A Memorable 6-Day Beijing-Guilin Tour

Hilda and I would like to express our overall satisfaction as concerns our recent five day trip to China as arranged by you and your colleagues at China Odyssey Tours.

Beijing

Our tour guide, Jack, and the driver, Mr. Han, each did a very good job. They both showed kindness and consideration in helping Hilda walk up and down the difficult pathways of Beijing. Jack's knowledge of Beijing was impressive and we were particularly pleased at the time spent at the Temple of Heaven, the People's Park in Beijing.

Although we could not fully enjoy Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City because of the bitter cold weather, Jack managed to keep us moving and we somehow managed to briefly see the Square and walk the full length of the Forbidden City. After the bitter cold of the previous day, we were reluctant to go even further north and into the mountains to view the Great Wall.  Jack persuaded us to try, and we are grateful that he did so, as the Great Wall was an astonishing site, an architectural masterpiece worthy of its designation as one of the Seven Wonders of the World. We also got to see the Sacred Walk and that was also very well worth seeing. 

We also enjoyed the rickshaw ride through the Hutongs. The stop at the home of one of the resident families was one of the highlights of our trip.

Our stay at the Double Tree Hilton was good but not great. The breakfasts were very good and all service personnel were pleasant and cooperative. Our room was a little cramped for two people and a little dark. The mattresses were very comfortable and so was the bedding.

Guilin

Our other tour guide, Jessica, was marvelous. And the driver, Mr. Li, did a very fine job. As we drove to the hotel from the airport in Guilin, we asked Jessica for a suggestion as to how we could spend our evening in Guilin City. She suggested a boat ride on theTwo Rivers and  Four Lakes. We thought that sounded very nice, but were hesitant to go by ourselves because we would not understand Chinese. Jessica volunteered to join us on the boat ride, arranged a reservation and had Mr. Li drive us to the event and meet us after the event was over. We thought that this was very generous of her and Mr. Li and offered to, at least, pay for her admission. Jessica refused to accept our offer, saying simply that we could consider it at the trip's end if we wanted to do so. The boat ride was absolutely beautiful. We will always remember it.

The Bravo hotel was barely satisfactory. The room was, again, slightly cramped for two people. I did not have enough light in the bathroom. Breakfast was good and the mattresses and bedding were very comfortable. This hotel was not on your original itinerary. Our daughter Michelle stayed at the Bravo and suggested the change to the Bravo. Apparently, the overall quality at the Bravo had deteriorated from the time of her visit and, when she suggested the change, she was not aware of the change in quality. It would be a good idea to notify clients of this information should this situation reoccur in the future.

We were very pleased to learn that Jessica would join us on Li River Cruise to Yangshuo County. We both enjoyed the cruise and thought that the scenery was very nice. We were a little disappointed as the Li River was advertised as China's most beautiful river and we expected more in the way of color and variety.  Perhaps the scenery is more spectacular during the warmer months of the year.

Jessica said that she and Mr. Li would take us to West Street for shopping and dinner and to the Impression of Sanjie Liu Night Show, would meet us at our seats after the show and drive us back to our hotel. We were most appreciative. The show was a sound and sight spectacular, but, of course, we could not appreciate the lyrics. Nonetheless, it was quite memorable. 

The Green Lotus Hotel in Yangshuo was excellent in all regards. We were very satisfied.

The following morning, we went to Reed Flute Cave on the way to the airport in Guilin City. Jessica arranged for a chair lift for Hilda, who would not have been able to traverse the cave without it. Hilda really enjoyed the experience and the cave was magnificent, another highlight on a wonderful five day tour. 

I hope that you will find this summarization to be of some use in evaluating your personnel and in planning future tours.

Thank you once again, for your efforts in arranging our tour.

Sincerely,

Martin Fried