Viking China

[voljo]

Hello to all! Just found this incredible treasure trove of information, thanks to a member, only a few weeks before our trip on the Century Sky from Beijing to Shanghai with Guilin and Hong Kong added. We are so excited! We've read so many books--from fiction to history--that our heads are crammed full of facts, and I've even tried to learn to speak some Mandarin. The Chinese will probably laugh hysterically if I try more than ni hao or xia xia! We appreciate so much all of the information and experiences people have shared. Jerry's photo of the special adapter plug needed was exactly what I needed to see, for instance. Thank you, Jerry! Is anyone on the list going on this tour in July?

 

Jo

[Daisy R]

Hi,

 

This is my first time getting involved in a message board. My family and I are leaving on July 2 out of San Francisco for a China trip. I have read the message boards, and have accumulated quite a few tips. I want to thank all of you, and hopefully, I'll be able to make some suggestions for those planning on future trips.

Daisy R

[travelsfun]

Returned yesterday from our wonderful journey to China on Imperial Jewels itinerary from Shanghai to Beijing. It was all I expected, and more! Thanks again to WIT,Jerry and all of the others of you who helped prepare me for this fantastic adventure! For the "newbies" on this board who are now planning trips, I will be more than happy to answer any questions you might have. Be prepared for heat and humidity, non-stop activities, very little free time, endless Chinese meals (which I loved), top-notch hotels,miles and miles of walking (including many many steps), vendors who pay no attention to "boo-shay" (far more aggressive than Turkey or Mexico), trying to bargain for everything you buy (I hated this),learning so much from the great escorts and local tour guides and exciting new experiences! Viking handled everything effeciently from the momemt we landed until the escort

left us in front of the airport. You will not be disappointed in this trip!

 

Dorothy

[coasters]

Hello to all! Just found this incredible treasure trove of information, thanks to a member, only a few weeks before our trip on the Century Sky from Beijing to Shanghai with Guilin and Hong Kong added. We are so excited! We've read so many books--from fiction to history--that our heads are crammed full of facts, and I've even tried to learn to speak some Mandarin. The Chinese will probably laugh hysterically if I try more than ni hao or xia xia! We appreciate so much all of the information and experiences people have shared. Jerry's photo of the special adapter plug needed was exactly what I needed to see, for instance. Thank you, Jerry! Is anyone on the list going on this tour in July?

 

Jo

 

Jo, You're very welcome..

consider packing a short electrical extension cord that has a few outlets on it's end so you can connect several devices to the ONE - 110V outlet on the ship and in the hotels. It came in handy for me.

Jerry

[how]

Dorothy: Perhaps had you used "bull yao" instead of "boo shay", the vendors would have disappeared... but most likely NOT!

[cliffdweller]

Bobbie,

 

That's great about lunch. I had an email from Judi - she said Nancy was in the process of moving to the beach for the summer so after July 23 would work best for her. Unfortunately - or fortunately - I'll be on a HAL cruise then and won't be back until the 11th of Aug.

 

We'll get it figured out - I am looking forward to meeting you - probably be in China - then we'll plan lunch with Judi and Nancy.

 

Pat

[twototravel]

Hello to all! Just found this incredible treasure trove of information, thanks to a member, only a few weeks before our trip on the Century Sky from Beijing to Shanghai with Guilin and Hong Kong added. We are so excited! We've read so many books--from fiction to history--that our heads are crammed full of facts, and I've even tried to learn to speak some Mandarin. The Chinese will probably laugh hysterically if I try more than ni hao or xia xia! We appreciate so much all of the information and experiences people have shared. Jerry's photo of the special adapter plug needed was exactly what I needed to see, for instance. Thank you, Jerry! Is anyone on the list going on this tour in July?

 

Jo

 

Jo,

 

Glad you were able to get here. This is cathyd from Trip Advisor. Don't be shy about using your Chinese. The locals love it. You'll get basic lessons from the tour escorts and the wait staff on the ship. As you'll find out, it's all in the tones. Each sound has four meanings. Some phrases we memorized that came in handy:

 

Nee How -- Hello

Nee How Ma -- How are you?

Ding Ding How -- Very, very good

Ha Ha Gin -- See you later

Boo yao -- No, I do not need it (great to say to the vendors)

Boo Xia -- You're Welcome

Xia Xia -- Thank you

Zigh Ge-in -- Good Bye

Pee-ge-oh -- Beer

E Ping pee-ge-oh -- Bottled Beer

 

Cathy

[Osnab]

OK, a few more things....

 

Cell Phones: We took our Verizon digital phones with ibnternational roaming activated, and in most places they worked beautifully. It was only 69 cents a minute , and even though Don had an office emergency, we only ran up charges of about $20 or so.

