Mr. Gregory Stanton Reading's China Tour Review
Dear Ms Tracy Liu and Ms Ivy Lu,
The vehicles were fine and the drivers were generally very good and polite. This was in contrast to some of the taxi drivers we hired privately, some of whom drove in a scary manner.
The tour guides were all very good, very friendly and helpful, and communicated well. One or two sometimes mispronounced some English words, but nothing serious, and they were happy to be advised in this by us. Often they went out of there way to ensure that things went smoothly for us, and they are always happy to meet our preferences.
We always drink only bottled water when traveling to avoid becoming sick, so this is important.
Over-all the hotels were good, but with the following comments:
Shanghai - a pity about the road-works outside and it was a long walk to the places we wanted to visit.
Xian - comfortable and very well located. Although they made an effort to deliver a "western breakfast" (bacon and fried eggs), breakfast here was the worst of our trip. We are happy to experiment with local foods, but like juice (not cordial) and fresh fruit. Toast should be brown and crisp, not a slice of bread waved in front of a heater.
Beijing is very comfortable and well located with a metro-station at the front-door.
One problem we had at all hotels was that we were provided with a single blanket which tended to be too hot. The option of a lighter cover or sheet as well would be desirable and make sleeping more comfortable.
The restaurants were generally good and especially Chongqing and Xian. Shanghai was the least interesting.
In Beijing the guide took us to a local restaurant, not the usual restaurant for tourists, which we really enjoyed.
We have not commented on the Yangtze Cruise, which was the high-light of our trip. The food was good, everyone was very attentive and the river-guides were especially good and friendly. The scenery and the side-trips were interesting, and the accommodation was fine.
We were very happy over-all and very interested to visit China.
Customer's information:
Name: Mr. Gregory Stanton Reading
Nationality: Australia
Itinerary: 14 Days China Essence Tour with Yangtze Cruise (Budget)
Updated: Tuesday,Apr 21,2009
Echo Wall
From operator of CTO, Tracy
Dear Mr. Gregory Stanton Reading & Mr. Stephen Hendro SOELISTIO,
We are following up the our service and thanks again for your comments as you did help us to improve our service quality greatly.
We investigated the hotel breakfast situation in Xian, and we also give your suggestions and feedback to the manager of the hotel, they are guilty about providing the unsatisfied breakfast to their clients and they also showed their sincere attitude towards improving the service quality. We believe that you will enjoy the tasty breakfast when you come to Xian next time.
And we have also given your suggestions to all the hotels for a lighter cover or sheet to make sleeping more comfortable during April, and they show that any constructive suggestions to them are welcomed at any time and they will definitely improve it.
Please be assured that we were happy with all the service from Chinatouronline. We would be happy to use your service again next time we go to China and we would recommend your company to our friends.
Thanks again for your helpful suggestions.
Thank you again for your time and helpful feedback and we are looking forward to welcoming you to China and serving you with upgraded service!
Updated: April 23rd, 2009
Mr. Roger Pang's China Tour Review
Dear Chinatouronline,
Vehicles were very good. Glad we had the small tour vs. the big bus tour. Drivers were great. Sure, they were aggressive and pulled of moves that I would never try myself, but I understood the circumstances. That's how everyone drives in China.
Tour guides were excellent. Very informative, but not so much that it seemed like class. The first tour guide in Beijing (Jason) spoke excellent English. He did seem to rush the tour a little, but it was understandable with the long schedule.
The restaurants in Beijing were good. In Xian, the first lunch seemed like Americanized Chinese food. The restaurant selected for that meal served many steamed bun meals. I would suggest ordering those in the future for the tourists. Probably less expensive and way better than the dishes we had. The dumpling banquet is also nice, but the dumplings themselves were a little disappointing. I know they are trying to provide variety, but a ketchup dumpling seemed a bit excessive. The restaurants in Shanghai were good. The restaurants were clean. I would say Beijing and Shanghai offered the best meals.
