China Hotel Reviews

We visited the wall twice first, visit was at Mutianyu which I would recommend, there were very few people on the wall and it was nice and peaceful, whereas when we visited Badaling, it was the exact opposite, you could not get moving for the amount of people there. We were dissapointed when we visisted the Forbidden City parts of it were closed off, the same when we visited the Temple of Heaven, the Summer Palace is a must to see. I recommend the Outback Steakhouse in the Beijing Hotel at the bottom of Wangfujing Street for a meal.

The hotel is located in the town centre which you do not notice when you are in the hotel or at the swimming pool. Close to the main shopping street and where you can rent bicycles. We went to Li River, Moon hill, and made a boat trip. You can hire a guide or make your own tour. Just turn right and left whenever you want, it is hard to get lost because you will always stay between two mountain ridges. Bring a map for global orientation.

For first timers, I found Beijing very manageable - and easy to get around. The Novotel has a postcard with top Beijing attractions in their stationary folder. Just take this with you, and use it to show the taxi drivers where you want to go. I found the taxis mostly reasonable . . . except one who rushed up and solicited my business at the Summer Palace. I should have known better . . . his meter was set on fast. The ride back cost 2x what the ride out had cost . . . and even then it was only $12. But, beware. Best day was Prince Gong Palace and the Lonely Planet recommended walk back along the lakes . . . a real delight. Don''t miss Mao. The line moves fast . . . and the bag checking across the street seems to be safe and quickly returns your possessions to you. Have fun.

While in Beijing I went to the Forbidden city (60Y), Temple of Heaven (35Y) & the wall at Badaling (300Y for a 9 hr tour, which included lunch and a trip a Jade and cloisonné factories which were interesting and no real pressure to but). The former two were being restored at present (August 2005) so there was scaffolding up but they were still both very impressive. The Wall at Badaling was also wonderful but very very busy and lots of tourist traps on the walk up to the wall! As it says in all the guide books if you can get a tour it might be quieter and better to go to another area unless you like crowds then choose Badaling!

Never take up the local day tour with many places to go. You will be exhausted! Select trip with just Terracotta, Ching-Hwa Lake and Da-Yan Temple!

You can not visit Xi''an with out going to the Terracotta Warriors. I took a local taxi there with an English speaking guide. For little over half a day it cost 400 RMB (ca £30). This included a trip to the Tomb of Qin Shihuang & the hot springs Huaquing Pool. The next day I used the same taxi to do the Western tour to Zhao & Qian Tombs both very impressive & the Famen Si temple. Its a long day 9.30 till about 5.00.

There is no taxi stand at the airport, instead, there are drivers at the arrival hall approaching the arriving passangers. They asked for RMB220 and that''s a high price, almost doubled. A taxi going from Shangri-La to the Airport would be about 100. Most of the taxis offer day tour service. You may check against the price of different drivers. I hired a taxi to Hwa Shan, only RMB550 a day. The hotel can also arrange transportation but the price is...1200! There are also public transportation at the train station. That''s a good time to experience the reality, no queue! People are squeezing in. That''s the fun part of this trip.

Seaport Restaurant at "JiaLingNa" shopping mall which is just behind the hotel (10min walk) is a must. Better food than any of those highly acclaimed restaurants in Hong Kong. Ambiance in Seaport is very good, staff is polite and helpful, price is very reasonable too.

Chengdu. Never heard of it? Well, it has two important attractions: Pandas and the Big Stone Buddha in Leshan, about 2 hours away. It''s a large but nondescript city, seemingly more under construction than even Beijing. The spicy Sechuan cooking delighted me, although my 11-year-old was a little overwhelmed by the heat. The pandas in the Panda Center (NOT the zoo, which at least one guidebook says) is worth the effort to visit. We did not go to Wolong, home of the Panda Research Center, but about 100 km away. Nevertheless, we saw pandas in action, and were utterly bewitched. Also, the Big Stone Buddha is all of those, and a wonder to behold. The climb is steep (and what goes down, on the narrow metal staircase, just go up again, on another narrow metal staircase). It''s also worth the trip. The heat in July in Chengdu was not quite as oppressive as it was everywhere else in China, but the pandas and the Buddha merit a (short) visit. We also saw a lovely bamboo park dedicated to a female poet and Du Fu''s home.

Xi''an is another large Chinese city (around 6 million, I think) but it''s a polluted, rather beat place. The air was translucent and very irritating. We saw more beggars there than anywhere else we visited. So why bother? Two words: Terra-Cotta Warriors. Yes, this is the place. The Terra-Cotta Warriors stand about an hour away, and make a visit to Xi''an absolutely necessary when visiting China. When you visit the T-C Warriors, you get a "tour," which includes Emperor Qinlong''s Mausoleum, the Huaping Hot Springs and site of the 1936 Incident (involving Chiang Kai-Shek and Mao Tse-Tung) and a very skippable gondola ride up a mountain with yet another temple on top. There are some interesting pagodas much closer as well. I hear the Shaanxi Museum is excellent, but my 11-year-old wouldn''t hear of it.

