Hi Ladies,
We thought the tour was excellent and have already recommended it to our friends. Everything went very smoothly with no problems and of course the excellent weather is a good thing to have for any holiday. Our rain in Guilin came at times that didn't bother us. We really enjoyed relaxing and letting the guide and driver do the work and we thought it was nice that our guide took care of us from arrival through check in and walked us to security. We found the trip fun and relaxing for us.
1. We thought the meals were very good and enjoyed the restaurants planned for us. They were upscale, beautifully decorated and the food was excellent. We felt that the allowed amount was plenty to try more foods than we would normally order, but that was fun. Dorinna guided us to the DaDong Peking Duck restaurant and we thought that was a great experience. We were surprised to see smoking allowed in the restaurants and had to change tables in Shanghai.
2. We enjoyed all of the guides and they all had good information about the sites we visited which they provided to us as we drove there and then at the location. The guides were very different, but all good. We enjoyed the young people, Dorinna and Jay and their fresh approach. Mr. Wu in Shanghai had a more professional appearance and was very business-like. His skills and efficiency helped make the most of our short time there, including our special requests, but we were happy to have the young and more relaxed guides in the other cities. I am sure that they will only get better as they mature and present a more professional appearance. We were fine with their relaxed clothing and it seemed more like a holiday outing, but the hotel staff and others may not give them as much respect as they would give to Mr. Wu. We felt that the guides all had good English.
3. We found all of the drivers to be very safe, very helpful and with good attitude. We thought our Beijing driver was the safest driver, although his car smelled like smoke. All of the cars looked clean, but there were moldy smells in the Guilin car as well, maybe from the frequent rain. I realize that I am more sensitive than some people about the smoke smells and the other smells.
4. All of the hotels were great and the food was good too. We were amazed at the service of the Shangri La in Guilin. The staff was very welcoming and the room was clean and pretty with lovely view. Our breakfast was good there and I had a great massage at the spa. Their facilities were great and little children enjoyed the private garden - they ran around squealing and chasing each other in the dark (great for family travel).
The Yangshuo Mountain Retreat was very nice. It did seem very family oriented, but we like the view and quiet (when the kids were yelling). We were happy that we didn't stay in the town. The breakfast there was good that it was a set breakfast and we enjoyed that, although it was all beige. I left them some comments about their white bread and white fruits with white eggs, but it tasted good. We had some good food at the restaurant but it would get boring if more than a couple of days. We did like the bike ride from the hotel with just a bit of road and then on the path through the villages and the wide road with shoulders to the Banyan and Moon Hill sights.
The Peninsula Hotel in Shanghai was amazing! Our room was beautiful and elegant with a coffee maker and fruit to welcome. A gorgeous bath tub and double sinks were nice. They had a great set up in the closet we've seen before with vanity and a bench for your suitcases so that your main bed and living area does not get cluttered. We loved the breakfast in the light and airy lobby restaurant. They had a great set up with hot food ordered and you helped yourself to the pastries and fruit. We would want to return to that hotel if we went back to Shanghai.
Thanks,
Patricia Young
We thought the tour was excellent and have already recommended it to our friends. Everything went very smoothly with no problems and of course the excellent weather is a good thing to have for any holiday. Our rain in Guilin came at times that didn't bother us. We really enjoyed relaxing and letting the guide and driver do the work and we thought it was nice that our guide took care of us from arrival through check in and walked us to security. We found the trip fun and relaxing for us.
1. We thought the meals were very good and enjoyed the restaurants planned for us. They were upscale, beautifully decorated and the food was excellent. We felt that the allowed amount was plenty to try more foods than we would normally order, but that was fun. Dorinna guided us to the DaDong Peking Duck restaurant and we thought that was a great experience. We were surprised to see smoking allowed in the restaurants and had to change tables in Shanghai.
2. We enjoyed all of the guides and they all had good information about the sites we visited which they provided to us as we drove there and then at the location. The guides were very different, but all good. We enjoyed the young people, Dorinna and Jay and their fresh approach. Mr. Wu in Shanghai had a more professional appearance and was very business-like. His skills and efficiency helped make the most of our short time there, including our special requests, but we were happy to have the young and more relaxed guides in the other cities. I am sure that they will only get better as they mature and present a more professional appearance. We were fine with their relaxed clothing and it seemed more like a holiday outing, but the hotel staff and others may not give them as much respect as they would give to Mr. Wu. We felt that the guides all had good English.
3. We found all of the drivers to be very safe, very helpful and with good attitude. We thought our Beijing driver was the safest driver, although his car smelled like smoke. All of the cars looked clean, but there were moldy smells in the Guilin car as well, maybe from the frequent rain. I realize that I am more sensitive than some people about the smoke smells and the other smells.
4. All of the hotels were great and the food was good too. We were amazed at the service of the Shangri La in Guilin. The staff was very welcoming and the room was clean and pretty with lovely view. Our breakfast was good there and I had a great massage at the spa. Their facilities were great and little children enjoyed the private garden - they ran around squealing and chasing each other in the dark (great for family travel).
The Yangshuo Mountain Retreat was very nice. It did seem very family oriented, but we like the view and quiet (when the kids were yelling). We were happy that we didn't stay in the town. The breakfast there was good that it was a set breakfast and we enjoyed that, although it was all beige. I left them some comments about their white bread and white fruits with white eggs, but it tasted good. We had some good food at the restaurant but it would get boring if more than a couple of days. We did like the bike ride from the hotel with just a bit of road and then on the path through the villages and the wide road with shoulders to the Banyan and Moon Hill sights.
The Peninsula Hotel in Shanghai was amazing! Our room was beautiful and elegant with a coffee maker and fruit to welcome. A gorgeous bath tub and double sinks were nice. They had a great set up in the closet we've seen before with vanity and a bench for your suitcases so that your main bed and living area does not get cluttered. We loved the breakfast in the light and airy lobby restaurant. They had a great set up with hot food ordered and you helped yourself to the pastries and fruit. We would want to return to that hotel if we went back to Shanghai.
Thanks,
Patricia Young
- Name: Ms. Patricia Anderson Young & Mr. Wilson Scott Young
- From: American
- E-mail: yahoo.com|young4z
- ltinerary: 8 Days Luxury of Beijing - Guilin - Yangshuo - Guilin - Shanghai
- Date: 5/2/2012
