at no additional cost, ... They also changed our return flight which turns out much better for us, leaving Shanghai at 1:10 PM instead of 9:45 AM. This is much better, IMO.

[/quote]

You did better than I did. I was unable to have them change our return flight from Beijing which leaves at 8 AM which means we need to be at the airport at 5 AM which means leaving the hotel at 4 AM.

Thus, our last day which was supposed to include a good night's sleep and breakfast will be hardly any sleep and no breakfast.

They did say for about $3000 a person, they could switch us to a different flight.

[bruinbob95]

[quote name='caribill']You did better than I did. I was unable to have them change our return flight from Beijing which leaves at 8 AM which means we need to be at the airport at 5 AM which means leaving the hotel at 4 AM.

Thus, our last day which was supposed to include a good night's sleep and breakfast will be hardly any sleep and no breakfast.

They did say for about $3000 a person, they could switch us to a different flight.[/QUOTE]

Caribill, I'm sorry you're not happy with your situation. I hope your flight TO China is to your liking.

It certainly wasn't my intent to make anyone feel bad about their flights or lack of success in changing them. I hope you have the best trip of your life and that the early departure requirement becomes a minor nuisance in your memory!

Best wishes,

Bob

[caribill]

[quote name='bruinbob95']Caribill, I'm sorry you're not happy with your situation. I hope your flight TO China is to your liking.

It certainly wasn't my intent to make anyone feel bad about their flights or lack of success in changing them. I hope you have the best trip of your life and that the early departure requirement becomes a minor nuisance in your memory!
[/quote]


You did not make me feel bad. I just congratulate you on being able to have your reservations changed.

Our flights to China are fine. Have to leave the house at 3:30 AM, but we will not have spent the previous day touring for 8+ hours. Scheduled arrival in Shanghai is about 2 PM.

Actually, what happened with the return is that Viking made the reservations with the airline before the airline had negotiated official landing and take off slots with the Chinese government. It was only once the negotiations were over that the early departure became official.