Yummy & cheap restaurant about 50M on the left when getting out of the hotel front entrance. Taxi to airport about 80 yuen.

What need be said about Beijing? It''s huge, the seat of power in China (and it shows!), with history all over the city. It has many of the sights and sites travelers come to China to see: Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Tian Tan (Temple of Heaven), Old Beijing, etc. etc. plus ready access to the Great Wall of China and the Ming Tombs. Six days was almost not enough! The food was excellent and quite different from the Cantonese style we are used to in the US: no rice! Beijing is Noodletown! Don''t miss the acrobats, which one thinks will be hokey but are absolutely not. It''s a hot city and you don''t look geeky when carrying an umbrella in the blazing sun. In fact, it''s a necessity. Don''t miss: Dazhalan shopping, Peking/Beijing Duck(go to the "Old Duck" on Qiamen for the full duck banquet), the Echo Wall at Tian Tan, of course Tiananmen Square and the "Maosoleum," take a tour of the Forbidden City, rent a bike and ride through the hutongs of Old Beijing. And go to the night market (can''t remember the street, but it''s well known) for Everything-on-a-Stick. Seahorse? Scorpion? Silkworms? They''ve got it all! We hired a guide who approached us outside the Forbidden City; he took us to the Hutongs and then to the Great Wall. Also: the Drum and Bell Towers for steep stairs and great relics. Taxis are cheap and distances are great, so take them everywhere.

We missed bus tours for tourists. But the tours made by taxis were very cheap and very interesting. We visited places like the "End of the Earth", Monkey Islet, the "Nantian Hot Springs", the "Nanshan Cultural Center", the "Nangshan Dongtian Tourism Zone", the "Li and Miao Village", etc.

Shanghai has a lot of good restaurants and right around the corner of the hotel in the Xintiandi complex is Va Bene, T8, Kabb ect. Furthermore the Bund has very good restaurants and bars like M at the bund, New Heights, The Glamour room, Mesa/Manifesto and for Live Jazz, JZ Jazz club. I like to get the LUXE guides for the cities they offer it for, because it is easy to carry and it has the very essential things of the city you''re in.

The hotel is within walking distance to the People''s Park, the pedestrian Nanjing Lu East, Xintiendi, and Huaihai Lu. Also, taxis are inexpensive; you can get practically everywhere for less than RMB 20.

Guangzhou is another place in the PRC which grants you landing Visa. I took a Coach direct from the Hong Kong Airport to Guangzhou which will take approx 3.5 Hrs to reach Guangzhou. The bus stops midway and we are asked to alight and complete immigration, an agent from CTS or the Coach operater will assit you in getting forms filled and the Visa processing (this was true for me as an Indian for other nationals please check about this facility!!). After the Visa processing/Immigration you board another coach and you will be in Guangzhou in an hour and half or so. Nothing great about the Guangzhou markets no bigger deals like Shenzen, if wishing to shop try Shenzen, a better option. Getting in and out of Guangzhou is smooth from Hong Kong. Try the KCR for returning to Hong Kong the train. Journey is great ! It drops you straight at Hunghom station. Taxis are cheap and of course some off them ricketty! Avoid taking taxis outside Exhibition grounds (Panyu etc.) as these guys will rip you off! Instead go down and take the Metro nearest to your Hotel and board another taxi. The Metro is great with okay coverage.

If you come the first time to Beijing, start with sunset drinks on the roof terrace of the Palace Hotel (open to the public) from where you have a magnificient view over the Forbidden City (Anchee Min''s novel ''Empress Orchid'' provides fascinating background). Besides many, many excellent small eateries in every neighbourhood, special restaurants for me still include Courtyard, Red Capital Club and Green Tea House. Besides the usual attractions try also the Botanical Garden and the ruins of what the Summer Palace originally was. BTW, B&B is becoming increasingly attractive in Beijing - I had a very lovely experience and can surely recommend it.

Having been to Shanghai many times over the past 23 years, I have always regarded the Shanghai Acrobats as the best in China. I went to their performance again on this trip but was profoundly disappointed. The show has lost its tradition and charm, and it is now a sound-and-lights extravaganza for Western audiences. The quality of the acrobatics has plummeted amidst all the glitz. Furthermore, having paid extra for "A" class seats, I was disappointed to find myself in the third back row of the theatre. Fortunately, I have many happy memories of the Shanghai acrobats in their heyday.

I found Beijing and surrounding area difficult for independent travellers not on a tour group. A Chinese phrasebook would prove invaluable.

The best way to get around if you are in beijing for a few day is taxi. For value, beijing taxi is cheap and less hassle than subway or bus.