 

 

How did you charge your phone?

I read on here earlier that all VRC hotels & the ship have 110v outlets, so I don't understand why people need to bring adapters & converters.

Felicia

[Osnab]

Felicia,

 

The left side has steps and some steep areas with little ridges to give you something to step on. There are railings on both sides; generally going up people keep to the right side, going down the left. Steps are uneven and get a bit hard if you have short legs.

Cathy

 

 

Cathy:

Thanks for the information on the wall. I have short legs and can't do much to change that between now & 9/15/07!

I'm striving to work on the # of steps I'll surely encounter. Made it up to 6 flights on the stairmaster today, but want to get up to 10 without having to alert the paramedics. <G>

Felicia

[Osnab]

Jo,

. Some phrases we memorized that came in handy:

 

Nee How -- Hello

Nee How Ma -- How are you?

Ding Ding How -- Very, very good

Ha Ha Gin -- See you later

Boo yao -- No, I do not need it (great to say to the vendors)

Boo Xia -- You're Welcome

Xia Xia -- Thank you

Zigh Ge-in -- Good Bye

Pee-ge-oh -- Beer

E Ping pee-ge-oh -- Bottled Beer

 

Cathy

 

Cathy, this is great! I've been looking for something like this. What about "do you speak English?" or "I don't speak Chinese." or "I'm sorry."

Felicia

[coasters]

How did you charge your phone?

I read on here earlier that all VRC hotels & the ship have 110v outlets, so I don't understand why people need to bring adapters & converters.

Felicia

Felicia

On the ship... Bring a plug adapter if your power cords have a polarized blade (too large to fit) also, bring a short extension cord with multiple outlets to charge more than 1 device at a time as there’s only one 110V outlet used for "charging". Also, check if your AC charger can use 110 or 220V, most newer electronic chargers can handle both. If so, bring a simple plug converter (not transformer) just for convenience of where you put your phone or computer. I personally would not to leave my computer charging in the bathroom (near water). I kept mine connected at the desk, using a plug converter with the 220V outlet nearest.

Jerry

[coasters]

This image should help to understand the configuration of the 220V electrical outlets on the Viking Century Sun and what plug adapter/s you might want to bring if your devices can use 220V.

http://glevitz.com/ebayimages/shipoutlet220.JPG

Jerry

[Orca View]

Hello Spencer, We are also going on the Oct 1 trip from Beijing with some friends from Ohio. Did you ever get a reply as to how the holiday may change any of the plans? We are arriving in the city a few days early to give us some adjustment time. Washington Travelers

[voljo]

Cathy,

 

Thank you for posting the phonetic pronounciation of some very useful words and phrases! I also had found a free website called ZapChinese that offers audio so that you can actually hear the Chinese words pronounced, and it has been fun: http://www.zapchinese.com.

We're still a little confused about money. Definitely we will take at least $150 in ones--that's a great idea. Should we take more in US dollars in other denominations? What else will we need American cash for? Are we wrong in assuming that larger restaurants and shops will take our VISA card? How much should we exchange for yuan when we arrive? Will we use that for shopping primarily? We are also going to Hong Kong, which will involve yet another money exchange. Our trips abroad before never seemed so confusing in terms of money. I have read conflicting advice about travelers' checks, which we really don't like. Do we need them as a back-up?

My husband has a question about shaving: the Viking brochure advises against using the tap water even in the hotel to shave with a razor. What should he do? Heat the bottled water? He has had no success in the past with electric razors so he doesn't want to go that route. Gentlemen, was shaving a problem?

 

Thanks for all your help!

Jo

[WIT]

Cathy,

 

Thank you for posting the phonetic pronounciation of some very useful words and phrases! I also had found a free website called ZapChinese that offers audio so that you can actually hear the Chinese words pronounced, and it has been fun: http://www.zapchinese.com.

We're still a little confused about money. Definitely we will take at least $150 in ones--that's a great idea. Should we take more in US dollars in other denominations? What else will we need American cash for? Are we wrong in assuming that larger restaurants and shops will take our VISA card? How much should we exchange for yuan when we arrive? Will we use that for shopping primarily? We are also going to Hong Kong, which will involve yet another money exchange. Our trips abroad before never seemed so confusing in terms of money. I have read conflicting advice about travelers' checks, which we really don't like. Do we need them as a back-up?

My husband has a question about shaving: the Viking brochure advises against using the tap water even in the hotel to shave with a razor. What should he do? Heat the bottled water? He has had no success in the past with electric razors so he doesn't want to go that route. Gentlemen, was shaving a problem?

