| package tour or do-it-yourself tour | |
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| Jan 3, 2010 07:10 |   |
| guest47124 | hi! i'm planning to go to shanghai alone on jan 15 or jan28. i'm used to rely on maps and internets for my itinerary when i travel but i was told it would be difficult to do the same in shanghai (plus tongli, zhouzhuang, and suzhou) because of the language barrier. would you suggest that i just pay for the package tour? i believe it's more expensive than if i create my own program. hope to get feedback the soonest. thanks! *** i'm a filipina but speaks english fluently. |
| Jan 3, 2010 18:55 | #1 |
 | No need to go on a package tour, it sounds like you're used to independent travel. Have the destinations printed out in Chinese characters fo everyone's benefit. The metro system is clearly signposted in both English and Chinese characters, so is Pudong airport. If you need help with organising your trip, email me at yahoo.com|ellyse99 and put "TravelChinaGuide" and your own username in the subject line. |
| Jan 6, 2010 23:33 | #2 |
| Hi, Just do it yourself! Tour group is too boring. Enjoy! Yours sincerely, Susan ( China guide) MSN: hotmail.com|Susan205060 |
| Jan 10, 2010 05:39 | #3 |
| GUEST51108 | thanks ellyse! thanks susan! can't wait to be in shanghai soon...  |
| Jan 11, 2010 01:56 | #4 |
| GUEST52074 | Shanghai is the easiest place to do it yourself out of the whole of China. All the major sights are near metro stops, except for the Yi-Yuan Garden but you easily walk there after visiting the Bund. |
| Jan 11, 2010 02:14 | #5 |
| Yuyuan, not Yiyuan. :) If you consider Hong Kong as part of China then that would be even easier for most English-speaking travellers. |
| Jan 11, 2010 13:28 | #6 |
| I stayed in Shanghai for 4 days at the end of October. I found the city easy to discover on my own and trust me, if I can manage, anyone can. I used the metro but mostly I walked and relied on taxis.(cheap) I found enough English speaking people that I could always get help and directions. I stayed in the old French Concession is a great area. the service manage at my hotel wrote out directions for me each morning to show to taxi driver or to anyone I was asking for help. This, a card from your hotel and a city guide and you will have no problem. I did hire a guide to go to Suzhou because I did not want an organized day trip. Enjoy your trip. Oh yeah, I loved Shanghai! |
| Jan 14, 2010 03:38 | #7 |
| GUEST86533 | thanks for the info everyone... :-) i'll be buying my rt ticket in the next 2 days and will be applying for my visa this week. i'll be in shanghai on the 29th arriving by 1020am. basically, my itinerary goes like this: jan 29 (Th) arrive in Shanghai by 1020am then travel to zhouzhuang whole afternoon + overnight in zhouzhuang jan 30 (Fr) take the 6am trip to suzhou by bus, if there is, and spend the whole day there. then either i spend the night in a budget hotel or take the bullet train to shanghai city by 7pm and be able to check-in the Captain's Hotel by 9pm the latest. Unless there's a motel168 near the area too (please advise). Hotel is near The Bund area thus i will be able to have time to stroll by the River Promenade that same night. jan 31 (Sa) until 1:30pm of feb 1 (Su) travel within shanghai city before i leave for the pudong airport to catch my 4:55pm flight back to manila i have been surfing the net to help me with my itinerary but somehow got confused with some of the answers. hope you can help me again. from pudong airport i'm planning to go straight to suzhou then take the bus to zhouzhuang. would this take me 2 hours of travel - 1 hour by bullet train and another hour by bus? if this is the case, would you suggest that i just take the bus straight to zhouzhuang instead? if so, how long is the travel time? priority being 1 the highest: 1. speed 2. cost 3. convenience 1. if best choice is to go to suzhuo first before going to zhouzhuang, - from pudong airport, what is the best way to go to the shanghai railway station? i was thinking of taking the maglev train as i only have 1 luggage with me. then from long yang lu metro train to shanghai zhan station, is this correct? if taking a taxi is better, how much usually is the taxi fare? if best choice is to go straight to zhouzhuang by bus - from pudong airport, (a) what bus station do i go to, (b) what is the best way to go to the bus station, and (c) how much? 2. is half-day enough for zhouzhuang and 1 whole day for suzhou? i also wanted to go to tongli too but i guess i won't be able to due to limited time. 3. there are 3 or more bus stations in suzhou. how would i know where my bus from zhouzhuang go to? these are my questions for now. hope you won't get tired helping me out. thanks again! |
| Jan 19, 2010 21:18 | #8 |
| GUEST18105 | I definitely agree with everyone else, it's not too hard to navigate around Shanghai. Your trip to Zhouzhuang and Suzhou sounds fantastic! 1 day for Suzhou should be enough to see most of the sights, but I'd try to stay in Shanghai for longer if possible. Seeing as you're only in Shanghai for one day though, skip all the newer attractions that you can pretty much find anywhere else near the world and head on over to the Old City instead. I found a really good guide for the area and it ended up being one of the most interesting days I spent in Shanghai! Here's the link, hope it helps you! http://www.urbanatomy.com/ |
| Jan 23, 2010 15:59 | #9 |
| Zhouzhuang is really awfully touristy and I wouldn't recommend that you go there. I would instead recommend that you go to Tongli or Xitang instead, or even Zhujiajiao. IMHO you don't need to go to both Suzhou AND a water village. Perhaps consider doing Hangzhou and a water village, if you must. Seriously though, I wonder, have you been to Shanghai already on a previous trip? Otherwise, it seems to me that you should be spending more time in Shanghai? Up to you though. You're missing out on the fact that you'll take about 1 hour to get to Shanghai main train station from Pudong airport. A bit longer by airport shuttle no.5 (22 RMB/pax), a bit shorter by taxi (but perhaps around 180 RMB for the taxi). Also, have you considered that you'll waste time trying to get tickets, and then waiting for your train? This is Spring Festival transport period, you're being really way too optimistic. There's no direct bus from Pudong airport to Zhouzhuang (or to any water village). You could probably take a bus to Suzhou (84 RMB/pax from Pudong airport), you won't be in time for the 1040 departure, you might catch the 1110 departure if you're fast and very lucky, you should be able to catch the 1140 departure, or the 1210 departure. This bus would take about 2 hours to get to downtown Suzhou. You mean Captain's Hostel on Fuzhou Lu? Or the one in Pudong? I'm a fan of neither, and I don't like being located in Pudong, especially if you're a sightseer with limited time. If you're at the one on Fuzhou Lu, that's the Bund, not Riverside Promenade. With about 250 RMB I could get you a hotel room right on Nanjing Lu pedestrian street near People's Square, much better than being at Captain's with their terrible (discriminatory service). As I said I'm not a fan of Suzhou, but you could spend anything from 1 to 3 days there. For the water villages (excluding Zhouzhuang as I don't even bother recommending visiting it) I would recommend a day including overnight stay. |
Last edited by SIVA: Jan 23, 2010 21:31 |
| Jan 24, 2010 08:32 | #10 |
| Agree with Ellyse that Suzhou and Zhuozhang are too 'done' I went to Hangzhou and Xitang this summer and loved them both. Xitang is especially nice and still quiet. Plenty of digs and relatively cheap and easy to get to. There are two ticket prices Y50 entrance which pedicab drivers will relieve you of but not give you a ticket or Y100 which gives entrance to all the sights. enjoy shanghai but be sure to give yourself at least two days to see it without rushing. |
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