General reassurance
 

I'm planning on going to China in mid-November and I'm nervous about the weather. I was going to travel around China for a month or so, starting from Beijing and working my way south. I'm worried that by the time it gets to December, the weather is going to be less than ideal for travelling.

Any suggestions or reassurance? Places to avoid that are particularly cold?

Am I just being a wuss?

And on another wussy note--I'm going to be travelling alone, but I've heard that China in the winter can be less than inviting for solo travellers. Tell me it's not so.

Also, what do you think of travelling around China by train vs planes? Flights look very cheap, but not sure which is better.

Regarding weather, it depends on how quickly and how far you head south. Beijing in November can be pretty chilly, December is downright cold. However, in the far South (Guangdong for example) it is often very pleasant up to mid-December. I would be very surprised if you experienced extreme cold in this period unless you choose to head to the far North or West of China

The weather has nothing to do particularly with solo travelling, same summer or winter. The usual rules therefore apply - make sure you can communicate, look after your belongings (although China is pretty safe in this respect) and don't leave your brain behind in UK

Trains v planes: Trains are generally quite a bit cheaper even though flights are not very expensive, particulalry if you choose the cheaper seating options. Trains are obviously slower but I find them great for seeing the country (you have plently of time) and meeting locals. Providing you can get by with your communication I would choose trains

btw....you are being a wuss :) - relax and enjoy a great trip

nickyboy

I tried to change the title of this post to "reassurance needed" but it wouldn't let me, because the issue is not solely the weather.

So I have no communication skills and no itinerary planned, both of which I realize are going to make this difficult. But I did get a visa so at least I have that.

I don't know why, but China is the one stop on my travels through Asia that I am worried about. But I guess if I hate it I can always leave! But hopefully I will love it. I'm going to take some cooking classes.

Then take a good phrase book

Regarding itinerary, there are some extremely knowlegable guys who post on here so I am sure you could do worse than ask them for suggestions.

nickyboy

Brrrrrr! Bring warm enough stuff--it's not going to be easy to buy there. The one time we were there when it was colder than intended I wanted a pair of thermal underwear. It took some digging to come up with an XXXL pair. (In the US I take a medium.) Language was *NOT* an issue--I'm married to a native. It was simply a matter of finding something that fit the giant.

I'd be a little leery of trying to take trains without any translation help as once you get off the tourist track English becomes basically nonexistent. I've never had to actually try to navigate it by myself but I completely had no idea what we were doing, something that's never happened anywhere else trying to take trains.

Other than these factors it's something I would certainly consider doable.

Although, as said before, it might be a bit chilly, but I think around November is the best time to travel. Less tourists, no sweaty people and stinky people around you:D I had many friends travel by train in China (incl solo female travelers), but I would prefer flying. More options in departure times, although it might cost more and need to travel to airport - downtown.

Don't worry ...relax...China changed a lot and is really safe, but ofcourse don't leave your brain behind as nickyboy said;)

November will be cold, but nothing like January. Don't go any further north than Beijing - not that there's much to see there anyway for a tourist. Beijing and the north will have a very "dry" cold. I would advise thermals during December & January. Don't go outside with wet hair, it'll freeze solid within 2 minutes. On extreme days your nostrils will hurt when breathing (<-15°C) - unavoidable anywhere north of Liaoning. Though the pain could also be due to the huge amount of coal being burned.
Further south (Yangtze RD), the cold is more of a bone-chilling cold. Very penetrating. Again, wear thermals and if you didn't bring a coat, buy one at one of the markets. They'll do the trick in keeping you warm.

personally, i'll take a beijing winter over shanghai winter anyday.

Plane for long distance travel, high-speed train around Shanghai (anything upto 2 hrs).

Hi Giblet--I have the funny feeling I have responded to different questions from you on a different forum...anyway, here goes...

You will be fine. One of the good things about travelling Nov and Dec in China is finding very few other pleasure travellers foreign or (especially) domestic. Prices and availability for transport, accommodation, etc. will be as good as it gets. Solo travel is not impacted negatively by the weather turning cold.

As for "how cold" it depends where you are. Beijing, Xi'an, and this latitude will be cold in Nov and terribly cold and windy in December. Similar to Chicago but much drier. In the north, indoor central heating from the public systems is turned on by mid-November and it can get toasty warm (too warm?) indoors. So your main issue will be outdoors. As you go further south and particularly around Shanghai latitude, the outdoor temperature is higher, but often grayer and damper so sometimes feels more UK-like. :p The southern area of China is pretty pleasant all the way through December. Generally, there should be little rain or precipitation, and things will be pretty dry esp in the north. Take good skin moisturizer, hair conditioner, and chapstick. The only places in China that are REALLY getting cold this time of year, and require even heavier protective clothing, is the far northeast such as Harbin city, but this area isn't generally on the first-time visitor's itinerary anyway. Choose your itinerary by your interests, not by the weather.

