Travel Blog
China tour
2/4/2008 1:51:17 AM Link

China, 2008 Join me for a trip of a lifetime!

Viking River Cruises is one of the best companies offering a tour package to the main cities in China. We'll depart San Francisco on June 8th and return on June 20th. Two nights in Shanghai, 5 night Yangtze River cruise, 1 night Xian and 3 nights Beijing.

DAY

DESTINATION

ACTIVITIES

1

Shanghai

 

Transfer from the Shanghai airport to hotel; free time

2

Shanghai

 

Old Shanghai/Bund tour; Silk Carpet Workshop tour; Shanghai Museum & free time; Chinese acrobatic performance

3

Shanghai
Wuhan

 

Free time. Fly to Wuhan
Wuhan museum tour; board your ship

4

Yueyang
Three Gorges

 

Viking River Cruises School visit
Xiling Gorge

5

Three Gorges Dam

 

Three Dam lock transit & tour

6

Three Gorges
Lesser Three Gorges

 

Wu & Qutang Gorges
Lesser Three Gorges excursion

7

Shibaozhai

 

Shibaozhai Temple tour

8

Chongging
Xian

 

Disembark. Fly to Xian
Hotel check-in & free time; Tang Dynasty dinner show

9

Xian
Beijing

 

Terra Cotta Army. Fly to Beijing
Hotel check-in

10

Beijing

 

Great Wall & Sacred Way of the Ming Tombs

11

Beijing

 

Tiananmen Square & Forbidden City; Summer
Palace; Peking Duck Dinner & Peking Opera

12

Beijing

 

Beijing Transfer from your hotel to the Beijing airport.

The river boat was built in 2005, holds only 306 passengers. Rates include 5 star hotel accommodations, balcony cabin on river boat, all flights within China, all meals, sightseeing, port charges and taxes.

All for only $3,184 per person!!

That's a special rate for our group. If that date doesn't work for you, choose another date and bring together 9 friends and either you go for free or you can share the value with your friends and everyone benefits.

Air from San Francisco: only $320 including taxes and transfers if you pay in full by February 14, 2008! Or use your frequent flyer miles, especially United Airlines, but hurry, seats are very limited! Call today for more information or to reserve your spot.

(510) 582-0540 or (925) 938-8600

Canada/New England cruise
1/31/2008 4:01:17 PM Link

In October, I cruised to Canada/New England on Crystal Cruises' Symphony. It is a very nice ship and the itinerary was great.

We started in New York. With the ship departing at 8pm, we had time to visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art; loved the Egypt section and also the art masters: Rembrandt, Vermeer, Picasso and more.

Our first port of call was Newport, Rhode Island, possibly my favorite because we got to visit the Elms and the Marble House. These are two of the fabulous "summer cottages" used by the rich and famous like the Vanderbilt's, for just a few weeks per year. They have incredible architecture--very impressive!

Then we had an overnight in Boston; of course, lots of historical sites like the home of Paul Revere.

Our third port was Bar Harbor, Maine. We took Oli's Trolley to Cadillac Mountain, a whopping 1,532 feet to the summit--impressive for a Californian! Not! But it was very nice to see the turning of the leaves; lots of colored leaves and beautiful scenery.

We finally made it to Canada, stopping at St. John, New Brunswick. It's a nice town and we walked from the pier to the Reversing Falls. The Bay of Fundy tides rise 28.5 feet!

Next stop: Halifax, Nova Scotia. We visited the Maritime Museum and learned all about the explosion and fire of 1917. Two ships collided in the harbor, one of them carrying munitions. It was the greatest known man-made explosion until the atomic bomb was dropped in 1945.

Another favorite stop was Quebec City. It is so charming with all the shops and restaurants, and the famous hotel which sits very regally on a hill above the harbor with its wonderful architecture: Chateau Frontenac.

And our final destination was Montreal. My favorite site is Notre Dame Basilica (where Celine Dion was married). I had been there before and forgot how magnificent it was.

And we were so lucky, the weather was perfect! Not too hot and the sun was out everyday. We had one day of rain while at sea and it drizzled all day in Montreal.

So...you've cruised to the Caribbean, Mexico and Alaska...I highly recommend this itinerary. And almost all of the cruise lines offer this or a similar itinerary. Call for more information or to plan your next vacation.

 SAMPLE ITINERARY

Oct 8 Wed New York City, New York, USA   9 pm
Oct 9 Thu Newport, Rhode Island, USA 8 am 5 pm
Oct 10 Fri Boston, Massachusetts, USA(overnight) 9 am  
Oct 11 Sat Boston, Massachusetts, USA   5 pm
Oct 12 Sun Bar Harbor, Maine, USA 8 am 5 pm
Oct 13 Mon Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada 8 am 5 pm
Oct 14 Tue Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada 9 am 6 pm
Oct 15 Wed Cruising the Atlantic Ocean    
Oct 16 Thu Cruising the Gulf of St. Lawrence    
Oct 17 Fri Québec City, P.Q., Canada 7 am 6 pm
Oct 18 Sat Montréal, P.Q., Canada(overnight) 8 am  
Oct 19 Sun Montréal, P.Q., Canada Disembark am

Cruise Map

New passport rules
6/10/2007 11:53:20 AM Link
They changed it again. But for those of you that already applied for a passport, it's good news. See http://travel.state.gov/travel/cbpmc/cbpmc_2223.html for more information.
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