Cruising the Yangtze

[Spikesgirl]

Has anyone out there done this? Any feedback would be really appreciated as to the condition of the boat and general overall feel. Thanks in advance!

 

Charlie

[pc21214]

Hi Charlie

 

We did the Yangtze river cruise in 1997 before they were supposed to flood the 3 gorges. We were on a rather small ship, the Princess Sheena. It was so long ago, my memory is a little hazy but I do remember that because there weren't too many passengers basically everyone did the same shore excursion. I remember we had a picnic in Shenong Stream one lunch and we visited the "ghost city" of Fengdu where we took a cable car up a hill to a temple. We could also see ancient mummified bodies hanging from the mountains that border the river. The highlight of course was cruising through the three gorges.

The ship definitely does not compare to the Royal Carribean ships I've been on. The room we had was tiny. There was only one dining room and the food wasn't good. However, the experience of cruising the Yangtze was wonderful. It was only like 3 nights so the accomodations are bearable for what you see in return. Don't know how things have changed in the 9 years since but last I checked the Princess Sheena is still doing Yangtze cruises.

Hope this helps.

[Spikesgirl]

Ooo, let's hope they gotten stuff changed around a little bit. We have friends that are taking the river cruise the month before with Viking. I'm hoping to draw upon their expereinces too. Thank you so much for the info and I am especially looking forward to Fengdu. A question - and this might seem a bit strange - I'm having back surgery in a couple of weeks - how much climbing was part of this trip? The surgeon thinks that stairs will be my greatest challenge on the trip. We don't go on the Yangtze until August, but it's still a concern.

 

Thanks!

 

Charlie

[greatam]

We took the Yangtze cruise in October 2005. Princess Jeannie, Regal China cruises-one of only two cruise lines who are now cruising all the way to Wuhan. Most of the others stop in Yichang and you are bussed 4-5 hours to Wuhan. Didn't sound like a lot of fun and I wanted to spend more time at the dam, so we specifically booked this ship. There are newer ships, but they all stop in Yichang.

 

The cabins are VERY small. When we boarded in Chonqing, we took one look at the cabin and were shocked. We were immediately offered an upgrade to a suite for $900.00. We took it. So glad we did.

 

The dining was all buffet, but it was pretty good. If you like Chinese food (I don't) there was a lot to eat and everyone said it was very good. They were lacking on really great Western foods, but I certainly never went hungry. One thing I really liked-they always had iced tea. Drinks were reasonably price-beer was $3.00, mixed drinks were in the $3-5.00 range.

 

The cruise itself was fascinating. Very peaceful. The Yangtze is really dirty-not just from mud and silt. There were ALWAYS flip flops floating in the river, along with other assorted trash. Lots of shoals and you will see ships that have been grounded in the river.

 

One thing that really upset me-they take you on an excursion up Shennong stream. You are going UPRIVER and you are in non-motorized craft. When the water gets shallow, they have what they call "trackers" pull the boats with ropes upstream. These guys worked their b***ts off. When we got to the end, where they turn the boats around, there were these guys standing there, all dressed in "mob" suits and dark glasses and some packing weapons. It almost looked like forced labor to me. They were yelling at the trackers and seemed horribly cruel. When I inquired after we got back to the ship, I was told they were there for security???? Security from what-you were in the middle of nowhere, with lots of people around from the other boats, in one of the safest countries in the world. I guess it is a matter of perception, but it looked more like forced labor to me.

 

If you want to go to the temple, there are a LOT of stairs. We did not go, but our tablemates did. They said it was exhausting to climb all the stairs. But they were happy they did. We just walked around the little town and took pictures. There was a group with an organized tour-I can't remember if it was Viking, Tauck, or GCT, but they went on a completely different excursion-to a local house and to visit some religious sites. Their tour sounded very interesting, but it was only open to those on the organized tour.

 

Be prepared for a LOT of pollution, although it is better than in Beijing. There are coal mines and factories which run on coal all along the river. There is also a bridge-newly built, in the middle of nowhere. There is no town, nothing around it. Bicycles, pedestrians, and ox carts are the only thing on it-no cars. They built the bridge in anticipation of moving all the people for the dam, but they had not built the town yet. I thought it was very unusual to have a huge bridge in the middle of nowhere, so went to the aft deck to take a picture AFTER we went under the bridge. We were NO more than 2 ship lengths away from the bridge and you could barely make it out. I was astounded.

 

Also, the town where the dam is planted 1997 trees in 1997 to commemorate the start of building the dam. The trees are dying-you can visibly see the damage acid rain has done to them.

 

When you board the ship in Chonqing, you are on a dirt road, with fairly steep steps going down to the ship. Do not expect amenities as on an American cruise ship. The docks are all old and rickety at every stop, but I thought it was half the fun. A lot of people complained. If you are on an organized tour, they will take care of your luggage. We were not, but had hired a driver to get us to the ship, so he handled the luggage to the bottom of the stairs.

 

The locks and the dam were the main reason for our trip. My father was an electrical engineer who specialized in hydro and nuclear. I had heard about this dam for years, so wanted to see it for myself. I found it fascinating, although a lot of people said it was boring.

 

I would go again in a hot second. I would not take the Shennong Stream excursion. Enjoy!!!

[Spikesgirl]

Thank you so much for all the info. Am a little now about the temple, but we will play it by ear. We have friends going in June, as I said previous, so I will pass your thread on to them as well. They are on Viking, so they might have been food (i.e. sit down instead of buffet), but we are pretty easy to please. We love Chinese, so I wasn't worried and now even more happy with our decision (we are going as part of Princess's land tour package).

 

Hmmm, I'll stay on the look out for 'security'

 

Thanks!

 

Charlie