Which tour is better? Popular tours to China on our website are the best tours according to reviews from our tourists. We understand that it can be difficult to decide which places to visit, and we will help you choose best tours online for travel to China.
10 most exciting sightseeing tours in China in Russian! The Celestial Empire amazes with its diversity of landscapes, abundance of architectural, cultural and historical monuments. You can choose a tour online or take the proposed tours to China as a basis to create your own.
The best tours of 2019 are not only the most famous Chinese cities: Beijing, Xi'an, Shanghai, Guilin, Hong Kong, Suzhou, Hangzhou, Chengdu and Lhasa. Each of the individual tours is designed so that you also visit the sights of China that few people know about, see real China.
- All tours are adapted to the dates, rhythm and wishes of your trip to China that are convenient for you. Create your own tour now!
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Shaolin Kung Fu Tour
Price from$1562 Beijing - Luoyang - Xi'an - Shanghai, 11 daysDuring this tour you will learn about the history of the origin of martial arts and kung fu, magnificent nature awaits you - caves and grottoes, mountains and rivers. You will get acquainted with the unique Shaolin culture, visit the Shaolin Temple - the most famous temple in China!
How to organize an independent trip to China in 2019! Visa, tickets, hotels, food, transport, security. How much does it cost to travel to China? Cost calculation, tips and observations.
The material was prepared based on the personal experience of the author of the text’s independent travel to China: three months of living in Shenzhen, as well as trips to Hong Kong and Guangzhou.
China is huge and very diverse, so it is impossible to clearly say where prices and conditions are. I will start from Shenzhen - the center of all electronics, a young and rapidly growing city in the very south of China, which borders on Hong Kong. I will tell you what a tourist can find useful when planning an independent trip to China in 2019, and I will also give my own observations about the country and tips for travelers.
How to get a visa to China yourself
A visa to China is required for Russians, except in rare cases. A regular single entry costs 1,500 rubles, a double entry costs 3,000, and a multiple entry costs 4,500 rubles. Plus a bank commission of 2.5% per person is charged.
Urgent single entry - 2400, urgent double entry - 3900, urgent multiple entry - 5400. There is also an express review, which costs more.
Airport in Beijing (Photo © Enzojz / flickr.com) How much do hotels cost in China in 2019?
When going to China on your own, you will have to decide where to live. Some choose the usual hotels, while others rent an apartment or room.
Hotels. Double rooms in hotels in the center of Beijing cost from $30 in the summer, and from $13 in the low season. In Shenzhen off-season - from $22. We recommend looking for hotels on Roomguru.
It is better to stay in chain hotels, as they care about their reputation. A night in such a hotel costs from $30-40 for a double room. Chain hotels in Shenzhen: Greentree Inn, Sheraton, Novotel, etc.
Adviсe:
- Look for a hotel with good soundproofing - the Chinese are noisy.
- Photos of hotels do not always correspond to reality.
- Sometimes a room may be clean and comfortable, but have foreign odors, such as dampness. Or the windows look out onto the courtyard, where there is a landfill or a Chinese street cafe (which produces no better smells).
Rent. If you want personal comfortable housing, look for a room, apartment or house on Airbnb. The choice of housing is huge. Renting an apartment in Beijing costs approximately $30-50 per day, in Shenzhen - from $27. You can rent an apartment on Airbnb for $600-$1,500 for a month (rooms cost $500-$900). The price depends on the city, area and condition of the house. For example, in Shenzhen, near the beach in a resort area, an excellent apartment was rented for $600. There are discounts for long-term rentals.
Entrance to Shenzhen Novotel Watergate (Photo © booking.com / Shenzhen Novotel Watergate) Food and cuisine of China
Another challenge you will face when traveling to China on your own in 2019 is food. It is very specific here, so going to a cafe can cause problems, especially if you don’t know the language. But here McDonald's and KFC come to the rescue. There are also many well-known European chains where you can order food from pictures. However, their prices are much higher - for example, a side dish with meat costs from $6. Sometimes tea is included in the price. At McDonald's, a Big Mac (potatoes, cola, double cheeseburger) will cost about $5.
In general, you can eat in a cafe for $5 or more; in restaurants, a simple dish costs from $10.
Where you can eat inexpensively and deliciously in China:
- Cafe for locals. You can eat a hearty meal there for $1.50, but no one guarantees the quality of the products and compliance with sanitary standards. The downside is that it is difficult to order dishes, since often there are no pictures or there are few of them, and if there are, it is not clear what it is.
- "Muslim women"- these are local cafes run by Chinese Muslims. The food there is prepared in compliance with all standards and is really very tasty. I really love their noodles and recommend you try them. They cook it in front of you, and it’s interesting to watch this process. Cost from $1.5 for a huge portion.
- Supermarket. A kilo of bananas costs $1-2, apples $2-3, tangerines $1-2. I do not recommend buying sausages. This is not at all what we expect: Chinese sausages are made from soy with a bunch of spices and additives. They taste sweet and have a specific smell, but for the sake of curiosity you can try them once.
(Photo © Jo@net / flickr.com / Licensed CC BY 2.0)
Internet and cellular communications in China
All SIM cards are sold only with a passport in specialized places. The cost of mobile communications is quite high - from $20 per month, plus the same amount is charged for purchasing a card and choosing a tariff plan. To purchase a normal tariff and understand everything, you need to know Chinese. If you need internet in China, it's easier to use Wi-Fi while traveling - in big cities you can find it everywhere.
There is another problem that many people encounter - blocking all Google services, YouTube, Instagram. To access them you need to install a special VPN program.
China Mobile is the largest mobile operator in the world (Photo © Open Grid Scheduler Grid Engine / flickr.com) Transport in China
Transport in China is excellent. The infrastructure is very developed. Planes, ferries, trains (including high-speed), buses, subways and taxis. You can get to any point without any problems. Travel on buses - from $0.3, in the metro - from $0.5.
If you are going to China for a month, buy a travel pass. The plastic card can be topped up and used in the metro and buses, and then returned and received money back. Cost $4. This is very convenient: you don’t need to find out the cost of tickets, buy tokens, or stand in lines. Accordingly, the problem of language disappears. For trips within one city, $10-30 per month is enough.
A very common type of transportation is electric mopeds. Essentially this is a taxi, only less comfortable, more extreme and cheaper - from $2. The main advantage is the absence of traffic jams, since mopeds go wherever they want. The only negative is the language. You need to agree on the price and destination.
(Photo © Lαin / flickr.com / License CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
ATMs and cards
Be prepared that many stores may not accept your Visa or MasterCard card, since in China there is another payment system - UnianPay. This card can be issued at any bank for free. If you need to withdraw money from yours, there are many ATMs for this.
