The Summer Palace

Service rating : The national tour guide Addison is an asset to the success of the tour ... his dedication ensured that our experience was memorable , action packed , well organised and amazing adventure he is a credit to the company , he is well informed , hard working , generous , proud of his peers , assertive and a true gentleman. Natalie ( my eldest daughter aged 28) and I arrived in Shanghai ,,, One of the tour guide was waiting for us at the airport .. welcoming us to china with a great big smile. Allow me to explain in brief an introduction to our adventure known as "the glories of china" . being in such a large country as china plus I don't speak Chinese I believed traveling with Wendy wu tours would be a sensible option . At the hotel we was greeted by our national tour guide Addison , the communication between the guides is amazing , he welcomes us to china stating he is pleased to meet us , he gives us our room key with an invitation to meet for dinner in a hour . From leaving the taxi to arriving in our room took maximum 5 minutes. Addison had checked us in ready for our arrival , he had porters ready to help with our bags , taxi door open by the doorman , lift door open by someone else .. we feel like royalty. We meet for dinner just a short walk away from our hotel the restaurant staff great us welcome us in offering us drinks (Chinese beer is very similar to lager ). The arrangement for meals is Addison orders a selection of dishes which is shared with our new travel buddies , we will affectionately become known as the Addison family 16 in total . Our first dinner is only 8 due to others arriving late evening .. this was perfect all the dining tables are circular most with a lazy Susan ( turn table ) in the centre so here we are sharing a new experience , culture , food and practising chop sticks with strangers !!! It was fabulous food fabulous people . After our long journey from Home to Shanghai ( 23 hours) the thought of going out to sharing food and pleasantries with strangers over dinner was not on the top of my to do list .. it's an amazing introduction to china . Brilliant evening. We are here slap bang in the middle of the Chinese New Year 2018 celebrations.. our first port of call is the the old town and yu gardens .. did I say there is a population of 26 million in Shanghai ??? Well there is !!! and I believe they was all there with us in the old town !!! What an amazing atmosphere, sights , smells , music , .. we get our first understanding as why it's a must to book on a tour . We don't join queue's we go via VIP entry on all of the excursions ( apparently Wendy wu is a very powerful woman across china and well respected ) everyone aim to please us. Shanghai known as Paris of the east with modern skyscrapers , European style mansions intermingling with shikuman buildings presents a blend of cultures modern and traditional. The old town of Shanghai where cobbled streets are lined with traditional shops selling herbal medicines, handcrafts, tea and an array of snacks .. the yu garden is the home to jade rock , goldfish ponds, pavilions, dragon walls and plants. We also go to the Silk museum, a walk around Shanghai up to the 88 floor of Jinmao tower , a ride on the maglev trains and a night cruise on huangpu river fills up a very good day .. We are driven to zhujiajiao it's a water village ( think Venice ) built on an old canal system alley ways , stone bridges, temples. We take a boat ride (Chinese style gondola ) . In and out of sights that take you by amazement at every turn . From here we now go to people square do some exercise with the locals, visit Shanghai museum finally finish the day with an evening stroll along the bund. Next day we fly to Guilin we check in to our hotel named waterfall-located on a lake. This location is breathtaking the lake has the sun ( red ) and moon ( gold ) pergolas. Our hotel becomes a waterfall daily at 9pm . ( the wall of the hotel just flows and flows water from the roof top down past the bedroom windows ) The seven star park with the mountain back drop is what makes Guilin beautiful countryside. After another tasty dinner we went for a beer or two on western street in an Irish bar . Today we cruise the li river to Yangzhou stunning scenery .. check in our hotel ready for our liu sanjie evening open air show on the lake .. the back drop is the stunning mountains , the performers are the local farmers their families and town folk . The show is directed by zhang yimou the creator of the Beijing Olympic opening ceremony. Absolutely amazing !!! A day with the local farmers land and their homes , they cook us a very tasty lunch, have a photo taken with the fisherman's two cormorants. Enjoy an hours reflexology massage feet and shoulders . Out for dinner drinks and dancing on western street . A very cultured day visiting the pearl museum , explore the sun and moon pagodas on for lake , connected by an underwater tunnel . Another night in an Irish bar there seems to be one in every town in china !!! Today we take flight to Xian visit the wild goose pagoda ( the only building that survived one of the strongest earthquakes in world history ) a night at the theatre enjoying a Tang Dynasty dancing show after sampling a feast of traditional shui jiao dumplings in comes a birthday cake !!!! My new travel Addison family and the restaurant staff sing both English and Chinese version of happy birthday .. 🥃🎂🥃.. Ok how do you describe the terracotta warriors ... one of the most significant archaeological discoveries of the 20th century . I could go on and on and on with all the facts and the sheer amazement of the site however it would never prepare anyone for the experience . In the afternoon we walk the city wall ( china likes their walls ) of Xian giving us a birds eye view over this fantastic city .. followed by admiring the lights of Xian on the tang ever bright night walk marvelling at the fountain light show outside the big wild goose pagoda . I stand in the middle getting soaked from the spray totally freezing now .. shower bed fabulous . Today we travel to Beijing on the bullet train experience a rickshaw ride through the warren like hutongs ( homes ) we visit the locals part take in exercise in the park . Eat with them in their homes , very kindly they prepare a feast for all of us . Today we rise early putting our best foot forward to walk/climb the Great Wall of china !!!! Over 700 years old I find it a strange experience like I'm in a dream the day is bright blue skies visibility is perfect the climb is steep however it's a must do temp -3 c. On route to summer palace we have a photo stop opportunity at the famous nest and cube Beijing Olympic stadiums. Call in at the jade museum. I strike the massive Buddhist bell in summer palace a former holiday retreat for Qing emperors . After feasting on dinner we go to the Kung fu show/story. Is it possible to see and experience more ??? Tiananmen Square , temple of heaven , forbidden city topped off with an evening on feasting on Peking duck .. is just a brief of my last day on the tour . Sorry the blog is lengthily I have not include all my experience as it would be a book .
Product : Every minute of the tour is fabulous 👍😎👍

