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 Traveller's Tales: Advise for travellers in China
Heed our handy tips on safe travel in China. You may read about travel warnings, health, what to wear, travel with kids, travel with pets, local weather, local government, medical information and traffic information in the area.Also, you might want to read our
Beijing city guide,
Guangzhou city guide,
Kunming city guide,
Shanghai city guide,
and Xian city guide.
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| A Thermond |
10 December 2002 |
Stayed at Shenzhen Dragon Hotel - Shenzhen, China.
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Be careful of beggars and people offering to exchange money on the streets for you. When shopping stick to you price - you'll probably get it.
We walked everywhere we went. Two single women would take precautions at night.
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| R Nottke |
10 December 2002 |
Stayed at Harmony Hotel - Beijing, China.
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Lao Se Tea House, across from Tiananmen Sq (west side) for an afternoon opera, or a quiet flowering tea. After viewing the HuTong area from the Bell Tour, go across the open area past all the pedal cabs, turn left at the end, and the restaurant on the left at the end of the street, has an English menu, and great noodles for 6RMB.
Everything went fine in Beijing, but upon arrival in Shanghai, after the long flight, I let myself get talked into taking a cab after the guy said his was close by, and would cost only 50RMB. He ended up taking me to the wrong hotel, and I didn't discover it until the next day! So no matter how tired you are, go to the taxi area at the Pudong Airport and take a taxi with the meter running, and always get a receipt, and don't follow any advice from the many con artists so ready to "help" you.
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| W Thorpe |
22 October 2002 |
Stayed at Best Western Shenzhen Felicity Hotel - Shenzhen, China.
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Watch out for crazy drivers....I went on a factory visit & they supplied a driver. This guy had an attitude beyond belief. Driving a very small underpowered Chinese manufactured car, he played chicken with buses & large trucks at very high speeds. This went on for 40 miles out & 40 miles back. I was totally exhausted & relieved to make it back to the hotel alive.
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| B Sugg |
06 October 2002 |
Stayed at Novotel Xinqiao Beijing - Beijing, China.
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I visited all the usual sites - the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square and Mao's Mausoleum, and Tiantan Park. I took a tour up to the Ming Tombs and the Great Wall at Badaling. All of these sites are spectacular and already on every traveller's agenda.
The Underground City is worth the visit for those interested in seeing a grittier side of Beijing. It is hidden away in the hutongs and a little hard to find. Most of the tunnels are now closed off and it really is just a walk through hundreds of metres of an underground air raid shelter but interesting nonetheless.
Parts of the Chinese Revolution History Museum are worthwhile but many sections are currently being upgraded. Check out the wax museum. It is a must for Canadians to see the figure of Norman Bethune, the only non-Chinese hero of China among the 35 figures.
Good shopping/bargaining takes place at Pearl Centre and is a good end to sightseeing at Tiantan Park (exit out the East Gate).
Avoid the taxi drivers that only want to offer you fixed fares - the meter is always cheaper.
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| K Cooper |
03 October 2002 |
Stayed at Lu Song Yuan Hotel - Beijing, China.
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Beijing is a fascinating city with unrivalled attractions, although travellers should be prepared for crowds, traffic jams and dishonest taxi drivers.
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| C Faucherand |
03 October 2002 |
Stayed at Capital Hotel - Beijing, China.
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DON'T go on October 1st and the days after because it is China's national week-long holiday and everywhere in Beijing was crowded beyond belief. Otherwise we really enjoyed it, especially the summer palace and the Forbidden City.
Choose a better class hotel because not many speak English!!
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| J Kim |
02 October 2002 |
Stayed at Pacific Hotel - Shanghai, China.
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Shanghai is in many ways comparable to many of the other big Asian cities. The air is extremely polluted and the streets are extremely noisy and crowded. No experience in the States (not even New York City at its most onerous) can fully prepare you for the sights, sounds, and smells that will bombard you. It is very easy to become dazed and confused while trying to navigate through its streets, or even trying to find something to eat. Most Westerners I've met quickly give up on self-guided tours and resign themselves to the relative security and comfort of purchased guided group tours, or even worse - holing themselves in their rooms and eating only the familiar offerings provided at establishments inside their 5 star hotels.
However, once you've grown accustomed to the underlying rhythm of the city, you will find the energy it emits intoxicating. To achieve this state, try walking the entire distance between the Peace hotel next to the Bund and the Portman Ritz-Carlton (at the Shanghai Centre) along Nanjing Road at night on a Friday or a Saturday. Take at least 2 hours to finish the walk to take in the atmosphere of this place properly.