Chinese mentality
Don't be surprised if in China you feel like a monkey that everyone wants to take a photo with. For a Chinese, having a photo with a European is an indicator of coolness and status, so you will always be the center of attention. They will always turn around at you and, without hesitation, look straight at you. In addition to increased interest, the Chinese will try to make money on the “white man”. For them, we are walking money, so bargain in all stores. For example, we once reduced the price of a shirt from $35 to $5.
We can talk for a long time about the culture and upbringing of the majority of Chinese. Giving way to a girl, letting her go ahead, letting people exit a vehicle, throwing garbage in the trash bin - this is not about them. They also have no sense of tact. Don’t be surprised if at the first meeting you are asked about your personal life, salary and health. The Chinese themselves are very cunning and enterprising, but at the same time good-natured.
Useful words in Chinese for a traveler:
Security in China
Do you know where the tradition of wearing a backpack on the front came from? From China. Petty theft is very common there. In big cities you can find a policeman everywhere who will gladly help in any situation. Also, there are cameras on all buses, subways, shopping centers, and even just on the street, so in big cities there is nothing to be afraid of when walking along the streets in the evening. From personal experience: I walked with photographic equipment, and not once did anyone try to pester me.
Also in China there is an unspoken rule that animals, children and laovayam(for foreigners) anything is possible.
(Photo © Today is a good day / flickr.com / License CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
How much does an independent trip to China from Russia cost?
Let's calculate how much a trip to China costs for two for 10 days when departing from Moscow:
- Single entry visa - $52.
- Flights from Moscow to Beijing and back - from $586. Find a ticket >>
- Hotel in the center of Beijing in low season - $130. Find a hotel >>
- Meals in eateries for locals - $120.
- Insurance - $23.
- Transport and attractions - approximately $200.
So, how much does it cost to travel to China on your own? The minimum cost of the trip, if you are ready to save, is approximately 1111$ for two for 10 days.
If you are used to living comfortably, then the trip will cost approximately 1711$ for two (accommodation in a 3* hotel - $250 and meals in cafes and restaurants - $600). We spent $1,500 a month for two of us.
Fragment of a 100 yuan bill (Photo © super.heavy / flickr.com) Check out our helpful tips for traveling to China on your own in 2019:
- Before you travel, watch how the Chinese count on their fingers. The match with our score is only up to 4, then everything is different.
- Be sure to download a translator to your phone.
- Take the necessary medications, as you are unlikely to find anything familiar in Chinese pharmacies. You are more likely to encounter dried toad than activated charcoal.
- Download the Baidu program and maps of the cities where you plan to live on your phone. This program will help you choose the route, time and type of transport, and determine the best route option. You won't get lost with her. I highly recommend it!
I hope you have a general idea of prices and conditions. And the problem of language, as you see, is not so terrible. Travel, because there are so many interesting things in the world!
(Photo © monkeylikemind / flickr.com / Licensed CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
Introductory image source: © mandylovefly / flickr.com / Licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
Being passionate fans of independent travel outside traditional tourist routes, we decided to go on another trip to China.
Since we had already been to Beijing and Guilin, the new route was designed in such a way as to see the maximum possible number of attractions that are usually not included in the traditional tour of exploring China: Shanghai - Suzhou - Xi'an - Chengdu - Leshan - Emeishan - Dazu - Chongqing - cruise along the Yangtze to Yichang - Wuhan - Hainan - Hong Kong.
Agency: Astravel - no special problems. We booked tickets, hotels, transfers, made visas and insurance. Manager Sergei treated our requirements with understanding; the whole process was slowed down by the Chinese, who were not ready to quickly solve problems (we started discussing the route already in January!)
Departure from Sh-2
The men dropped $100 each. and bought whiskey, cognac and Baileys liqueur for the ladies for everything. This stock helped us in a number of situations in inland China, but more on that later...
Shanghai – a city of contrasts
The first time I was in Shanghai was in 1989, passing through from Hangzhou. Since then, enormous changes have occurred, even compared to our last trip in 2004, many places are simply unrecognizable. The new Pudong district on the other side of the river, with its striking architecture, will compete with any metropolis with traditional skyscrapers.
We stayed at the New Asia Hotel (***), relatively decent, located a 10-minute walk from the main shopping street of Nanjinglu and 20-25 minutes from the old city. There are no particular complaints about the hotel, since we only spent the night there after long outings, we did not notice any flaws. The money was changed at the reception - 1 dollar - 7.9 yuan (the rate is approximately the same everywhere). We arrived at the hotel at about 12 o'clock local time, immediately met our friends who had flown in from Guangzhou, and went to the Bund embankment to take pictures and have lunch...
We took pictures against the backdrop of skyscrapers from the embankment, chock-full of the same “tourists”; on our side there were historical buildings built during the British colonial rule. I was especially impressed by the HEPING (World) hotel with amazing interior interiors, incl. stained glass. You immediately imagine bohemian Shanghai, ladies in evening dresses and pearls, exquisite dishes... But we were not allowed there - after two all state restaurants are closed, wait, they say, until dinner.
As a result, we sat down in one of the tourist eateries, ordered, out of hunger, twenty dishes for 12 people (6 couples) and Chinese beer and Chinese vodka “argotou” (the so-called “palm” in common people - since the bottle itself easily fits in the palm). Three of us speak decent Chinese, so we were treated to the highest class... The only fly in the ointment - a girl who tried Chinese cuisine for the first time in such a unique place found a cockroach in her dish... Only "Red Label" saved the situation, and subsequently we were all disinfected with the help of strong drinks, prudently captured from Russia. Then we walked to the old town DownTown. In fact, the abundance of hieroglyphs initially amazed our friends, who had never seen them in such volume. kiosk.
Relationship without marriage - some distraction from the route
There, on the embankment, they also bought a telephone card for 100 yuan, which gives 999 minutes of conversation within China. Unfortunately, we were unable to activate international roaming, so the husband (or wife, respectively) had a Russian number, and the wife (or husband) had a Chinese number. We also took portable walkie-talkies with us, which we used quite actively when moving around the city and even shopping (it’s easy for even a Chinese to get lost in Chinese multi-storey supermarkets).
Old and New Shanghai
The old city is a collection of streets with a lot of shops selling Chinese consumer goods especially for tourists (both Chinese and relatively few foreigners) and various eateries and restaurants. In a small courtyard there is a tree of Happiness, completely hung with red ribbons with wishes in the form of bright yellow hieroglyphs (the ribbons with wishes themselves can be bought immediately for 5 yuan). You need to throw the ribbon so that it hangs on the branches, then, as the Chinese believe, your wish will come true.
A human whirlpool takes you to a small lake (fat, fat red fish swim) with a zigzag bridge with the famous tea pavilion.
Part of our group bought tickets (about 60 yuan) to Yuyuan Park and managed to prudently enjoy the beauty of the park architecture almost alone (prudently - because the next day we went to Suzhou, a city where Chinese-style gardens are the main attraction). Bizarre forms of gazebos, stones, the chirping of birds and ... behind the wall - huge modern skyscrapers - this is present-day Shanghai.
