China Trip Report 2014

[KashasMom]

Cousin Orville - thanks for the great report and photos. We are experienced travellers but I just don't have the energy to plan all the logistics for China so it looks like we'll be doing the ABD in 2017. My daughter will have just turned 8 and I know you mentioned about the older kids in the group but were there any kids closer to Gavin's age? I'm not sure whether or not that will matter.

Looks like you had a lot of rain or rainy days. I may have missed it but...what month did you travel?

The itinerary for 2017 is different than yours - so we'll miss pre-tour time in Beijing. A little disappointed about that so will see how much we can work in on our free time. The upside is that we'll be able to have extra time in both Disneys (Shanghai & HK).

Sure hope they've improved on the food since you went. I'm sure I'll have more questions....Thanks again.

 

[Cousin Orville]

Cousin Orville - thanks for the great report and photos. We are experienced travellers but I just don't have the energy to plan all the logistics for China so it looks like we'll be doing the ABD in 2017. My daughter will have just turned 8 and I know you mentioned about the older kids in the group but were there any kids closer to Gavin's age? I'm not sure whether or not that will matter.

Looks like you had a lot of rain or rainy days. I may have missed it but...what month did you travel?

The itinerary for 2017 is different than yours - so we'll miss pre-tour time in Beijing. A little disappointed about that so will see how much we can work in on our free time. The upside is that we'll be able to have extra time in both Disneys (Shanghai & HK).

Sure hope they've improved on the food since you went. I'm sure I'll have more questions....Thanks again.

Thanks! We went in June. There were other kids Gavin's age. He was 9 at time. There was an 8, a 10 and a couple of 11 year olds and so on.

Rain wasn't much of an issue in June. In Beijing it might have rained in the middle of the night - can't remember now why the smog suddenly cleared up there. When we got to Guillin it was rainy/misty the night we arrived, but then cleared up just in time for the morning creating a very atmospheric partly cloudy and misty cruise through the Gumdrop Mountains. And in HK it often rains being tropical. It wasn't a very heavy rain. I don't remember ever having an umbrella other than for the oppressive sun in HK. I wouldn't be too concerned about the weather. The only down side of June is its hot in some places, particularly HK.

They have definitely made improvements in both the food and hotels. Hotels were actually quite nice, but now they're spectacular. The restaurant in Beijing, Duck de Chine, should be very good. It's very highly rated for Peking Duck. It was a place I had considered eating on our own in 2014, but decided on Capital M. Lunch in Xian also sounds much better.

We really enjoyed China. We travel a good amount on our own as well. China is a great place to do an ABD. My DW and I are actually heading back there in Oct 2017 as well.

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

Hi Cousin Orville!

I can't believe we leave for Beijing in less than 2 months. We have our Chinese visas (aren't they pretty?) so we are all set.

I have a few questions for you...did anyone have any gastro issues on the trip?

Did you ever wear long pants?

How did much HKD did you bring and how much Yuan? I prefer to pay mostly in cash so I need to decide how much of each to bring.

Did anyone have any issues with pickpockets? A dad at my dd's school had his wallet and passport stolen before they left the Beijing airport. Some locals created a disturbance and when it was over he was missing his valuables. They watched it over on security tape. I am usually very careful (money belt and, thanks to SayHello, my PacSafe handbag -- which I struggle to gain entry into!).

Thanks again! We are so excited (we have already booked our table at Capital M and I have studied the maps of our hotel area in Beijing, to program my "built-in GPS").

 

[sayhello]

Hi Cousin Orville!

I can't believe we leave for Beijing in less than 2 months. We have our Chinese visas (aren't they pretty?) so we are all set.

I have a few questions for you...did anyone have any gastro issues on the trip?

Did you ever wear long pants?

How did much HKD did you bring and how much Yuan? I prefer to pay mostly in cash so I need to decide how much of each to bring.

