Originally Posted by Vulcan
I asusme these are all one-way fares and no additional taxes?
one way, yes. additional taxes = y50 (the airport construction fee which used to be sold at airports and is now collected by ticket sellers)
Also, how bad is coach on Chinese airlines?
opinions vary, but i have no complaints. one nice thing about traveling in china is that connections aren't all that common. you just plant yourself in a seat and within a few hours you're at your destination.
How about a thread of prices that FTers should be aiming for when negotiating with vendors in the markets, like:
Ties-----10Y
Belts----10Y
etc. (common stuff that we might want to purchase to bring home)
that would be challenging if not fruitless because quality variances are significant. furthermore, prices vary from city to city and, less so, market to market.
as such, i think equipping yourself with a good shopping strategy (something a little more sophisticated than "shoot for 75% off list") is about the best you can hope for when walking into a market. if you're interested, i wrote a post in the "shanghai shopping" thread about month ago, in which i recounted the key points gleaned by a friend who logged 100+ hours in xiushui this summer.