Nankinglu Street itself is an instant-kilometer shopping marathon (by the way, we did not participate in it), when the red light turns on and you cross this street in a taxi, it seems that it is all black from Chinese heads to the horizon - only people, a little higher - lights of neon advertisements for shops and restaurants. There is nowhere for an apple to fall... There is definitely room for pickpockets, since the flow of people moves as densely as at the May Day demonstration.
After resting at the hotel (we walked there in half an hour, continuously photographing rickshaws, laundry hanging on balconies and street benches), we decided to go see the city from a bird's eye view, not at the advertised "Pearl of the Orient" tower (the tallest in Asia), but at the very top the tall GuoMao skyscraper with a bar either on the 54th or 84th floor. Refined oriental interior, Bellini cocktail for 10 USD. and a fantastic view of the city...
Suzhou – the city of gardens and canals – Chinese Venice
It took us an hour and a half to get to Suzhou by bus. The guide - a sweet girl in glasses with a quiet voice - a typical representative of the Chinese intelligentsia - diligently told us facts we already knew from guidebooks. We had both "Polyglot" and "National Geographic" (an order of magnitude better than the first in all respects). The humble official's garden was completely filled with inquisitive Chinese, who, both alone and in tourist crowds, slowly moved around the most famous places in this garden. After suffering for an hour in the crowd and waiting for the next group to leave the nice pavilion or historical gazebo, we decided not to tempt fate any longer.
We also visited a park with a charming pagoda, after which we insisted on purchasing an excursion for 85 yuan on a self-propelled boat along the canals of Suzhou. This is truly a worthwhile event - extraordinary beauty, balconies with Chinese lanterns, hung with all sorts of laundry that is drying. A Chinese man squatted in the window and brushed his teeth. All life is for show. We bought dumplings for 16 yuan (about 2 dollars) on the beach right on the street and ate our fill, since it was impossible to sit in a restaurant.
Our adventures did not end there - the most active ones went for a foot massage on the nearest street to our hotel, for 58 yuan (1 dollar = 7.9 yuan) for half an hour, cute girls with tenacious fingers and boys with sculpted muscles demonstrated the wonders of oriental massage. The next day, one of our friends had to be carried on a cart at the airport - his legs could not walk, the second participant in the experiment walked on bent legs for a couple of days. The rest of the experiment participants were delighted...
Xi'an - who has more statues or Chinese???
To be honest, answering this question was quite difficult. In the morning we checked into the Le Garden hotel (a solid group of four, only tourist groups; there were already two buses of our compatriots, while local guides bred them like rabbits to visit a silk and pearl factory, however, the hotel itself is located a little far from the city center).
We came across Gosha - a tall Chinese man, about 45 years old, as he said, a retired pilot, but judging by his knowledge of our country, he also studied optionally at another faculty (definitely intelligence).
In the morning we saw the Wild Goose Pagoda - the most famous temple in Xi'an during the Tang dynasty (VII-X centuries). About half an hour by minibus and we are almost there. We passed the tomb (alleged) of Qing Shi Huang - the emperor who unified China, as Gosha, who was knowledgeable about everything, told us, there is nothing there except a modern stele. However, hundreds of buses and crowds of (literally) scary crowds of Chinese made us give up on the idea of taking a look at this historical site.
Bin-mayun itself (or the Terracotta Army) turned out to be no less filled with tourists, having difficulty parking the bus, we began to make our way among groups of tourists led by guides with different flags and an army of sellers of copies of statues (which, by the way, cost 10 yuan, and if you haggle a little, then it’s 1 dollar for a set of 5 figures). Without a doubt, the 3 pavilions themselves and the main one, where the unearthed army was located, are a grandiose spectacle, rightfully included in the “obligatory” program for visiting China.
In front of the pavilion you can (as in the past at VDNKh in a circular panorama) watch a film about how the figures were created, how they were destroyed by time, and how they were found. The peasant himself, who stumbled upon the clay head in 1974, and ultimately revealed this grandiose spectacle to the world, as if nothing had happened, sits in the cinema hall and signs books (30 yuan on top + the book itself = 120 yuan). At the same time, I saw him about 10 years ago - during a previous visit to Xi’an, and he just as calmly fanned himself and signed postcards and books with a felt-tip pen for money.
After wandering around the pavilions (the whole thing took 2-2.5 hours - no more) and pretty tired of the photo flashes (despite the ban on photos inside the pavilions), we headed home to the hotel. After the terracotta army, they did not go out to the central square to see the 14th century Drum Tower and the Bell Tower.
In the morning we went to a mosque located in the Muslim Quarter - a truly worthwhile place. The mosque building, founded in 742, does not resemble a mosque in any way, since its appearance is in the spirit of Chinese architecture, only sometimes Arabic script appears alongside hieroglyphs. On the way to the mosque there is a market for all sorts of Chinese things - mostly fakes, however, with some digging you could find interesting things. As a joke, we bought a Mao quote book in Russian, which brightened up our train ride from Xi'an to Chengdu. Someone bought ceramic tiles, someone bought funny jewelry...
Travel from Xi'an to Chengdu
The station in Xi'an is three (no - five!!!) Leningrad, Yaroslavl and Kazan stations combined. People (mostly local peasants) sit, sleep, eat on the floor, in front of the station, inside the station, we are lucky - foreigners are allowed into the so-called. VIP room with air conditioning.
As befits Russians, we bought all sorts of fruits, drinks and even chicken at the station; the alcohol we had prudently purchased at Sheremetyevo was not finished yet...
Indeed, beautiful landscapes that you cannot see from an airplane, stops in small cities by Chinese standards (1-2 million people (!), exotic characters in the carriage.
A cart with food is wheeled around every 15-20 minutes (probably only on trains near Moscow there are more intensive offers from network marketing workers), newspapers, napkins, game consoles and all that stuff. A trip to the restaurant carriage by a close group of men with a bottle of CHIVAS cost 60 yuan for everyone (hot dishes) and ended with fraternization with local mafiosi, completely covered with tattoos, drinking rice vodka.
The female half of the group was able to take a break from the excursion marathon and read about the sights of Chengdu.
Chengdu
The provincial capital of Sichuan is a classic example of an inland Chinese city that has been less affected by modernization. However, the purpose of our visit was to visit the city of Leshan - with the world's largest Buddha statue, carved from the rock and the Emeishan Mountains - a sacred place where poets wrote amazing poems about the beauty of the local nature. In general, Chengdu was the most “unsuccessful” point of our trip. We arrived at the station at 5 am. “No one will meet us at night...” and all that stuff...
After rushing around with our suitcases, through a series of calls to Beijing (to the credit of the host party, a Chinese Zoya from Beijing, despite the early hour, helped us solve the problems) we found our English-speaking guide.
