I am thinking of taking a tour to either China,or Vietnam,Cambodia & perhaps Hong Kong. Or possibly just China. I've heard different things re the north part of China as well as the south. What upscale tour company would you recommend? North or south china? Any help would be appreciated. What about cruises as well? Many thanks Pattysue
Each one of the countries you mention is worth a trip on its own. Certainly, China should be done "by itself".
If you must go to Cambodia alongside another country, link it with Vietnam.
Vietnam is the most wonderful, wonderful country. I rank the two weeks in Vietnam as one of the best experiences in my life of travelling. You will never meet more beautiful, gentle, forgiving people nor will you ever eat such fabulous food. And if you're looking for colour and exotic places to go and see - Vietnam is it!
We travelled in a small group organised by Travel Indochina (www.travelindochina.com.au) which is an Australian firm dedicated to introducing people to a love of South East Asia, particularly Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. You can do organised small group tours or you can "hand-make" your trip as an individual or as a family to fit in with your needs.
I can't speak highly enough of this agency. It's possibly a little more expensive than others but it's worth every penny.
If you want to avoid the monsoon season, that leaves you the dry months: between Xmas and March. They are also the coolest months, relatively speaking. Within that period, also try to avoid Xmas and Chinese New Year. All the expats and locals are all over the same hotels and the same resorts. Very hectic period.
Outside the dry season, the lovely islands always get the trade wind and are never too hot. But we are talking about the subtropics here. This means summer is 33°C, and winter 31°C. In the north, the beautiful, underestimated Golden Triangle, in February, the tempearture can drop to below 20°C, while the rest of the region is still very much subtropical.
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- How long would you spend in Vietnam? Cambodia?
I'd say at least 3 weeks.
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When are the best months to go to China?
Hmm this stumps me. China is as large as Europe, with the same variation of climate. What is a good period for visiting Sweden is not good for Greece! Which part of China do you think you are most likely to be interested in? It is best to limit yourself to just one region, as you would if you were visiting Europe.
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What do you think of cruises as compared to a land tour?
A cruise limits you to coastal areas. Much of the countries you want to see is inland.
I agree with Americana - three weeks for Vietnam especially if you include Cambodia. We were In Vietnam for two weeks and it wasn't anywhere near long enough.
For my mind, a cruise would be a dead loss - all that time on a boat looking at the water, getting on and off it, dashing around for the day you're on-shore, eating cruise food mostly. What a waste of time!
But, of course, to each his own. I don't like cruises. they don't appeal to me. But, hey, if you love boats then opt for the cruise - it's your trip!
PS We went in mid May. the weather was perfect . Hot during the day, mild at night, no rain while we were there. Our hotels were air conditioned and had excellent showers so after a hot day we were able to cool off and get a good night's sleep.
I agree with Valda, cruise bores me out of the orbit.
I also second the food take. But I'd say Vietnamese and Thai food are par, and are among the best in the world. Also, the cuisine is always very light, which means you eat 5 times a day and come home thinner, really. Throw me to the wolves. I don't find Cambodian food up there with Vietnamese and Thai food.
Instead of cruise, part of the travel in Indochina can be done on river boats. Not the very loud, very fast kind. It's so loud your ears ring for 24h afterwards. But the slow "long tails". It is a great way to travel on the Mekong and the other rivers.
Trains in Thailand are also great and very comfortable, with aircon of course and great food even. (When have you ever had good train food?) You can go from Bkk to Chiangmai on a lovely night train. Get up 90 min before arrival to see a beautiful gigantic buddha (on right side) outside Chiangmai. You can take a train to Vientiane, the Laotian border, as a way to get from Thailand to Laos.
There was a fabled train built by the French from Hanoi all the way to China, somewhere in Yunnan province (Xishuangbana?). It was in neglect for decades and was nearly swallowed up by the jungle. Then it was renovated and was loved by all the travellers. But the last I heard it was stopped again, for "political" reasons. I don't know the present situation. I crave that train more than I crave the Nile or Nepal. If you have the luck to take it, please tell us all about it.
Americana ....... quick China question. What is fashionable restaurant dinner hour in China .... if I made reservations for 7PM in Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong would I be OK or too early? Thank you Steve
Posts: 122 | Location: New York | Registered: 17 June 2001
Originally posted by Steve F: Americana ....... quick China question. What is fashionable restaurant dinner hour in China .... if I made reservations for 7PM in Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong would I be OK or too early? Thank you Steve
7pm is perfect!
Are you going to eat some Steamed Dumplings in Shanghai? That's my number one attraction for Shanghai.
Buddy Thanks for the reply ...... I am very big on street food and Shanghai dumplings are high on the list ..... I haven't been to China in twenty years and it's a different world from what I hear .... especially the big city restaurant scene.
Posts: 122 | Location: New York | Registered: 17 June 2001
Originally posted by Steve F: Americana ....... quick China question. What is fashionable restaurant dinner hour in China .... if I made reservations for 7PM in Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong would I be OK or too early? Steve
Sorry I did not see this message in time. Are you in China already? 7pm is perfect. I was with French colleagues in Beijing during the Women's conference in 1995. They were used to dining after 8pm. I kept telling them to hurry up, or we would be stuck eating in hotel restaurants every night. I still remember the time we arrived at the "Mao Family Restaurant" that does Mao's hometown spicy Hunan cuisine, at 8:30pm, to see the restaurant closing its doors. Yes the more authentic restaurants - which means they do not principally cater to (French!) tourists - in Shanghai and Beijing may close early. In Shanghai try 素饺 Su4Jiao3 - vegetarian dumplings.(hope your computer can show Chinese characters.) Try S'hai's unique vegetarian dishes: mock goose, mock ham, etc.
We spent 3 weeks in vietnam in January and one week in Thailand. We started in Hanoi and the weather was cool- needed a jacket. The further south we travelled the hotter it became. HCMC was VERY hot and humid. We travelled with Intrepid and did a family tour. Not having been to any Asian countries before, I'm glad we did choose an organised tour. It certainly was a culture shock! But funnily enough,by the time we got to HCMC and then Bangkok, my kids wanted to go back to the very untouristy villages we visited in the North of Vietnam. Food was unreal, but we were with a tour leader who knew exactly where to go - and most of the places were where the locals ate. We want to go back and go further north next time - up to Sapa. Apparently the best time to visit this far north is September. My favourite place in Vietnam was Hue - the people were so gracious, food fantastic and it just had a lovely feel to it. Wherever you decide to go, have a great time.
Americana, just a quickie, no one has to throw you to the wolves over any comment about Cambodian cuisine. When the Khmer Rouge went through and destroyed the country, they destroyed cookbooks along the way too so the country is a long way from building back whatever cuisine they may have had. I've been told that no one who survived had much memory of the food, other than the very basics, so many restaurants focus on Vietnamese and Thai cuisine which tend to have more lively spices than the Cambodian foods were known to have. I ate alot at the Soup Dragon in Siem Reap when I was there in January and look forward to eating there again when I go back next year. Their best food was the Thai food but someday we may see some great Cambodian food!
Posts: 463 | Location: Massachusetts | Registered: 11 April 2006
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