Yangtze River
Yangtze River
4
8:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Monday
8:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Tuesday
8:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Wednesday
8:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Thursday
8:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Friday
8:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Saturday
8:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Sunday
8:00 AM - 11:59 PM
About
Winding across 3,988 miles (6,418) of China the Yangtze River is the third longest rive in the world. It begins its journey at the Qinhai-Tibet Plateau and ends at the East China Sea. The Yangtze River has a rich ecosystem, fascinating history, and is the most important river in China. Life has always sprung up around the Yangtze River. The earliest signs of life dating back 27 thousand years. The climate on the river is often milder then its cousin the Yellow River making it more suitable for agriculture.
Duration: More than 3 hours
Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listingTours & experiences
Explore different ways to experience this place.
Full view
Revenue impacts the experiences featured on this page, learn more.
Top ways to experience Yangtze River and nearby attractions
The area
Address
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
We perform checks on reviews.
Tripadvisor’s approach to reviews
Before posting, each Tripadvisor review goes through an automated tracking system, which collects information, answering the following questions: how, what, where and when. If the system detects something that potentially contradicts our community guidelines, the review is not published.
When the system detects a problem, a review may be automatically rejected, sent to the reviewer for validation, or manually reviewed by our team of content specialists, who work 24/7 to maintain the quality of the reviews on our site.
Our team checks each review posted on the site disputed by our community as not meeting our community guidelines.
Learn more about our review moderation.
4.0
930 reviews
Excellent
381
Very good
304
Average
132
Poor
63
Terrible
50
neilsherryuk
Shrewsbury, UK56 contributions
Oct 2019 • Couples
This is a delightful way to see stunning gorges and a lovely river. We sailed from the Three Gorges Dam which is stunning in itself to Chong Ching, it was hot but the scenery and sites at various stops were lovely. The boated aren’t the latest in luxury but the care and politeness of the staff cannot be faulted. They also provide the evening cabarets ‘Chinese style’ of course. Food is traditional, good and plentiful, buffet style. This is a trip of a lifetime and we loved it and found it very good value for money too. Overall the care of the Chinese people cannot be faulted. When in Chong Ching visit the zoo and the many pandas.
Written 2 February 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
usflyer
Baltimore, MD902 contributions
Sept 2011 • Couples
Booking Process: Great, I did everything online and never interacted with anyone from Gate1 because it all worked fine.
Price for 2: $5250.64 total with optional tours, taxes, and supplemental airfare from home city to departure city. Base price without any optional tours or supplemental airfare was $4443; getting this price included a $400 TravelZoo discount and $125 off for paying cash.
The Group: Tour was full with 40 people ranging from 28 to 75 years of age. Average age probably about 64. Couple of people with mobility issues due to excessive weight and handicap.
Stuff to bring: Power adapter, rain jacket, and portable alarm clock (no rooms had clocks).
Movies to watch before you go: The Last Emperor, Up the Yangtze, Raise the Red Lantern, and Farewell My Concubine
Books to Read before you go: River Town & Oracle Bones by Peter Hessler, and Lost on Planet China by J. Maarten Troost
Hotels: 3 nights in Shanghai Bund Riverside, 2 nights in Xian Grand New World Hotel, 3 nights in Beijing Huabin International Hotel – all my comments on these hotels will be found on their respective TripAdvisor pages. In general, all were nice and 4 star range. All had free wifi in the lobby if you want to bring a device and just use that.
Airline: Paid about $20 extra to fly on American Airlines rather than China Eastern or Air China….and it was money well spent. Everyone else on our tour flew those because they were cheapest and said the seats were narrower, shorter, and the experience not enjoyable. Inter-China flights were on China Eastern (a SkyTeam partner if you bring your number) and were fine – we got express group lines and all flights had full snack/meal/drink offerings better than in USA.
The Guide: We had Leo Gau, and this guy is probably the best guide we will ever have. Less than 12 hours after pick-up at the airport, he had memorized the names of all 40 participants! He was highly intelligent, was firm on requiring people to be on time and keep the group moving, and he was helpful to everyone from negotiating shopping to dietary assistance to room problems. I really can’t say enough about how great he was and made the tour lots of fun – I think he probably only slept 4 hours a night, he was working so hard. He also added some free (he paid) random “extras” for us like taking us to a grocery market and buying lotus root for us to taste, parks to see locals workout and sing, local rice cakes, fried cakes, pomegranate candy, boat ride in the Summer Palace, drum tower performance, hacky sacks, and moon cakes.
Big Brother: I am sure everyone knows China controls their image very tightly and it is no different on this tour. All the guides and instructors stuck to the Party line on “facts” that well-educated people know are highly questionable; Mao was a great leader who just had a few “minor” bad decisions. There is no manufacturing or pollution on the Yangtze that would have polluted the water during flooding. There are no slums anywhere in China. The dirty cloud that made it impossible to see farther than a few hundred yards during our entire stay in Beijing was just “fog”. The Uygur people in Western China are similar to Al Qaeda terrorists. Our passports were kept by the guide for the whole trip for “airline ticket verification”. And so on…..
Boat: The Century Star was put into commission in 2003 and is the oldest in their fleet. It is not as 5-star luxurious as the Century ships being sailed by Victoria Lines, but overall it was nice. We had some leaks in the bathroom that they came and fixed quickly. The floor wasn’t well vacuumed and was covered with sunflower seed shells. The deck on the front of the 2nd floor was the best for viewing. It would be worth $150 to upgrade to the deluxe suit overlooking the front if you can get it. There is a “convenience store” on the gangway to the ship on boarding that offers prices much lower than on board for water, beer (fridge in your room!), and snacks. Chinese potato chips are… interesting.
Food: Well, no surprise, you are going to eat Chinese food for every meal (even breakfast, if you like). It was all very good and none was any stranger than you would see on your menu at the local restaurant back home.
Optionals: We pre-booked ours but you can still book on your first full day there, but there is a 10% increase in price. The acrobats ($29 each in Shanghai) and dinner were very good and a decent value. The show is basic and shows the talents of the performers in about 70 minute show. Only problem is we were all so jet lagged that night. The Yangtze River Excursion package ($80 each) is a great value since it includes 3 events and it would have been pretty boring on the boat. The dam tour and lesser 3 gorges boat rides were excellent and worth it alone…the Fengdu visit to the cavern was okay but nothing special. The half day Hutong tour ($29 each in Beijing) was excellent BUT only about 1 hour long and you could have negotiated the same with a local pedicab for about $10 each. The visit with a local family was fairly staged and not that interesting. The dumpling dinner ($15 each in Xian) was delicious and well worth it. The Tang Dynasty show ($59 each in Xian) was a not-so-impressive meal with an excellent show – the price is high but actually much cheaper than you could buy on your own- overall worth it. We did not do the day tour to Suzhou (4 hours in the bus!) or the Peking Duck dinner because both were overpriced. These 2 were the least popular among our group, and those that did them didn’t seem to feel we missed anything.
A few Tips/ Warnings:
1) Tipping (Tour Price Subsidy #1) – You are constantly expected to have small bills ready and tip ALL THE TIME. The irony is, the Chinese don’t tip as a culture. Every guide / book I read recommends not tipping. Other European tour groups we encountered did not tip. You are expected to give $3 per person per day to every bus driver, $4 per person per day to every supplemental tour guide (The government requires you to have a local guide in addition to tour guide in each city), $7 per person per day to Overall guide, $1 per day to room cleaning staff, $35 per person for general cruise tip, $10 per person for cruise tour guide, and then tips to tour excursions as well (ex. $5 for hutong driver). All told, we handed out over $400 in tips for our pre-paid trip. The amount is crazy, but to be honest, the worst is always having to keep change and calculate the different recommend tipping amounts multiple times a day.
2) Factory Tours (Tour Subsidy #2) – I guess I glossed over these in the brochure, but they became very annoying. You already are missing a lot of important sites (ex. Temple of Heaven) so spending 1.5 hours at each to be given a soft sales pitch and dedicated time to have to shop in a store was really irritating when there were things that could be seen. I asked the guide if we could take a taxi and skip these, and he said no that they were required. So you have to attend Silk Factory (Shanghai), Lacquer Furniture (Xian), Pearls (Beijing), and Jade (Beijing), plus if you do Suzhou Day Tour Option, you have to attend another Silk Factory. So you basically lose one whole day of your vacation to sales pitches. Small rant – everything we buy at home already comes from China, so I don’t see the attraction of buying something there in a closed environment where you don’t know how good the price is and then have to lug it around and back home.
3) Physical Mobility – This tour has a decent amount of walking (probably 3 miles to do Tiananmen and Forbidden City in Beijing), and this was a little challenge for some people.
4) Bathrooms – This is China, so I guess I wasn’t expecting luxurious toilets but apparently many on the tour were shocked that they would frequently have to use a “crouching tiger” toilet (a hole in the floor with ceramic foot grips). Probably 75% of the places have at least one western style toilet but this often meant waiting for a long time. Also, I suppose it is necessary with a group, but we spent a lot of time talking about going to the bathroom (“happy room”), always discussing how long until the next one, if people needed a stop, etc.