Even to the initiated Westerner, I would suggest avoiding riding on subways and buses. At Y1 to Y2 a pop, no other means of transporation can beat the price. However, they can be extremely crowded and sometimes dangerous when people are entering or exiting these vehicles. I would recommend walking for distances less than half a mile and taxis for anything longer than that. Cabs usually cost only Y10 for trips that are almost halfway across the city. You will initially be alarmed and sometimes scared by the Shanghainese driving style. However, there is a certain order to the madness that appears to stave off disasters - so relax, if you can.
Restaurants are plentiful, with ranges in price, type, and location to suit any need. Almost every place I've eaten at (with bills ranging from Y10 to Y800 for me and my wife) was good. However, despite the fact that I normally recommend hole in the walls to friends visiting elsewhere in the world, I would here suggest staying away from such places where meats are involved. I've gotten minor stomach problems after eating snails or fish dishes at several Y5 per dish establishments. Looking around, you'll notice that sanitary conditions are not what you'd wish it to be. If you're eating simple vegetarian noodle or bun dishes, however, I've found that these extremely cheap places do equally well as much more expensive restaurants. Western restaurants here are far better in terms of price, quality, and taste than comparable ones in the States. I've eaten at Italian, French, and Euro/American/Asia fusion joints (mostly in upscale hotels) and have found every single one to be delicious, and far better (in every way) than any I've had in the US (except a couple of French Restaurants that cost 20x more than in Shanghai).
There are many things to see and do in Shanghai, and guide books are plentiful. One thing that appears to have been missed by the guidebooks I've read is regarding the former Moller residence. It was turned into a hotel on May, so you can actually go inside. It is well worth a look. There is a gorgeous courtyard where you can have some coffee or tea. The Hotel rooms are also very reasonably priced at $60-70 per night. I wanted to stay at a room because the whole place looked so gorgeous, but could not break out of a reservation I made elsewhere.
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| K Scheuch |
25 September 2002 |
Stayed at Hyatt Regency Xian - Xian, China.
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Avoid the restaurant at the Terra-Cotta Warriors site. The facilities were marginally clean, the food (American version of 'Chinese' food) was awful, the restaurant staff yelled and hollered at one another, etc. I know this is THE restaurant all the tours take you to, but if you can control where you will eat, don't go there. The Xian Museum was terrific. Very nicely done.
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| A Bretag |
24 September 2002 |
Stayed at Bell Tower Hotel - Xian, China.
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Xi'an was a surprising city. I had not expected it to be so green with its broad tree-lined boulevards, streets and lanes and its numerous well-kept gardens and parks. I was also surprised by its wonderful mixture of traditional Chinese, two storey, shop below - house above buildings, large heritage icons such as the city walls, towers and pagodas and its ultramodern new buildings.
I greatly enjoyed walking in the city and on its walls by night and day, eating cheaply and well in the Muslim quarter, visiting the Great Mosque and Provincial Museum and especially taking the tour to see the Entombed Warriors. Golden Bridge Travel located on the second floor of the Bell Tower Hotel are especially to be congratulated for their friendly, efficient service and free advice.
Around town, it was easily possible to take the small red city taxis for trips beyond walking distance and at low cost - about US$1 per trip - provided I could show the driver the Chinese characters for my destination.
The larger and slightly more expensive green taxis were more of a problem. Their drivers would refuse to take a passenger if they thought that the trip would be too short and were continually touting for fares to distant destinations (such as the 30 to 40 km trips to the Entombed Warriors or to the airport). It required considerable persistence to get them to take me and my luggage from the airport bus station to my hotel and later again to do the return trip.
The comfortable and not over-crowded airport bus costs about US$3-50 each way (plus about US$1 for the taxi ride between its terminus and a central city hotel) while the taxis make a first bid at US$20 or more for the full, one way journey to or from the airport. I also had the experience of one of them trying to drop me short of the airport bus station on my way out of town and then attempting to pass me on to another green taxi for the remainder of the trip to the airport. Presumably, if the ploy had worked they would have shared the profits.
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| C Hong |
23 September 2002 |
Stayed at SciTech Hotel - Beijing, China.
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After some rather quick negotiation, roundtrip cab fare from the SciTech to Mutianyu Great Wall (which btw was very good--both in terms of not being crowded, as well as the sceneries themselves) came to RMB 400, tolls and parking included (driver waited in the lot while we spent about 3.5 hours on the Wall). Fyi, most cab drivers we had were very friendly and helpful, despite their minimal command of english.
Final comment: one thing that my friends and I found frustrating was the non-existence of convenience stores; forget 24x7, you can hardly find something of this sort during bright day light! hint: if you're a night owl, may wanna stock up before shops close in the night, unless you don't mind paying a fortune w/ the hotel room wet bars.
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