 

Thanks for all your help!

Jo

Jo - The US singles are handy for tipping the daily guide and driver. On our CD tour last April we tipped the guide 2 US pp amd the driver 1 US pp. That's $6 US per day x 20 days = $120 US.

 

I shaved with hotel and Century Sun water with no bad result. Just do not brush your teeth with tap water. We brought small paper cups - they worked great.

WIT

[coasters]

Cathy,

 

Thank you for posting the phonetic pronounciation of some very useful words and phrases! I also had found a free website called ZapChinese that offers audio so that you can actually hear the Chinese words pronounced, and it has been fun: http://www.zapchinese.com.

We're still a little confused about money. Definitely we will take at least $150 in ones--that's a great idea. Should we take more in US dollars in other denominations? What else will we need American cash for? Are we wrong in assuming that larger restaurants and shops will take our VISA card? How much should we exchange for yuan when we arrive? Will we use that for shopping primarily? We are also going to Hong Kong, which will involve yet another money exchange. Our trips abroad before never seemed so confusing in terms of money. I have read conflicting advice about travelers' checks, which we really don't like. Do we need them as a back-up?

My husband has a question about shaving: the Viking brochure advises against using the tap water even in the hotel to shave with a razor. What should he do? Heat the bottled water? He has had no success in the past with electric razors so he doesn't want to go that route. Gentlemen, was shaving a problem?

 

Thanks for all your help!

Jo

 

Jo,

We brought about $500.00 in US currency, most in one dollar bills. Used for souvenirs, street purchases and water on the tour busses. Never had anyone refuse US dollars. Obviously how many dollars you decide to bring, depends on what you expect to spend. Using your US dollars eliminates the risk of vendors exchanging your larger yuan bills with counterfeit change.

Major credit cards were accepted at the hotels, nationally known restaurants (Outback, Starbucks, Ruths Chris, etc.) and on board the ship. The ship DOES NOT accept Diners club cards.

Travelers checks can be cashed at the hotel you stay at for the local currency. They are not as easily cashed as you might have come to expect in other countries.

Before departing on the trip, as members of AMEX, we exchanged US dollars through American Express for Chinese yuan. If you are cardholders, there is NO CHARGE for the service, the only fee is for delivery of the funds. (Postal, fedex etc.) You can avoid the delivery fee if are close enough to visit an AMEX office that offers the currency exchange service.

Shaving...

I personally find shaving while showering works best for me and did so while in China without a problem. I did not use bottled or boiled water to shave, nor did I have any health problems while in China.

Jerry

[twototravel]

Cathy,

 

Thank you for posting the phonetic pronounciation of some very useful words and phrases! I also had found a free website called ZapChinese that offers audio so that you can actually hear the Chinese words pronounced, and it has been fun: http://www.zapchinese.com.

We're still a little confused about money. Definitely we will take at least $150 in ones--that's a great idea. Should we take more in US dollars in other denominations? What else will we need American cash for? Are we wrong in assuming that larger restaurants and shops will take our VISA card? How much should we exchange for yuan when we arrive? Will we use that for shopping primarily? We are also going to Hong Kong, which will involve yet another money exchange. Our trips abroad before never seemed so confusing in terms of money. I have read conflicting advice about travelers' checks, which we really don't like. Do we need them as a back-up?

My husband has a question about shaving: the Viking brochure advises against using the tap water even in the hotel to shave with a razor. What should he do? Heat the bottled water? He has had no success in the past with electric razors so he doesn't want to go that route. Gentlemen, was shaving a problem?

 

Thanks for all your help!

Jo

 

Jo,

 

Another phrase that you definitely need to memorize is Tie-gway. It means Too Much. No matter what price the vendors start with, say Tie-gway. They will get a big quick out of it, and then most likely ask you how much you want to spend, or hand you a calculator.

 

Other than buying small purchases with the dollar bills, we used them for buying water on the buses, and tipping the bus drivers and local tour guides each day. You may want a few $20 or so to tip your tour escort at the end of the trip -- they don't get a salary from Viking -- only the tips. Fo the ship portion, you can either add your tips on your bill and pay by credit card, or pay with Chinese money, or American dollars; they will take anything. My personal opinion is forget traveler's checks. We felt perfectly safe carrying cash around -- there is a safe in every room that you stay in.

 

Most of the larger stores/factories that you will be stopping at will take credit - VISA. We only initially exchanged about $50 dollars for Yuan and found that was plenty. It is really your preference on what you want to spend while in country.

 

My husband brought disposable razors and traveling size cans of shaving cream. He used the tap water for the little that he used to rinse the razor. We both used the bottled water to brush our teeth. You probably ingest more of the local water taking a shower.