5) Counterfeit Cash – You will always have lots of people following you around selling China kitsch stuff cheap – negotiate to about 30% of what they start at, NEVER pay asking price anywhere. There is a big problem with counterfeit cash in China, so just be alert as a number of people got scammed. Generally, if you pay with a bill needing change, there is a good chance your change will be a fake bill back. Make a point of always carrying around a lot of 20/10/5 Yuan bills for shopping and tips. Every morning go to the front desk to make change (it is free). The worst place was at Summer Palace – the guide warned us this had a lot of bad people, so we made a point to not get change here, but then we got scammed with the seller telling us we had given a torn bill that she couldn’t accept, and she did a switcheroo that we didn’t see giving us the torn fake back for a new real bill. Always pay small bills, never get change, and don’t believe anyone talking about torn bills. We got a Mao Hat for 20Y, Mao watch for 25Y, and fake Gucci purse for 40Y.
6) Water Supply – None of the water in China is potable, so be prepared to live off bottled water. Each hotel provides 2 bottles per night but this goes fast once you use it for teeth brushing as well as general drinking. Each bus will have bottles available at 2 for $1.00. This was nice for convenience, but we noticed in Beijing that the local Wal-Mart sells bottled water in packs of 12 for equivalent of $1.75, so they are making money too.
OVERALL: We tried a few times going out on our own, and it made us appreciate having the tour. English is very limited in signs and in speaking. Even though marked as 14 Day China, this is really 12 nights with 11 full days (not counting the lost day to factory shopping tours). The itinerary is very full, and while we had anticipated squeezing in some stuff on our own, there was absolutely no time as you generally leave at 8AM and return back at 7PM. The price was great, the lodging/ food was all 4-starish, the guide was incredibly awesome, and overall the tour packed in a lot of incredible attractions. I would use Gate-1 again but hope to avoid the factory tours and hope they will institute pre-paid gratuities so we can concentrate on vacationing.
Price for 2: $5250.64 total with optional tours, taxes, and supplemental airfare from home city to departure city. Base price without any optional tours or supplemental airfare was $4443; getting this price included a $400 TravelZoo discount and $125 off for paying cash.
The Group: Tour was full with 40 people ranging from 28 to 75 years of age. Average age probably about 64. Couple of people with mobility issues due to excessive weight and handicap.
Stuff to bring: Power adapter, rain jacket, and portable alarm clock (no rooms had clocks).
Movies to watch before you go: The Last Emperor, Up the Yangtze, Raise the Red Lantern, and Farewell My Concubine
Books to Read before you go: River Town & Oracle Bones by Peter Hessler, and Lost on Planet China by J. Maarten Troost
Hotels: 3 nights in Shanghai Bund Riverside, 2 nights in Xian Grand New World Hotel, 3 nights in Beijing Huabin International Hotel – all my comments on these hotels will be found on their respective TripAdvisor pages. In general, all were nice and 4 star range. All had free wifi in the lobby if you want to bring a device and just use that.
Airline: Paid about $20 extra to fly on American Airlines rather than China Eastern or Air China….and it was money well spent. Everyone else on our tour flew those because they were cheapest and said the seats were narrower, shorter, and the experience not enjoyable. Inter-China flights were on China Eastern (a SkyTeam partner if you bring your number) and were fine – we got express group lines and all flights had full snack/meal/drink offerings better than in USA.
The Guide: We had Leo Gau, and this guy is probably the best guide we will ever have. Less than 12 hours after pick-up at the airport, he had memorized the names of all 40 participants! He was highly intelligent, was firm on requiring people to be on time and keep the group moving, and he was helpful to everyone from negotiating shopping to dietary assistance to room problems. I really can’t say enough about how great he was and made the tour lots of fun – I think he probably only slept 4 hours a night, he was working so hard. He also added some free (he paid) random “extras” for us like taking us to a grocery market and buying lotus root for us to taste, parks to see locals workout and sing, local rice cakes, fried cakes, pomegranate candy, boat ride in the Summer Palace, drum tower performance, hacky sacks, and moon cakes.
Big Brother: I am sure everyone knows China controls their image very tightly and it is no different on this tour. All the guides and instructors stuck to the Party line on “facts” that well-educated people know are highly questionable; Mao was a great leader who just had a few “minor” bad decisions. There is no manufacturing or pollution on the Yangtze that would have polluted the water during flooding. There are no slums anywhere in China. The dirty cloud that made it impossible to see farther than a few hundred yards during our entire stay in Beijing was just “fog”. The Uygur people in Western China are similar to Al Qaeda terrorists. Our passports were kept by the guide for the whole trip for “airline ticket verification”. And so on…..
Boat: The Century Star was put into commission in 2003 and is the oldest in their fleet. It is not as 5-star luxurious as the Century ships being sailed by Victoria Lines, but overall it was nice. We had some leaks in the bathroom that they came and fixed quickly. The floor wasn’t well vacuumed and was covered with sunflower seed shells. The deck on the front of the 2nd floor was the best for viewing. It would be worth $150 to upgrade to the deluxe suit overlooking the front if you can get it. There is a “convenience store” on the gangway to the ship on boarding that offers prices much lower than on board for water, beer (fridge in your room!), and snacks. Chinese potato chips are… interesting.
Food: Well, no surprise, you are going to eat Chinese food for every meal (even breakfast, if you like). It was all very good and none was any stranger than you would see on your menu at the local restaurant back home.
Optionals: We pre-booked ours but you can still book on your first full day there, but there is a 10% increase in price. The acrobats ($29 each in Shanghai) and dinner were very good and a decent value. The show is basic and shows the talents of the performers in about 70 minute show. Only problem is we were all so jet lagged that night. The Yangtze River Excursion package ($80 each) is a great value since it includes 3 events and it would have been pretty boring on the boat. The dam tour and lesser 3 gorges boat rides were excellent and worth it alone…the Fengdu visit to the cavern was okay but nothing special. The half day Hutong tour ($29 each in Beijing) was excellent BUT only about 1 hour long and you could have negotiated the same with a local pedicab for about $10 each. The visit with a local family was fairly staged and not that interesting. The dumpling dinner ($15 each in Xian) was delicious and well worth it. The Tang Dynasty show ($59 each in Xian) was a not-so-impressive meal with an excellent show – the price is high but actually much cheaper than you could buy on your own- overall worth it. We did not do the day tour to Suzhou (4 hours in the bus!) or the Peking Duck dinner because both were overpriced. These 2 were the least popular among our group, and those that did them didn’t seem to feel we missed anything.
A few Tips/ Warnings:
1) Tipping (Tour Price Subsidy #1) – You are constantly expected to have small bills ready and tip ALL THE TIME. The irony is, the Chinese don’t tip as a culture. Every guide / book I read recommends not tipping. Other European tour groups we encountered did not tip. You are expected to give $3 per person per day to every bus driver, $4 per person per day to every supplemental tour guide (The government requires you to have a local guide in addition to tour guide in each city), $7 per person per day to Overall guide, $1 per day to room cleaning staff, $35 per person for general cruise tip, $10 per person for cruise tour guide, and then tips to tour excursions as well (ex. $5 for hutong driver). All told, we handed out over $400 in tips for our pre-paid trip. The amount is crazy, but to be honest, the worst is always having to keep change and calculate the different recommend tipping amounts multiple times a day.
2) Factory Tours (Tour Subsidy #2) – I guess I glossed over these in the brochure, but they became very annoying. You already are missing a lot of important sites (ex. Temple of Heaven) so spending 1.5 hours at each to be given a soft sales pitch and dedicated time to have to shop in a store was really irritating when there were things that could be seen. I asked the guide if we could take a taxi and skip these, and he said no that they were required. So you have to attend Silk Factory (Shanghai), Lacquer Furniture (Xian), Pearls (Beijing), and Jade (Beijing), plus if you do Suzhou Day Tour Option, you have to attend another Silk Factory. So you basically lose one whole day of your vacation to sales pitches. Small rant – everything we buy at home already comes from China, so I don’t see the attraction of buying something there in a closed environment where you don’t know how good the price is and then have to lug it around and back home.
3) Physical Mobility – This tour has a decent amount of walking (probably 3 miles to do Tiananmen and Forbidden City in Beijing), and this was a little challenge for some people.
4) Bathrooms – This is China, so I guess I wasn’t expecting luxurious toilets but apparently many on the tour were shocked that they would frequently have to use a “crouching tiger” toilet (a hole in the floor with ceramic foot grips). Probably 75% of the places have at least one western style toilet but this often meant waiting for a long time. Also, I suppose it is necessary with a group, but we spent a lot of time talking about going to the bathroom (“happy room”), always discussing how long until the next one, if people needed a stop, etc.
