rahrah50

A group of 6 wish to do a Baltic Cruise on Holland America. I just called Holland America and was told they allow smoking in the rooms. Is this true??? I don't want a smelly room for my cruise.... This just seems hard to believe......

While I am not complaining about any of the meals we ate that were provided by Viking, Black Sesame Kitchen is not to be missed. It was one of the highlights of our trip. We did Beijing to Shanghai so I can't help with the time of arrival, but our first night dinner was in the hotel. We did the wine n' dine dinner and should I ever be in Beijing again, I would go to Black Sesame Kitchen in a heartbeat. Be sure to read the directions on how to get to BSK.

Immodium, hand wipes, and cold meds are my top recommendations!!! I just returned 2 weeks ago and this was just the most wonderful trip. Laundry on the ship was great and seemed reasonably priced. Leave anything you absolutely don't "have to have" at home. Think comfort, especially for shoes. Drink lots of water and stay hydrated. The hotels and Viking will give you more bottled water, just call for it.

Enjoy your trip!!!!!!!!!

I am slowly recuperating from our Imperial Jewels of China trip. We had a fabulous trip with great weather. Our guide, Bill, truly made a dream come true. His knowledge of Chinese history added so much to our trip. The only negatives were it was Golden Week in China, which was not Viking's problem and this is a very exhausting trip. I know the Viking information says it is strenuous and they are not kidding, but it was worth it!!!

See you in Beijing Mrs Tiggywinkle!!!!

I am packed and ready to go. Our group is all widowed except my oldest son and his girlfriend. It is so wonderful to be able to continue to travel even though we no longer have a spouse. We are all so thankful for this group of adventurous people. :)

Thanks to everyone for the information for the airport in Beijing. It appears the early flight out of Chicago to San Francisco is no longer flying and Viking changed it to Chicago to Beijing. It really is a good flight plan and all is well.

Regarding Chinese visas - Ten of us sent our applications in within a week of each other. Mine came back in less than 4 weeks. Some took 8 weeks and many phone calls. All were sent thru the Viking recommended agency.

My friend is a new widow and she is a little nervous about the trip. I talked with her today and explained the signs at the airport would be also be in English and to look for the Viking rep. She lands a half hour before we do so if all else fails she can just wait in the baggage area for us. She was feeling better after we talked. It has just been a tough few days worrying about our travel documents and Chinese visas. One of the reasons I pushed for Viking was this thread. Almost every person has posted such wonderful reviews and comments about this trip. Thanks to all the posters who posted such helpful hints and wonderful information!!! I can hardly wait to go to Black Sesame Kitchen, which I would not have known about, except from this thread. A trip to China has been on my bucket list for years and we have a great group of people going so it is all going to work out.........

A week from now our group of 10 will be on our way to Beijing. I am hopeful Viking will rise to the occasion in China as we have had some issues. I realize Viking doesn't run the visa company but two of the people received their passports and visa's on Friday despite sending them in the last week of July. (One of the gals paid for overnight shipping on Thursday so she would not have to wait any longer) Our travel documents arrived on Thursday. Nine days before we leave. One of our group is coming from Michigan and we requested flights that would have us all meet in San Francisco and of course she is flying from Chicago to Beijing by herself. She is upset and frightened. (We did pay for custom air) I am the one who put this together and now I am feeling like I made a mistake.....

No we have not received our travel documents yet. I sure wish they would send the info out a little earlier. Our group of 10 will also be leaving the 29th and have the extra day in Beijing. I hope to go shopping for silk fabric that day.

We are also staying at the Ritz Carlton Financial Street hotel and our reservation at BSK on October 2nd. Small world....

Yes we are on the same trip!!!!

Hi Mrs Tiggywinkle,

I think we are on the same trip!!!!

Since I had a group of 10 I contacted BSK in May. The response was I could make reservations in July. Just email them. They are very responsive and helpful.

I just found a picture of the menu online. It is from 2009 and the Peking duck is 238 renminbi which I believe is about $40.

Hi MsTiggywinkle,

I made our reservations online at the Made in China website. They were very responsive to the emails and that was who told me we needed to preorder if we wanted the Peking Duck dinner. I don't know the cost.

Just an FYI...Made in China has two time slots for dinners. 5:30 to 6:30 and 8:30 to 9:30. The Peking duck dinner needs to be preordered so be sure to contact them ahead of time.

We have a group of 10 going to BSK and I was worried about the same issues and there were 10 of us. We would need several cabs. I emailed the concierge at the hotel and they were most helpful in setting up transportation for us.

It is possible to make reservations online for Made in China. They were great to work with when I set up our reservations for 10 people. The restaurant is in the Grand Hyatt.

My reply was in less than 24 hours. I have emailed again just to confirm etc and again a reply in less than 24 hours.

Thank you caribill. Appreciated the photos too. I will relay the info to our group. Knowing they can do it at their pace will help a lot.

Can anyone provide information regarding how dificult physically the Great Wall will be? Our group is in pretty good shape but a few bad knees, etc. They are concerned it may be too physically challenging.

Thanks

Travel Girl TX Thank you again for wonderful information!!! Several in our group were wondering about laundry cost and I was very interested in the fabrics and tailor.

Thank you Travel Girl TX. After all the problems in Europe, with the flooding, I was feeling a little stressed about our upcoming China trip with Viking. Your post was just what I needed to read!!!!!

Thanks sissabagrama. Your made to order jackets sound fabulous and something I would be interested in. The sandalwood fans sound fabulous too.

I was also concerned about transportation to and from BSK as there are 10 people in our group. Online I found Eastern Beijing Taxi Service and asked for a quote and was pleasantly surprised. $100.00 for to and from the restaurant. Has anyone used this company???