Essence of China Tour

March 8, 2010 from United States

Hello Simon

My wife and I were very impressed by the professionalism of all three tour guides.In particular, Ying Li in Xi'an is the best tour guide we have ever had.She is knowledgeable, pleasant and very customer oriented.We enjoyed our time with her thoroughly.

Of the sites visited, the Terracotta Warriors were clearly the most impressive.We appreciated that Ying Li allowed us as much time as we wanted to see all aspects of the exhibits.We also were impressed by the city of Xi'an and wished that we had planeed an extra day there before travelliing to Shanghai.Finally, Ying Li recommended us to attend the dinner theatre which we thoroughly enjoyed.

We will be recomending China HIghlights to friends and business colleagues through my company.

Thanks for all of your assistance.

Kind regards,

Gordon

May 10, 2010 from United States

Hi Cindy

I wish I can meet you and thank you in person. So far with all my travel experience over the past twenty some years, you are the most efficient and kind person. I adore you.

I promise to refer friends and family to you for their travel needs. When opportunity arises, please come visit us in the U.S. I have many people that can take care of you in different part of the country.

Kindly forward this letter of mine to your superior.(my sincere request.)

Best to you and yours.

Charles

December 28, 2009 from United States

Hi, Carol

My family really enjoyed the tour put together by ChinaHighlights.  We were introduced to  lots of different things that we would not have attempted on our own.  All the guides were great to get to know as new friends in a far-away land.  Thank you for an great time !

Most memorable attraction would have to be the Great Wall and the Harbin Ice Festival.  Both show magnificent accomplishments by the Chinese people.

Carolin in Xian loosened up and was pretty fun.  But Cathy in Beijing accepted us as her 'royal family from the start, including my son, 'Prince Harry Potter.' She was a lot of fun to joke around with.  All the guides were very flexible in adjusting the schedule around our flight delays and weather.

The hotel in Yabuli was the best. Plenty of room for the extra bed (fold out couch). It was really nice having the ski rental and gondola lift right outside our door. Only downer was the lack of hot tub near the pool. All the rooms on the tour were too hot and could not be adjusted. Beijing's was too small for having an extra bed. Locations of hotels were good. Breakfasts were satisfactory. I did enjoy trying the different restaurants arranged by the tour guides. We ate at places I'm sure we would have never found on our own. I understand the arrangements, but it would be nice it the tour guides would accept our offer to eat with us. There was usually plenty of food.  Carolin did join us for lunch and it was nice relaxing around a meal with her.

The Great Wall was pretty much great as expected, but Harbin's Ice Festival was truly amazing. Even though it was very cold, it was enjoyable to walk around all the creations, especially at night with all the lights turned on.

I would recommend China Highlights Tours. Getting around by ourselves would have been very difficult. Not impossible, but having a guide and driver pick us up and get us right where we needed to go was very nice, eliminating a lot of hassles.  Getting to know the guides in each city was fun too.

My family is quite active so we enjoyed the physical activities - hiking the Great Wall, skiing, and walking around the Ice Festival. We realized that we aren't that excited about museums, but appreciated them anyway. We could tell that all the tour guides are very proud of their own cities and what they have to offer. The Terra-Cotta warriors in Xian is a historical site that should not be missed. The acrobat show in Beijing was really pretty neat too.

Curtis, Barb, and Nick

October 14, 2009 from India

Hi Grace,

We have returned to Singapore after a wonderful trip to China. China Highlights did a wonderful job. Will send you a note on our experiences along with some of our photographs in a day or two.

The Great Wall of China, Forbidden City and Terracota Warriors pits at Xi'an are all quite memorable attractions. Our tour guide at Xi An Ms. Monica was full of information. She could speak English well and explained in detail the significance of each site we visited. She would begin her talk on the site as we drove to the site and we were well informed before we reached the site. Mr. Jay was our guide in Beijing. He was pleasant, very helpful and understood our requirements well. He was a student of Philosophy and therefore had a lot more to share about the philosophical background of China and its people.

We stayed at the Intercontinental Finance Street in Beijing. This hotel was booked on our request. Though the hotel was more of the business visitor, the hotel was good. The breakfast spread was excellent and their restaurants were also good. This hotel is well located and not far off from the various tourist sites in Beijing. The rooms were spacious and even though we had an extra bed did not feel cramped. The staff were courteous and helpful. We stayed at the Sofitel at Remnim Square in Xi An. The property was good and the rooms were of a good size. We were upgraded to a bigger room. The rooms and the facilities were good. The restaurants were nice. Breakfast spread was good. The Moroccan restaurant was a surprise and a meal there was well enjoyed. The hotel staff were very courteous.

Overall the tour was well organised and we had a lovely time. We were very happy with organisation of the tour. Ms. Grace Wang who arrange the entire tour was very efficient and prompt. I have spoken to several times. She spoke very well and was very accommodative and understanding. She clearly understood what we wanted and have everything well organised. The moment I started dealing with her I felt comfortable that the tour is being organised by a professional and at no point was I stressed.

Acrobatics show in Beijing is a must. Great production and worth the money you spend on it. The Ghost street in Beijing has some wonderful restaurants and one must try out the restaurants there. The Art quarter at District 789 in Beijing is fantastic. It took me completely by surprise. The art quarter has a number of galleries show casing contemporary art. One of the best I have ever seen. 

I will share some of my photographs. I will send it shortly when I have gone through the entire set.

Thanks

Anand

October 26, 2009 from United Kingdom

Jean

Just to let you know we had a wonderful trip to China. It was thoroughly enjoyed by all and Jonathan our son really appreciated visiting all the different restaurants (Authentic Chinese cuisine in non tourist restaurants).

The most memorable attraction we visited in China is the Great Wall. All both the guides in Beijing and Xi'an were good however Ginger was very flexible adding in visits we wanted ( in particular our 15 year old ) eg to visit the Birds Nest Stadium, visiting Jingshan park and climbing to the top for views. She was very friendly, knowledgeable and organized. She also ensured we experienced as many different types of Chinese meals as possible in very different settings.

Regards and thanks again for all your assistance in putting together this really great trip for us. We will be back again some time to visit other parts of China.

Eileen