5) Counterfeit Cash – You will always have lots of people following you around selling China kitsch stuff cheap – negotiate to about 30% of what they start at, NEVER pay asking price anywhere. There is a big problem with counterfeit cash in China, so just be alert as a number of people got scammed. Generally, if you pay with a bill needing change, there is a good chance your change will be a fake bill back. Make a point of always carrying around a lot of 20/10/5 Yuan bills for shopping and tips. Every morning go to the front desk to make change (it is free). The worst place was at Summer Palace – the guide warned us this had a lot of bad people, so we made a point to not get change here, but then we got scammed with the seller telling us we had given a torn bill that she couldn’t accept, and she did a switcheroo that we didn’t see giving us the torn fake back for a new real bill. Always pay small bills, never get change, and don’t believe anyone talking about torn bills. We got a Mao Hat for 20Y, Mao watch for 25Y, and fake Gucci purse for 40Y.
6) Water Supply – None of the water in China is potable, so be prepared to live off bottled water. Each hotel provides 2 bottles per night but this goes fast once you use it for teeth brushing as well as general drinking. Each bus will have bottles available at 2 for $1.00. This was nice for convenience, but we noticed in Beijing that the local Wal-Mart sells bottled water in packs of 12 for equivalent of $1.75, so they are making money too.
OVERALL: We tried a few times going out on our own, and it made us appreciate having the tour. English is very limited in signs and in speaking. Even though marked as 14 Day China, this is really 12 nights with 11 full days (not counting the lost day to factory shopping tours). The itinerary is very full, and while we had anticipated squeezing in some stuff on our own, there was absolutely no time as you generally leave at 8AM and return back at 7PM. The price was great, the lodging/ food was all 4-starish, the guide was incredibly awesome, and overall the tour packed in a lot of incredible attractions. I would use Gate-1 again but hope to avoid the factory tours and hope they will institute pre-paid gratuities so we can concentrate on vacationing.
Written 17 September 2011
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
LittleGeorge3
st. louis13 contributions
Cruising China's Yangtze River might have been a spectacular experience before the Three Gorges Dam project, but overall it's a relatively humdrum experience now. We sailed the President I booked through ChinaSpree, an excellent tour provider, and the boat and its crew provideded excellent service and wonderful meals in comfortable, immaculately clean surroundings (although the boat did show its age -- a bit scruffy at the edges). The first day's scenery is impressive, beautiful; thereafter, it's much like any river journey except for occasional scenes of village children playing in the shallows or farmers going about their chores. Daily excursions, one or two optional, are informative and interesting, but if you've only got one to three weeks in China, there are infinitely more rewarding sites and experiences such as day cruises on the infinitely more beautiful River Li, Hong Kong and other options you'll miss by choosing a river cruise. There is, however, another consideration: Most China tours are designed as learning experiences, not relaxation. There's a lot of walking and talking, so much to see and experience on long days and evenings jammed with activity that even the physically fit experience fatigue. The river cruise is a chance to rest and relax. But who wants to rest? Awesome is a horribly misused word, but it's the only adequate description for China in scope, beauty, artistry, culture. Time on the Yangtze is costly -- not worth the price in money or options missed.
Written 11 January 2007
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
YellowRoseAustralia
Mornington Peninsula, Australia49 contributions
Jun 2015 • Couples
We added a 4 day cruise with SNA tours to our 10 day tour of Ancient Capitals of China and it was the worse ever cruise of any cruises we've ever done!! It was not a cruise! After a flight from Beijing (last minute check out at 4AM to catch flight at 8AM)to Yichang we were suppose to board the ship at 4pm to begin a memorable-4 night cruise down the Yangtze River. Instead we spent 9 hrs on a bus killing time with boring sights and awful lunch. We boarded ship at 8pm and spent 2 nights in ship with nothing to do and very expensive drinks/coffee. Needless to say we were exhausted from the first day and just wanted to rest. The 2nd morning we were woken up at 6:45AM by a loud speaker and screaming voice in our cabins announcing breakfast in Chinese that took 5 minutes!! We were NOT happy about this!! No reason for the long delay was given until dinner time. Something about a landslide which was never on any news!! On the 3rd day at lunch time we were asked to pack our bags and be ready to leave ship at 2pm. Little information given!! Off we go on another bus that took 3 hrs through very dangerous mountainous road with driver hitting his horn for the entire trip!! We were a "wreck" to say the least. The food on the ship is terrible!! At that point we all just wanted to get on a plane and head home!!! DO NOT do this cruise. There is little to see and the river is filthy!! I want my money back SNA!!!!
Written 4 July 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
OrkneygalPenicuik
Edinburgh, UK174 contributions
Nov 2012 • Couples
We took this cruise/land trip in November to celebrate a wedding anniversary. It was hectic, exhillarating, exhausting and hugely enjoyable. In twelve days we took 7 flights, stayed in 3 hotels, had a 6 day cruise and were off and on so many coaches I could not count! We cannot rate Viking cruises highly enough. We met our tour guide on day one and he was with us for the entire trip. He took care of everything 24/7. The organisation was immpeccable. Where ever we went we seemed to be first in line, no waiting & no queuing for tickets. We were even waved through Security at all the Attractions, only because we were travelling with Viking! All our Hotels were first class. Every local restaurant used was a delight, with the food plentiful and delicious. We loved the boat. Our room, with balcony was spacious and very comfortable. The meals on board were exceptional. Chinese, Western and vegetarian options were always available. The staff were amazing. Friendly, efficient and nothing too much trouble.Within hours of boarding they knew everyones name. Whenever we left the boat a red carpet was laid and all the staff would line up to wish us 'Bon voyage' or Welcome back'. Always smiling and happy to see us they were a joy. The staff also provided our evening entertainment. Nothing spectacular but always great fun. We made many friends and enjoyed a few late evenings dancing and enjoying the delicious cocktails. As we like fine wines we decided to buy the 'drinks package' which also gave us unlimited cocktails and my husbands favourite malt whisky and felt it was very good value. We took the Shanghai to Bejing route which meant we got to visit the pandas. As well as all the main attracttions Viking pack in lots of other extras, concerts, shopping, walks. Some days we had very early starts (5am alarm call!) to fit everything in. You need to be fairly fit and active to last the pace. Words cannot describe places like the Great Wall or the Forbidden City but we found that the Viking cruise trip was a relaxed and comfortable way to see it all.
Written 3 January 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
oztripperz
Brisbane Oz564 contributions
May 2012 • Couples
I read the reviews in this section before our trip to China and was a little worried by some of the negative comment but I have to say that our Yangtze experience was a very good one. The cruise was a section of a tour booked through Travel China Guide, a company who provide both group and individual tours. Our tour was just for the two of us so we were able to tailor it to our requirements and we chose the President Prime cruise ship because it is relatively new, only launched in 2011. Unfortunately the Yangtze was too low for the ship to come to Chongqing so we were taken by bus to Fengdu where we boarded. On boarding we were shown a cabin on deck two and asked if we wanted to upgrade, we looked at the upgraded cabin which was offered at $300AUD extra for the 3 night cruise, it was gorgeous, separate lounge, nice bathroom and king size bed. We said no, the price came down to $250, we said no and then were offered a cabin on the 4th level with a balcony for $60 which we took. In hindsight I was very glad we didn't take the posh cabin, for the relatively short time you are aboard in my opinion it wasn't worth the extra.
The ship is quite magnificent with a central circular staircase, a dining room, two lounge/entertainment areas both with a bar and top deck viewing area. Our cabin was fine, like a small hotel room, and by my research the President Prime cabins are a bit bigger at 23 square meters compared with others at 16. Our beds were two singles and fairly firm. Room was cleaned and linen was changed regularly by competent friendly stewards. There is a tiny fridge, ours never worked even though it was turned on and so I was glad not to have taken our own drinks on board.
The drinks in the bar are quite expensive, a beer 30 yuan ($5), cocktails including sprits 50 yuan ($8), tea or fancy coffee 40 yuan ($7), if you don't drink much that's not so bad but if you like a few then it soon mounts up. On our first evening we were offered a drinks package, normally 500 yuan each but for two of us 600 yuan ($100) which we took, over the next 3 days we got well more than our monies worth. We spoke to other people who were not offered the package, just ask the staff and if the price isn't right be prepared to bargain which is what someone else successfully did. If you purchase any goods on board you can bargain for these also, the same person bargained hard for some pearls and got a very good deal. There were several shore excursions, two of which you had to pay for but it was raining for most of our cruise and we happily opted out of the extras just wanting to relax after a very hectic tour of Beijing, Xian and Chongqing. We did go on the Shennon Stream excursion which was very enjoyable and an insight into a minority Chinese culture.
There is a laundry package which we didn't use for 298 Yuan ($50) per cabin, two laundry bags a day, in by 11am back by 9pm.
I only saw two children during the cruise, there didn't appear to be any form of entertainment or allowances for kids.
One evening's entertainment was a show performed by the staff and it was a very entertaining evening. I was told by another guest that the staff practice in their own time and are only paid 3 yuan per show, (50cents)
Despite what I read and was told by my tour company tipping was optional. We were given two envelopes, one for general staff and one for excursion guides which you placed into a locked box in the front desk area. We gave to both because these people were absolutely wonderful, they were so sincere, helpful and friendly and made our journey a very memorable one. On top of that we tipped individuals who were especially helpful, they were so appreciative.
