Robsons-Adventures_China Outline

The vast country of China where a quarter of the world's population lives has for a number of years been open to specialist tour companies, but in recent years has been opening up much more to the west and now you can even go for weekend breaks. This fascinating country has so much to offer, attracting visitors to see archaeological treasures, architectural masterpieces, stunning natural beauty and the inexhaustible variety of its people and ever since my tour, I have always wanted to go back. I do know some people who just keep on returning for more!

A down side to visiting China, is that you must obtain a visa beforehand and it will cost you upwards of £50, the Embassy in the UK doesn't accept application from individuals and you must use a recognised visa service; for example orientaltravel.co.uk or visitchina.co.uk

Money Matters - the currency is the Renminbi (meaning 'peoples money') and is abbreviated to Rmb, however, the standard unit is the yuan, which is what most people will talk about when shopping; it is so much yuan! You can now buy Rmb in the UK (try Travelex) but strictly speaking you can only take up to 6,000 Rmb out of China and convert, but it is really best to convert before you leave. There is no limit on the amount of money you can take into China. Although Hong Kong is governed by China it has a completely different currency and rules, see my Hong Kong pages.

Climate - due to the vast size of this country, the climate varies considerably from North to South and East to West. In simple terms the North gets cold dry winters and long hot summers, with spring and autumn tending to be the best times to visit. The South is a subtropical climate, with long hot summers and short mild winters, but typhoons can occur from June through October. The more central belt has long hot and humid summers and short cool winters, with again spring and autumn being the best times to visit, however, typhoons can sometimes affect the East coast through June to October.

Getting to China and around the country is easy and after years of a terrible safety record Chinese airlines are now efficient, comfortable and have a good safety record. Most of the airlines that get you from city to city now operate modern aircraft. One comical observation about some of the smaller regional airports, was that your luggage could come out on any belt or even better a mixture of belts! However, the like of Shanghai's Pu Dong Airport will impress and put many of the UK airports to shame. Unfortunately I cannot comment on trains, buses or the new monorail as I didn't use these.

Eating, all I will say about this is that if you love Chinese food you will be in heaven and I prefer the Sichuan region, as for me this had much more flavour and spicier, however, I am ashamed to say that by the end of my holiday I was desperate for some western food and even went for a McDonalds.

Shopping - Spend, Spend, Spend, but don't forget to barter! Bargains can be found in most purchases and I would recommend pure silk quilts at a fraction of the price you would pay in the UK. There is a tendency to buy wherever you go and forget that you have a baggage allowance, but it is worth purchasing some cloisonné ware as well as silk and don't forget your tea, but may not be as cheap as you may think for that. You pay for quality tea!