Did anyone have any issues with pickpockets? A dad at my dd's school had his wallet and passport stolen before they left the Beijing airport. Some locals created a disturbance and when it was over he was missing his valuables. They watched it over on security tape. I am usually very careful (money belt and, thanks to SayHello, my PacSafe handbag -- which I struggle to gain entry into!).

Thanks again! We are so excited (we have already booked our table at Capital M and I have studied the maps of our hotel area in Beijing, to program my "built-in GPS").

Whoohoo! Do report back when you're done!

How far in advance do you have to worry about the Chinese visas?

Sayhell

 

[Cousin Orville]

Hi Cousin Orville!

I can't believe we leave for Beijing in less than 2 months. We have our Chinese visas (aren't they pretty?) so we are all set.

I have a few questions for you...did anyone have any gastro issues on the trip?

Did you ever wear long pants?

How did much HKD did you bring and how much Yuan? I prefer to pay mostly in cash so I need to decide how much of each to bring.

Did anyone have any issues with pickpockets? A dad at my dd's school had his wallet and passport stolen before they left the Beijing airport. Some locals created a disturbance and when it was over he was missing his valuables. They watched it over on security tape. I am usually very careful (money belt and, thanks to SayHello, my PacSafe handbag -- which I struggle to gain entry into!).

Thanks again! We are so excited (we have already booked our table at Capital M and I have studied the maps of our hotel area in Beijing, to program my "built-in GPS").

I wore shorts everyday. I wore pants just a couple of nights at the nicer restaurants.

I don't remember how much money I brought. I brought enough to cover our private guide and the pandas. Beyond that maybe the equivalent of $100 in Yuan and HK$. There are ATMs around if you don't want to bring too much.

No issues with pickpockets. That's actually the first I've heard of issues with pickpockets in China. I try to be as careful as possible within reason. Try to get to the area around Capital M early. It looked like a nice place to stroll around. If you do, I'd love to hear your thoughts about the area. We're heading back to China next year and may do Capital M again. I'm also curious what you think about the Rosewood in Beijing. It looks like a very nice hotel.

Enjoy China, I'm sure you'll love it. Incidentally, I met who I guess will be your American ABD guide in China. We were at Animal Kingdom a few days ago doing the Wild Africa Trek and one of our guides, Paola, had mentioned she was an ABD guide in the summer. Come to find out she's guiding some of the China trips. She was very nice of course. Sounded like Jennae (who guided us in SE Asia) was also guiding one of the first China trips.

 

[Cousin Orville]

Whoohoo! Do report back when you're done!

How far in advance do you have to worry about the Chinese visas?

Sayhell

I think I got my visa about 6 mo in advance. I don't remember what they suggest or require.

 

[sayhello]

Sounded like Jennae (who guided us in SE Asia) was also guiding one of the first China trips.

Oh, that's highly possible. She's doing the Danube river cruises for the whole season this summer, but those don't start until July 7th. I know she loves the China trip, and I keep hoping I'll be able to have her for our trip in 2017...

I think I got my visa about 6 mo in advance. I don't remember what they suggest or require.

Thanks! I'll mark it on my calendar for 6 months out.

Sayhello

 

[Calfan]

Oh, that's highly possible. She's doing the Danube river cruises for the whole season this summer, but those don't start until July 7th. I know she loves the China trip, and I keep hoping I'll be able to have her for our trip in 2017...

Thanks! I'll mark it on my calendar for 6 months out.

Sayhello

I believe 3 months prior to your entry date into China is the earliest you can submit an application for a Chinese visa. We just got ours for our trip this summer. I assume ABD will provide you with the info you need to obtain your visa. You need a letter of introduction from your tour provider that includes the names and dates of birth of all travelers, as well as an itinerary that shows where you are staying in China. Thomson provided all of this to us, along with a link to a third party visa service. We ended up getting ours directly from the Chinese consulate in San Francisco because my husband is going to Ireland BEFORE our China trip and wanted to make sure the visas were processed quickly and he had his passport back ASAP. FYI that he dropped the applications/passports off at the Chinese consulate on a Tues. and picked them up on Fri. without paying any rush fee.