There was no bus, to all questions about where the bus was, the answer was that it was on its way... After waiting for half an hour, to the delight of the guide, who was practicing English with us (and at half past five in the morning after a stormy night, I didn’t want to talk about the weather at all), and switching to conversational Chinese , it turned out that the bus would be waiting for us at a certain hotel where we were planning to have breakfast, but we had to go there by taxi. The taxi stopped on the opposite side of the station; we didn’t trust the porters with our cargo, so the charger came in handy. After breakfast we went to Leshan, to see Buddha. The statue is a grandiose sight (the head alone is 15 m, the ears are 7.5, and the total height is more than 70 m). A local monk made it for about 90 years, starting in 713 AD. , but never finished. The complex itself is reached by a beautiful embankment along the Dadu River, along which we walked. There are rickshaws scurrying along the promenade, and for 5 yuan you can get to the main entrance.
70 yuan for entry, 200 steps up, 5,000 Chinese people around, half an hour of waiting - and you can take a photo of the Buddha’s head with 365 curls. We didn’t go down (3 hours in the labyrinthine queue was beyond our strength after wandering).
We boarded a ship (included in the main excursion package) and looked at the Buddha from the river - much more attractive. You just need to abstract yourself from the Chinese.
The trip to Emeishan was also unsuccessful. Two hours by bus, we arrived in the rain, we were given down jackets to rent (in the heat of 25 degrees) and raincoats and we went up to the beauties... despite everything, we got wet... The fog is terrible, you can’t see anyone walking 10 steps away, not like the glorified beauties. But we decided to go all the way, but we were stopped by a local employee who said that there was a thunderstorm at the top and it was simply dangerous there. Two hours by bus back... Goodbye, Emeishan! Next time! On the bus on TV we watched a tape, how beautiful it could be.
At the Emeishan Hotel (even though it is 4 stars) no one speaks English. Those wishing for civilization were not able to eat at the hotel, but thrill-seekers went to chi fan jie - an area where all kinds of living creatures are fried and steamed right on the street. At first, rickshaws brought us to the restaurant for only 1 yuan (apparently, the restaurant management paid them extra for bringing clients), but the emptiness inside and the suspiciously kind staff forced us to insist on our own - we were going to the very heart of Emeishan. Dinner at 150 yuan (about $20, including alcohol for 5 people) included a huge plate of crabs in hot peppers, an impressive size frog, various kinds of meat and shrimp, salads, and hot appetizers. We got by without knowing Chinese – we all used gestures and sounds. The only bright culinary spot...Before this, everyone succumbed to the guide’s persuasion and ate absolutely tasteless food at a local tourist tavern for 600 yuan.
In the morning we took a bus to Chongqing, the starting point of our trip along the Yangtze, after seeing the famous tea houses in the park. The 7 hours of travel flew by unnoticed. A grand stop is the Dazu Monastery (also a UNESCO protected heritage site). The expressive sculptures, carved into rocks and painted, are associated with themes from Taoism, Confucianism and Buddhism. The most famous mountain is Baodingshan - more than 10,000 various sculptures - an incomparable spectacle in the rays of the setting sun. It's cool and there are almost no tourist groups.
Chongqing - the capital of the "third line of defense"
In an hour we drove to Chongqing, which I practically did not recognize (in the 17 years that have passed since the internship), only the liberation square (where the Chinese still gather every evening for mass dances) with the Jie fang bei monument, the Renmintang People's Hall and honor remained recognizable steep descents. Everything else is a modern city with four-level interchanges, illuminated by multi-colored lights with 50-story skyscrapers erected on the banks of the Yangtze and Jialing rivers. After tasting a real Huoguo (a boiling pot with a spicy oil-broth in which to cook meat and vegetables) in an authentic restaurant, we took a 3-hour bus ride to the city of Fengdu (the city of ghosts), since our liner did not dock at an expensive and pretentious port Chongqing.
Ah, the white ship... the running Yangtze...
The former GDR cruise liner, built at the end of the era of stagnation and unclaimed by the USSR during the turbulent years of perestroika, was immediately purchased by enterprising Chinese, everything was redone in the English and Chinese style, the “Domestic” origin of the product is indicated by a “Morozko” refrigerator in each cabin and warning signs inscriptions in Russian on the stop valve and fire safety, apparently the Chinese did not dare to touch them.
Small cabins with two beds, a shower and a bathroom, a local radio, on which guests were periodically invited to all kinds of seminars (2 hours on acupuncture, 2 hours on the history of the Chinese circus, etc.). In the evening - a folklore evening (a colorful spectacle of mummers) + a traditional welcome drink on the upper deck with a captain in a snow-white jacket and well-trained staff - everything is like on ordinary cruise ships, but with Chinese characteristics. A three-course buffet with attached professional (also an intelligence school, no less) waitresses, who instantly learned our entire company by name and for three days brought us our favorite dishes and drinks - green tea, na-ta-sa)))))
Fengdu is a city of ghosts, a curious place on the river bank with an eloquent visualization of all the punishments for each specific earthly sin. This is a must see... Wonderful landscapes with pagodas and a lot of superstitious legends. The lowest part of the city is planned to be flooded as a result of plans to build the largest dam in the world. However, Fend itself (the historical part), fortunately, is not in danger.
The next day, May 7, we passed the famous Three Gorges (Sanxia) - magnificent landscapes of a rapidly narrowing river with steep cliffs.
In the bar on the bow of the ship, a kind of political information is held in English for everyone with a detailed story about the gorges, legends and historical facts. In the afternoon we were transferred to a small boat (half an hour up the Yangtze tributary) and then to wooden junks, which at some stage of the journey were pulled along the shore by local peasants. The barge haulers on the Yangtze started a song (we are sure it was a sad song about a hard life), we responded with “Dubinushka”, the guide, a pretty Chinese girl, sang a couple of songs of local national minorities. The barge haulers themselves are an excellent example of the fact that healthy physical labor in the open air will mold anyone into an athlete; such prominent muscles are not always found even among fitness club trainers. We were especially struck by the 80-year-old toothless grandpa-coxswain on one of the boats, whose face was literally covered with wrinkles, but whose figure and muscles would have been the envy of the finalists of bodybuilding competitions - for another 60 years in a row he would have been able to carry the heaviest things over stones and boulders up the river boats with cargo, and now - overweight retired tourists.
In general, it must be said that the audience on the ship (about 300 people) was a gathering of American and European pensioners who decided to see the world in their old days. They eagerly listened to all the stories of the guides, tirelessly photographed everything and everyone, carefully studied special pictures hung in the corridors between the cabins with explanations in English with interesting historical facts about the gorges, about the history of certain places that we sailed, various facts that can be interesting during a three-day trip along the river.
