China Travel Tips
By Mark Uhlig, Berlin, Germany, Jan 12, 2007
Traveling is always like a dream for all of us since we were kids, to
see new places, experience exotica and different
cultures. China has been one of my dreamlands when I read the Lost
Horizon by James Hilton and watched the Last Emperor. The
splendid Great Wall, the magnificent Forbidden City, the fabulous
Terracotta Warriors, the picturesque Li River, the Giant
Buddha, Potala Palace, the Giant Pandas,…etc. And if you want to work
with a local travel service within China, which one
you could trust?
Some suggestions according to my personal experience as followed:
If you just want to take regular tours in China, there are three
primary options. China International Travel Service (CITS,
http://www.cits.net), China Travel Service (CTS,
http://www.china-cts.net/) and China Youth Travel Service (CYTS,
http://english.cytsonline.com/). These three are the largest travel
services in China, and have big network throughout the
entire country. They have many regular tours for big groups and daily
tours. However they are not so flexible and sometimes
everybody has to follow the tour guide, trying not to get lost in the
crowded places. Besides, compulsory shopping is another
spur to clients.
But what about if you want to take a private tour and want to
experience more while keeping your journey flexible? Whom you
should turn to? It is easy, go for some of the small but credible
travel services or agencies in China.
DiverseChina (web http://www.diversechina.com ), a tour company
focusing mostly on west China but can also arrange high-end
featured cultures tours. Being flexible is their priority and they are
committed to responsible tourism. We have worked with
them on Minya Konka Trek and it is one of the best trekking that we’ve
ever took, because of the beautiful scenery and the
high-quality service. Though the price is a little bit high but it is
absolutely worthy. And there is no compulsory shopping
on any trip of theirs. You also can get lots of exciting travel routes
on their website http://www.diversechina.com
..
DiscoverChinaTours (web www.discoverchinatours.com) is another one who
can offer you good tours at very reasonable price,
particularly for the tours to Guilin where it is located.
Besides them, there are plenty small travel services in China but out
of my own experience and just think it over more when
you decide to work with them.
If you prefer to travel as a backpacker, it is also easy in China. The
hostels in each large city are nice to stay where you
could meet plenty of travel buddies and head for your destinations
with them. The only problem is that the staff of the
hostels speaks very little English but enough for the basic
communication. And when you get to some remote area like Kham
Tibet, communication is getting even harder with the locals. Anyway
you can always figure it out since the locals are very
friendly and can always explain things using hand gestures.
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