Testimonials

08/16/2010

Customer name: Family of PHILIP SNOW
Nationality: Great Britain
Travel dates: July 19, 2010-Aug 08, 2010
Itinerary: 21 Days Panoramic Tour to Southern and Northern Xinjiang

We had a wonderful time in Xinjiang, and are most grateful for the excellent care which Fiona and her colleagues took of us both before and during our visit. We hope to make another trip with you in the future.

We feel that Travel West China deserves to be better known.

Ms. Fiona Shong was probably the best travel advisor we have ever had. Before and during the trip she answered all our questions promptly, fully and sympathetically, and was even ready to advise on questions which did not fall within her direct remit. Ms. Cai in Urumqi was also kind and helpful, and solved the difficult problem of securing our return train tickets.

Mr. Iskander Abibulla gave us a good introduction to Uighur culture. He chose a number of good restaurants and dishes for us, and cheered up our younger daughter when she was feeling unwell. He enabled us to make some delightful mountain walks, and was sensitive in recognising when we needed time by ourselves. Probably because of lack of experience, he was sometimes unsure of the where abouts of hotels and tour sites and the historical and geographical background of places we visited, but we are sure this will improve with time.

Mr. Wang Xianglin was a super driver. He always drive safely, took great care in maintaining his vehicle and made sure that he got enough sleep to cope with the huge distances covered. He came with us on walks, helped us with difficult climbs and was kindly, interesting and a pleasure to talk to. He is a major asset to travel West China, and you should take good care of him.

We oftern to stay in three or four star hotels, so we were not expecting luxury. The Silver Star (Yin Xing) Hotel in Korla was especially good, and the Seman Hotel in Kashgar was unusual and enjoyable. Only the night Swan Hotel in Bayanbulak fell below our expectations. The Lido Hotel in Kuqa was better than the Kuqa Hotel. The Karez Hotel in Turpan was pretty and atmospheric, but the bathrooms could be improved. The Yili Hotel in Ying had a pleasant environment, but the staff at the front desk need to remember that they are running a hotel and not a police station.

We were very pleased to have an introduction to Uighur food, and enjoyed many of the local dishes. However we would have liked to have had more Chinese meals for the sake of variety. In Kuqa we discovered by ourselves the Shaoshan restaurant next to the Lido Hotel, which serves excellent Chinese food, and we warmly recommend this to future visitors.

Each of us had our favorite sites. We particularly enjoyed Nalati (riding with Kazakrs), the Kyzyl caves, Kashgar and Oytagk, the Jiaohe Ruins at Turpan and Yining.

All the sites we visited were interesting and spectacular and we had no disappointments. We were unable to visit Lake Karakul and Tashkorgan because of weather conditions, but hope to see them another time.

The itinerary was outstanding. For a family with children one or two sites were physically dangerous, E.G. The Jiaohe Ruins with their open wells and cliffs. We think the guide should warn of these hazards, and that the local authorities should put up warning notices in English as well as Chinese.

Suggestions: 1. While some of the toilets were good, others were appalling from the point of view of a Western visitor. Western visitors don't mind simple toilets, but they do expect them to be clean and have running water for washing their hands. Local authorities should pay attention to this.

2. The dual time system in Xinjiang was confusing, especially as our guide thought in local time while our driver thought in Beijing time! We suggest that one time should be agreed on at the beginning of a tour for use by the whole group. Beijing time would be simplest.

With many thanks once again for all your help and every good wish,

Philip