We were probably the youngest group. One American couple of about 60 years old listened to Russian speech for a long time and, finally, one of them asked what language we were speaking. Having received a proud answer in Russian, after thinking, he replied that we are probably very rich Russians if we can afford a trip to the Yangtze. We did not argue with him, although there was a desire to say that real rich Russians have long been living in London and hanging out in the Costa Smeralda, and not sailing on a ship in the Chinese outback. Really new Russians would either rent the entire liner, or sail on an ocean-going yacht with their staff, female models, champagne and all that jazz.
Apparently, the boom in information about the crazy spending of the rich nouveau riche has not yet reached provincial America.
Nevertheless, we did make some contribution to the idea of the extravagance of Russians - people came to local bars not only during happy hours, when foreigners wanting to save money filled them because of the 20 percent discount, but quite regularly. There was a constant bottle of whiskey on the table - the bartender didn’t mind, since we occasionally took cocktails and coffee with juices in the bar itself, but the regular appearance of a full bottle of expensive alcohol on the tight-fisted pensioners (any cocktail at the bar cost about 60-70 yuan - almost 10 dollars) was another confirmation of the fabulous wealth of the Russians - they could not have guessed that all the alcohol was purchased at Duty Free. In the evening we had a party on the deck, also with cognac and whiskey. The foreigners were shocked, they even looked closely at the drinks that were not in the bar, trying to figure out where the expensive cognac came from in the Chinese wilderness.
By the evening of May 7, we sailed to the famous Sanxia Dam and spent about 5 hours passing through the locks together with similar cruise ships. A grandiose engineering structure, or as local guidebooks write, it is the crown of man’s victory over nature. In the morning we took a bus to the dam itself. Despite the ongoing construction of the next stage of the dam, everything around is perfectly clean, flowers, flower beds, everything has been swept. We also arrived at the Sanxia Dam Museum, which offers a majestic view of the river itself, the dam and the locks, and where, naturally, you can buy various books and souvenirs to remember your visit to the dam.
In general, the Chinese are very proud of their achievements over the years of reform - this is not ostentatious pride, but the real feelings of a once poor people, who in just two decades have become world economic leaders. Once the entire dam is commissioned, it will provide a third of all electricity to China, some of which will even be sold to neighboring countries. 25 billion dollars is the volume of investment in the project, while part of the money was collected “from all over the world” from all Chinese in the form of a special tax on electricity.
We had to wait for about an hour because all the roads were blocked. At first we decided that the abundance of police was connected with the arrival of some important person, however, imagine our surprise when a giant truck slowly appeared with some kind of turbine blade. Increased precautions were precisely related to the unique part, while all the Chinese literally glowed with happiness, talking about how large and important this part was for construction.
Half an hour after the excursion, we unloaded in Yichang, since there was no point in sailing further - downstream there are only cities that are a mixture of gray industrial buildings and gray smoke (all the way to Shanghai, where we had already been).
We took a bus to Wuhan, where we wanted to eat a rat, which baffled the guide’s girlfriend. She said that rats were eaten during famine years or during the troubled years of the Cultural Revolution in the most remote villages. Having struggled with the search for the rat, we were forced to visit a restaurant at the local airport - one of the most tasteless dinners during our entire stay in China. An hour and a half flight and we are on the island of Hainan - Chinese Hawaii.
Hainan - the harmful influence of the Russians
The scam began right at the airport - a lively Chinese woman tried in impeccable Russian to recruit us for a free visit to silk, pearl and tea factories. It was decided not to reveal our knowledge of the Chinese language in order to understand how far the desire to deceive the stupid Russians would go.
Having made sure that we didn’t need anything yet, she left us behind and we safely arrived at the hotel.
According to some versions, the Resort Intime hotel (or as our experienced compatriots called it, “resort intimate”) is either four or five stars. We got rooms with a sea view, but without a balcony, so Sea View can be different. Paying $100 on top for three days was a toad, since the room itself is quite decent, two beds, a TV with a Russian program, all sorts of bathrobes, slippers and detailed explanations in Russian on all issues.
The vacation itself is nothing special: the sea (warm, 27 degrees), the beach (with crowds of women offering black, pink and white freshwater pearls and literally sitting on their heads with the desire to sell these threads to anyone), a healthy afternoon sleep. For those who wish, there is a SPA with massage. Since you still can’t cure anything in three days, we decided to ignore this side of the holiday, but watched with interest the girls and women of Balzac’s age who regularly attended all kinds of procedures.
The hotel is COMPLETELY filled with Russians, there are 20% Chinese from the mainland or Hong Kong.
Moreover, our audience is very specific - some are rich daddies with young girls pumped up with silicone of known behavior in more than revealing outfits from D&G and other Italian rubbish (they looked strange against the general background), some are methodical spa visitors who do not miss more than one procedure, some are curious beach fans, somewhat tired of Turkey and Egypt, who want to plunge into Chinese specifics.
Two (or three) charters from Russia a week did their job: prices in stores tripled in two years (including for my favorite silk, we even regretted that we didn’t buy all sorts of cute dresses in Suzhou), some street restaurants seafood stalls were demolished and replaced with glass menus in Russian with unusually inflated prices for absolutely tasteless food.
Drunk Russians (and where they are not) completely spoiled the aborigines, buying a bunch of bananas for 50 dollars for their silicone steal. After such generosity, the locals are blown away and they languidly wait under the hotel for the next Russian with merchant habits.
However, we found the remnants of “old Hainan” - a corner of Chinese cuisine, where everything is cooked on the street in front of your eyes, made friends with a Chinese woman - the owner of a restaurant, and spent three days going to the crossroads to eat shark, crabs, shrimp, snails, mussels, shells, moray eel, eel, parrot fish and a lot of other stuff.
Lunch for 10 people - about 100 dollars, a little expensive by Chinese standards, but absolutely nothing by Moscow standards. We also made a foray to the so-called. crocodile farm, where we ate fried and boiled crocodile (experienced people said that it was better in Kenya), snake soup (not a bad thing) and turtle soup (also very tasty, especially the paws with small claws).
Moral: in 20 years, before my eyes, Hainan went from a real paradise with Hawaiian bars (where a retired American paratrooper who married a Chinese woman mixed delicious cocktails) to a large entertainment center - a typical resort with multi-story hotel boxes with small (and, unfortunately , rapidly disappearing) interspersed with Chinese life in the form of street markets, fishermen’s villages, rickshaws, etc.
It was here that in just two or three years our compatriots (in my opinion) managed to turn a paradise into the Turkish coast with all the ensuing consequences. It’s a pity, but we probably won’t go to Hainan again, so as not to spoil the remains of good impressions.
The guys went to the jungle for one night and were incredibly pleased, but we spent the evening in colonial style, dressed up in various kinds of skirts and sweaters, already packed in suitcases during excursion wanderings around inland China. A buffet with sea reptiles in the form of dinner for 126 yuan per person + a Chinese woman who diligently depicted “evenings near Moscow” (they even played the song “life-long sosse” - we did not immediately understand that it was about truck drivers).
