China travel and visitor guide with hotels, resorts and vacation information. Compare China vacation packages, hotels, cruise deals and real estate information. China isn't just another country - it's a different world. From shop-till-you-drop metropolises to the epic grasslands of Inner Mongolia - with deserts, sacred peaks, astounding caves, and imperial ruins - it's a land of cultural and geographic schisms. It's not that China has completely done away with its Maoist past - it's more that the yin of revolutionary zeal is being balanced by the yang of economic pragmatism, and the old guard communists are giving way to the new wave entrepreneurs.
Experience China
Yangtze River Expedition - 17 days/15 nights - $3,439 INCLUDING AIRFARE
Classic Yangtze River SuperBuy (upriver) - 14 days/12 nights - $1,889 INCLUDING AIRFARE
China Classic - 12 days/10 nights - $2,439 INCUDING AIRFARE
CALL Vista World Travel for wide selection of high value vacation packages. Planning a trip to China? Check with us, you may be paying too much or receiving too little for your money. Allow us to help you compare prices for the very best values. We often beat all internet prices and I personally visit the hotels and services which I recommend.
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China is served by Capital International Airport (Airport Code: PEK) in Beijing. Airlines serving China include United, Northwest, Delta, British Airways, Air China, China Eastern, China Southern, Cathay Pacific and many others. Visit our Airports & Airlines section for more information.
At present, there are two major tour routes in China: One is the “S”-shaped traditional tour route, containing famous political and cultural cities such as Beijing, Xi’an, Shanghai, Suzhou and Hangzhou. Following the “S”-shaped tour route, tourists may climb the Badaling Great Wall and visit the Imperial Palace and Temple of Heaven in Beijing, and view the terracotta warriors and horses excavated from the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor, the Stele Forest and the Great Wild Goose Pagoda in Xi’an, wander along the bustling Bund and Nanjing Road and through the Pudong New Zone in Shanghai, enjoy Suzhou’s gardens and the sights of the West Lake in Hangzhou.
The other major tour route is the crescent-shaped tour route containing coastal open regions, such as the Liaodong and Shandong peninsulas and the Yangtze and Pearl river deltas. Following the crescent-shaped tour route, visitors may get some idea of the enormous changes which have taken place in the open coastal cities since the initiation of reform and opening to the outside world, and appreciate the charming seaside areas in north and south China. Moreover, the coastal towns all have holiday villages and various recreation facilities. Visit CNTA.com, for more information from the China National Tourism Administration.
Passport, Visa & Embassy Information
When applying for a visa, foreigners are required to answer certain questions and go through the following formalities: 1) providing a valid passport or any document in place of a passport; 2) filling in a visa application form and handing inup-to-date passport photos; 3) documents needed for visa application and documents which explain one's reason(s) to enter China. A foreigner holding the tourist visa (L) should go to an appointed port of entry or one which is opened to foreigners, receive the examination by a frontier inspection station, submit a valid passport and visa for inspection, and fill in an entry card; entry into China is granted only after the frontier inspection has approved all the documents and stamped them with an entry seal.
Foreigners may travel in places opened to them in China with a valid passport and tourist visa(L). By March 1996, China had opened 1,220 cities and counties to foreign visitors. Foreigners travelling with their own transport vehicles should apply for approval before they enter China. These include bicycles, motorcycles, cars, boats and aircrafts.
Foreign tourists are not allowed to enter areas not opened to foreigners;violators will be penalized according to law. Foreigners who want to visit an area on business not opened to them should apply to the local public security organ for a Foreigners Travel Permit. Visit our Immigration section for more information.
In addition to China's embassy in Washington DC, there are Chinese Consulates General in Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco.
In addition to the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, there are U.S. Consulates General in Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shanghai, and Shenyang.
Consular Information Sheets and Travel Warnings also are available on the Consular Affairs Internet home page: http://travel.state.gov. Consular Affairs Tips for Travelers publication series, which contain information on obtaining passports and planning a safe trip abroad, are on the Internet and hard copies can be purchased from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, telephone: 202-512-1800; fax 202-512-2250.
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 877-FYI-TRIP (877-394-8747) and a web site at http://www.cdc.gov/travel/index.htm give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries.
U.S. citizens who are long-term visitors or traveling in dangerous areas are encouraged to register their travel via the State Department’s travel registration web site at https://travelregistration.state.gov or at the Consular section of the U.S. embassy upon arrival in a country by filling out a short form and sending in a copy of their passports. This may help family members contact you in case of an emergency.
