Hi staff at ChinaTour360,
On behalf of our "Gang of Ten", I would like to thank ChinaTour360 for their excellence in organizing our recent China trip and delivering the services as promised. I can tell you now that initially some members of the group were a bit hesitant in dealing with an unknown company located in China, they felt that it would be safer to book through an established local tour company in Canada despite the extra cost. However, after doing some research on your impressive Web site and reading some of the testimonials from fellow travelers plus the endorsement from the New York Times Travel supplement, I felt comfortable enough to encourage my friends to join me in booking with you. In retrospect, this was the best decision I have made this year.
With the majority never having set foot in Asia before, we would like to share with you some of the concerns we had prior to the trip, and our impression of them now.
English proficiency of the Local Guides
Since most members of our group could not understand Chinese, we were concerned whether the local guides would be able to communicate sufficiently enough for us to understand them. We must tell you that, overall, the guides were excellent and beyond our expectation, not only with the language issue but also with their warmth and responsiveness to our needs and request. In Beijing, Gloria was so friendly and helpful, she even assisted one of us to get a replacement credit card that was misplaced. In Xian, we were impressed with Echo's command of English and knowledge of Chinas history and culture. In Shanghai, Xu was an excellent guide - her English was impeccable and she was very informative. We did not spend much time with the other guides but they all did their job well.
Transportation
The buses you provided were very nice, spacious and clean. Although the drivers could not speak English, they were all courteous and drove skillfully in what seemed like perpetual traffic jam in city areas. We got to know and like Mr. Feng in Beijing, and we enjoyed very much the "western" music that was played on his bus.
Although this was a definite area of concern early on, we were impressed with the three domestic air flights we took. The flight attendants were friendly and had a smile on their face when they talked to you. They even served food on such short flights which is not the norm in North America.
Accommodation
We were uncertain what a 5-star hotel in China was like, based on North Americas rating. We would like to tell you that we were impressed with all of them, especially the Sheraton in Suzhou which was a most charming hotel with its landscaped gardens and indoor pool with a waterfall. The hotels were very clean, all of them offered currency exchange and other services normally associated with a higher-end establishment, and the rooms were spacious.
Food
With our "western" stomach, we were pleased that none of us got sick from the food despite "pigging" out at times. Breakfast typically was the best meal and there were quite a variety to choose from, the best ones were served in Hyatt (Xian) and Sheraton (Suzhou). As for lunch, they varied from good (Beijing & Xian), to OK (China Regal), to one that was just fair (restaurant next to the silk factory in Suzhou). Dinner was fine overall, although we did not enjoy the Peking Duck dinner in Beijing as we found the ducks to be too fat and oily. Of the places we ate on our own for dinner (i.e. not included in the tour package), we would highly recommend the chinese restaurant in Beijing's Peninsula Hotel, the restaurant in Suzhous Sheraton, and the 24-hour cafe on the ground level in the Hua Ting hotel in Shanghai which served excellent western food.
The Shows
The 3 shows we attended were very enjoyable, with the highest rating to the Tang Dynasty Cultural Show in Xian, followed by the Portman Acrobatic Show in Shanghai, and the Opera in Beijing. The nightly entertainment put on by the staff on the China Regal was quite entertaining too.
Summary
China is such a land of contrasts that in just two weeks we were able to "journey through time" from the rich history of old China (Great Wall, Forbidden City, the Terra Cotta Warriors that dated back some 2300 years), to the tranquility of the Yangtze River with its magnificent Three Gorges, and then fast forward to the ultra modern 14-year old metropolis of Pudong in Shanghai, a city that boasts the worlds fastest passenger train.
This has been a memorable trip indeed and, once again, thank you ChinaTour360 for helping to make it happen. I will be pleased to be a reference and I can be reached via e-mail at felixlee@rogers.com
All the very best to everyone at ChinaTour360.