Hong Kong
Having happily received a $100 deposit, we headed to Hong Kong - the last point of our journey.
We were met by the same guide - Mr. Yamb, very cheerful, we especially liked the fact that he translated everything into dollars and focused on this - “a square meter of housing on this street costs 3,000 bucks” (apparently so that we would not get confused in Hong Kong dollars ). Hotel MIRAMAR (three stars) - small, smoky rooms, but an excellent location - in the very center, on the busiest shopping street in Hong Kong. A delicious crab buffet for HK$126 (about $15), which attracts rich Hong Kong residents and tourists in limousines.
I've been to a lot of places, but... after London, Hong Kong is the place where, in principle, you can live on a permanent basis - colonial influence has yielded the most generous results: impeccable politeness, capitalist abundance, oriental luxury combined with European restraint... By ferry for 2 HK$ sailed to the island part of Hong Kong, strolled along the antique Hollywood Street (over the past 2 years it has turned into a gathering of boutiques, where languid-looking Chinese women sit with thick catalogs, waiting for a connoisseur of Chinese ceramics and paintings).
After three hours of free walking in the busy shopping district, ShangHai Tang - one of the best boutiques offering stylish, modern clothes in the Chinese style, was surprised by the consumer pressure of the Russians. Some of the nice things were bought at the most expensive hotel, The Peninsula (we are, of course, not talking about Louis Vuitton, who, without a doubt, makes billions from the Chinese love for brands). In general, the Chinese and Hong Kongers have felt the taste of luxury and passionately love to emphasize their status; all sorts of brands like ARMANI, which opened its 6-story (!!!) supermarket in the very center of Hong Kong, Prada, MIU MIU, CELINE, DIOR and others take advantage of this luxury brands.
The next day - a sightseeing tour ($60 per person) with a stop at the fishing village of Aberdeen, then to a couple of newly built Buddhist shrines and a mandatory stop at Victoria Peak, from where an enchanting view of the harbor opens (the spectacle of Hong Kong at night is especially mesmerizing).
We also visited a jewelry factory, from where we carried away the coveted topazes, aquamarines and black pearls in our beaks. The work is indeed very beautiful; it is not for nothing that Hong Kong is considered the center of the jewelry industry in Southeast Asia. The Australian opals processed in China were not at all impressive - they were like plastic.
The last day of departure from hospitable Hong Kong has arrived. The airport is ultra-modern, but since the flight was at night (at 0.30), all Duty Free shops were closed, except for alcohol and cigarettes with cosmetics.
Conclusions:
1) independent travel is much more interesting and, importantly, cheaper than standard tours.
2) The route (as trivial as it may be) must be drawn up independently (from books and guidebooks, via the Internet, from reviews of friends, etc.), since even in good agencies I don’t know everything.
3) China, despite the language barrier for most of our people, is not a terrible country at all, but simply different. Be polite, read guidebooks, be inquisitive and you, without a doubt, will discover a different China - not the “shuttle” Beijing and Shanghai, not the beach Hainan, but a truly interesting, distinctive, great country.
nataly
21/06/2006 11:59
The opinions of tourists may not coincide with the opinions of the editors.
Agree, we don’t know that much about China. This is a rather closed socialist country with its own specifics. China is unlike any other country in the world, including Asian ones. The Chinese are completely self-sufficient - they don’t know English, they have their own rules of life, their own characteristic mentality, their own Internet, search engine, their own social networks, their own payment system. The whole world uses things Made in China - from towels to phones, but no one knows what China really is...
You don't need to know Chinese to travel around China. Moreover, many live there for years without knowing Chinese and feel great. Yes, not all Chinese speak English and not everywhere. Most often these are young people living in large cities. But for travelers this is not a problem, because you can always use such means of communication as:
Gestures in China
Facial expressions and gestures are a universal international language that is understood by most peoples of the world. In fact, people perceive the vast majority of information non-verbally. You don't even need a language for this. Where to find a place to stay, where to eat, how much a product or service costs - all this can be explained, literally, on your fingers.
Translators and applications for communication in China
Mobile applications for online and offline translation. If there is no Internet, you can use offline-GoogleTranslate and any other dictionaries and translators, such as Pleco Chinese Dictionary, Chinese-Russian Dictionary and others. But the best option, if you have mobile Internet, is Baidu Translate. You put in a microphone, say the desired phrase in English, and it is immediately translated into written Chinese. It is best to download this program, although all Chinese, even in not very big cities, have such a translator on their phone and if they do not understand what you are trying to convey to them in English, they will definitely use it, you don’t even ask them about it necessary.
Drawings
If neither gestures nor Google Translate help and there is no Internet on your phone, and your interlocutor does not understand that you can use Baidu Translate, then the best way is a schematic drawing. If you need to find out where and at what time the bus goes to the place you need, just draw it on paper. For example, when I needed to know how to get to Huangshan National Park, I drew mountains, a bus and a clock with a question mark. Everything became clear.
Blanks on hieroglyphs
These are magic pieces of paper that open all doors, you just have to show them and point your finger at the right word. It is advisable to prepare all the words and names of settlements that may be useful to you on the road, print them out in advance, or save screenshots of them on your phone. All other words and names that become necessary during the journey are best asked to be written by the first Chinese person who more or less speaks English and who comes your way.
I did this all the time, and it really saved me. No long explanations, you silently show the piece of paper, and they give you a ticket or show you the way.
→In this note you can see and download pictures with some hieroglyphs:
Connection. Internet and mobile communications
SIM card
So, the simplest thing is to buy a Chinese SIM card in China mobail still at the airport. If it is not there, then find a store in the city and buy it there. For this you only need passport and 70 yuan for the simplest tariff with 2 GB of Internet. Do not buy SIM cards in private shops - they cost 2-3 times more expensive there.
Ask to call
If you weren’t able to buy a SIM card or you regretted the money, it doesn’t matter ( For example, I couldn’t buy it, although I really wanted to, and I don’t regret it). The Chinese are not Russians, and when you ask to call, they do not shy away from you, but, on the contrary, they always respond willingly; they are even honored that you, a foreigner, have addressed them with a request, and it is a joy for them to help you. You just go up to any person on the street and ask him to call from his phone. You can use gestures. I did this all the time. And they will not only give you a call, but also find all the necessary information and give you money ( it happened a couple of times).
WiFi in the cafe
In China, you'll never really be truly unconnected. Almost everywhere, even in remote provinces and in the most godforsaken cafes, there is wi-fi. Therefore, if you need to find out something, urgently contact someone, chat with your parents on Skype, you go to almost any cafe and ask for the Wi-Fi password, and you don’t even have to order something there.
Ask for WiFi
If there are no cafes on the horizon, and you are traveling on a train or bus, and you urgently need to get some information about the place where you are going or contact those who are waiting for you, the simplest solution is to ask a neighbor to hand out you the Internet from your mobile phone.
