• Tailor-made Journeys

• Small-group travel has cost advantages but it cannot be as flexible as you may require.

  If you want the freedom to design your itinerary, and even to make changes once in country then the best solution is to opt for a Tailor-made Journey.

  Choosing an itinerary can be quite daunting. We recommend that you early on in your planning. We will help draw out your goals and then offer recommendations based on those.

  Your goals

  It is important to list down your goals and refer back to these constantly. You can update them as necessary but it always helps to have your original goals clearly stated as these will help keep you focused. Otherwise, it is all too easy to get lost in the myriad options that this huge country has to offer.

  Simply stated, your goals should specify:

  • Why are you travelling to China?
  
  
  • What do you hope to see?

  The Itinerary

  Your itinerary is the backbone to your Journey. You will have other considerations but, most importantly, your itinerary must give you the best possible chance of meeting your goals. It helps to record the itinerary in at least two levels of detail. You should have an Overview that shows only the key points for each day: where you will be and what are the main items on the agenda for that day. Your Detailed Plan will need to have all of the necessary information to make these things happen. You may then prefer to organise some of this detail into other forms such as a Contact List or Directions Sheet. Of course, we can help with such things.

  In putting an itinerary together it helps to start by listing the essential sites that you want to visit and then add some desirable ones. You can then sketch where these lie on a map and see how best to organise the travel. At this stage you will need to decide whether your trip will be a circuit (cheaper for the international flights) or from one place to another.

  Once you have an outline you can research further options in the places that you have decided to visit so as to fill up any spare time. Don't go crazy - travel in China takes up more time than you might imagine and you will only end up extremely tired or disappointed.

  The Budget

  You should have an idea of how much you are willing to spend on your trip. This constraint will determine the style of transport and accommodation that you will use and may mean that you need to cut out certain locations or activities.

  Be flexible with your budget. Some cuts can upset the balance of your trip and impact negatively on your whole experience. For instance, saving money on meals is not a good option, especially here. The food should be a highlight and, anyway, you need the nutrition to keep up your energy levels as you travel around.

  Other Considerations

  Timing

  You will certainly want to consider the timing of your trip. You may be limited as to when you can get time off but you should certainly think about the weather and holidays in the places you want to visit to ensure that these will not hinder your plans. The two National Holidays in the first weeks of May and October have a big impact on travel services and are well worth avoiding. Summers tend to be hot and wet and winters in the north and far west can be extremely cold. That said, travel in the quieter periods can have advantages if you can dress appropriately.

  Paperwork

  You will almost certainly need a visa; only a few nationalities are exempted from this requirement. You may also need additional permits to travel to special areas such as Tibet.

  Guides

  Unless you are fluent in putonghua (Mandarin) you will probably find travel in China to be difficult. It therefore helps to have a guide in each location. These will greet you on arrival, look after you throughout your stay and then see you on your way to the next destination. Some people prefer to have one guide throughout though this is the more expensive option as you will also be paying for the guide's travel and accommodation, and for them to be away from home.

  Your First Steps

  If you do decide that you want a tailor-made journey then with an outline of your goals and we will send back suggestions to help you get your itinerary together. You need make no commitment until much further down the line so, go on, email now.

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