Regards,
Felix Lee
On behalf of our "Gang of Ten", I would like to thank ChinaTour360 for their excellence in organizing our recent China trip and delivering the services as promised. I can tell you now that initially some members of the group were a bit hesitant in dealing with an unknown company located in China, they felt that it would be safer to book through an established local tour company in Canada despite the extra cost. However, after doing some research on your impressive Web site and reading some of the testimonials from fellow travelers plus the endorsement from the New York Times Travel supplement, I felt comfortable enough to encourage my friends to join me in booking with you. In retrospect, this was the best decision I have made this year.
With the majority never having set foot in Asia before, we would like to share with you some of the concerns we had prior to the trip, and our impression of them now.
English proficiency of the Local Guides
Since most members of our group could not understand Chinese, we were concerned whether the local guides would be able to communicate sufficiently enough for us to understand them. We must tell you that, overall, the guides were excellent and beyond our expectation, not only with the language issue but also with their warmth and responsiveness to our needs and request. In Beijing, Gloria was so friendly and helpful, she even assisted one of us to get a replacement credit card that was misplaced. In Xian, we were impressed with Echo's command of English and knowledge of Chinas history and culture. In Shanghai, Xu was an excellent guide - her English was impeccable and she was very informative. We did not spend much time with the other guides but they all did their job well.
Transportation
The buses you provided were very nice, spacious and clean. Although the drivers could not speak English, they were all courteous and drove skillfully in what seemed like perpetual traffic jam in city areas. We got to know and like Mr. Feng in Beijing, and we enjoyed very much the "western" music that was played on his bus.
Although this was a definite area of concern early on, we were impressed with the three domestic air flights we took. The flight attendants were friendly and had a smile on their face when they talked to you. They even served food on such short flights which is not the norm in North America.
Accommodation
We were uncertain what a 5-star hotel in China was like, based on North Americas rating. We would like to tell you that we were impressed with all of them, especially the Sheraton in Suzhou which was a most charming hotel with its landscaped gardens and indoor pool with a waterfall. The hotels were very clean, all of them offered currency exchange and other services normally associated with a higher-end establishment, and the rooms were spacious.
Food
With our "western" stomach, we were pleased that none of us got sick from the food despite "pigging" out at times. Breakfast typically was the best meal and there were quite a variety to choose from, the best ones were served in Hyatt (Xian) and Sheraton (Suzhou). As for lunch, they varied from good (Beijing & Xian), to OK (China Regal), to one that was just fair (restaurant next to the silk factory in Suzhou). Dinner was fine overall, although we did not enjoy the Peking Duck dinner in Beijing as we found the ducks to be too fat and oily. Of the places we ate on our own for dinner (i.e. not included in the tour package), we would highly recommend the chinese restaurant in Beijing's Peninsula Hotel, the restaurant in Suzhous Sheraton, and the 24-hour cafe on the ground level in the Hua Ting hotel in Shanghai which served excellent western food.
The Shows
The 3 shows we attended were very enjoyable, with the highest rating to the Tang Dynasty Cultural Show in Xian, followed by the Portman Acrobatic Show in Shanghai, and the Opera in Beijing. The nightly entertainment put on by the staff on the China Regal was quite entertaining too.
Summary
China is such a land of contrasts that in just two weeks we were able to "journey through time" from the rich history of old China (Great Wall, Forbidden City, the Terra Cotta Warriors that dated back some 2300 years), to the tranquility of the Yangtze River with its magnificent Three Gorges, and then fast forward to the ultra modern 14-year old metropolis of Pudong in Shanghai, a city that boasts the worlds fastest passenger train.
This has been a memorable trip indeed and, once again, thank you ChinaTour360 for helping to make it happen. I will be pleased to be a reference and I can be reached via e-mail at felixlee@rogers.com
All the very best to everyone at ChinaTour360.
Regards,
Felix Lee
- Name: Mr. & Mrs. Lee, Mr. & Mrs. Crerar, Mr. & Mrs. Bartlett, Mr. & Mrs. Yeung, Mr. & Mrs. Burkholder
- From: Toronto, CA
- E-mail: rogers.com|felixlee
- ltinerary: 14-Day China Highlight Tour of Beijing - Xian - Chongqing - Yangtze River Cruise - Wuhan - Shanghai - Suzhou - Shanghai
- Date: 6/21/2006