At first, the Chinese themselves often offered me their Internet and always gave it to me without any problems. When I realized that this was normal for them, I began to use it constantly. I need internet, I ask, they give it to me. Everything is very simple. And don't be shy to ask. This is not Russia, no one will look at you with a stern look that says: “Dude, have you gone crazy? Shouldn’t you dance a lezginka?”
Blocked sites in China and VPN
As you probably know, resources such as Google, Facebook, Instagram, and Wikipedia are blocked in China. But many Chinese, like people around the world, circumvent the bans by using a VPN. I used different programs (for example, Super VPN), but the best thing for me in China was VPNRobot. You download it, open the application and click the connect button at the bottom, wait a bit for it to connect and then calmly post your photos on Instagram.
Money
Exchangers
So, in large cities there are always currency exchange offices, and some with a very favorable rate. They meet in the center and at train stations. Friends told me about this. To be honest, I haven’t found any of these myself, although I searched very actively. I found only one at the station, where they offered me such an extortionate course that I refused. Until the end of my trip, I never changed a single dollar. Maybe you'll have better luck.
ATMs
ATMs are everywhere in China. And they all accept regular VISA bank cards. In all the cities I visited, and in all ATMs from different banks, I always withdrew money without any problems, and at a good rate. Only once did the ATM refuse to read my card, but at the nearest store, salespeople on a moped took me to another bank - it was faster and easier than explaining to me where it was. And another businessman told me that his platinum VISA card was not accepted by ATMs, so it’s better to use regular cards and don’t show off.
Transport
Trains. How to travel by train in China
There are several types of trains in China, they can be distinguished by the letter that appears in front of the train number. So,
Main types of trains in China
Category "K". This is a long-distance train with seating. The ticket says that this is a hard seat. In reality, these are quite soft chairs that you can lean back on and sleep peacefully if you are driving at night ( in the photo below). The people on the train are quite simple and friendly. They will feed you and share Wi-Fi. The ticket for it is the cheapest. For example, for a 16-hour journey from Guangzhou to Zhangjiajie (about 1000 km) I paid 172 yuan (1548 rubles). In this video you can see what such a train looks like from the inside.
Category "Z". The so-called “sleeper”. Almost a copy of our reserved seat. Only there are no sides, but instead there are 3 shelves in the compartment on each side, the most convenient in the center. There are small half tables and seating in the hallway. The ticket said “hard sleeping car,” and I was preparing for the worst, but it turned out to be a new, clean, modern train with a soft mattress on a shelf, a snow-white pillow and a blanket, but no bed linen. Everything looked so clean that I didn’t even disdain to sleep like that, without bedding.
The washing area with three sinks is located separately from the toilet, which is very convenient because you don’t have to wait in line to wash. True, there is no toilet paper or soap. There are a couple of outlets where you can safely leave your phone charging without anyone stealing it.
The train is inexpensive. I bought a ticket from Shanghai to Guangzhou (16 hours travel – 1200 km) for 365 yuan (3285 rubles). This is what a “sleeper” is:
Category "G". This is a speed train (2nd class). A fast, comfortable, ultra-modern train that travels at a speed of about 350 km/h. The seating position is comfortable; if desired, you can recline the back and sleep. In 4 hours I traveled on it from Changsha to Huangshan (700 km). Ticket price is 331 yuan (2979 rubles). But in this video, again, you can feel like a passenger on such a train.
How to buy train tickets in China
It is better to buy train tickets in advance, because good seats for a convenient time are sold out quickly. And there is one great site where you can buy tickets for Chinese trains from your country - CTRIP— english.ctrip.com
Of course, you will have to pay a small commission for such a purchase, but you will practically have the tickets in your hands. It’s most convenient to use the resource’s mobile application; on the website you can immediately see how many places are left, and you can also receive bonuses for each purchase.
Electronic tickets will need to be printed at the ticket office before boarding the train.
At large train stations, this is done at the long-distance ticket office, so before getting in line, it is better to check whether this is the right ticket office. Otherwise, you will stand in vain and you may miss the train. When it’s your turn, you can silently hand the cashier your mobile phone with a screenshot of your e-ticket and your passport through the window.
It is always better to arrive at the station early, because there are several checks to be done at the entrance, so there are usually huge queues. It also happens that tickets are purchased and printed in a separate station building, and it is not always easy to find. Therefore, it is better to be at the station at least 1 hour, and even better 1.5 hours before departure.
Buses in China
With bus tickets everything is easier. You can simply come to the bus station, name your destination or show a piece of paper with the name, and choose a convenient date and time when asked. Buses go in completely different directions and very often, so you most likely won’t have to wait long for the nearest bus. Prices are tolerable, about the same as in Russia.
How much money should you take with you to China? What can you eat from Chinese cuisine and what should you not? How to avoid getting caught in a tourist scam? And also about the specifics of the Chinese mentality and attitude towards foreigners, read here: What do you need to know when planning a trip to China? Part 2
The purpose of this book is to answer two questions: “How to travel around China on your own without knowing Chinese?” and “Why is China interesting?” The author uses a non-linear way of presenting information, which is familiar to Internet users, allowing him to show China in all its diversity.
* * *
The given introductory fragment of the book A traveler's guide to China (Dmitry Finozhenok, 2015) provided by our book partner - the company liters.
We're traveling around China
How to travel around China on your own
The idea of traveling independently in a country whose language you don’t understand seems pure madness. But if a Chinese peasant from a remote village can easily cope with this, then should a resident of a big city give in? Moreover, China’s transport system is designed for huge passenger flows, and therefore is well thought out and surprisingly passenger-friendly.
According to the visa regime for Russian citizens, the territory of China is divided into two unequal parts: mainland China and special administrative regions (Hong Kong and Macau).
About Mainland China
Formally, this term is not entirely correct: two areas of Hong Kong (Kowloon and New Territories) are located on the mainland.
To visit mainland China, Russians require a visa (the most popular visas are tourist visas for 15 and 30 days), Hong Kong and Macau allow visa-free entry for periods of up to 14 and 30 days, respectively. Remember: when visiting the Special Administrative Region, you are leaving the area covered by your main Chinese visa. Therefore, if Hong Kong or Macau is a stopover point on your trip to China, then you will need a double-entry Chinese visa.
Major international airports in China (Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Chongqing, Dalian, Shenyang, Harbin, Guilin) offer visa-free transit with the ability to enter the city for up to three days. It is important to remember that when applying for a transit visa, electronic tickets in Russian are not considered documents confirming departure.
A tourist visa to China is the only thing that cannot be done without the help of a travel agency. Even if you apply for a visa yourself, you will need an invitation from a Chinese travel agency or hotel. You can do everything else when preparing for the trip yourself.
Route selection
Despite the enormous leap that China has made over the past thirty years, only a small percentage of Chinese speak English and even fewer speak Russian. All a tourist can hope for is globalization. The more modern a Chinese city is, the more friendly it is to foreigners and the easier it is to live in it.