Our trip through the Gorges was brilliant despite the fact that the Yangtze river is much higher since the 3 Gorges Dam went in. In April 2012 the authorities have stopped cruise ships going through the locks because the locks can't cope with the huge volume of vessels so we disembarked at 8am on the last day and were taken by bus to the 3 Gorge Dam then by bus to Yichang.
What a wonderful experience the whole trip was and one we are so glad we didn't miss.
I'm more than happy to answer any other questions you might have, please click if this review has been helpful to you.
The ship is quite magnificent with a central circular staircase, a dining room, two lounge/entertainment areas both with a bar and top deck viewing area. Our cabin was fine, like a small hotel room, and by my research the President Prime cabins are a bit bigger at 23 square meters compared with others at 16. Our beds were two singles and fairly firm. Room was cleaned and linen was changed regularly by competent friendly stewards. There is a tiny fridge, ours never worked even though it was turned on and so I was glad not to have taken our own drinks on board.
The drinks in the bar are quite expensive, a beer 30 yuan ($5), cocktails including sprits 50 yuan ($8), tea or fancy coffee 40 yuan ($7), if you don't drink much that's not so bad but if you like a few then it soon mounts up. On our first evening we were offered a drinks package, normally 500 yuan each but for two of us 600 yuan ($100) which we took, over the next 3 days we got well more than our monies worth. We spoke to other people who were not offered the package, just ask the staff and if the price isn't right be prepared to bargain which is what someone else successfully did. If you purchase any goods on board you can bargain for these also, the same person bargained hard for some pearls and got a very good deal. There were several shore excursions, two of which you had to pay for but it was raining for most of our cruise and we happily opted out of the extras just wanting to relax after a very hectic tour of Beijing, Xian and Chongqing. We did go on the Shennon Stream excursion which was very enjoyable and an insight into a minority Chinese culture.
There is a laundry package which we didn't use for 298 Yuan ($50) per cabin, two laundry bags a day, in by 11am back by 9pm.
I only saw two children during the cruise, there didn't appear to be any form of entertainment or allowances for kids.
One evening's entertainment was a show performed by the staff and it was a very entertaining evening. I was told by another guest that the staff practice in their own time and are only paid 3 yuan per show, (50cents)
Despite what I read and was told by my tour company tipping was optional. We were given two envelopes, one for general staff and one for excursion guides which you placed into a locked box in the front desk area. We gave to both because these people were absolutely wonderful, they were so sincere, helpful and friendly and made our journey a very memorable one. On top of that we tipped individuals who were especially helpful, they were so appreciative.
Our trip through the Gorges was brilliant despite the fact that the Yangtze river is much higher since the 3 Gorges Dam went in. In April 2012 the authorities have stopped cruise ships going through the locks because the locks can't cope with the huge volume of vessels so we disembarked at 8am on the last day and were taken by bus to the 3 Gorge Dam then by bus to Yichang.
What a wonderful experience the whole trip was and one we are so glad we didn't miss.
I'm more than happy to answer any other questions you might have, please click if this review has been helpful to you.
Written 29 June 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Kay Helen A
Ilminster, UK194 contributions
Sept 2013 • Couples
Back in September I experienced a fantastic and amazing tour of China with the Viking River Cruise company. As I haven't found many reviews of this company on Tripadvisor I think this description might be useful to readers who might be thinking about going on a tour fully accompanied from start to finish. Here's how it went:
The flight from UK with KLM – Bristol-Amsterdam-Shanghai was on time and as comfortable as it can be sitting in Economy. The in-flight meals provided were fresh and accompanied by refreshments beer, red/white wine or soft drinks. KLM Staff were friendly, efficient and fluent in English. We didn't see our luggage until we reached Shanghai. On arrival in Shanghai a Viking rep appeared and suitcases were transferred swiftly to the hotel without any problem. The Shanghai Pudong Shangri-La Hotel located alongside the river and in the heart of the CBD was really lovely. There was an excellent Shopping Mall with internationally known designer brands just yards away from the main entrance of the hotel. On the river front side there was a delightful walkway along the banks of the Yangtze which was spectacularly lit at night. The skyscrapers are truly an amazing sight. To walk along the Bund you needed to take a short ferry ride but there really wasn't any need. The walk at night time in this area was non threatening and quite leisurely even though there were lots of people out and about doing exactly the same thing. The hotel room was extremely spacious with an almost equally large bathroom. Being accommodated in the older of the two tower blocks we found the room quite opulent but a bit dated especially when compared with the later hotels we occupied. Breakfast was just amazing and we were seated in extremely modern surroundings with an endless choice of food to suit all manner of tastes. The tours from this base were very good and took up almost the entire day so there was actually very little time to appreciate the luxuries of this hotel. Very early breakfasts became the norm throughout the entire trip. The Shanghai museum was extremely interesting and worth the trip. The rooms here were broadly divided up into categories - furniture, jade, chinese art etc.
The management of suitcases from the hotel rooms to the coach and through domestic airports was expertly done by Viking staff throughout the trip. We only ever needed to carry our in-flight bags. We did experience a couple of delays with the arrival of domestic aircraft but we didn't feel this was in any way something Viking as a company could take responsibility for. On all of the internal flights we made we were served with a drink a hot roll to eat. I don't think any of the flights were longer than 90 minutes duration.
The Viking Emerald River cruise boat was most pleasing from our point of view. I think we had a category E cabin (345) which we found spacious and well kitted out with the necessities you need whilst away from home (dressing gown, slippers, toiletries, hair dryer, fresh towels, t.v., and air conditioning. The servicing of the cabin was excellent and we couldn't hear any noise from adjacent cabins or from the dining room below us. The motor engine of the vessel could always be heard at this position on board but we expected this from the outset. If you have been on cruise ships before then there is no real comparison in scale. This is a small vessel which is extremely well maintained and comfortable throughout. Shopping here is small scale though there are some really interesting and unusual items to buy. Hot drinks can be collected from a smart service area at any time of the day and there are usually some delicious cookies available too. There is also a kettle in the cabin should you want to brew up for yourself. From the outset you are instructed not to drink any tap water and so you find that the cabin is constantly provided with small bottles of water each day. Its free of charge. Water is also made plentifully available on the coaches that you travel on. We thought the dining arrangements were excellent though we did hear others complain about the need to be there at the start of the evening session as the tables might be cleared away too quickly. Red and white wine or beer was freely flowing throughout lunch and evening meals and I thought was of a decent enough quality to suit my taste. I really don't understand why some people were buying in to the special drink package that was available at the start of the trip. Lots and lots of food choice -Chinese and Western dishes so nobody is likely to go hungry on this cruise.
The trips from the boat were good too . A visit to a school in Yueyang was quite good fun and the trip to the Three gorges dam power station was interesting even though it rained the day we went. Its huge and so includes a lot of walking though there are elevators to take everyone to the top of the hill! Everyone walked to the temple at Shibaozhai as it was so close to the shore but some people chose to hire a sedan chair which looked good fun though probably a bit uncomfortable. The temple itself was spectacular and worth the climb that was needed. The walk along the wobbly bridge to access it was real fun! We had some people with walking difficulties on our trip but everyone managed to join in on this tour and indeed on every tour we engaged in.
If you have travelled along some beautiful European rivers in the past with spectacular scenery around every corner then you will probably be disappointed by the extent of industrial development along the Yangtze - I certainly was. The scale of development in China is phenomenal and has to be seen to be believed! The gorge scenery that I was expecting to see so much of does not last for very long!!! Yes the Gorges are beautiful and the trip along the Daning River in particular is spectacularly stunning but the industrial development quickly returns. The hanging tomb(s ) I had expected to see turned out only to be just the one!
At Chongqing we departed the boat and headed off to see some pandas in a city zoo. Before leaving there was an expectation to leave gratuities for the ships crew. As it turned out this really was left up to the individual passenger and it did not appear on the final Bill as it has done on some of the ocean cruises we've done in the past. Instead we found envelopes were provided and there was a large box in Reception for you to drop them into. Tipping is quite alien to my husband and I, its simply not part of our daily lives at home. So the expectation to tip coach drivers and tour guides and the way to hand it over actually made us feel uncomfortable at times. In the end we gave the sums of money that were suggested in the Viking book because we genuinely thought we had been served extremely well. Nonetheless it did add a hefty sum onto the top of the cost of our holiday. Do try to factor this in when you are planning how much to money to take with you. We took American dollars along and easily had them changed in to Yuan at the Reception desks of the hotels we stayed at. This worked well for us. We did not take any credit cards instead we left money sitting in the safes that were provided in each of the rooms we stayed in. As I believe it may be difficult to change Yuan back in to your own currency at the end of the holiday we made sure to leave this as part of the tip made right at the end to the Tour Escort.