 

Cathy

[coasters]

Jo,

 

just to avoid confusion about tipping ...

Each day, with only few exceptions, we had a different bus driver and local guide who specialized in the venue and route we were to visit. We tipped them daily using US dollar bills.

 

our Viking "escort" was with us 24/7 from beginning to end of the Cultural Delight program. The recommended gratuity for the "escort" is $3 - $5.00 per person, per day.

We felt that our escort did such a fine job, that we added to the recommendation, (as did most other couples we spoke with) and presented him with an envelope at the end of the 17 days.

Jerry

[cliffdweller]

Bobbie,

 

Wanted to get back to you about lunch with Judi and Nancy. I let them know I am pretty much out of the country until the middle of Sept. so we are going to try to set something for the end of Sept. or October. We can chat more in China!!!

 

Pat

[spencer_davis]

Orca View,

 

Hi! Look forward to meeting you. Yes, I got a somewhat vague answer from Viking that the Oct 1 holiday will make things much more active and crowded (especially in Shanghai), but that Viking will adapt as necessary and they reassured me that even if they have to rearrange the sequence of a few things we will see everything listed.

 

I have read that in modern times the holiday lasts for about 3 days.....traditionally it lasted for one week.

 

The upside of this is that we will see China in FULL holiday.......something I think we WILL remember.

 

Spencer

[DDawson]

I posted this in the port message boards, but figured I would mention it here as well. The info below was taken directly from the Chinese Embassy web page. For those of us who can make it into an embassy, I can change my plans, get into the embassy before August and save some money. For most who have to use a visa service or who's trip is more than 3 months away, you will just have deal with the higher prices. Oh well, it's only money right?

*************************************************

 

Please be noted that, starting from August 1, 2007, a new visa fee schedule will be applied to U.S. citizens who wish to travel to China.

 

1. A flat visa fee of $100 per visa will be charged for U.S. passport holders who request regular service.

 

2. A flat visa fee of $80 per visa will be charged for group visa applicants of U.S. nationality.

 

3. Additional rush service fee ($30 for same day rush or $20 for second business day rush) will be charged to all applicants (regardless of their nationalities) who request rush service.

 

4. For citizens other than the U.S., the fee schedule remains unchanged.

[happytotravel]

Hi Folks, :)

 

Those of you who took a converter and adapter with you and used it for your laptop computer and to recharge your camera batteries can you tell what brand converter you purchased?

 

I tried to buy a converter and adapter kit at Zellers in Canada by mapleleaftravel which went up to 1650 watts BUT it indicated that this should not be used with electronics like computers and battery rechargers. Their website is www.mapleleaftravel.ca

 

The other brand I saw was by Conair. That went up to 1850 watts. The package didn't indicate not to use it with electronics but when I looked it up on their website, www.conair.com, it did.

 

Help! I'm confused. Our trip is at the end of August and I need to get things together.

 

Thanks for your help, :) :)

happytotravel

[coasters]

Hi Folks, :)

 

Those of you who took a converter and adapter with you and used it for your laptop computer and to recharge your camera batteries can you tell what brand converter you purchased?

 

I tried to buy a converter and adapter kit at Zellers in Canada by mapleleaftravel which went up to 1650 watts BUT it indicated that this should not be used with electronics like computers and battery rechargers. Their website is www.mapleleaftravel.ca

 

The other brand I saw was by Conair. That went up to 1850 watts. The package didn't indicate not to use it with electronics but when I looked it up on their website, www.conair.com, it did.

 

 

Help! I'm confused. Our trip is at the end of August and I need to get things together.

 

Thanks for your help, :) :)

happytotravel

-----------------

Happytotravel...

before you spend a penny.... BE SURE TO CHECK the AC adapter that came with your computer and battery charger.

More likely (than not) that they can be used internationally, with 220V or 110V.

If I am correct, than all you need is a plug adapter.

Look at my previous posts to see what they look like and suggestions regarding what to bring.

Please let me know what you find.

Jerry

[couchking]

Just got flight Itinerary. Leaving Oct.6th on Imperial Jewels of China from Newark. Was hoping for United since I read about the Coach plus upgrade. The flights I got was Air Canada, leaving Newark at 6:20 am and about a 2 hour layover in Toronto and then to Shanghi.On the way back leaving from Bejing at around 5:30 pm about a 2 hour layover in Toronto and then off to Newark.

Has anyone flown Air Canada to China? How was it?

Thanks for any info. Anyone on this trip?

[travelsfun]

Just back from that trip (not on Air Canada, however). Will be happy to answer any questions you might have. It was a great trip and very busy!

Dorothy