Yes, visa is required for USA and Canada Citizens and most other nationalities. please check Chinese Consulate's web site here to find out if you need a visa or not.

One visa application form, one recent photo with size of 2" by 2", original passport.

Visa application fee is $130 per person for American passport, regardless of entries. Normally it will take 4 working days to process. Please make sure your passport has a minimum validity of 6 months before the travel date. If you apply Chinese Visa via Chinatour.com, additional service fee applies. (link: VISA page on the main page)

Most Chinese Consulates do not accept Visa application via mail, you have to either apply in person or through a local travel agency.

The Chinese currency YUAN are issued in 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 denominations. 1Yuan = 10Jiao (in 1, 2 & 5) = 100 Cents (in 1, 2 & 5). The official exchange rate is around USD1=6.8 Yuan (RMB) as at Dec 2009. Traveler's cheque is the safest way to take money with you on your holidays. US dollars can be easily exchanged at the hotel's front desk. Most hotels, restaurants, and major shopping centers welcome major credit cards. Click here for more information on Chinese money.

When travelling to the People's Republic of China, vaccinations are not mandatory. However, prior to travelling in China, it is highly recommended for you to check with your personal physician for certain precautions to be made or become aware of. For the latest overseas travel health information, please contact the Center of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) by visitingwww.cdc.gov/travel or by calling toll-free 1-888-232-3228.

All travelers aged 18 years and over are allowed to bring into China the followings goods duty free:
Tobacco: 400 cigarettes
Liquor: 2 litres of alcoholic beverages
Perfume: Reasonable amount for personal use
The above information is for your references only.

Customs on your return to USA and Canada.

U.S. DUTY-FREE EXEMPTION
When shopping in China, be sure to keep your receipts on all purchases so they could be readily available for custom officials upon re-entering U.S. soil. Effective November 4th, 2002, the standard personal duty-free exemption is $800 for items brought abroad by a returning U.S. resident.

Duty for items mailed home valued at $200 or less is waived. Antiques that are at least 100 years old and fine art may enter duty free but folk art and handicrafts are generally dutiable.

Each U.S. resident may bring back 1 Litre of alcohol and 200 cigarettes or 100 cigars for inclusion of duty exemptions. Items which are purchased at the 鈥淒uty Free鈥?stores are subject to duty if the value of the total purchases exceeds $800.

Family members in the same household returning to the United States may combine their personal duty exemptions. Children and infants receive the same amount of duty free exemptions as adults in exception of alcohol and tobacco products.

Take caution and rely on your personal judgement when making purchases in China as there are merchants that may misrepresent their goods. Moreover, the importation of imitation goods into the United States may infringe upon USA patents and trademarks and you may be in violation of US custom laws.

Canadian DUTY-FREE EXEMPTION
All receipts for purchases made in China should be kept for declaration upon returning to Canada. Under Canadian law, all animals, plants and products must be declared as well as any currency or monetary instruments (Stock/bonds, cheques, money orders etc) totally $10,000CDN or more.

For each returning resident of Canada, a duty free exemption of $750CDN is available and may include goods other than alcohol and tobacco which were acquired during your trip. Each traveller over 19 years of age may also bring 1.5L of wine or 1.14L of liquor and 200 cigarettes or 50 cigars for inclusion in duty exemptions.

Take caution and rely on your personal judgement when making purchases in China as there are merchants that may misrepresent their goods. Moreover, the importation of imitation goods into Canada may infringe upon Canadian patents and trademarks and you may be in violation of Candian custom laws.

Beijing standard time used all over China, it is 16 hours ahead of Pacific Standard Time (15 hours ahead of PST in daylight saving time)

Influenced by American and European travelers, tipping is getting popular in China now. So we suggest total USD $7 per client per day for the tour manager, local guides, and coach captains as a gratitude for their service. For group tours, for your convenience, normally the tour manager will collect the tips for the entire journey on the first day of your tour and will manage all the way to the local guides and coach captains. you can also tip at the very end in each city on your own.

Accident Insurance up to $30,000 per person is automatically covered in our tour price; we strongly recommend that you take out comprehensive insurance cover for cancellation, medical expenses, personal accident, personal baggage, money and public liability before you travel. Please ask our experienced travel agents for the insurance chinatour.com offers.