Clothes: Long synthetic or silk underwear (top and bottom) is very useful as you can layer it without adding bulk. Buy it where you are now, it is available in China but sizes run smaller and you can waste a lot of time trying to find what you need. Accessories: knit cap or hat, lined gloves (not ski thickness!), wool scarf/muffler, good socks are essential. I also suggest getting them in the UK esp the gloves and socks. Chinese socks aren't the greatest and your feet will likely feel the cold before the rest of you. Shoes: you don't need snow boots or any polar gear like that, a good pair of walking shoes or heavy trainers will work fine. Outerwear: you'll need a heavy jacket preferably synthetic-fill lined. Something lighter for the south half, or a removeable liner on the heavy coat. This time of year, heavy jackets are purchaseable everywhere at good prices in Beijing, so if you don't have now, you can wait on this. Once you get out of cold-weather territory, you can give away if you won't need anymore. Keep in mind that even in Beijing, mid-November is not that bitter or windy, compared to December or January.

Transport: Availability shouldn't be a problem during this time on train or plane. It really depends on your itinerary. I wouldn't hesitate to use the trains if it makes sense. For a solo travelling woman (like me), I tend to use "soft seat" for daytime/short trips and "hard sleeper" for long trips. The hard sleeper compartments have 6 berths (stacked 3 high--the middle berth is my favorite) and no doors. When alone, I prefer NOT to be in the enclosed (lockable door) 4-berth "soft sleeper" since you run the risk of being in there with 3 strange men--I would find this uncomfortable though you may not. Hard sleeper (the berths themselves are actually decently soft and with clean bedding) can be an interesting and congenial way to hob nob with the friendly Chinese. Take a phrasebook and some snacks. Usually you'll run into someone who speaks at least basic English. For long distance journeys, always try for the fastest most express train available (numbers beginning with in order or prefererence: Z or D, T, then K). A few express trains on a few routes carry only soft seat/soft sleepers and no hard sleepers.

Important: particularly in November, parts of central/northern China can be subject to heavy FOG (i.e. Beijing, Xi'an, Zhengzhou area, etc.). If this happens, flights will be cancelled or delayed and screw up your plans. It is a safer bet in this area in this time of year to stick to the trains as they will run regardless. If you don't wish to brave the ticket counter yourself at the train stations, pay a convenience surcharge to your lodging provider and have them get the train ticket for you. Most people--even non-Mandarin speakers--can manage buying tickets themselves with a little patience, and by having a Chinese write down the destination in characters along with the preferred class of seat/berth, maybe even # of first-choice train. Air tickets are less hassle but more expensive--go to a local travel agent yourself or use crip.com, elong.com, or travelzen.com to book. If you book once in China, those online providers can deliver tickets to you at your lodging, or you can pick up at their office. And use cash instead of credit card if you prefer. No need to book airline seats far in advance for availability reasons, unless you are trying for a specific level of discount which may be better 2-4 weeks out instead of last-minute. On some routes where train travel is inordinately long or circuitous, a flight is a good idea to save time.

Haha YES! You've been holding my hand through this entire process and I can't tell you how much I appreciate it!

This is all really good advice--especially the info about the moisturizer and the trains. I had been thinking having doors on the sleepers was a good thing, but I would agreed that I'd prefer not to be in sleeper with 3 men that I don't know.

Right now I am trying to book my tickets to China using miles and I am thinking that I might cut my planned trip to Korea short so I can get to Beijing by mid-Nov because it sounds like it will still be more manageable then. I am thinking of Beijing-Xi'an-Chengdu-Shanghai-Guilin-Yangshuo-Hong Kong because these all seem to be well-touristed spots that I hope I'll be able to meet other travellers. Do you think that's a reasonable itinerary? Anything I should add or remove?

I had thought I could plan it when I got there, but when I looked at flights from Japan-Korea-China they weren't particularly cheap and I thought I might want to use miles for them, which means I have to start planning before I'm really ready! I'm still trying to get every settled here, getting rid of my apartment, decide what shoes to bring, etc. :) And I'll get a pair of long underwear before I leave.

Thanks again!

If you want or need to travel soft sleeper and end up with no women in the compartment, usually it's pretty easy to get assistance from the attendant and switch with somebody. Especially if the train isn't booked solid, which it probably wouldn't be this time of year. Don't sweat this too much.

