China Travel Forum

[Oscar]

I did a couple of trips with Intrepid Travel, as I was a bit chicken to go on my own.. and I have to say they are very good value.. They keep you moving at a fast pace - but still staying in 'local' guesthouses and travelling on public buses. If you want to cover a lot of ground in a month - I would suggest you give them a look.

here is a quick list of the places I have been and a little remark on each one..

Beijing: 2 days was enough, saw the sights, had Duck - walked through the Hutong. Intrepid took us to a section of the Great Wall at Simutai, which wasn't very touristy.. we hiked for 5hrs along it...

Xi'an: We took an overnight train to Xi'an and I loved this place - still quite a large place, but bags of character. Plus T.Warriors.

Xihe: This is a must see, a lovely little Tibetan town, one street, and a huge monastery Labrang.. Basic accomodation here - but it was great!

Langmusi: Again one of the highlights for me.. A tiny place, lots of monks everywhere, 2 monasteries, sky burial site. I could have spent a year hear - awesome!

Songpan: We only spent a day here - but it was very similar to Xiahe, one main street, amazing scenery. Lots of treks to do around here.

Jiuzhaigou: This is a mecca for Chinese tourists, coaches running up and down with tourists pilling out, taking photo's then pilling back. I hated it!.. The 'attraction' is a park, with pretty water.. okay yeah it is pretty.. but made ugly by the Las Vegas style town built around it. Hotels with neon lights built as mock castles - no joke - it is dreadful place which is a perfect illustration of how the chinese like to holiday, I would go for a day trip from Songpan, and go on a rainy day - the chinese won't leave their buses as much - so you get to walk around at your own pace!

Chengdu: Great place, it is a big city, but there are some great parks and temples.. Also Sichuan food - is the best... Spicy hotpot - it's a must! Tea houses - Mahjong - this is real china for me.

Yangshuo: A Backpacker haven, as LP goes on about it. It is a cool place if you are a bit tired of china and want to have a little western input - you can get pizza's and burgers and most people will speak english. There are some great activites avaiable there - which are easier to do here - as they all speak good english - Rock Climbing, Kyaking and all that stuff.

Kunming: This is a main hub town for flights in Yunnan, and it was ok - nothing good or bad to say - we only stayed here to go on to Dali.

Dali: This wasn't the same authentic place Xiahe and Langmusi are, this is more new-old the chinese cashing in on the tourist industry. It still has a charm - and a cool mountain to walk up - and lots of minority communities in the surrounding area - so worth a visit.
We stayed in Binguan No 5, basic but friendly.
Did the minority tour run from 'Jims Bar' he was very knowledgable and took us to some places I would never have found on my own.

Zhongdian: Renamed by the ROC 'Shangrila', this is a sprawling dusty town - a large version of Xiahe, which has lost its charm. there is a small monastery there - and another great mountain to climb.

Haba: We stayed here on the way to Tiger Leaping Gorge, very rural - and basic - I loved it.

Tiger Leaping Gorge: It is splendid, lots of guesthouses along the way - but quite western.. most have showers and english menus.. not a reason to avoid it though - the gorge is worth it.

Lijiang: There are two parts, the old part and the new part... the old - being the tourist trap - and I hated it! Shop after shop selling tacky rubbish.. cafe trying to drag you in.. and hundreds upon hundreds of chinese tourists led by there little flag... And if it raining.. prepare to do battle with hundreds of umbrellas being stuck in your chest...
I headed to the 'new' town - which his actuall older than much of the old town - as the old town is more like Disneyland China. The new town was cool.. Real people going about there realy lifes - got some great dumpling off the main shopping street.

Hainan Dao: Sanya, I was travelling on my own for this bit, and thought this place sounded nice - a tropical island - a good place to relax after treking Tiger Leaping.. Wrong - it is hideous! Just a tourist trap - you can't walk 10 paces without someone trying to extort money from you. I had booked a week - flew out on the second day.