 

[sayhello]

I believe 3 months prior to your entry date into China is the earliest you can submit an application for a Chinese visa. We just got ours for our trip this summer. I assume ABD will provide you with the info you need to obtain your visa. You need a letter of introduction from your tour provider that includes the names and dates of birth of all travelers, as well as an itinerary that shows where you are staying in China. Thomson provided all of this to us, along with a link to a third party visa service. We ended up getting ours directly from the Chinese consulate in San Francisco because my husband is going to Ireland BEFORE our China trip and wanted to make sure the visas were processed quickly and he had his passport back ASAP. FYI that he dropped the applications/passports off at the Chinese consulate on a Tues. and picked them up on Fri. without paying any rush fee.

Thanks, Calfan. ABD has already provided me with the letter, they sent it pretty much right after I made the reservation.

That makes me nervous to send them my passport! I'm going to have to see if there's anywhere around here that I can go to get the Visa. I have my doubts... Oh, well...

Sayhello

 

[Cousin Orville]

I checked my visa. I applied for a 1 year Multiple Entry visa in November of 2013. It states I could enter before November of 2014 (my ABD was Summer 2014) and stay for up to 60 days. But I think Calfan is right, for a single entry visa, 3 months before the trip maybe be the earliest you can apply. The fees and requirements for the multi and single entry visas were the same in 2013. From what I can find online, I don't think that has changed.

 

[RSM]

You can get an expedited Chinese Visa. I've been to China about 50 times over the past 13 year, and have gotten a visa in 2 weeks (expedited for a fee of course). They are actually now giving out visas 10 years in duration.

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

Thanks, Calfan. ABD has already provided me with the letter, they sent it pretty much right after I made the reservation.

That makes me nervous to send them my passport! I'm going to have to see if there's anywhere around here that I can go to get the Visa. I have my doubts... Oh, well...

Sayhello

I used CIBT Visa and they were amazing. I had them do a "pre-check" where I scanned all our paperwork in advance of sending the passports. They sent back an e-mail stating what further information would be required (they needed me to write a letter stating why I reside in the US and am flying out of Toronto and also how and when I would be arriving and departing Toronto before and after the trip).

I had our passports back in a week without any issues.

I have a friend who applied for visas about a month ago and still doesn't have the passports or visas. They were told the Chinese Embassy may call to ask questions, though they have no idea what the Chinese Embassy wants to know that isn't on the application. So I'd definitely apply closer to the 3 month mark. I'm getting a bit nervous for them even though we are over a month away from our departure.

We have a multiple entry visa since we are leaving the mainland (to visit HK) and flying back to Shanghai for a few days. They still consider it leaving China when you leave mainland.

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

I wore shorts everyday. I wore pants just a couple of nights at the nicer restaurants.

No issues with pickpockets. That's actually the first I've heard of issues with pickpockets in China. I try to be as careful as possible within reason. Try to get to the area around Capital M early. It looked like a nice place to stroll around. If you do, I'd love to hear your thoughts about the area. We're heading back to China next year and may do Capital M again. I'm also curious what you think about the Rosewood in Beijing. It looks like a very nice hotel.

Enjoy China, I'm sure you'll love it. Incidentally, I met who I guess will be your American ABD guide in China. We were at Animal Kingdom a few days ago doing the Wild Africa Trek and one of our guides, Paola, had mentioned she was an ABD guide in the summer. Come to find out she's guiding some of the China trips. She was very nice of course. Sounded like Jennae (who guided us in SE Asia) was also guiding one of the first China trips.

We will do that! Our reservation is the night before we join ABD so we should have plenty of time to get there early. I am going to bring a print out of the map from the Capital M website and make sure the bellman gives it to the driver. It should help that dd speaks Mandarin quite well, we'll see when we get there.

Did anyone on your tour have gastro issues? I'm thinking about taking medication just in case.