The Hilton Hotel at Xi'an was opulent, modern and basically fantastic. What a shame we didn't stay for longer than one night. The city of Xi'an was quite a contrast to Shanghai with traffic in particular being a problem for us. It was difficult to safely cross a road and you really felt you were taking a risk doing so. The city was also a lot less clean in my opinion. If you take a walk to see the city's night time street markets be prepared to see some pretty disgusting foods on sale. The Chinese people of course consider them delicacies and its basically a difference in our cultures. The street market became a popular site seeing tour in itself. Obviously the Terra Cotta Warrior Museum was just amazing and simply beyond my comprehension I can't find appropriate words to describe it. You have simply got to see for yourself.
The hotel in Beijing was the Regent. It turned out to be excellent, sited in a good location and with excellent facilities in a vast modern room (1515). The food here was good and indeed the food in all of the restaurants we visited in this city was quite delicious. I have to say that if you don't like or want to eat Chinese food then you will find yourself hungry on this trip as all of the restaurants we attended served Chinese dishes from a Lazy Susan (central rotating glass table) with either chopsticks or a fork available. We loved the opportunity to taste so many different Chinese dishes so loved the experience. There were other passengers travelling with us grumbling about the lack of western dishes continually. No wine other than rice wine (occasionally) was served at these restaurants but the local beer or soft drink was always welcomed. The first drink was free but I think you had to pay for a second one.
The Great Wall of China trip was spectacular and we had about two hours on the wall itself. The Forbidden City just seemed to go on and on forever in my opinion with little to distinguish one section from the next. Don't get me wrong it was amazing but the scale of it was unbelievable. On the wall, Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden there were many thousands of people in awe of what could be seen. The numbers really didn't seem to matter because the places really were stunning and amazing. Our guide insisted we got up early in order to be the only tour party visiting the first pit at the Terra Cotta Army museum and this turned out to be a wonderful privilege.
Would I advise someone to do this trip? Definitely its a Yes from me. Would I do it again? No, I don't think a second visit could ever be as amazing as the first. I felt totally safe and well cared for throughout this tour provided by Viking River Cruises. It met my expectations and I would definitely consider travelling to a new destination in the future.
If you have any further questions don't hesitate to send me a message through Tripadvisor and I will see if I can help.
Visited September 2013
The flight from UK with KLM – Bristol-Amsterdam-Shanghai was on time and as comfortable as it can be sitting in Economy. The in-flight meals provided were fresh and accompanied by refreshments beer, red/white wine or soft drinks. KLM Staff were friendly, efficient and fluent in English. We didn't see our luggage until we reached Shanghai. On arrival in Shanghai a Viking rep appeared and suitcases were transferred swiftly to the hotel without any problem. The Shanghai Pudong Shangri-La Hotel located alongside the river and in the heart of the CBD was really lovely. There was an excellent Shopping Mall with internationally known designer brands just yards away from the main entrance of the hotel. On the river front side there was a delightful walkway along the banks of the Yangtze which was spectacularly lit at night. The skyscrapers are truly an amazing sight. To walk along the Bund you needed to take a short ferry ride but there really wasn't any need. The walk at night time in this area was non threatening and quite leisurely even though there were lots of people out and about doing exactly the same thing. The hotel room was extremely spacious with an almost equally large bathroom. Being accommodated in the older of the two tower blocks we found the room quite opulent but a bit dated especially when compared with the later hotels we occupied. Breakfast was just amazing and we were seated in extremely modern surroundings with an endless choice of food to suit all manner of tastes. The tours from this base were very good and took up almost the entire day so there was actually very little time to appreciate the luxuries of this hotel. Very early breakfasts became the norm throughout the entire trip. The Shanghai museum was extremely interesting and worth the trip. The rooms here were broadly divided up into categories - furniture, jade, chinese art etc.
The management of suitcases from the hotel rooms to the coach and through domestic airports was expertly done by Viking staff throughout the trip. We only ever needed to carry our in-flight bags. We did experience a couple of delays with the arrival of domestic aircraft but we didn't feel this was in any way something Viking as a company could take responsibility for. On all of the internal flights we made we were served with a drink a hot roll to eat. I don't think any of the flights were longer than 90 minutes duration.
The Viking Emerald River cruise boat was most pleasing from our point of view. I think we had a category E cabin (345) which we found spacious and well kitted out with the necessities you need whilst away from home (dressing gown, slippers, toiletries, hair dryer, fresh towels, t.v., and air conditioning. The servicing of the cabin was excellent and we couldn't hear any noise from adjacent cabins or from the dining room below us. The motor engine of the vessel could always be heard at this position on board but we expected this from the outset. If you have been on cruise ships before then there is no real comparison in scale. This is a small vessel which is extremely well maintained and comfortable throughout. Shopping here is small scale though there are some really interesting and unusual items to buy. Hot drinks can be collected from a smart service area at any time of the day and there are usually some delicious cookies available too. There is also a kettle in the cabin should you want to brew up for yourself. From the outset you are instructed not to drink any tap water and so you find that the cabin is constantly provided with small bottles of water each day. Its free of charge. Water is also made plentifully available on the coaches that you travel on. We thought the dining arrangements were excellent though we did hear others complain about the need to be there at the start of the evening session as the tables might be cleared away too quickly. Red and white wine or beer was freely flowing throughout lunch and evening meals and I thought was of a decent enough quality to suit my taste. I really don't understand why some people were buying in to the special drink package that was available at the start of the trip. Lots and lots of food choice -Chinese and Western dishes so nobody is likely to go hungry on this cruise.
The trips from the boat were good too . A visit to a school in Yueyang was quite good fun and the trip to the Three gorges dam power station was interesting even though it rained the day we went. Its huge and so includes a lot of walking though there are elevators to take everyone to the top of the hill! Everyone walked to the temple at Shibaozhai as it was so close to the shore but some people chose to hire a sedan chair which looked good fun though probably a bit uncomfortable. The temple itself was spectacular and worth the climb that was needed. The walk along the wobbly bridge to access it was real fun! We had some people with walking difficulties on our trip but everyone managed to join in on this tour and indeed on every tour we engaged in.
If you have travelled along some beautiful European rivers in the past with spectacular scenery around every corner then you will probably be disappointed by the extent of industrial development along the Yangtze - I certainly was. The scale of development in China is phenomenal and has to be seen to be believed! The gorge scenery that I was expecting to see so much of does not last for very long!!! Yes the Gorges are beautiful and the trip along the Daning River in particular is spectacularly stunning but the industrial development quickly returns. The hanging tomb(s ) I had expected to see turned out only to be just the one!
At Chongqing we departed the boat and headed off to see some pandas in a city zoo. Before leaving there was an expectation to leave gratuities for the ships crew. As it turned out this really was left up to the individual passenger and it did not appear on the final Bill as it has done on some of the ocean cruises we've done in the past. Instead we found envelopes were provided and there was a large box in Reception for you to drop them into. Tipping is quite alien to my husband and I, its simply not part of our daily lives at home. So the expectation to tip coach drivers and tour guides and the way to hand it over actually made us feel uncomfortable at times. In the end we gave the sums of money that were suggested in the Viking book because we genuinely thought we had been served extremely well. Nonetheless it did add a hefty sum onto the top of the cost of our holiday. Do try to factor this in when you are planning how much to money to take with you. We took American dollars along and easily had them changed in to Yuan at the Reception desks of the hotels we stayed at. This worked well for us. We did not take any credit cards instead we left money sitting in the safes that were provided in each of the rooms we stayed in. As I believe it may be difficult to change Yuan back in to your own currency at the end of the holiday we made sure to leave this as part of the tip made right at the end to the Tour Escort.
The Hilton Hotel at Xi'an was opulent, modern and basically fantastic. What a shame we didn't stay for longer than one night. The city of Xi'an was quite a contrast to Shanghai with traffic in particular being a problem for us. It was difficult to safely cross a road and you really felt you were taking a risk doing so. The city was also a lot less clean in my opinion. If you take a walk to see the city's night time street markets be prepared to see some pretty disgusting foods on sale. The Chinese people of course consider them delicacies and its basically a difference in our cultures. The street market became a popular site seeing tour in itself. Obviously the Terra Cotta Warrior Museum was just amazing and simply beyond my comprehension I can't find appropriate words to describe it. You have simply got to see for yourself.
The hotel in Beijing was the Regent. It turned out to be excellent, sited in a good location and with excellent facilities in a vast modern room (1515). The food here was good and indeed the food in all of the restaurants we visited in this city was quite delicious. I have to say that if you don't like or want to eat Chinese food then you will find yourself hungry on this trip as all of the restaurants we attended served Chinese dishes from a Lazy Susan (central rotating glass table) with either chopsticks or a fork available. We loved the opportunity to taste so many different Chinese dishes so loved the experience. There were other passengers travelling with us grumbling about the lack of western dishes continually. No wine other than rice wine (occasionally) was served at these restaurants but the local beer or soft drink was always welcomed. The first drink was free but I think you had to pay for a second one.
The Great Wall of China trip was spectacular and we had about two hours on the wall itself. The Forbidden City just seemed to go on and on forever in my opinion with little to distinguish one section from the next. Don't get me wrong it was amazing but the scale of it was unbelievable. On the wall, Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden there were many thousands of people in awe of what could be seen. The numbers really didn't seem to matter because the places really were stunning and amazing. Our guide insisted we got up early in order to be the only tour party visiting the first pit at the Terra Cotta Army museum and this turned out to be a wonderful privilege.
