China (Beijing-Hainan) in March 2008
I can say right away: China impressed me.
Our trip took place in the second half of March 2008 according to the program - 4 days in Beijing, 5 days in Hainan, 1 day in Beijing. I think that the best time to visit Beijing is April, because at this time everything is in bloom (and there is something to bloom there) and should be much warmer. In March in Beijing, the weather is very changeable, warm days (15-18 degrees) alternate with cold, frequent wind. For those who are going to Beijing in March, I advise you to wear a demi-season jacket (it will be cold in a raincoat) and a warm jacket. Even on warm days, it is quite cool due to the wind. All tours are open air.
The advantage of traveling in March is that the sakura blossoms at this time. Who has not seen it will be interesting to see. It blooms only 10 days a year.
To be honest, going to China, we were afraid to get into something similar to the Chinese market. Our fears were not justified, Beijing turned out to be a civilized capital city, very clean. They say that such changes took place on the eve of the Olympics. There are many high-rise office buildings, while preserving the national flavor. What impressed me most in Beijing was the large number of parks. Upon arrival, getting to the hotel at 6 am, we saw a lot of people doing exercises in parks, small squares, wushu. Walking later on a tour of the summer garden of the emperors, we were surprised by elderly people who played badminton on a weekday, danced, sang excerpts from operas, played cards... How huge and beautiful their parks are with ponds and various bridges.
The people of Beijing are quite pleasant people. You just need to accept them for who they are. Yes, they are talking loudly, but they no longer spit at their feet, as before. As we were explained, the habit of spitting was not inculcated from lack of culture, but because traditional Chinese medicine advises not to swallow sputum, but to spit. The most important thing is the friendly attitude of the Chinese to tourists, not understanding the language for the most part, they are trying their best to help you.
Of course, we enjoyed the excursions. Our group consisted of 10-12 people. So, that such a group visit to the sights does not bother you at all. It was very interesting to get acquainted with the culture of China. I will not describe the excursions, this is in abundance on the Internet. It is a pity that we had a chance to visit only a part of what is there. In addition to the program, we only looked at the oceanarium. Of course, we were brought along the way on excursions to the pearl factory, jade, silk factory, the center of traditional Chinese medicine, to the tea ceremony (the tourist must fork out). We visited them as exhibitions, although you can refuse this. We bought souvenirs in Hainan (it is cheaper there) and in duty free.
We didn’t do shopping in Beijing, as there was no time left after the excursions (we arrived at the hotel at 5-6 o’clock). Once we were brought to the Chinese market, which we really did not like. The product is of poor quality, worn out. From the initial price you need to immediately throw off 70-80%. When you end up buying a product, for example, for 200 yuan, the initial price will be 800-900. Need 10 min. to bargain, which is very tiring. Most importantly, do not immediately show much interest. If the price does not suit you, then you need to leave. This will be followed by a much better offer.
Food. Breakfasts at the hotel and lunches between excursions were included in the tour price. Lunch was taken to Chinese restaurants. I can say it's delicious. True, not very familiar - meat in sweet and sour sauce, fried bamboo and more. Dinner was held at large round tables, in the center of the table is a spinning disk, on which all the dishes are put out. Everyone takes what they want. Sometimes Chinese vodka was also served.
We had dinner at our own expense, there were many restaurants near the hotel. The peculiarity of most of them is that there is no menu in English, in the center of the table there are grates for frying raw meat, liver, like on a grill. Strong smell, smoke. Such restaurants were bypassed because they did not understand the whole process. We preferred the Russian restaurant Traktir Pushkin. There are both Chinese and Russian dishes. The prices are very low. Two-course dinner per person, beer (wine) -150-200 rubles per person. By Russian standards, very cheap. The portions are large, it is better to limit yourself to one dish.
Four days in Beijing flew by quickly. The organization of the Capital Tour stay in Beijing was at the highest level. I would like to visit many more interesting places in Beijing, but there was not enough time for everything. There was a feeling of being in a completely different world.
And now about the rest in Hainan (Sanya). The flight from Beijing to Sanya is 4 hours.
We rested for five days at the five-star Marriott Hotel (Yalun Bay). Deluxe Ocean View Room. Nearby are all five-star hotels - Sheraton, Crown Plaza, etc. The hotel is incredibly beautiful, a huge area with a flowering park, well-trained staff. Everything is in the room, from bathrobes, beach (men's) slippers, soap and water accessories to an umbrella. Upon arrival at the hotel, they hang something like wooden beads around the neck, in the room there is a plate of fruit and a cake. Air temperature - 25-32 degrees, sea - 24-27 C. Clear transparent sea (completely without living creatures); creaking underfoot like starch, white sand. There was no sweltering heat, because. pretty cloudy. Sunbathing under the clouds is even better, you won't burn out. The only thing I didn’t like about the hotel was the following: the system of allowing guests to enter the restaurant for breakfast (you need to stand in a short queue in front of the entrance to the restaurant, sign, then you will be escorted to a free seat; there is no opportunity to stay where you want); cold water in the pool, regardless of air temperature; high cost of lunches and dinners on site. The ticket price included breakfast only. For dinner, we went to restaurants near the Crown Plaza hotel (15 minutes walk from Marriott). I liked the Japanese restaurant the most. There are also shops where you can buy summer clothes and souvenirs.
There is nothing near the hotels except this place. In this regard, the question arises: what can tourists do when they come to rest on the coast of Yalun Bay. In fact, there is nothing to do but lie on the beach all day. You can go on excursions or to Sanya. We were denied enough excursions in Beijing (we only went to springs with fish, we liked it). In Sanya, they say there is nothing to do, and it takes about 30 minutes to get to the city by taxi.
Therefore, after the received mass of impressions in Beijing, rest in Hainan seemed boring and insipid. In general, when we purchased vouchers, we knew about this feature, but we thought that five days of relaxing rest was not much at all. Three days of lying on the beach turned out to be more than enough. It is difficult to imagine what vacationers who come for two weeks are doing. But all this is very subjective. Everyone has their own preferences. I think that it would be preferable for us to rest in Dadonghai Bay (they say it is more fun there, but not so chic).
The day before departure from Sanya, we were informed that the flight to Beijing was scheduled for the evening, while at 10 am we had to vacate the room and stay somewhere until the evening. To our requests to send by morning plane to Beijing, we were told that there were no tickets, and the company did not guarantee sending by the morning flight. And since we didn’t have supporting documents, we didn’t have the opportunity to argue. To our argument that since we paid for a hotel in Beijing for a day and you are not ready to take us there, you must provide some kind of accommodation in Hainan, we realized that they would not spend a dime on us. And they were powerless without tickets in their hands. We arrived in Beijing closer to the night and a few hours later there was a flight to Moscow. Why were we charged for a hotel in Beijing for a day?
Therefore, I recommend having all the necessary documents before traveling to China. We also saw such a case when they did not want to let a group of Russian tourists out of China, because they had a photocopy of a group visa (it is given on a separate sheet and is not put in the passport). Therefore, ask for the original visa and keep it like the apple of your eye.
It was a fly in the ointment in a barrel of honey. The overall impression of the trip to China remained remarkable. I recommend to everyone.