Beijing Tour China Beijing Tours

Is tipping a common practice in China?

Yes, tipping for tour guides and drivers in recognition of their good service has become a common practice. Hotel bellboys and house keepers expect your tips as well. It is not customary to leave tips at hotel or local restaurants as the bill usually includes 10-15% service charge.

Does the quotation you offer include tipping?

No, the quotation we offer does not include tipping as tipping is a personal matter.

If we have lots of free time and don't want to stay in the hotels, what can we do?

If you have lots of free time and don’t want to stay in the hotels, you can:

1) Get a map of the city or area and the card of the hotel and the mobile phone of your
guide, go and explore the city or area by yourselves.

2) You can join in the optional tours offered by us and our tour guides in each city or area.

Will your guide accompany us throughout the tour?

If you think it is necessary for you to have a Chinese national guide accompanying you from one city to another until your tour is finished within China, we can always make the arrangement for that - with an extra cost of course.

How can I know who will be my tour guide when I arrive at airport or railway station?

Our guide will meet you at arriving gate of each airport or railway station by holding a board /a piece of paper with your name on it, so it will be very easy for you to recognize our guide when you arrive.

Can we get a tour guide who can speak our language?

Most of our tour guides speak English which is the first foreign language in China, and we also have guides speaking other foreign languages such as German, French, Spanish, Japanese, Italian and etc. When you book the tour, please let us know if you have special language requirement so that we can try to make the arrangement to meet your need.

What about your tour guides?

The tourism In China has been booming since China opened to the world almost 30 years ago, so do the professional staff working in tourism. Now, all over China we have tens of thousands of trained and licensed tour guides. There is a nationwide examination for qualified tour guides once a year, only those who pass the examination will be certificated by the national tourism administration and be able to work in this field.

Our guides are friendly, knowledgeable and experienced; they are the experts in communicating with people and organizing your tour well by dealing with all the unexpected situations and difficulties.

Do I need tour guides when traveling in China?

If it is the first for you to come and travel in China or the first time to visit new areas, we suggest that you have tour guides, because without tour guides, you are on your own, while our guides are professional and experts in local areas, who can give you more information and knowledge about the places you are going to visit.

How about the taxi in China?

In most cities in China, there are quite a lot taxis available, which are cars painted either in red or yellow or green. Taxi fares may vary from city to city but they are supposed to be marked on the taxi window, and the taxi drivers are supposed to use taximeter when you get on the taxi.

Most taxi drivers do not understand English, it is better for you to have your destinations written down in Chinese so that you can show the address to the taxi driver, and don’t forget to ask for a receipt or remember the number of the taxi in case you leave something in the taxi.

What is the train travel like in China?

For the last few years, the Chinese government has made great efforts on improving the standard of the train travel within China, so the train travel is not so bad nowadays, only you need to avoid the period of Chinese New Year, April 30th to May 7th, September 30th to October 7th, and the beginning & the end of summer or winter vacation, when it will be very crowded at the railway station and on the train.

Usually, Chinese trains carry four classes of accommodation, namely, soft-sleeper, soft-seat, hard-sleeper and hard-seat (the more important inter-city trains just provide soft class seats, e.g. the train going between Shanghai and Suzhou). And the facilities on the train are like: soft sleepers have comfortable 4-berth (2 upper &2 lower) compartments with full bedding provided. Hard sleepers provide bunks in open-plan dormitory cars, usually arranged in bays of 6 (2 upper, 2 middle and 2 lower) on one side of the aisle, with pairs of seats on the other side of the aisle for daytime use. Each compartment has two washrooms at both ends of it, which is about 1 square meter large, with a separate room beside it for you to clean your hands and face. Hot water will be provided from water boilers at both ends of compartment free of charge. Meals and drinks can be purchased in the train's restaurant carriage which is in the middle of the train, and the staff may sell things like drinks, books, meal boxes etc. from one compartment to another with pushcart.

Though train travel within China may be fun, interesting and very unusual; you still need to pay attention to the following facts, especially if it is the first time for you to travel in China:

1) The railway stations and trains will be crowded; they will be very crowded during the special occasions we mention above and if the trains go between important cities.