And all the hotels were excellent.
BTW, I think most people can do without the Peking Opera. The Acrobatic show and the Tang Dynasty show were good.
Customer's information:
Name: Mr. Roger Pang
Nationality: United States
Itinerary: 9 Days Tour of China Must See Cities (Luxury)
Updated: Thursday,Apr 09,2009
Mrs. Gordon & Mr. Kamradt's China Tour Review
Hello Ivy and Tracy,
The cars were basically clean. Not sure if there was air conditioning on the Beijing car, but we didn't need it there. No problems at any point in the trip.
Nothing negative at all. The drivers were polite and courteous, and didn't smoke in the car. We were very happy with the drivers.
All 3 of our tour guides were wonderful -- helpful, friendly, polite, and spoke clearly. No communication difficulties.
We didn't see water bottles in Beijing. But we certainly drank MORE than two bottles per day in Shanghai and Xian. In those cities, there was no indication that we should only get two bottles -- they were very generous with the water.
Once we explained to our guide what kind of food we wanted, they made great efforts to make sure we got great meals. The hotels were all fine. The only problem with the Prime Hotel in Beijing was that the exercise room was inadequate. Several of the exercise machines didn't work. (We exercise every day, so this really mattered to us.)
We were also clear that we did not want to shop at all at the stops. (We were there to see the sites, not shop.) Our guides were always very understanding about this.
There was one dinner place in Shanghai which we didn't like the service, and that was because they were clearly overloaded with tourists. (It was the place we went to before the acrobatics show.) We didn't like the food that much, and they were just too busy. However our tour guide worked very hard to get better service for us.
We liked the breakfast at the Shanghai hotel best. Overall, that was probably our favorite hotel. WE loved that at each of the hotels, we could get eggs prepared to our liking in the morning.
We drink a lot of water, and had read that we couldn't drink the tap water... so would have liked more bottled water in the room. However, when we called and asked for more water, they always brought more, and it was free... so we were basically happy.
You all did a great job -- we had a wonderful time, and saw all the stuff we wanted to see. Thanks for a wonderful tour! My husband and I are extremely busy -- which is why we used a tour service!
All of our tour guides were great. River, in Beijing, was probably my favorite... and Jack, in Shanghai, was probably my husband's favorite. They were all polite, on-time, and very accommodating.
Customer's information:
Name: Mrs. Gordon & Mr. Kamradt
Nationality: United States
Itinerary: 9 Days the Most Popular Cities Tour (Luxury)
Updated: Tuesday,Apr 07,2009
Echo Wall
From operator of CTO, Ivy
Dear Mrs. Gordon and Mr. Kamradt,
Thanks for your valued time and helpful feedback, which is very helpful to us to improve our service quality.
For the water problem, we have asked our local agency in Beijing to investigate the water situation. It was a great communication mistake . We will make sure to provide the bottle water to our clients to provide them with a comfortable tour. We firmly believe the water problem will not happen again.
For the meal environment in Shanghai before the Acrobatic Show, we have checked with our local agency. The problem is that that day there is a conference held in that hotel, where you had meal, so there is many people having meals there. They promise they will pay attention to the dining environment, and will change the dining place if needed to guarantee a good service to our customer.
We have also provide your suggestions to the Hotel in Beijing, to let them improve their service, especially with the exercise facilities.
Thanks again for your time and comments, especially the problems you mentioned, which really help us a lot.
Updated: April 9th, 2009
Mrs. Aine Maire Hyde's China Tour Review
Hi Cindy,
I gained a lot of knowledge from the Terra-Cotta Army in Xian, I am very happy with my guide. The hotel in Xian can be very noisy and is in need of a lot upgrade. Good location.
Customer's information:
Name: Mrs. Aine Maire Hyde
Nationality: United Kingdom
Itinerary: 17 Days China Discovery Tour with Yangtze Cruise (Budget)
Updated: Tuesday,Apr 07,2009