Itinerary: If you have a month or nearly so, you can easily cover this and then some more. For this particular time of year, this is what I recommend:
Beijing (4 nights/5 days). Overnight fast train to Shanghai (2 nights/2 days). Day train to Suzhou (2 nights/2 days incl overland daytrip or 1/2 day to water town). Fly Shanghai (SHA) to Xi'an, or if flight available from Wuxi airport to Xi'an, that's closer than SHA. Xi'an--2 nights/1.5 days. Overnight train to Chengdu--2 nights maybe a 3rd if you want to daytrip to Leshan Buddha. Overnight southbound train to Panzhihua junction then change to bus for Lijiang in Yunnan province (4 nights). Road or flight to Kunming (2 nights), if you want to stop in Dali, go by road and add 2 nights there also. Fly to Guilin, overland transfer to Yangshuo (4 nights). Fly Guilin-HKG (2-3 nights). This adds up to about a month. I'd spend any additional time you might have in the relatively warmer parts of the south (lowland areas) according to your interests.

If you have the cash and prefer to fly, most of these segments are directly flyable by nonstops. Chengdu-Lijiang nonstops are more limited in number, but if unavailable on days you wish to travel, you can also fly Chengdu-Lijiang via transfer in Kunming, where there are more plentiful connections.

I don't know if you do this for a living, jiejie, but you should consider it.

Of the places you've listed, do you think I will have a particularly difficult time with no Mandarin? (I mean moreso than in general)

Also, would I be able to buy flights/train tickets with only a few days notice or same day or do I need to plan my dates in advance?

[QUOTE=giblet;12427203]I don't know if you do this for a living, jiejie, but you should consider it.
[/darin? (I mean QUOTE]

Maybe the clothing info should be forwarded to the White House as Obama
plans to visit Beijing in mid November.

Ha! I've done a bit of trip planning for friends and family, the trick is to come up with a skeletal framework that balances sights/activities/experiences and makes logistical sense for a given time frame/budget. But also gives the traveller enough flexibility to fine-tune/customize things as they go. Most of the people I know aren't group tour types.

Mandarin: none of these places is off the beaten track and if stuck, you'll probably locate someone who can at least speak Me Tarzan You Jane type of English. Take a phrasebook to fall back on, and you'll manage well. Western tourists will be fewer this time of year, but not non-existent. You are more likely to meet other travellers in hostels and guesthouses...many of which have private rooms not just dorms. If you don't need lots of amenities or luxury, consider going this route. Often solo travellers meet up serendipitously and end up doing a day or so (or longer) activities together.

Tickets: Yes, you should be able to buy with just a few days notice, without having to set all dates in advance. Especially air tickets. Air tickets can be bought in any city for any other city pair connection. The only city pair on your itinerary that has limited capacity is Kunming-Guilin (surprisingly), there are few daily flights. You can always go by train but it will take 24 hours and you'll head either south via Nanning or north via Guizhou province--if you have time, either of these directions could make for an interesting stopover for a day or so enroute to Guilin.

Train tickets can only be bought in the city the train is departing from. Hard sleepers will sell out before soft sleepers, as most Chinese are thrifty. On an overnight train, you need a sleeper. (Daytrains for short trips need only a seat). My advice is upon arriving in a new city, make your exit plans and get the train ticket for the next destination then. If your schedule is flexible, then you can be more relaxed, as being stuck for an extra day in a place due to lack of immediate train tickets isn't an issue. However, if you need to meet a schedule deadline on the back-end, then reliability of obtaining a specific train ticket on a specific date may be more important. However, if trains are sold out, you can always throw a little more cash at the situation and fly. In China, there's always a way to resolve any of these logistical things. Again, you can save time for sightseeing by throwing more cash at the problem and upon arriving at your lodging, tell them what you need and let them get the ticket and bring it back to you. I've generally only been charged about RMB 20-30 "service fee" on top of the actual ticket price (hostels and Chinese hotels up to 3*), and to me, I'd rather spend the hour or so of my time to things other than logistic arrangements.

[QUOTE=anacapamalibu;12427594
Maybe the clothing info should be forwarded to the White House as Obama
plans to visit Beijing in mid November.[/QUOTE]

How about we FT'ers suggest long underwear under a traditional Mao suit (complete with cap)? :D I'm OK with him wearing anything, except those Chinese silk dress shirts that world leaders visiting China always end up wearing for their group picture. Talk about cheesy...

Cheesy is very kind.

They look more like covers to protect your clothes from oil stains when
eating hot pot. Like a full body bib.:confused:

http://www.pissedonpolitics.com/Bush_China_2.jpg