Vantage travel

[rosey1946]

Anyone with experience using Vantage Travel in China? I'm looking at a trip for 2010 and I know they use Victoria cruise line. I'm a bit nervous as I hear the pace is exhausting, 5 flights in China and then there is the flu.

Any ideas would be appreciated.

[npphotog]

Hello from Florida - Wife and I have done three trips with Vantage. Very pleased. A trip to China should not be missed. One of the best tours we have done. It is a very long plane ride. We went from Tampa to Chicago and then straight through to Beijing. We had a very good tour guide. Great food. So much to see. Five inter flights in China - from one hour to one and a half hours. On all flights we were served a hot meal. Everything went very smooth. No problems. River boat experience was really neat. Very nice staff. The staff put on a program during the cruise. Fantastic. Check out my photos from China

 

http://s191.photobucket.com/albums/z210/1Willard/

 

One point is that these photos were loaded backward and it starts at the end of the trip in Hong Kong. Sorry. Willard

[no fuss travel]

The land portion of the trips is exhausting. The river cruise portion is slower and more relaxing. If you are going I really recommend arriving one or two days earlier to adjust to the time change. That makes it easier on you.

[robthens]

Anyone with experience using Vantage Travel in China? I'm looking at a trip for 2010 and I know they use Victoria cruise line. I'm a bit nervous as I hear the pace is exhausting, 5 flights in China and then there is the flu.

Any ideas would be appreciated.

 

September 5th we leave for Russia with Vantage. It will be our 6th trip with them. We have always had great tour guides, top of the line accomodations and excellent food with them.

 

Through our years of travel (on our own, cruises, land travel & organized tours) China has been our favorite trip. We did not find the pace exhausting.

 

The flights on China air are amazing (food, service....it is an honor to work for the airlines in China). As a previous post said food service on every meal....even a 45 minute flight. Actually, we found the service amazing every where we went. It is still an honor to serve in China.

 

Re: the "flu"........avoid salads (including fruit)and street food. Drink only bottled water (which will be provided for you) This also includes brushing your teeth with bottled water. If you do get sick, tell your project manager immediately. They have Chinese medicine that will "nip it in the bud" LOL

 

I strongly recommend (for any trip) taking Probiotic pills before you leave and during your trip. We learned about this on the China trip.

 

Glad to answer any questions

Robthens aka Jackie

[rosey1946]

Thank you all for responding. This is so very helpful to me as I must decide about this trip this week. I have wanted to go to China forever. My sister, who I will travel with went on a Vantage river cruise in Europe and does not want to do China with any other company.

Robthens, what are probiotic pills and do I get them from my doctor? I intend to go to a clinic we have here on LI to deal with any innoculations I may need. They specialize in international travel.

Linda

[rosey1946]

Willard-Thank you so much for your pictures of your China Vantage tour. They really gave me a flavor of what to expect and it looks as though you had a wonderful time.

Thank you for sharing this with me.

[npphotog]

Rosey - Our doctor gave us Ciprofloxacin to take along. Do NOT drink the tap water or even use tap water to brush your teeth. Both on the ship and the hotels. They will give you bottled water but make sure it has not been opened. And do not try anything cooked on the street, no matter how good it looks. If you take a digital camera along, take a lot of memory cards...I would go back to China tomorrow if I could. Hope you make the trip. Willard

[robthens]

Robthens, what are probiotic pills and do I get them from my doctor? I intend to go to a clinic we have here on LI to deal with any innoculations I may need. They specialize in international travel.

Linda

 

Probiotics work in the lower intestine to promote better digestion. You can purchase them over the counter at CVS, Walgreens (haven't seen them @ Walmart. Walmart carries Acidophilus, but that only helps in the stomach.

You can also buy them online. They are about $20 a bottle.