2014-06-18 Ralph from Canada

Tourist nationality: Argentina

Tour itinerary: Shanghai, Yichang, Yangtze River Cruise, Chongqing, Lhasa, Beijing

Tour Reviews:

Shadow, 

we have made it home and I am writing to thank you and China Connections for the wonderful tour you put together. Everything went as planned and your guides and drivers met us without fail at every stop on time. Even with our arrival in Shanghai delayed by more than seven hours due to mechanical failures on our plane, we were still met and transported to our hotel with no issue.

Although everything went as scheduled and we had a great time I would like to offer some comments that may be of value to you and your company in the future.

First, your guides and the drivers and their vehicles were all we could ask for. I liked the youth of the guides and if they are representative of the new China you have a bright future ahead of you. In Shanghai there was Teresa. A knowledgeable young lady who knew a lot about her city. She had no issues with our changing some of the itinerary. My only comment is that on the one full day she was with us she quit at 3:00. It really did not matter to us as we were more than comfortable going around Shanghai on our own. As it was we went to the Shanghai Urban Planning Museum at 3:00 and then made our way to the Mag-Lev train by subway and took a round trip to the airport on it. If I were to do Shanghai again, I think I would only employ a driver for the airport transfers. The rest can easily be done on one's own.

Kelly in Yichang was a lovely lady. She gave us a nice tour and found us a good place for dinner.

David in Chongqing was a good guide. It was much too early to go directly to the airport but he was very accommodating in taking us to City Hall, the old town and then to a park near the airport. It all worked out nicely.

Phubu in Lhasa was great. We changed the second day from visiting 3 monasteries to going up into the mountains to see a lake. An all day drive which gave us a better look at the area around Lhasa.

Next was our 2 day train ride to Beijing. I should have taken your advice and we should have left the train at Xining and flown the rest of the way. The next western tourist that insists on taking the train the whole way have them contact me and I will help you talk them out of it. The trip would have worked with a modern tourist train. As it was we were in a soft sleeper with two women and a small child. There was not enough room for the five of us and our luggage. Not very comfortable. There also was only one western toilet on the train and it was out of service at various times. Not very pleasant.

In Beijing we had Tristan. Nice kid. I liked him. 

Again, we had a great time. The organization of the tour was first class and I would recommend to anyone to use you and your agency to plan a tour of China. Shadow, thank you for all of the work you did on our behalf and putting up with me for more than a year. Good luck to you in the future.

..Ralph