Beijing on your own

It can be easier, and cheaper, to bypass packaged tours and see China's capital and the surrounding area the way you want to.

By GEORGE HOBICA
© St. Petersburg Times
published January 12, 2003

Laura Rakowitz is an intrepid traveler. She has been to Bhutan, Bali and almost everywhere in between, usually going on her own or with a friend or two. But this summer, when the ABC News producer goes back to China, once again she'll take a packaged tour.

What is it about China that makes even the most independent of travelers succumb to group travel?

It is true that packaged tours sometimes cost less than putting together an independent trip. But an intangible cost is involved, such as when a member of your group goes missing for a couple of hours and you sit around waiting for the lost lamb to be found (and then feel like slaughtering him because of your lost touring time).

Until fairly recently, if you wanted to see Beijing, group tours were the only way to go: When the city was first opened to non-Chinese, that's all the state-run tourist agency would allow.

That has changed, and it is possible to put together your own trip for the same, or perhaps less, than what you'd spend on a package.

In China's principal cities today, you can find good hotel accommodations for as little as $17 per person per night (based on double occupancy), dinners that rarely cost more than $10 a person, transportation for pocket change (12 cents for a subway or bus ride, $1.40 for an airport transfer), and admissions to tourist attractions that are anywhere from free to $6.

Prices listed here include service and tax, and are given in Chinese yuan renminbi (RMB) and U.S. dollar equivalents.

Seeing the sights

China's capital is big, sprawling, traffic-choked and polluted, as well as a fascinating symphony of sounds, tastes and legendary sights, such as the Forbidden City and the Temple of Heaven.

If you have a travel guide and a map, navigating is fairly easy and cheap. Public buses and subways cost 1 RMB (12 cents) a ride, and fare cards are sold from vending machines. Taxis run 10 RMB ($1.20) for the first 21/2 miles. You can also rent cars. Highways are well-marked in English, as are main streets.

You don't need a group tour guide to walk around Tiananmen Square. This vast space, about 100 acres is said to be the world's largest city plaza; crowds have been estimated at 1-million.

A recorded female voice blares out the rules: Watch your kids, no spitting, soccer playing, or skateboarding.

Flanking the square is the National History Museum (5 RMB/60 cents), Mao's Tomb (free) and the National Congress building (15 RMB/$1.80). But the main attraction is the Forbidden City. Admission is 40 RMB ($4.85); an audio guide costs another 30 RMB ($3.65). Or you can hire a guide (200 RMB/$24 for an hour, 250 RMB/$30 for 90 minutes).

Most of the buildings cannot be entered. You can only peer through their sometimes-dirty windows or crowd around door openings to see the treasures. The official explanation is that too many visitors have worn down the tile floors in some of the buildings, which leaves one wondering why they don't just put down carpeting and restrict people to well-defined paths.

You can also see how ordinary people live in the 900 or so remaining narrow alleyways called hutongs, where an estimated 2-million of Beijing's 7.5-million residents dwell. The Beijing Hutong Culture Tour Co. (26 Dianmen Xilu, Xicheng District; call 010/6615-9097) operates a fleet of pedicabs small enough to navigate the twisting lanes. A fascinating three-hour tour costs 180 RMB ($22) per person.

You might visit a house that has been owned by the same family for 50 years and learn, through a translator, that the owners were forced to accommodate two other families during the Cultural Revolution. Now, seven people from the original family, spanning three generations, live there with their 18-year-old calico cat.

Perhaps even more remarkably, the house includes washing and toilet facilities, a luxury that most hutong houses do without.

The Wall is a must

It is also easy, and more rewarding, to visit the Great Wall on your own. Ninety minutes north via the new Beijing-Badaling highway, the most easily visited 8-mile section of the Great Wall is reconstructed and surrounded by snack bars and souvenir stands. Though little of this stretch is in original condition, it is still impressive.

Some hotels and travel agencies offer guided tours, but you can get there on your own on the 919X express bus (10 RMB/$1.20; do not confuse it with the slower, non-air conditioned, 919 bus).

But for a less touristy experience, visit stretches of the Wall in their original state, such as the Simatai section. Small guided tours from Beijing will cost about 340 RMB ($40), but if your group is two or more, rent a compact car. Or for 50 RMB ($6) you can catch a minibus to the Huanghu part of the Wall, about 36 miles from Beijing and nary a T-shirt shop in sight.

But wherever you decide to go, it will be on your schedule, and you can linger as long as you like.

If you go

GETTING THERE: Peak travel season for Chinese tourists to Beijing is July and August (when it can be beastly hot), and for Western visitors, it's September and October. Winter can be cold and damp, but you would avoid the sometimes overwhelming masses of tourists.

