Some people might be interested in checking out the new high-speed rail that will connect Shanghai with Beijing in FOUR hours. That's basically NYC to ATL....

Attendance: Interested
# of attendees: 1
Hotel Preference: @ Home
Other suggested activities: Flexible


By the way, when will the G-train start service between Beijing and Shanghai??

That sounds amazing. Start the DO in Shanghai, end in Beijing.:D

Would love to find out the launch date of the new high-speed rail between BJ and SH. I have an open-jaw ticket booked into PEK and out of PVG for this DO. A 4 hour ride on the G-train definitely beats out sitting in Y on MU or CZ.

According to Wikipedia, 20 June 2011.

bump :eek:

thanks for the bump, spaceman.

am interested, but not finding airfare in my range.

still on the radar.

Please Confirm me, Looks like I will be in the region after all.

Attendance: Interested!
Date Choice: Nov 11-14 (but it's too early to know for sure
# of attendees: 1
Hotel Preference: SPG; Hyatt
Other Suggested activities: Whatever the group decides

Bump...

Yes, -- I, too, am needing to find reasonable airfare!:eek:

What dates are you booked for? I appreciate that the details & participation are still in discussion, -- esp. regarding add-on trip, etc., -- but it's difficult to know what dates to apply for the airfare search (esp. if some 'deal' happens to come along)!:eek:

Am interested. 1 attending. SPG or Hyatt OK with me. What I'd like to see: something unusual that tourists don't usually have access to. Maybe something HSR or airport related?

I just came back from a week in Shanghai, so I am not sure if I'll go back for this DO (apparently China only issues double entry/six-month visas for first-time tourists, and I'm not sure that I want to spend another $140 and a day to get another visa), but I just wanted to point out that the brand new Courtyard-in-name-only Puxi is a good value, especially for those with Gold or Platinum status. It is also short walk to the train station from which many of the CRH trains leave.

If I do go, my new hotel preferences are Marriott or SPG.

All that being said, what is your real opinion of Shanghai - could it eventually fill in for a second Asia DO after Singapore :confused:

If true, it must be a recent change or it could depend on your consulate. We got 12-month multi-entry visas from the SF consulate for our first visit.

Attendance: Interested!
Date Choice: Nov 11-14
# of attendees: 1
Hotel Preference: SPG;

Oh, I had a great time in Shanghai, and if you've never been I recommend going. It's not really a tourist/holiday/lots-of-historical-culture oriented destination (3 or 4 days tops), though, kind of like Tokyo. Shopping is cheaper elsewhere (for higher end stuff, anyway), and other cities, like Singapore (also a 3 day city), have better food scenes.

I'd need a specific reason to go back. A FT DO may or may not be that reason for me, depending on agenda and cost.

NY consulate. Dunno if it's a recent change or not, but I wasn't really in a position to argue.

We were there for a month in 2007, and never ran out of things to do.

Attendance: Very interested
Date Choice: Nov 11-14
# of attendees: me and maybe mr alicesantamonica
Hotel Preference: JW Marriott
Other Suggested activities: Hangzhou, terracottas, Hong Kong or whatever the group decides

In and around Shanghai this week.

Just got back from PVG today. In fact I'm typing this at the DTW Skyclub as I wait for my conneting flight to NYC. Was there about 9 days on an DL Award ticket. I agree with Bennos when it comes to shopping, not cheap compare to come other cities. But I absolutely loved the food. Maybe it's because I opted for chinese cuisine rather than western cusine while I was there? As for things to do, I'm sure there are plenty as well.

My November open-jaw ticket into Beijing 11/6 and out of Shanghai 11/14 is also an award ticket open to change depends on what extra activities people are interested in.

Thanks for the info. -- I will book an award tkt, as well, -- to preserve the flexibility, & snag saverpass while it's available!^

Oh, I had plenty of good food there, including some fantastic snacks at a train station, but for me it's like eating in Italy... no matter how fantastic and how locally variable, I get bored after a while and need something different. Compare against NY, SF, Singapore, etc, where there's not just wide variability within a cuisine, but across cuisines as well.

Anyway, a minor point, and I'm absolutely not trying to discourage anyone from going.

bump - hate to see this on the last page..........:confused:

Point on, definitely feel blessed to be living in NYC. But for a week or two, I think most people shall be happy with the culinary scene in Shanghai. Plus, you'd really have to know where to look for the good non-chinese stuff in SH. Although expecting Jean Georges in SH to be on the same level as the one in NYC may be a little too much to ask. Oh well, at least the $188RMB set brunch/lunch is a pretty good bargain.