How to recognize a modern city
American sociologist Richard Florida, author of the concept of the creative class, established a direct relationship between the level of tolerance and the innovative potential of a city. The modern city creates an environment open to change, which attracts not only creative people, but also bohemians, migrants, various subcultures and minorities. Therefore, the easiest way to find a modern city is to follow them. If you want to find bohemia, look at night satellite images (the brighter the city shines, the more intense the nightlife); if you want to find geeks, look for Comic-Con venues, etc.
The second limiting factor in choosing a route is climate. Most parts of China are quite hot in summer. Therefore, cities on the east coast are a smart choice, where the proximity of the sea mitigates the heat. It should be remembered that in the very south of China not only tropical downpours are possible, but occasionally typhoons are also possible.
You should also pay attention to the level of air pollution in the cities you plan to visit. Try not to stay long in places where the pollution index exceeds 100 points. Data on air pollution levels are updated daily and are available at http://aqicn.org.
The further you go south, the more diverse and vibrant nature becomes. Anyone who had to return home from the southern resorts remembers the depressing impression of a gray and lifeless city, compared to the south. Therefore, it is better to start your journey from the north of China and move south.
Between cities
In terms of size, China ranks third in the world, its area is only half the size of Russia. However, the country's transport system is built in such a way that almost every corner of the country is separated by a day's travel from the capital.
Cartographic illusion of grandeur
If you look at an ordinary political map of the world, it may seem that four or five Chinas fit on the territory of Russia. But this is just the result of distortions that are inevitable when transferring an image from the surface of a sphere to a plane. The closer to the pole the territory is located, the stronger this effect. For example, China is five times larger than Greenland, but on the map they appear almost identical.
There are two main types of transport: plane and train. The high population density in Southeast Asia allows many low-cost airlines to operate efficiently. Unfortunately, given my height of two meters, an airplane with front seats supporting my knees is not the most comfortable way to travel; I prefer trains, especially since the shelves in them are noticeably longer than Russian ones, and I only have to spend the night once.
CHR (China High-Speed Railroad)
Thirty years ago, the main type of locomotive in China was the steam locomotive. The first high-speed train appeared in China in 2007. Today, the length of high-speed lines (200 km/h and above) is 16 thousand km, which is more than all other countries of the world combined. The next generation of high-speed trains, currently undergoing testing, already accelerates to 500 km/h. Trains have become serious competitors to airplanes and have practically replaced them on short routes (up to 500 km).
Most train numbers in China begin with a letter indicating the train category. There are six main types: C, D, G, K, T, Z. Category K is assigned to fast trains, there is a certain irony in the fact that it is currently one of the slowest trains in China (maximum speed - 120 km/h). Category T stands for express trains, these are the same express trains, but with fewer stops. Category D is intended for high-speed trains, their speed reaches 250 km/h. Categories G and C are assigned to bullet trains, whose maximum speed is 350 km/h. For safety reasons, trains of the last three categories operate only during daylight hours; at night, these tracks are used by category Z trains and luxury night express trains.
Beautiful is far away
If the bullet train ran along the Vladivostok-Moscow route, the travel time would be only 32 hours. Now Russian Railways requires more than six days for this.
Life on wheels
In high-speed trains (D, C, G), as a rule, there are only seats, in night trains of category Z - only compartments. And only fast trains and regular express trains have compartments, reserved seats, and seats.
Access mode
A train ticket is required to enter the platform and exit the station. Do not throw away your tickets until you have left the station building.
The numbering of seats on Chinese trains differs from Russian ones; the shelves on one side of the compartment have the same number. To distinguish them, the type of place is indicated: lower, middle and upper. The third, top bunk is only available in reserved seat carriages. It is located high enough to easily stretch your legs, but since the distance to the ceiling is not great, you literally have to crawl onto it. The lower the shelf is, the more expensive the ticket, so passengers on the lower shelves feel like wealthy people.
This is how the tickets indicate the lower, middle and upper seats, respectively.
When traveling on the train, you are issued a plastic card - a substitute for a ticket. It is your pass to the train if you want to go out for a walk at the stops. If you lose this piece of plastic, you will have to buy your ticket again. Half an hour before the passenger arrives at their destination, replacement cards are collected and tickets returned, so there is no fear of missing your station.
How to find your train
Chinese train stations are designed for huge passenger traffic, so they are easy to navigate. After passing the entrance control, find on the main board the number of the waiting room for your train (if the stations have several waiting rooms), in the waiting room - use the train number to find the exit to the platform. The gates open 20-30 minutes before boarding and the stairs lead only to your platform. If you are not sure of your decision, just show your ticket to any station employee, he will definitely help.
Traveling on a Chinese train is quite pleasant. All long-distance trains are air-conditioned, soft traditional Chinese music creates a calm atmosphere, and large windows allow you to admire the scenery.
It is not necessary to take food with you on the train; carts with hot food regularly travel around the carriage. The food is aimed at the Chinese, but the lunch box contains five or six dishes, of which perhaps three or four will be tasty. You will have to prepare tea and coffee yourself; at the end of the carriage there is a tap with boiling water, and each compartment has a thermos.
Bed linen is not sold on trains; one set of linen is used throughout the entire train route. Therefore, never buy tickets with landing at intermediate stations. The towel is not included in the linen set.
The Chinese produce a lot of garbage, but they clean it up regularly. Every couple of hours the guide cleans up the place, including wet cleaning. If you do not want your suitcases to be walked over with a cloth, do not place them under the seat, use special luggage racks.
In China, you can buy train tickets no earlier than 20 days before the departure date, so when you go on a long trip around this country, you will most likely not have a full set of tickets on hand. How to solve this problem with the least amount of vacation time?
The most comfortable option is to order tickets in advance with delivery to the hotel. The advantages of this approach are obvious: all you have to do is pick up your tickets from the receptionist. The main disadvantage is that delivery only works in large cities. In addition, since you order delivery of the ticket on a date and not a specific time, you will have to stay at a hotel for at least two nights. Of the several delivery ticket services I've used, http://www.chinatripadvisor.com left the best impression.
One country, one time
Since 1949, the entire territory of China (except for the autonomous regions of Xinjiang and Tibet) has had a single time, GMT +8. This greatly simplifies travel planning, but the further you go east, the more daylight hours shift. In summer in Shanghai, the sun sets at seven in the evening.
If your trip lies far from big cities or if you simply don’t want to waste a day in a certain city, you can pre-order the purchase of an electronic ticket, for example, through http://www.china-diy-travel.com. All you receive is your reservation number. After printing out the document sent to you, you go to the station and receive a regular ticket at a special ticket office. If you need help finding this ticket office, find any station employee and just show him your printout, he will tell you where to go - tested from my own experience.
End of introductory fragment.