Would I advise someone to do this trip? Definitely its a Yes from me. Would I do it again? No, I don't think a second visit could ever be as amazing as the first. I felt totally safe and well cared for throughout this tour provided by Viking River Cruises. It met my expectations and I would definitely consider travelling to a new destination in the future.
If you have any further questions don't hesitate to send me a message through Tripadvisor and I will see if I can help.
Visited September 2013
Written 19 December 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Kay Helen A
Ilminster, UK194 contributions
Sept 2013 • Couples
Viking Imperial Jewels China Tour
Just back home after a fantastic and amazing tour of China with the Viking River Cruise company. Here's how it went:
The flight from UK with KLM – Bristol-Amsterdam-Shanghai was on time and as comfortable as it can be sitting in Economy. The in-flight meals provided were fresh and accompanied by refreshments beer, red/white wine or soft drinks. KLM Staff were friendly, efficient and fluent in English. We didn't see our luggage until we reached Shanghai. On arrival in Shanghai a Viking rep appeared and suitcases were transferred swiftly to the hotel without any problem. The Shanghai Pudong Shangri-La Hotel located alongside the river and in the heart of the CBD was really lovely. There was an excellent Shopping Mall with internationally known designer brands just yards away from the main entrance of the hotel. On the river front side there was a delightful walkway along the banks of the Yangtze which was spectacularly lit at night. The skyscrapers are truly an amazing sight. To walk along the Bund you needed to take a short ferry ride but there really wasn't any need. The walk at night time in this area was non threatening and quite leisurely even though there were lots of people out and about doing exactly the same thing. The hotel room was extremely spacious with an almost equally large bathroom. Being accommodated in the older of the two tower blocks we found the room quite opulent but a bit dated especially when compared with the later hotels we occupied. Breakfast was just amazing and we were seated in extremely modern surroundings with an endless choice of food to suit all manner of tastes. The tours from this base were very good and took up almost the entire day so there was actually very little time to appreciate the luxuries of this hotel. Very early breakfasts became the norm throughout the entire trip. The Shanghai museum was extremely interesting and worth the trip.
The management of suitcases from the hotel rooms to the coach and through domestic airports was expertly done by Viking staff throughout the trip. We only ever needed to carry our in-flight bags. We did experience a couple of delays with the arrival of domestic aircraft but we didn't feel this was in any way something Viking as a company could take responsibility for. On all of the internal flights we made we were served with a drink a hot roll to eat. I don't think any of the flights were longer than 90 minutes duration.
The Viking Emerald River cruise boat was most pleasing from our point of view. I think we had a category E cabin (345) which we found spacious and well kitted out with the necessities you need whilst away from home (dressing gown, slippers, toiletries, hair dryer, fresh towels, t.v., and air conditioning. The servicing of the cabin was excellent and we couldn't hear any noise from adjacent cabins or from the dining room below us. The motor engine of the vessel could always be heard at this position on board but we expected this from the outset. If you have been on cruise ships before then there is no real comparison in scale. This is a small vessel which is extremely well maintained and comfortable throughout. Shopping here is small scale though there are some really interesting and unusual items to buy. Hot drinks can be collected from a smart service area at any time of the day and there are usually some delicious cookies available too. There is also a kettle in the cabin should you want to brew up for yourself. From the outset you are instructed not to drink any tap water and so you find that the cabin is constantly provided with small bottles of water each day. Its free of charge. Water is also made plentifully available on the coaches that you travel on. We thought the dining arrangements were excellent though we did hear others complain about the need to be there at the start of the evening session as the tables might be cleared away too quickly. Red and white wine or beer was freely flowing throughout lunch and evening meals and I thought was of a decent enough quality to suit my taste. I really don't understand why some people were buying in to the special drink package that was available at the start of the trip. Lots and lots of food choice -Chinese and Western dishes so nobody is likely to go hungry on this cruise.
The trips from the boat were good too . A visit to a school in Yueyang was quite good fun and the trip to the Three gorges dam power station was interesting even though it rained the day we went. Its huge and so includes a lot of walking though there are elevators to take everyone to the top of the hill! Everyone walked to the temple at Shibaozhai as it was so close to the shore but some people chose to hire a sedan chair which looked good fun though probably a bit uncomfortable. The temple itself was spectacular and worth the climb that was needed. The walk along the wobbly bridge to access it was real fun! We had some people with walking difficulties on our trip but everyone managed to join in on this tour and indeed on every tour we engaged in.
If you have travelled along some beautiful European rivers in the past with spectacular scenery around every corner then you will probably be disappointed by the extent of industrial development along the Yangtze - I certainly was. The scale of development in China is phenomenal and has to be seen to be believed! The gorge scenery that I was expecting to see so much of does not last for very long!!! Yes the Gorges are beautiful and the trip along the Daning River in particular is spectacularly stunning but the industrial development quickly returns. The hanging tomb(s ) I had expected to see turned out only to be just the one!
At Chongqing we departed the boat and headed off to see some pandas in a city zoo. Before leaving there was an expectation to leave gratuities for the ships crew. As it turned out this really was left up to the individual passenger and it did not appear on the final Bill as it has done on some of the ocean cruises we've done in the past. Instead we found envelopes were provided and there was a large box in Reception for you to drop them into. Tipping is quite alien to my husband and I, its simply not part of our daily lives at home. So the expectation to tip coach drivers and tour guides and the way to hand it over actually made us feel uncomfortable at times. In the end we gave the sums of money that were suggested in the Viking book because we genuinely thought we had been served extremely well. Nonetheless it did add a hefty sum onto the top of the cost of our holiday. Do try to factor this in when you are planning how much to money to take with you. We took American dollars along and easily had them changed in to Yuan at the Reception desks of the hotels we stayed at. This worked well for us. We did not take any credit cards instead we left money sitting in the safes that were provided in each of the rooms we stayed in. As I believe its may be difficult to change Yuan back in to your own currency at the end of the holiday we made sure to leave this as part of the tip made right at the end to the Tour Escort.
The Hilton Hotel at Xi'an was opulent, modern and basically fantastic. What a shame we didn't stay for longer than one night. The city of Xi'an was quite a contrast to Shanghai with traffic in particular being a problem for us. It was difficult to safely cross a road and you really felt you were taking a risk doing so. The city was also a lot less clean in my opinion. If you take a walk to see the city's night time street markets be prepared to see some pretty disgusting foods on sale. The Chinese people of course consider them delicacies and its basically a difference in our cultures. The street market became a popular site seeing tour in itself. Obviously the Terra Cotta Warrior Museum was just amazing and simply beyond my comprehension I can't find appropriate words to describe it. You have simply got to see for yourself.
The hotel in Beijing was the Regent. It turned out to be excellent, sited in a good location and with excellent facilities in a vast modern room (1515). The food here was good and indeed the food in all of the restaurants we visited in this city was quite delicious. I have to say that if you don't like or want to eat Chinese food then you will find yourself hungry on this trip as all of the restaurants we attended served Chinese dishes from a Lazy Susan (central rotating glass table) with either chopsticks or a fork available. We loved the opportunity to taste so many different Chinese dishes so loved the experience. There were other passengers travelling with us grumbling about the lack of western dishes continually. No wine other than rice wine (occasionally) was served at these restaurants but the local beer or soft drink was always welcomed. The first drink was free but I think you had to pay for a second one.
The Great Wall of China trip was spectacular and we had about two hours on the wall itself. The Forbidden City just seemed to go on and on forever in my opinion with little to distinguish one section from the next. Don't get me wrong it was amazing but the scale of it was unbelievable. On the wall, Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden there were many thousands of people in awe of what could be seen. The numbers really didn't seem to matter because the places really were stunning and amazing. Our guide insisted we got up early in order to be the only tour party visiting the first pit at the Terra Cotta Army museum and this turned out to be a wonderful privilege.
Would I advise someone to do this trip? Definitely its a Yes from me. Would I do it again? No, I don't think a second visit could ever be as amazing as the first. I felt totally safe and well cared for throughout this tour provided by Viking River Cruises. It met my expectations and I would definitely consider travelling to a new destination in the future.
If you have any further questions don't hesitate to send me a message through Tripadvisor and I will see if I can help.
