| A useful service for booking package tours in China is offered by CITS Guilin via their website www.chinahighlights.com. They offer tailor-made packages to various destinations around China as well as some fixed itineraries. One of their specialities is Yangtze Cruises (which will still be going ahead and will still offer a very special trip, even after the Three Gorges Dam is completed). Their website is very informative and they are very flexible, quick and helpful (even to the extent that they may suggest you book parts of your trip yourself (e.g. hotels) if you want to save money!). They speak excellent English (I dealt with Angela Gong) and supply detailed and well-written itineraries. You can make payment by direct transfer to their bank account from your Chinese RMB account, or in $US. Pricewise, they have some very good deals. The one thing they don’t seem to do so well is the airport and other transfers. Their local people on the ground in some locations are not very experienced. The transfers are optional, so if you are the independent type I would suggest a DIY approach. However, the local guides do speak good English and are very eager to please, and they do save you from potential hassles with taxi drivers. |