It is a long journey even by air. It is recommended that travelers break up the trip by spending a day or two in Los Angeles. To do this, buy one ticket to Los Angeles International Airport (say, on Southwest) and buy another ticket to Beijing.

Asiana and ANA typically have good, flexible fares you can find on such Web sites as Travelocity.com, Expedia.com and Orbitz.com. A recent round-trip listed online was $550 from Los Angeles.

Northwest Airlines' site (www.nwa.com) recently had an East Coast to Beijing flight for $350. United's Web site often has good Web-only deals (united.com). U.S. citizens need a visa. It is probably best to use a visa service to obtain the visa for a fee, although travelers who plan to be in New York before heading to Asia can stop at the Chinese Consulate and obtain the visa in as little as a week.

GETTING AROUND: Even before the city was named host of the 2008 Olympics, Beijing was a flurry of construction. One can only imagine what it will be like in the next few years. Traffic, already bad, will probably get worse before it gets better.

Taxis. In Beijing, the "flag throw" and the first 4 kilometers cost 10 RMB, about $1.20. If the flag is up and visible, the cab is available.

Buses. They are cheaper, at 1 RMB. As in London, some buses have conductors who will make change, but others don't and require exact change. In May 2000 a debit card system, similar to New York City's, was introduced. Cards can be bought in subways and from vending machines.

SLEEPING AND EATING THERE: Finding accommodations with private baths and all modern conveniences is relatively easy. Although five-star, Western-style hotels are plentiful and not very expensive by North American standards, you need not spend more than $16 per person per night to stay in comfort.

Many of the rates quoted here are low enough to begin with, but you can do better if you book through one of China's government tourist agencies: CTS (toll-free 1-800-890-8818, www.chinatravelservice.com), CITS (718 261-7329, www.cits.net), and CYTS (in China, call 011-86-10/6513-3153, www.chinatour.com).

Top hotels include:

Lu Song Yuan Guest House (22 Banchang La., call 011-86-10/6404-0436, fax 011-86-10/6403-0418, www.the-silk-road.com). Once the private compound of an emperor's son, tranquil, the 200-year-old hutong houses surrounding quiet courtyards are the capital's best budget accommodations. For 140 RMB ($16.80) per person per night (based on double occupancy) in peak season (10 percent less other times), you get a small, spotless room with cable TV, air conditioning and phone that overlooks a pleasant courtyard with chirping birds and breakfast; 225 RMB ($27) per person per night buys a larger deluxe double.

The restaurant is worth a visit even if you are not staying there. Try the diced chicken with peanuts and peppers or shredded pork in spicy sauce (18 RMB/$2.15), or splurge on the set meal of three hot dishes, soup, rice and one cold appetizer for 68 RMB ($8.15). That's $8.15 for four people. All this, plus a great location. Just book well ahead.

Harmony Hotel (400 RMB per person, Youtong St., 59 Suzhou Hutong, Donmg Cheng District, 011-86-10/6528-5566). One of many hotels a short walk from the main railway station, this clean, modern hotel offers 122 air conditioned rooms, with cable TV, minifridges and direct-dial phones. It is a bit frayed at the edges but conveniently located. Doubles run 400 RMB ($48).

Beijing Youth Hostel (2 Worker's Stadium N Road, Chaoyang District, 011-86-10/6597-2299, www.hiayh.org). Built in May 2000, this is a clean, cheap place to stay, though a little more off the beaten path (on the 3rd Ring Road near the embassy area). The shared baths could be cleaner, but they have 24-hour hot water. There is a 1 a.m. curfew. Rates are 415 to 496 RMB ($50-$60) per person per night for Hostelling International members, 80 RMB ($10) more for nonmembers. A Western-style breakfast is 10 RMB (1.20), lunch and dinner 20 RMB ($2.40). The 35 rooms have 140 beds, most of which are bunk style, four or six to a room, but there are 10 doubles (half with double beds).

Songhe Hotel (88 Dengshikou Ave., Dongsheng District, 011-86-10/6513-8822). Built in 1992 and renovated in 2000, it's the only three-star hotel in the city center. Its 310 rooms come with cable TV, minibar and in-room safes, and there are several restaurants and a decent fitness center. Doubles are 650 RMB ($79) but 15 percent less April through August; other discounts are usually available for the asking either through the front desk or CTS and CITS.

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Contact these government tourist agencies: CTS (toll-free 1-800-890-8818, www.chinatravelservice.com), CITS ((718) 261-7329, www.cits.net), and CYTS (in China, call 011-86-10/6513-3153, www.chinatour.com).

-- George Hobica is a freelance writer specializing in online travel issues.

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