Favourable exchange rate
WHEN comparing travel to
Japan, Europe or America,
China is still affordable,
says Chien Liou, gm of
Dragon Holidays.
Alet Steyn of Wendy
Wu Tours, says the rand
exchange rate against
the renminbi/yuan makes
China a more affordable
destination.
Even though hiring an
English-speaking guide can
add to the overall cost of
the holiday, Chien says it is
worth it. “The difficulty with
travelling to China is the
language. The country is
best enjoyed by employing
the services of a guide and
private instead of public
transportation.”
Book it!
Dragon Holidays is offering the chance to explore both Imperial and
modern China for seven nights from US$1 100pps (R14 787). The
package includes four nights in Beijing with visits to Tiananmen Square,
the Forbidden City, the Great Wall, Silk Market and the Temple of Heaven.
From Beijing, travellers take a high-speed train to Shanghai, where they
will spend three nights, with visits to the Pearl TV Tower, Bund and Nanjing
Road. The offer includes five breakfasts, four lunches, three dinners, guide
and driver, and is valid until December 31.
Did you know?
Singapore Airlines’ regional carrier, SilkAir, added an eighth Chinese city
to its route network with the launch of its Fuzhou service on November
21. The flight operates four times a week on Mondays, Wednesdays,
Fridays and Sundays. Flight MI990 departs Singapore at 10h35 and
arrives in Fuzhou at 15h05. Flight MI989 departs Fuzhou at 16h15 and
arrives in Singapore at 21h00. The route is serviced by a Boeing 737-
800 with 12 seats in business class and 150 in economy.
Improved connectivity for corporates
AIRLINES are seeing
a large portion of
the South African
corporate market making
its way to China, with more
diverse route networks
providing greater access to
the country’s key business
destinations.
One of Singapore Airlines’
major selling points is its
connectivity, says market
development manager, Sally
George. “The business
traveller wants the frequency
out of here and good
connections to the onward
points.”
She says Singapore Airlines
serves the three key cities
in China – Beijing, Hong
Kong and Shanghai – and
another eight destinations
on its regional airline,
SilkAir – Changsha, Chengdu,
Chongqing, Fuzhou, Kunming,
Shenzhen, Wuhan and
Xiamen.
Mix work and play
Although China is a major
business destination, it does
not mean that travellers have
to only see the inside of
boardrooms.
Air Mauritius has direct
services to Beijing, Shanghai,
Guangzhou Chengdu and
Hong Kong. The airline also
has connecting flights from
Cape Town, Durban and
Johannesburg.
The airline is the African
carrier with the most
connections to China since
launching its service to
Guangzhou in July last
year, says Wouter Nel, Air
Mauritius’s head of sales and
marketing.
On the return flight,
travellers can take advantage
of Air Mauritius’s free onenight
stopover service.
Connecting flights for South
African travellers depart the
following day, so travellers
will receive a booking voucher
for the four-star Holiday Inn
Mauritius Mon Trésor.
Where are South Africans travelling to?
CHINA’S capital, Beijing,
tops tour operators’ list
of popular destinations
for South African
leisure travellers. Other
destinations include Xi’an,
Shanghai, Chengdu, Yangtze
River, Hong Kong and
Guangzhou.
Alet Steyn, gm of Wendy
Wu Tours, recommends that
while in Beijing, visitors
should make an early visit
to the Temple of Heaven to
mingle with the locals.
Thompsons Holidays offers
day trips to Tiananmen
Square, the Forbidden City,
Temple of Heaven and the
Summer Palace. “The tour
takes in the iconic sights
that no visitor should
miss,” says John Ridler,
pr and media manager of
Thompsons Holidays.
Xi’an lies in the heart of
China and is best known for
the world-famous Terracotta
Warriors, says Alet.
The older part of the
city is enclosed by wellpreserved
14th Century
walls. Travellers can explore
them on foot or by bike, she
says.
“Shanghai is China’s great
metropolis, where east and
west collide on streets lined
with futuristic skyscrapers
and 10th Century temples,”
says Alet. The city is also
known as ‘the Paris of the
East’ and travellers can
get a taste of the colonial
architecture of the Bund
before strolling down
Nanjing Road – a shopper’s
paradise.
Marjorie Wohlmann, travel
consultant of Disa Travel
and Tours, says in her
experience, it is a certain
kind of clientele that look to
visit China.
Often these travellers have
been everywhere else in the
world.
“They are seasoned
travellers who have seen
Asia, Europe and the
Americas,” says Marjorie.
Each year, she books one
or two packages for China
and she says these clients
know exactly where they
want to go.
Due to the language
barrier and the lack of
English signs in the country,
Marjorie always books
clients on a packaged tour
that includes everything
from internal flights and
ground transport to Englishspeaking
guides.