The electrical current in China is 220-volts, multi-function power outlets are provided at most of the hotels' housekeeping department.

The hotels selected for group tours are based on 4 to 5 star classified by China National Tourist Administration or the local best in some remote areas that provide the best value for money. Of course, different countries have different standards, but Chinatour.com endeavors to provide our clients with the best available in cleanliness and comfort. Most of the hotels are centrally located in the city or at the convenience place in the tourist area.

All bookings are made on a Twin Share basis. This means you will receive two single beds or two double beds depending on what is available and triple share accommodation consists of twin beds (2 single beds) plus a rollaway/fold-up bed. If you want a double bed, this can be requested but not guaranteed. All hotel rooms contain private shower/tubs, air-conditioning, TV & telephone, Safe etc.

Yes. we will try to match up singles of the same gender in twin-bedded rooms. For mutual comfort, we do adopt a no-smoking rule in shared rooms. But when finalizing the tour, if we fail for the match-up, a forced single supplement will apply.

Western style full breakfast is always included on our tours, and most lunches and dinners, which are Chinese style, are also included. You will find out quite a few local banquets, like Beijing Duck dinner, Xian Dumpling Banquet etc also included in your itinerary. Please check your itinerary for details. Meal code: AB=American Breakfast, L=Lunch, D=Dinner, SD=Special Dinner, IM-Inflight Meal. We understand that clients may have varied dietary needs. If you have special dietary needs due to religious or medical limitations etc, please advise your tour guide in advance.

We suggest your single check in bag should not have dimensions exceeding 76 x 46 x 26 cm (or 30 x 18 x 10 inches) and weight not exceeding 20kg. A penalty from airlines might apply for check-in bag weight exceeding 20kg.

Please note that airlines have restrictions on the size of the hand carry luggage Baggage Dimensions, the total dimensions are measured by adding together the depth, height and length of the bag, which is:
115cm = 56cm (L) + 36cm (H) + 23cm (D)

There is no on-board toilet on the coach when on tours. For the long journey, our guides and drivers will make enough rest stops on the way for your convenience. for the good of the most, coach is smoking free.

You can either book online, fax or mail your passport copy and Tour Reservation Form to our office; or print out your Tour Reservation Form and sent to us with the deposit and your passport copy. Please click here to download the Booking Form.

Some clients might like to book two group tours as one journey to make full use of the holidays. First of all, please choose two tours you like to join, you can choose the first departure with International air while the second one is Land Only. You might need to pay the internal flight or extra hotel for the connection between the two tours. Please talk to our experienced staffs for help.

Payment made 45 days or more in advance: Google Checkout, Paypal, Credit Card (Visa and Master), Check, Bank Draft, Money Order, Wire Transfer (Bank Name: United Commercial Bank, Routing Number: 125108492, Trust Account Name: Chinatour.com International Inc., Trust Account Number: 63923205).

Payment made 44 days or less in advance: Google Checkout, Paypal, Check, Bank Draft, Money Order, Wire Transfer Please allow at least 10 business days for Chinatour.com to process your booking.

All standard cabins on Yangtze River Cruise have windows facing towards the river. For dress, smart casual is good for the banquet on cruise.

Chinatour.com offers a transfer service for all the passengers who join group tours. For those who join land only and book air tickets separately on your own, please advise your flight details for the arrival & departure transfers.

Upon arrival at the airport or train station, please put your name badge and luggage tag on, our guide will greet you at the exit.

According to Chinese official regulation, you cannot travel to Tibet independently .You have to book a tour package to Tibet through a tour company. You need a special travel permit to enter Tibet in addition to a valid China visa. Chinatour.com has designed several flexible and affordable packages. Please contact us for further details

All our group tours are guaranteed departures, whether the group be two or twenty-four people, we guarantee the departure dates at low group prices. You can be confident in knowing your travel plans are set and then relax and prepare for a marvelous holiday.
*All guaranteed departure tour programs required a minimum of two persons to qualify for a guaranteed departure. Chinatour.com reserves the right to cancel a departure that does not meet this requirement.

Most of our groups are between 10-20 people; it might be popular in some departures in April, June, September and October, for your most comfort, the maximum No. of group will be 24 people.

You can bring your own mobile phone into China, please check with your Mobile Service provider for the details of roaming. Prepaid SIM card is very easy to access, simply ask your local guide to help and enjoy your call there.