Just back home after a fantastic and amazing tour of China with the Viking River Cruise company. Here's how it went:
The flight from UK with KLM – Bristol-Amsterdam-Shanghai was on time and as comfortable as it can be sitting in Economy. The in-flight meals provided were fresh and accompanied by refreshments beer, red/white wine or soft drinks. KLM Staff were friendly, efficient and fluent in English. We didn't see our luggage until we reached Shanghai. On arrival in Shanghai a Viking rep appeared and suitcases were transferred swiftly to the hotel without any problem. The Shanghai Pudong Shangri-La Hotel located alongside the river and in the heart of the CBD was really lovely. There was an excellent Shopping Mall with internationally known designer brands just yards away from the main entrance of the hotel. On the river front side there was a delightful walkway along the banks of the Yangtze which was spectacularly lit at night. The skyscrapers are truly an amazing sight. To walk along the Bund you needed to take a short ferry ride but there really wasn't any need. The walk at night time in this area was non threatening and quite leisurely even though there were lots of people out and about doing exactly the same thing. The hotel room was extremely spacious with an almost equally large bathroom. Being accommodated in the older of the two tower blocks we found the room quite opulent but a bit dated especially when compared with the later hotels we occupied. Breakfast was just amazing and we were seated in extremely modern surroundings with an endless choice of food to suit all manner of tastes. The tours from this base were very good and took up almost the entire day so there was actually very little time to appreciate the luxuries of this hotel. Very early breakfasts became the norm throughout the entire trip. The Shanghai museum was extremely interesting and worth the trip.
The management of suitcases from the hotel rooms to the coach and through domestic airports was expertly done by Viking staff throughout the trip. We only ever needed to carry our in-flight bags. We did experience a couple of delays with the arrival of domestic aircraft but we didn't feel this was in any way something Viking as a company could take responsibility for. On all of the internal flights we made we were served with a drink a hot roll to eat. I don't think any of the flights were longer than 90 minutes duration.
The Viking Emerald River cruise boat was most pleasing from our point of view. I think we had a category E cabin (345) which we found spacious and well kitted out with the necessities you need whilst away from home (dressing gown, slippers, toiletries, hair dryer, fresh towels, t.v., and air conditioning. The servicing of the cabin was excellent and we couldn't hear any noise from adjacent cabins or from the dining room below us. The motor engine of the vessel could always be heard at this position on board but we expected this from the outset. If you have been on cruise ships before then there is no real comparison in scale. This is a small vessel which is extremely well maintained and comfortable throughout. Shopping here is small scale though there are some really interesting and unusual items to buy. Hot drinks can be collected from a smart service area at any time of the day and there are usually some delicious cookies available too. There is also a kettle in the cabin should you want to brew up for yourself. From the outset you are instructed not to drink any tap water and so you find that the cabin is constantly provided with small bottles of water each day. Its free of charge. Water is also made plentifully available on the coaches that you travel on. We thought the dining arrangements were excellent though we did hear others complain about the need to be there at the start of the evening session as the tables might be cleared away too quickly. Red and white wine or beer was freely flowing throughout lunch and evening meals and I thought was of a decent enough quality to suit my taste. I really don't understand why some people were buying in to the special drink package that was available at the start of the trip. Lots and lots of food choice -Chinese and Western dishes so nobody is likely to go hungry on this cruise.
The trips from the boat were good too . A visit to a school in Yueyang was quite good fun and the trip to the Three gorges dam power station was interesting even though it rained the day we went. Its huge and so includes a lot of walking though there are elevators to take everyone to the top of the hill! Everyone walked to the temple at Shibaozhai as it was so close to the shore but some people chose to hire a sedan chair which looked good fun though probably a bit uncomfortable. The temple itself was spectacular and worth the climb that was needed. The walk along the wobbly bridge to access it was real fun! We had some people with walking difficulties on our trip but everyone managed to join in on this tour and indeed on every tour we engaged in.
If you have travelled along some beautiful European rivers in the past with spectacular scenery around every corner then you will probably be disappointed by the extent of industrial development along the Yangtze - I certainly was. The scale of development in China is phenomenal and has to be seen to be believed! The gorge scenery that I was expecting to see so much of does not last for very long!!! Yes the Gorges are beautiful and the trip along the Daning River in particular is spectacularly stunning but the industrial development quickly returns. The hanging tomb(s ) I had expected to see turned out only to be just the one!
At Chongqing we departed the boat and headed off to see some pandas in a city zoo. Before leaving there was an expectation to leave gratuities for the ships crew. As it turned out this really was left up to the individual passenger and it did not appear on the final Bill as it has done on some of the ocean cruises we've done in the past. Instead we found envelopes were provided and there was a large box in Reception for you to drop them into. Tipping is quite alien to my husband and I, its simply not part of our daily lives at home. So the expectation to tip coach drivers and tour guides and the way to hand it over actually made us feel uncomfortable at times. In the end we gave the sums of money that were suggested in the Viking book because we genuinely thought we had been served extremely well. Nonetheless it did add a hefty sum onto the top of the cost of our holiday. Do try to factor this in when you are planning how much to money to take with you. We took American dollars along and easily had them changed in to Yuan at the Reception desks of the hotels we stayed at. This worked well for us. We did not take any credit cards instead we left money sitting in the safes that were provided in each of the rooms we stayed in. As I believe its may be difficult to change Yuan back in to your own currency at the end of the holiday we made sure to leave this as part of the tip made right at the end to the Tour Escort.
The Hilton Hotel at Xi'an was opulent, modern and basically fantastic. What a shame we didn't stay for longer than one night. The city of Xi'an was quite a contrast to Shanghai with traffic in particular being a problem for us. It was difficult to safely cross a road and you really felt you were taking a risk doing so. The city was also a lot less clean in my opinion. If you take a walk to see the city's night time street markets be prepared to see some pretty disgusting foods on sale. The Chinese people of course consider them delicacies and its basically a difference in our cultures. The street market became a popular site seeing tour in itself. Obviously the Terra Cotta Warrior Museum was just amazing and simply beyond my comprehension I can't find appropriate words to describe it. You have simply got to see for yourself.
The hotel in Beijing was the Regent. It turned out to be excellent, sited in a good location and with excellent facilities in a vast modern room (1515). The food here was good and indeed the food in all of the restaurants we visited in this city was quite delicious. I have to say that if you don't like or want to eat Chinese food then you will find yourself hungry on this trip as all of the restaurants we attended served Chinese dishes from a Lazy Susan (central rotating glass table) with either chopsticks or a fork available. We loved the opportunity to taste so many different Chinese dishes so loved the experience. There were other passengers travelling with us grumbling about the lack of western dishes continually. No wine other than rice wine (occasionally) was served at these restaurants but the local beer or soft drink was always welcomed. The first drink was free but I think you had to pay for a second one.
The Great Wall of China trip was spectacular and we had about two hours on the wall itself. The Forbidden City just seemed to go on and on forever in my opinion with little to distinguish one section from the next. Don't get me wrong it was amazing but the scale of it was unbelievable. On the wall, Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden there were many thousands of people in awe of what could be seen. The numbers really didn't seem to matter because the places really were stunning and amazing. Our guide insisted we got up early in order to be the only tour party visiting the first pit at the Terra Cotta Army museum and this turned out to be a wonderful privilege.
Would I advise someone to do this trip? Definitely its a Yes from me. Would I do it again? No, I don't think a second visit could ever be as amazing as the first. I felt totally safe and well cared for throughout this tour provided by Viking River Cruises. It met my expectations and I would definitely consider travelling to a new destination in the future.
If you have any further questions don't hesitate to send me a message through Tripadvisor and I will see if I can help.
Written 10 September 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
wendyanddavid536
Solihull, UK2,123 contributions
Oct 2013 • Couples
My wife and I were supposed to sail on the Victoria Sophia for a seven night cruise from Chongqing to Shanghai.
A couple of days before we were due to sail, we were informed by our Titan Travel rep that the captain of the Victoria Sophia had sailed the boat into a lock gate damaging the propeller/rudder, and that the damage would not be repaired in time for our cruise, so extensive was the damage.
This is a river, for goodness sake, it's not like rounding Cape Horn. The locals informed us that on the day of the incident the weather was very good.
Consequently we had a 24 hour delay in Chongqing before boarding the Victoria Jenna for a shortened three day cruise as far as the Three Gorges. The remainder of our journey to Shanghai took three days by coach, rail and an additional flight, thereby missing out on several places that we had been due to visit, and completely ruining the second half of our holiday.
The Victoria Jenna was a nightmare. As soon as we boarded, several members of our tour group had to change cabins because of sewage coming up through the toilet, drain smells and balcony doors that would not close.
The 'welcome' meeting was a disgrace. The cruise director was an American in his seventies, completely incompetent and out of his depth; he did not apologise for everyone's holiday being ruined, gave out no safety instructions regarding life jackets and evacuation (I know it was a river cruise, but if their captains can sail into lock gates......) and never even offered a welcome/apology drink.
Victoria Cruises glossy brochure is a complete work of fiction:
1). The 'cruise director' is described as expert and multilingual. His only language was American English; he couldn't even speak Mandarin to be able to communicate with the rest of the crew. When disgruntled passengers demanded a meeting with him, he was rude and refused to apologise. He did promise that before we left the ship, we would receive financial compensation for our ruined cruise. That was a barefaced lie, as no compensation was paid by the cruise company, then or since.
2).The food is described as 'fabulous breakfast, lunch and dinner buffets.' To actually describe the food as mediocre would be too complimentary. On the rest of our holiday in China, we had had some splendid meals. On the Victoria Jenna the supposedly hot food was always luke-warm to cold, even when newly brought to the dining room, utterly repetitive and unimaginative. The brochure says that Victoria have hired an award winning celebrity chef and hospitality consultant; any Chinese takeaway, let alone Chinese restaurant, in England produces far higher quality food.
