[loz957]

No thanks. A culture that is based on greed and selfishness with no regard for human or animal life is not for me. Tell me what kind of nation skins 2 millions cats and dogs alive each year for fur? What kind of authorities abort baby's by beating the womans stomach with iron bars for breaching the one child policy? It scares me just how powerful China is when they are such a barbaric nation.

[Clarky-x]

(Original post by carpe diem 123)
Nice one cheers! How about getting around China? Are trains expensive?

I'm going on a funded programme so won't be travelling around much as I'll be in Shanghai for a 3 weeks with a few pre-organised day trips in that time so I don't really know much about the trains. But once the 3 weeks is up though I'll be taking the train to Beijing for a few days, I'm not sure which train I'll take yet, I've only briefly looked into it but they seem to be around £30-50 one-way, the price is dependent on the time of day you travel and the grade of train that you take (the new and faster trains being the most expensive).

[Kiss]

Already done so, might make a return some day.

[Aaron_xyz]

(Original post by loz957)
No thanks. A culture that is based on greed and selfishness with no regard for human or animal life is not for me. Tell me what kind of nation skins 2 millions cats and dogs alive each year for fur? What kind of authorities abort baby's by beating the womans stomach with iron bars for breaching the one child policy? It scares me just how powerful China is when they are such a barbaric nation.

I can assume the Daily Mail is your favourite newspaper.

Edit: I was going to write a follow-up telling you to be more open-minded and less emotional, but the fact that you generalise the biggest country in the world, with over a billion people when you've never actually been there, already says a lot about you, along with the fact that you use a very select few stories on forced abortion and animal abuse to fuel your prejudice .

[marcusfox]

(Original post by chipturtle)
I'd like to go and visit sometime, but I'd have to be careful to choose a time of year when it's not scorching hot. I really cannot deal with heat.

February to April (but this time of year you can't get into Tibet) or September and October.

If you go during the summer, you will certainly struggle with the heat outside, temperatures in the south frequently top 40C.

I was in Hong Kong in September and the temperature was 38C, I spent a lot of time in front of posh shops that blasted air conditioned cool air at about 15C out through the doors...

If you go during the winter, you will find it very uncomfortable inside during the day or at night, generally only the northern parts have central heating and many chinese wear coats indoors. If you are unfortunate to live in an apartment without heating, as most of the cheaper hotels and hostels will be, your only option will be plenty of warm clothes and long underwear.

[tazmaniac97]

Why China when we have South Korea. It's much better, and it's my husbands home country too.

[marcusfox]

(Original post by Pandabär)
I read that as 'I'm visiting Asda next year'. I was thinking:
'erm...good for you.'

OP, yes, I'd love to visit China, but flights are so expensive.

Long diatance flights from the UK are expensive because of UK APD (tax). Search from Amsterdam on Aeroflot's website. When it loads up, it appears to be in Russian, but find the English flag to convert the language. Flights are from €95 plus tax each way, typically €500 pp for a round trip. Getting to Amsterdam is also easy.

€500 is currently only £396.

[marcusfox]

(Original post by Isambard Kingdom Brunel)
China is an incredible country. The vastness and variation of landscapes is amazing. I have only been to Shanghai, but I often look at other locations, which really need to be seen to be believed.

For example, Zhangjiajie, which inspired Avatar's Pandora landscape in the film. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeF6...eature=related (skip to around 2.21 to see Pandora's famous 'floating mountains')

Or Mt. Huangshan, which is sacred to the Chinese

Or Jiuzhaigou Valley with its multicolored lakes.

And I haven't even mentioned places like Xi'an, Lijiang, Chengdu (wild pandas, anyone?), Lhasa, Hangzhou, Harbin, Tianjin, and of course the likes of Beijing, Hong Kong, Macau and Shanghai.

Bolded the ones I have been to and I would agree wholeheartedly. Definitely worth a visit. Especially Li jiang - I take it you mean the Li river at Yangshuo? The rest I plan to visit shortly...

[marcusfox]

(Original post by Hackett)
I'm going to Hong Kong this year, but I want to make the most of it and explore a bit of Asia.

Anyone have any suggestions on places to go etc.? Or any advice on HK Etc.??

Hong Kong advice? If you plan to exit China to Hong Kong and return to China, you will need to get a multiple entry Chinese visa.

Oh, and don't stay in Chungking Mansion.

[marcusfox]

(Original post by Bellissima)
is it dangerous for white people? i heard they are quite racist and they don't have the best governmental regime in the world...