 

[Cousin Orville]

We will do that! Our reservation is the night before we join ABD so we should have plenty of time to get there early. I am going to bring a print out of the map from the Capital M website and make sure the bellman gives it to the driver. It should help that dd speaks Mandarin quite well, we'll see when we get there.

Did anyone on your tour have gastro issues? I'm thinking about taking medication just in case.

Not that I'm aware of.

 

[sayhello]

I used CIBT Visa and they were amazing. I had them do a "pre-check" where I scanned all our paperwork in advance of sending the passports. They sent back an e-mail stating what further information would be required (they needed me to write a letter stating why I reside in the US and am flying out of Toronto and also how and when I would be arriving and departing Toronto before and after the trip).

I had our passports back in a week without any issues.

I have a friend who applied for visas about a month ago and still doesn't have the passports or visas. They were told the Chinese Embassy may call to ask questions, though they have no idea what the Chinese Embassy wants to know that isn't on the application. So I'd definitely apply closer to the 3 month mark. I'm getting a bit nervous for them even though we are over a month away from our departure.

We have a multiple entry visa since we are leaving the mainland (to visit HK) and flying back to Shanghai for a few days. They still consider it leaving China when you leave mainland.

Since the ABD starts in Hong Kong, I'm assuming that means I need a multiple entry Visa? Or am I mis-understanding?

I will definitely check out CIBT Visa. That sounds like the way to go! Do they have a website? How do you contact them?

Thanks!
Sayhello

 

[RSM]

You don't need a visa for Hong Kong. Only mainland China. So, if you only go from HK to China once, then you could probably get away with a single entry. That being said, I would recommend a multi-entry visa to be safe.

 

[sayhello]

You don't need a visa for Hong Kong. Only mainland China. So, if you only go from HK to China once, then you could probably get away with a single entry. That being said, I would recommend a multi-entry visa to be safe.

Thanks, RSM. Makes sense!

Sayhello

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

Since the ABD starts in Hong Kong, I'm assuming that means I need a multiple entry Visa? Or am I mis-understanding?

I will definitely check out CIBT Visa. That sounds like the way to go! Do they have a website? How do you contact them?

Thanks!
Sayhello

Yes they have a website. Strange thing is that you can't start an application on it. You have to contact them and they will send an application via e-mail. They are very helpful and I highly recommend them. They are the company Abercrombie & Kent recommend which is where I obtained their information.

You don't need a visa for Hong Kong. Only mainland China. So, if you only go from HK to China once, then you could probably get away with a single entry. That being said, I would recommend a multi-entry visa to be safe.

ITA with this. We need the re-entry Visa since we are technically leaving China for Hong Kong, then going back to Shanghai (so 2 entries to China if you will). You would be fine with a single entry, but I'd ask CIBT to be safe.

 

[sayhello]

ITA with this. We need the re-entry Visa since we are technically leaving China for Hong Kong, then going back to Shanghai (so 2 entries to China if you will). You would be fine with a single entry, but I'd ask CIBT to be safe.

Is the multiple entry more expensive? Or just more paperwork?

Sayhello

 

[Cousin Orville]

Is the multiple entry more expensive? Or just more paperwork?

Sayhello

For US citizens it's all the same (most expensive) price. ~$140 for any visa (single or multi entry). For citizens of other countries, I believe a single entry visa is cheaper. And I think on the application it's a box you check whether you are requesting a single or multi entry. But someone may want to confirm that. It's been a couple of years.

I requested a multi entry visa probably for 2 reasons. 1) to get the visa early in my planning stages. 2) to have it just in case. I don't think I had fully worked out my trip plan at the time.

For next year, I will likely do the same - request the multi entry visa ~6mo prior to the trip. I have no plan to actually exit and reenter the country though. I hope it's still possible to do it that way. In the 3 months immediately before China next year, I'll be in and out of the country and working. It would make it less stressful if I can secure a visa before then.