I would greatly appreciate advice about traveling in China, in particular air travel:

I am planning a three week trip for 2 to China with visits to Bejing, Xian, Guilin, (possibly Lasha) and Hong Kong, and hope to fly business on ff miles from NY or BDL.

1. For a tour to China like this, is it better to fly directly to Bejing or to Hongkong (and arrange airtravel with either one as starting/end point subsequently)

2. I have flown ANA and UA business before to HKG, SIN, and NRT, both fine. Any alternatives/better suggestions?

3. Is it possible to use *alliance Asia airpasses locally for this trip.

4. Is it better to book flights in China in advance or locally

Thanks so much for your help.

First, I would definitely advise on flight insurance. I use American Express flight insurance when I need it. The only time I've had to file a claim against it was...for my trip to China. While it really sucked, the insurance and making claims was a breeze.

Also, book your trips in advance. I found that the airports and airlines in China are similar to the country itself...in transition and in a developmental stage. It can be confusing and frustrating. The airports don't necessarily operate the same way as say US or other Western countries. Many locals do buy their tickets right at the airport and I found this to be very hectic, even just watching. Also, check your flights often as they may change and you're not notified. Maybe I have the worst luck, but this happened to me...also in China. My comments are mainly for travel within mainland China. Hong Kong, I found it to be better. Also, maybe with the Olympics, things may have gotten better..

Hope I didn't scare you too much. I'm sure there will be other posters that will have more positive feedbacks and even recommend arranging travel locally. But I think I won't budge on my insurance stance.

Domestic flights are usually much cheaper if booked in China. My flight from Shenzhen to Shanghai was $176.00 when booked in the US, and just under $100.00 when booked in China

If you are going to Beijing, I think flying directly to Beijing is a good idea.
Personally I think the infrastructure in and around Beijing is excellent.
I was just there in March.

I took CO from EWR. I dont prefer CO for the international trips, but it
was not so bad.

Personally I'd recommend that you book your airline tickets
for within China in advance, but you could book things from there
as well. I prefer to do all the leg work myself. Even arranging for local
travel, sight seeing, hotels etc..etc.. and its not very expensive there.

You may have to hard bargain for everything in China and you may find
some excellent deals with that. Dont trust hotel staff to arrange anything
for you. They are usually very nice, but things booked via hotels are usually
very expensive.

last time I checked the domestic flights are not so expensive at the
last minute, but I dont have a good knowledge on those.