Not dangerous, but be aware that many will see you as a rich foreigner and therefore a target for scams and overpricing.

[loz957]

(Original post by Aaron_xyz)
I can assume the Daily Mail is your favourite newspaper.

Edit: I was going to write a follow-up telling you to be more open-minded and less emotional, but the fact that you generalise the biggest country in the world, with over a billion people when you've never actually been there, already says a lot about you, along with the fact that you use a very select few stories on forced abortion and animal abuse to fuel your prejudice .

I read the daily mail as well as other newspapers such as the times and telegraph. I very rarely hear anything good about the Chinese or China in general, so excuse me for having my own opinion which is different to yours. I also think the reasons I've listed are perfectly justifyable to form my opinion. Incidentally, I've techinally been to China merely as a stopover on a flight to Australia, but I had no desire to want to spend any time there.

[marcusfox]

(Original post by carpe diem 123)
How much do flights be these days?

As I posted a few posts up, it's possible to get a return flight from Amsterdam for £396 ish.

[marcusfox]

(Original post by SleepySheep)
Aren't flights to China like a grand?

Depends on how you fly and who with, but it's possible to get them for around £400.

[marcusfox]

(Original post by Makaveli_The_Don)
I have a free ticket to go to China Is December a good time to go?

It will be very cold and most of the cheaper hotels and hostels will not have heating in the rooms. It can be as low as 5-10C indoors during the day and sometimes drop even lower at night. You will need to wear long underwear and a coat to bed.

Of course , if you can afford a nice top of the range place with heating, then that won't be so much of a problem

[Aaron_xyz]

(Original post by loz957)
I very rarely hear anything good about the Chinese or China in general, so excuse me for having my own opinion which is different to yours.

Yeah because there's no such thing as confirmation bias, selective media coverage, and newspapers promoting their own agenda and ideology, oh wait.

If you get all of your information about China exclusively from what other people tell you, especially those newspapers, and not from direct exposure and non-biased coverage, I'm not surprised you hold those views, but it's your choice to remain ignorant.

[marcusfox]

(Original post by Clarky-x)
I'm going to China at the end of this month, I booked my tickets last month, so around 6 weeks in advance, and they cost me £649. Mancester-Shanghai then return Shanghai-Heathrow with a stopover in Abu Dhabi with Etihad. I'm going as part of a study programme with around 70 others and I know that many of the group got their flights for cheaper, some as cheap as £500. We had a deadline by which to book our flights and the prices fluctuated daily over the week or so we had to book them, some paid less but many others paid more, some have even opted for stand-by tickets so that's a cheaper option again but only if you are quite flexible

Coincidentally, I booked Amsterdam to Beijing and back with Aeroflot six weeks in advance for a trip at the end of this month with a stop over in Moscow. £396. I know you have to get to Amsterdam also, but I think I did pretty well.

[CherryCherryBoomBoom]

I'd love to one day. Looks like a beautiful country, and Chinese food everyday =

[hhforever]

(Original post by jamesfly)
You just have to go to Jiuzhaigou. you search it on ggole and when you arrive at there, its exactly the same as those picutres in google. Never regreted going there.

hmmm why did u copy my post??

(Original post by hhforever)
Guys,

You just have to go to Jiuzhaigou. Google it and when u reach there, its exactly the same as those picutres in google(better imho). Its got the most breathtaking scenic view imo. Never regreted going there.

[marcusfox]

(Original post by carpe diem 123)
Nice one cheers! How about getting around China? Are trains expensive?

Compared to Europe? No. Shanghai to Lhasa in Tibet is 4400 km one way, takes two days and is only £130 for the very best sleeper seats, and the price is roughly proportional to distance. Second class sleeper is also perfectly adequate at £68 - £73 for the above journey. Seat class is even cheaper, and perfectly fine, but not for long overnight journeys...

Beijing to Shanghai on the super fast expresses are proportionally more expensive though.

If you happen to be a dwarf, you get half fare.

[Pandabär]

(Original post by marcusfox)
Long diatance flights from the UK are expensive because of UK APD (tax). Search from Amsterdam on Aeroflot's website. When it loads up, it appears to be in Russian, but find the English flag to convert the language. Flights are from €95 plus tax each way, typically €500 pp for a round trip. Getting to Amsterdam is also easy.

€500 is currently only £396.

Seriously? Ooooh, thanks for that. Getting to Amsterdam is really cheap, considering I'd just be going from London. I've never flown Aeroflot so never really considered them.