3).Captain's Farewell Banquet - indistinguishable from the other poor quality meals.
Other points you should be aware of before booking with Victoria Cruises:
i) When you board the boat, you have to give a credit card swipe.They automatically deduct 300 yuan (about £30) per person as a mandatory tip for a seven day cruise. They then have the cheek to suggest that you may wish to tip individual members of the crew in addition.
ii) Wifi charges are prohibitively high (£15 for three days), and only work in very limited parts of the ship
iii) The price of alcoholic drinks is eye-watering. A small can of beer was £2.50 (25 pence in the local shops), a bottle of wine £25 (£3 in the local shops).
One of the main aims of Victoria Cruises is to crowbar money out of your wallet at every opportunity.
Unfortunately this company does not have an office in the UK. When we returned home, I wrote to their head offices in China and the USA (it is an American owned company). I did not have the courtesy of a reply to either letter.
This company is a disgrace.
Go on holiday to China. The people are lovely, the scenery and culture amazing, the food fantastic. If you must go on a Yangtze cruise, avoid Victoria Cruises like the plague as you risk spoiling your memories of China, as ours have been.
A couple of days before we were due to sail, we were informed by our Titan Travel rep that the captain of the Victoria Sophia had sailed the boat into a lock gate damaging the propeller/rudder, and that the damage would not be repaired in time for our cruise, so extensive was the damage.
This is a river, for goodness sake, it's not like rounding Cape Horn. The locals informed us that on the day of the incident the weather was very good.
Consequently we had a 24 hour delay in Chongqing before boarding the Victoria Jenna for a shortened three day cruise as far as the Three Gorges. The remainder of our journey to Shanghai took three days by coach, rail and an additional flight, thereby missing out on several places that we had been due to visit, and completely ruining the second half of our holiday.
The Victoria Jenna was a nightmare. As soon as we boarded, several members of our tour group had to change cabins because of sewage coming up through the toilet, drain smells and balcony doors that would not close.
The 'welcome' meeting was a disgrace. The cruise director was an American in his seventies, completely incompetent and out of his depth; he did not apologise for everyone's holiday being ruined, gave out no safety instructions regarding life jackets and evacuation (I know it was a river cruise, but if their captains can sail into lock gates......) and never even offered a welcome/apology drink.
Victoria Cruises glossy brochure is a complete work of fiction:
1). The 'cruise director' is described as expert and multilingual. His only language was American English; he couldn't even speak Mandarin to be able to communicate with the rest of the crew. When disgruntled passengers demanded a meeting with him, he was rude and refused to apologise. He did promise that before we left the ship, we would receive financial compensation for our ruined cruise. That was a barefaced lie, as no compensation was paid by the cruise company, then or since.
2).The food is described as 'fabulous breakfast, lunch and dinner buffets.' To actually describe the food as mediocre would be too complimentary. On the rest of our holiday in China, we had had some splendid meals. On the Victoria Jenna the supposedly hot food was always luke-warm to cold, even when newly brought to the dining room, utterly repetitive and unimaginative. The brochure says that Victoria have hired an award winning celebrity chef and hospitality consultant; any Chinese takeaway, let alone Chinese restaurant, in England produces far higher quality food.
3).Captain's Farewell Banquet - indistinguishable from the other poor quality meals.
Other points you should be aware of before booking with Victoria Cruises:
i) When you board the boat, you have to give a credit card swipe.They automatically deduct 300 yuan (about £30) per person as a mandatory tip for a seven day cruise. They then have the cheek to suggest that you may wish to tip individual members of the crew in addition.
ii) Wifi charges are prohibitively high (£15 for three days), and only work in very limited parts of the ship
iii) The price of alcoholic drinks is eye-watering. A small can of beer was £2.50 (25 pence in the local shops), a bottle of wine £25 (£3 in the local shops).
One of the main aims of Victoria Cruises is to crowbar money out of your wallet at every opportunity.
Unfortunately this company does not have an office in the UK. When we returned home, I wrote to their head offices in China and the USA (it is an American owned company). I did not have the courtesy of a reply to either letter.
This company is a disgrace.
Go on holiday to China. The people are lovely, the scenery and culture amazing, the food fantastic. If you must go on a Yangtze cruise, avoid Victoria Cruises like the plague as you risk spoiling your memories of China, as ours have been.
Written 6 March 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Philippe De Schryver
Detroit, MI40 contributions
Oct 2011 • Couples
We have lived in China for over a year now and decided to sail from Chongqing to the three gorges dam with Victoria cruises who boast they are the only 'American company' on the Yangtze. As you board the ship, you are greeted by a gold plated bust of chairman Mao and the upholstery is as worn and Chinese as it can get. During check-in, you are immediately asked to cough up 150 RMB per person for 'tips and gratuities' (when I challenged this I got the 'this is company policy' reply). Food: the menu allegedly offers 'award winning' Chinese and Western food selections -- Well, they will never get an award from me for the bland, boring food they bestowed on us. Accomodation: we had a standard cabin which smelled of skunk. To the credit of the tour director, he arranged an upgrade to a nicer, yet still smelly, cabin.
I could live with all this below par service and accomodation if it were a cheap trip but let me assure you it is not -- for a 3 night cruise in standard accomodation you pay around 1,000 USD per person, which is a terrible rip-off. Shame on Victoria cruises.
I could live with all this below par service and accomodation if it were a cheap trip but let me assure you it is not -- for a 3 night cruise in standard accomodation you pay around 1,000 USD per person, which is a terrible rip-off. Shame on Victoria cruises.
Written 3 November 2011
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
My wife and I are about to book a three night - four day cruise on the Yangzi Explorer.
We are booked into the 2nd deck.
Is it worth paying A$600.00 or A$800.00 for an upgrade to 3rd or 4th deck?
Parky. NSW.
Written 15 December 2019
It depends on your trip budget. All cabins have balconies with the river view. The higher decks have cabins which are a little larger, but in my opinion, not worth the extra cost. All the cabins are very nice, if you are lucky and the suites are available, you may score a free upgrade. It depends if all the suites are sold out or not. They know how to get the maximum revenue from all available cabins. 3 nights downstream is best, less motor noise vs the upstream trip. Have a great time.
Written 16 December 2019
Looking at booking on the Goddess No.1 for a Yangtze River cruise from Yichang to Chongquing can you tell me what this ships is like.
Written 31 October 2019
I’m sorry, I was on another cruise ship so I’m not sure what the one you want to book with is like. I do know that the Yangtze River cruise is worth doing.
Good luck.
Written 31 October 2019
What's the official website for Yangtze Goddess cruise? I can't find them on the net.
Written 30 October 2019
sorry for late reply
I booked through my agent and dont have the details
Written 8 December 2019
i would like to hear some reviews about the China Goddess 2 as we have booked a four night yangzte river cruise and cant find anything about the ship. TIA
Written 14 October 2019
I was on that ship in May. It wasn't great and the food was ordinary. China hasn't quite got the cruise business sorted yet.
Written 31 October 2019
I am considering to join a Yangtze River cruise for 4 days as part of my solo travel to Chongqing for 11 days. Do cruise operators accept a solo traveler? If so, how will be a room arrangement and any significant extra charges? Also, any idea about the wifi reception on the ship?
Written 29 September 2019
Hi, yes I’m sure they accept solo travellers. The Yangtze River cruise is well worth doing. The food was lovely, the service was very good. I was unable to access Wifi so I paid to use my own provider. The rooms are small so if given a chance, I would pay the extra to have a larger room. I hope this helps answer your questions.
Kind regards,
Suzette
Written 30 September 2019
Hi
My husband and I are taking the Glory of China tour next month and I was wondering if the upgrade to the front room is part of the $120 they charge for upgrade or something separate?
Written 23 August 2019
Yes I was surprised that the upgrade included a different dining room upstairs with fewer people and some parts of the courses were served,Downstairs it is all buffet,and a large group of passengers.There is plenty of food,it was good and they try to be accommodating for those with food sensitivities.
Written 30 September 2019
Just want to know if it really is worth the upgrade to VIP dining on the century Paragon? Being one of the better cruise liners sailing the Yangzte river, i just wonder if the buffet style dining is just as good.
Written 28 July 2019
How do I keep drinks cold if I take them onboard the ship please?
Written 8 July 2019
There is a fridge in the room that will keep drinks cool, not cold
Written 14 July 2019
Has anyone caught an airplane from Yichang to Shanghai after the cruise? What kind of transportation to airport and approximate time of flight?
Written 8 May 2019
We caught a plane from Shanghai to Yichang at 7:35 am on a Sunday morning. It took about 1.5h from Yichang airport to the wharf by car.
Written 9 May 2019
…
Showing results 1-10 of 146
Revenue impacts the experiences featured on this page, learn more.
Airport exclusive: extra 20% off beauty
Sponsored by Armani Beauty, YLS & Lancôme
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing