Dimity Simes

Dimity Simes

Australia

Reviewed on January 12, 2020

Hi Wendy

Yes, home safely thank you. Could I tell you before I respond to your queries, it was a wonderful, brilliantly organised trip, thank you so much.

1.  You were always prompt with responses to any queries and clarifications. Your suggestions were carefully considered and you accommodated our requests effortlessly.

2.  The tour was simply great. Beijing - Kai as guide and driver Mr Ho. What a find with Kai! His English was perfect; his knowledge was exceptional. Kai constantly volunteered information and explanation without having to be asked. The restaurants he took us to for our lunches were fabulous - very fresh, freshly cooked and spice level to accommodate our palette. He was also very considerate towards my sister who is older and less mobile than us, always looking out for her, assisting with her bag etc. You have a real gem with Kai. Mr Ho and the vehicle were also fantastic. The van was very clean and comfortable. Mr Ho was also very helpful with luggage. If there needs to be a simple suggestion for the future, perhaps a low step to assist customers into the van would be helpful. Kai provided us with bottled water each day, without being asked.

With regards to the itinerary in Beijing, I should have included an extra day to see the Ming Tombs. As we had a full free day at the end of the holiday, I did organise a private tour for this reason, and it was great. The Great Wall - I chose the option of the cable car because my sister has mobility problems. 350 metres of steep cobbled ramp way, plus approximately 100 steps of varying heights (from 10 cm to 45 cm in height) were extremely challenging for my sister and she would have missed this amazing place had Kai and my partner Tony not been so kind to her and physically assisted her. Perhaps a bit of a misunderstanding on our part Wendy, as this was certainly not disability friendly! 

Xi'an - bullet train was great except both the conductors and the officials at the exit gates in Xi'an, wanted to see our tickets! I showed the itinerary to them, but Kai told me later that perhaps I should have also shown our passports? Never mind, we got there! Crystal and driver Mr Hou(?) were also great. The vehicle was clean, however smaller than in Beijing and a little more difficult for 4 people to be comfortable. Again, a low step would be advantageous for customers to access the van more easily. Crystal was very knowledgeable and both were helpful. The museum and the warriors just have to be seen to be believed. The theatre restaurant in the evening was technically the best I have seen, anywhere. A wonderful experience was Xi'an. Crystal provided water each day without being asked.

Harbin - flight was good. Guide was Karl but the driver was never introduced to us. Karl's English was not very good and his understanding of us and our questions was quite poor. A very pleasant and nice young man however. We had breakfast early in Xi'an, then nothing until we arrived in Harbin late in the afternoon. The itinerary stated we would tour the ice lanterns after dinner, but Karl did not understand we had not yet had dinner. Finally he understood us and took us to a local cafe where we had one choice only for our meal (it was very good though) and then we headed to the park. Excellent sculptures, we had seen nothing like this before. The snow sculptures the next day were simply quite stunning. Wonderful, talented people. The ice and snow festival in the evening was unbelievably spectacular. The vehicle was not really acceptable I am sorry to say. Very cramped and quite dirty as had not been cleaned after previous customers. There were used tissues and empty water bottles in the van. We had to ask Karl for water, and he went to a store to buy some. When I realised the Tiger Park was not on our itinerary I was very disappointed as I thought I had included this. Karl arranged this for us for Y600 and we appreciated this.

On our last day in Harbin we had Celine as our guide and she, like Kai, was brilliant. Excellent English, offering information constantly. The ice swimming with the locals was extremely funny as the older Russian women really made it very entertaining and fun. On our leisurely way to the airport she was told our flight was now leaving 1.5 hours earlier than scheduled and no one had been told. We received royal treatment by Celine who sped us through check-in and waved us off just in the nick of time! Thank you Celine. I think she may also have checked the van as it was cleaned that morning and we hope she realised that it was not us who left rubbish in the van. Again a low step would be helpful for customers, particularly as the floor became very icy and slippery and was problematic for us.

I arranged a private tour of the Ming Tombs on our last holiday day and I realise we could not have included this on our original itinerary due to time constraints. This was really worthwhile, so I would definitely recommend this to other customers Wendy.

3.  Suggestions? Low step for each van please, especially where it is icy. In Beijing if time is as limited as ours, perhaps suggestion of Ming Tombs in place of the Sacred Way?

Wendy, a great holiday with so much included. Both Kai and Celine are wonderful. I will put review on TripAdvisor as soon as possible.

Dimity Simes

Destination(s): Beijing, Xian, Harbin, Shaanxi, Heilongjiang
Date of Experience: January 1, 2020
Trip Type: Traveled as Families
Tour Customized by: Wendy



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