Hong Kong and Taiwan listed as "countries" - where?
Mar 15, 2018, 5:22 pm
#16
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Glasgow, UK
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 622
You will see this on almost every airline's website. If on an airline booking flow, country is a drop down for nationality, billing address and phone number. All of these require the split due to different passports, different postal systems and different phone country codes.
As for the drop down on the flight search page, this is to direct you to the correct point of sale, since Mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan all have different currencies and different tax regulations (if a local BA office is registered).
It is practical rather than political.
As for the drop down on the flight search page, this is to direct you to the correct point of sale, since Mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan all have different currencies and different tax regulations (if a local BA office is registered).
It is practical rather than political.
They don't call it the Great Firewall for nothing
Mar 15, 2018, 8:45 pm
#17
Join Date: Dec 2016
Programs: BAEC GGL/CR; Hilton Diamond; Mucci des Puccis
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This may explain why I'm having difficulties with OLCI in Shanghai at the moment. The BA site mostly works. But it's very slow and sometimes goes out to lunch. Or maybe that's just BA IT. But anyway they're probably outsourcing developments to people using standard country lists.It's interesting - slightly off topic - how everything gets funnelled into WeChat here. And you're never more than 10 minutes away from someone giving you a 15 minute summary of how great WeChat is.
Mar 15, 2018, 9:12 pm
#18
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Sapporo, Japan
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This may explain why I'm having difficulties with OLCI in Shanghai at the moment. The BA site mostly works. But it's very slow and sometimes goes out to lunch. Or maybe that's just BA IT. But anyway they're probably outsourcing developments to people using standard country lists.It's interesting - slightly off topic - how everything gets funnelled into WeChat here. And you're never more than 10 minutes away from someone giving you a 15 minute summary of how great WeChat is.
Mar 15, 2018, 9:31 pm
#19
Join Date: Dec 2016
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VPNs are mostly blocked as far as I can tell, including the corporate one I used. It seems a lot tighter than my last visit which would have been maybe 12 months ago, but on the other hand the hotel on that trip had its own VPN which helped a lot. It's also pretty tough to get free wifi without a Chinese phone number now, even at an exhibition with global participation. I haven't tried google maps, but anything with a google element seems difficult to access. And odd things like myflightradar are patchy in the map department.
Mar 15, 2018, 9:40 pm
#20
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Sapporo, Japan
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I have my own VPN set-up, so I don't really have issues with china blocking it as it's non-commercial and uses rotating private IP addresses. Last time I was there I had to use Google maps through the VPN though, and it confused my other apps a little, putting me in a kind of location limbo, unable to use banking apps without disconnecting the VPN.
I read a few days ago that they've relaxed Google maps access (not the search though). I hope so, I really hate their version.
I read a few days ago that they've relaxed Google maps access (not the search though). I hope so, I really hate their version.
Mar 15, 2018, 10:17 pm
#21
Ambassador, Hong Kong and Macau
Join Date: May 2009
Location: HKG
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Posts: 19,800
We in HK are perfectly happy to see less competition from PRC Avios members for CX/KA flights.
It's definitely one-way traffic in our view - we definitely want less people sharing our pie. We don't see any pie they have that we might want to ask for a share.
It's definitely one-way traffic in our view - we definitely want less people sharing our pie. We don't see any pie they have that we might want to ask for a share.
Mar 15, 2018, 11:29 pm
#22
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You dont need a china visa or that cny doesnt work in hong kong nor taipei legally; and that there are no domestic flights to hong kong nor taipei unlike what china says of these 2countries.
so with that, i see the inappropriateness to call these 2 a part of china.
so with that, i see the inappropriateness to call these 2 a part of china.
Mar 16, 2018, 12:49 am
#23
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What's wrong with "synchronisation with IATA?"
Hong Kong (SAR China) is definitely controversy-less
IATA uses Taiwan. Emmm...might still be open to wumao to argue IATA's biased towards the west.
Taiwan (ROC) or Chinese Taipei are the acceptable names. The latter is not much use to a travel website. Why not the former?
Hong Kong (SAR China) is definitely controversy-less
IATA uses Taiwan. Emmm...might still be open to wumao to argue IATA's biased towards the west.
Taiwan (ROC) or Chinese Taipei are the acceptable names. The latter is not much use to a travel website. Why not the former?
Mar 16, 2018, 2:42 am
#25
Ambassador, Hong Kong and Macau
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That means the separatists win. The people and government of the mainland can't have that (well, one of them anyway...)
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I also note BA has Seoul under South Korea. Similarly geographically and politically incorrect, although anyone thinking Seoul has the same administration and immigration requirements ad Pyongyang will be massively mistaken.
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I also note BA has Seoul under South Korea. Similarly geographically and politically incorrect, although anyone thinking Seoul has the same administration and immigration requirements ad Pyongyang will be massively mistaken.
Mar 16, 2018, 2:48 am
#26
Join Date: Jan 2014
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Posts: 490
It is more a question of presenting the information in a way the most users will find most easily, rather than a matter of technical accuracy. To this end consistency would help. The UK is one of the more frustrating in this regard; the country, the nationality of its citizens, and its currency, which can variously appear under B, G, or U, depending on website.
Mar 16, 2018, 3:15 am
#27
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Glasgow, UK
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 622
It is more a question of presenting the information in a way the most users will find most easily, rather than a matter of technical accuracy. To this end consistency would help. The UK is one of the more frustrating in this regard; the country, the nationality of its citizens, and its currency, which can variously appear under B, G, or U, depending on website.
I remember one Spanish company (on their translated EN site) didn’t seem to have their drop downs fully translated. When selecting country, I looked under U, G, B ... nothing. Took a while to click that I was supposed to select Reino Unido.
Mar 16, 2018, 3:52 am
#28
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Mar 19, 2018, 9:57 pm
#30
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