2) The broadcast of each stop along the way will be in Chinese, at present, very few trains can provide broadcast in English.

3) The interval time of stopping at each station differs from one station to another and from 3 minute to 15 minutes, time is very tight for passengers get on and off the train. Please give yourself enough time to prepare for getting on and off.

4) Toilets on the train are not that clean and not big, which will be locked before the train pulls in a station and reopened after the start-up.

I have booked a private tour, but why bus transfers were provided during my tour?

"Private tour" indicates that you will have private car/van/bus, guide and driver at your service when sightseeing in each city or place. It does not include Private transportation between cities or places, instead flights, train, ships or local buses for in-land transportation for either Group tour or Private tour will be used.

For example, if your take a Yangtze River Cruise from Chongqing to Yichang, then you may need to take a bus to Wuhan from Yichang. In Yichang and Wuhan, we can arrange private transfers (to get you from the boat and send you to the bus station in Yichang; and to get you in the bus station and send you to the airport in Wuhan.) But the bus taking you from Yichang to Wuhan is a public bus with other pessengers.

What kind of vehicles that we are going to use during our tour?

If you book a private package from us, private car/van/bus with air-condition and cushioned seats will be provided for you according to the number of your group, for the groups over 8 pax, a luggage truck will be also provided.

What is the airport tax in China?

Airport tax or airport construction fee is of 50 yuan (about US$6) for the domestic flights.
International Departure Tax (even flying to Hong Kong or Macau) is 90 yuan (about US$11). Since September 1st, 2004, the airport tax has been pre-charged with the air ticket, so our quotation will include the airport tax if the domestic flight booking is involved.

What are the luggage regulations when we take domestic flights in China?

The luggage regulations when take domestic flights in China are:

1) For the check-in luggage, passengers holding an adult fare or half fare ticket are entitled to a free baggage allowance of 40kg (88 pounds) for first class, and 30kg (66pounds) for business class, while20kg (44 pounds) for economy class. No free baggage allowance is granted to infants. If your luggage is over the limitation, you will need to pay for the excess weight, and some of the airports in China are quite strict with this.

Tip for this: If you are traveling together in group more than 1 people, you can use your allowance together, for example, if you have 35kg, your friend have only 5kg, it will be fine as long as you two check in together. This method also applies to 3, 4, 5 or even more people within one group, as long as you are checking in at the same time over the airport counter.

2) For the carry-on luggage, total weight of carry-on baggage for each passenger may not exceed 5kg (11 pounds). First class passengers may carry up to 2 pieces. All other passengers may carry on only one piece. The size may not exceed 20x40x55cm. Carry- on baggage in excess of the limit is subject to an excess baggage fee and must be carried as checked baggage.

Note:

1) Articles which cannot be taken as baggage: flammable, explosive, corrosive, poisonous, radioactive, polymerizable and magnetized materials, and arms, sharp or lethal weapons as well.

2) Articles which cannot be packed in the checked baggage : important documents, classified materials, diplomatic mail bags, negotiable securities, currencies, money orders, valuables, vulnerable perishables and articles and other articles needed in the special custody of somebody. The carrier will not be liable for the loss of or damage to the aforementioned.

3) Articles which should be put in check-in baggage: knife, scissors and bottled or tinned alcohol/ wine.

4) The checked baggage should be packed perfectly with a lock, toed up solidly and be able to withstand pressure to a reasonable extent. Carriers may refuse to accept for carriage if the baggage packing does not meet to the requirements.

5) The carrier will be liable to compensate for the loss of or damage to the checked baggage due to the carrier's fault. The norm of compensation shall not exceed RMB 50 yuan per kg. If the value of the baggage is less than RMB 50 yuan per kg, the amount of compensation shall be paid according to its actual value of the loss.

6) A passenger may declare the value of his baggage if the value of his checked baggage exceeds RMB 50 yuan per kg. Baggage declared value can not exceed the value of the current baggage. The maximum baggage declared value is RMB 8,000 yuan.

7) Passengers and their baggage (including checked and carry-on baggage) are subject to the security inspection before boarding the aircraft.