Service rating : 'A China Experience' Wendy Wu tour was such a fantastic trip! The tour takes you around Shanghai, Xi'an and Beijing and is a great way to see the highlights in a short period of time.

We were in a group of 20 people, and from day 1 our national guide, George Pu, made us feel welcome. He went above and beyond, and was very patient and supportive, ensuring that we had the best experience possible. He was also very knowledgeable and we learnt a lot from him during the trip, he even printed us copies of the dynasties that we could refer to in future! Our local guides were friendly and informative too, but George really made the trip the success that it was!

Highlights for me on the tour included the Shanghai museum, the terracotta warriors, Xi'an city walls, the Summer Palace in Beijing (beautiful in December with the frozen lake), and the Great Wall of China. You get plenty of free time allocated on the trip so you can wander round and spend time taking pictures and exploring the areas you are interested in.

If I could give this trip more than 5 stars I would. Thank you George for all of your hard work in making this trip so memorable!
Product : 'A China Experience' Wendy Wu tour was such a fantastic trip! The tour takes you around Shanghai, Xi'an and Beijing and is a great way to see the highlights in a short period of time.

We were in a group of 20 people, and from day 1 our national guide, George Pu, made us feel welcome. He went above and beyond, and was very patient and supportive, ensuring that we had the best experience possible. He was also very knowledgeable and we learnt a lot from him during the trip, he even printed us copies of the dynasties that we could refer to in future! Our local guides were friendly and informative too, but George really made the trip the success that it was!

Highlights for me on the tour included the Shanghai museum, the terracotta warriors, Xi'an city walls, the Summer Palace in Beijing (beautiful in December with the frozen lake), and the Great Wall of China. You get plenty of free time allocated on the trip so you can wander round and spend time taking pictures and exploring the areas you are interested in.

If I could give this trip more than 5 stars I would. Thank you George for all of your hard work in making this trip so memorable!

Service rating : Excellent customer service and attention to detail for every aspect of trip. Tour guides were exceptional with a mix of information and a genuine interest for individuals in the group. Two internal flights were well handled allowing stressfree transfers to next city.
Product : Intinery was excellent with many tour highlights. Tour guides were well informed, inspired me to now follow up on more information on places visited. Summer our tour guide made the holiday so enjoyable and fun. The Summer Palace was lovely despite the rain

Service rating : Our national Guide Wendy was fantastic. She made everything run like clockwork. A feat in it's self shepherding 28 bodies around! The local guides Mai, Eddie, Amy, Jenny and Stephen were also very good, very informative , and like Wendy, good fun!
Product : Very tiring but worth it. Food plentiful, but at some restaurants the meat was a little sparse and the Peking Duck dinner was a let down as everything was chopped up, bone, gristle, skin and a bit of meat (not like the shredded duck in English Chinese meals). Trips were very good and well organised. Hotels were mainly very good. The cabins on the Yangtze river cruise were naturally small with not a lot of storage space and a little tired but perfectly acceptable. The entertainment on the boat was very good, especially considering it was the staff not professionals giving the shows. (I sure you could mistake them for professionals!). The staff were very polite and friendly and one of the bar staff, Christina seemed to be able to remember everyone's name, amazing!
It would take too long to go into detail about the trips but for me The Great Wall stood out, but mind, be aware those steps are very steep and exhausting. The vastness of Pit no. 1 and of the detail of the Terracotta warriors. The colourful sights, sounds and smells of the Muslim Quarter in Xi'an. The Summer Palace by the lake. Three Gorges Dam and ship locks, a tribute to Chinese civil engineering on the Yangtze River cruise. The pandas at Chongqing. The Cormorant Fisherman show and having a Cormorant perched on my arm so my wife could take a picture.
Our group of 28 consisted of 21 English and 7 "Aussies" all got on well and had loads of laughs, including being stopped in the street by Chinese to take our picture, especially if one of us was Blonde or fair headed. Our guide said many Chinese holiday from rural parts where Westerners are a rarity. They are intrigued by our big noses too (but in a nice way!)
We thoroughly enjoyed the holiday and would not hesitate to recommend a trip to China through Wendy Wu Tours and our particular 16 day tour "The Wonders of China "
Barry and Brenda