There was an annual Asia Do on Labor Day weekend for many years until the Cow Do started. Had a great Do in Shanghai when GK and Sean were living in HK, in February I believe. I can't imagine getting bored with the food selection there from what I recall.

That said, as I'm living in Taichung now, I'm definitely interested, depending on my Taiwan visa situation. Coming back to Taiwan on July 2, a trip to Shanghai and USA, probably with a Taiwan multi entry 90 day, which would be difficult to do 11/11, but if I land the job and get an ARC, no problem.

On the issue of China visas, I have never had a problem getting one year multi entry L visas, as they are all the same price-US$140, so make some reservations for PVG or PEK in a 12 month period, awards are good especially if you don't have a redeposit fee like with AA EXP, and take those printouts to the visa office and just request the one year muti entry. Maybe it's the nice staff at the San Francisco visa office where I go for them.

For US passport holder, you can enter TW with 30 days visa waiver should you proceed onward airticket (no extension).
If you have a 90 days multi-entry visa, you can go to Immigration office in Taichung (2 locations) for visa extension (60-90 days with vaild reservation or ticket, plus residence local police station registration).

Also there is a English hotline for questions: 0800-024-111 (from TW) although I never called before.

Taichung immigratoin office in Chinese character:
1. 臺中市南屯區干城街91號1樓 (old Taichung city)
TEL 04-22549981、04-22542545、04-22541803、04-22548930

2. 臺中市豐原區中山路280號 (old Taichung county)
TEL 04-25261087、04-25269777、04-25261052、04-25263974

For China visa, Lion travel (www.liontravel.com) can help to obtain in Taiwan with some fees (depends on single/double/mulitiple/3m/6m/12m or rapid service). Service charge might be a bit higher then you submit yourself back in US, but quite reliable.
However, visa regulation for China changes time to time and Chinese government never disclose any detail.

bump to the front of the bus

Do you mean you can not enter TW without outgoing ticket with US passport? How about round trip ticket to TW from mainland china, is it ok for US citizen to enter Taiwan without visa?

You can enter TW on US passport, without showing an onward ticket. It is a 30 day Visa exempt status which means you must leave TW on or before the 30th day, not counting the date of arrival. For the 90 day visitor visa, single entry is US$140, I have been asked for proof of a ticket off the island on or before the expiration date of the 90 days. I received one extension of a 90 day visa, as I was leaving for vacation in the US in June, so got a free extension to my departure date, basically, an additional 30 days. 90 day extensions can be arranged for a sufficient reason (YRMV,) and payment of a NT$1000 fee at an Immigration Office.

I'm looking pretty definite for this event, but haven't got anything booked or visa or any of that stuff yet.

We are moving forward to a great event ^ See these updated posts:

spaceman - Thank you for your assistance in organizing this event. :-:

I say I'm pretty interested in this. What's the deadline for this? (Never quite done a DO) I'm mostly based in HKG nowadays, so it's a short hop up.

At this time there is not deadline. The only issue/deadline may occur when we finalize the tours/dinners and if we need firm commitment to advise the providers. Off hand I would not expect that to be sooner than a week or so before the event.

I would say put me and a +1 down. Maybe bennos would come, too - I had a great time with him in Shanghai.

Time to bump the thread and to add...

Attendance: Very interested
Date: Nov 10-14
Number Attending: 1
Hotel Preference: Hilton
Other Activities: Trying to combine with a quick visit to TYO

I'll try and get an openjaw award using US miles but can't decide whether to go to Japan first or the DO first. I'll probably go to TYO first and fly HND-SHA since I'd like to see the new international terminal at HND, but I'm wondering what travelling into the centre from SHA is like with a fair amount of luggage.

I've never been to Shanghai or the mainland China for that matter and am very interested in attending this DO.

Great news Newbie! I'm still iffy, but this is a definite plus

Anyone have simple info about getting visa?

As far as that is concerned - need to get it while still in the US. Long queues, but relatively painless otherwise. If you don't live in a city with a Chinese consulate, there are plenty of visa services that will get it done for you. Usually takes a few days - but you can have rush service for extra $.

Do need to fill in contact information in China though....

I've found this visa FAQ in the China forum and a couple of threads linked from the post very useful.

I'm wondering if I should go ahead and book an award ticket while it's available. :)