Dear Irene and Cynthia.

Generally we were very impressed with the standard of the whole China tour and all of the guides and drivers. Once we arrived, we were welcomed by our guide and we were much relieved and had a wonderful time.

Meals
With regard to meals, all were good, although some were better than others. Some guides either asked what we would like prior to ordering or allowed us to choose from the menu ourselves. We preferred that rather than just having a set menu presented to us. We enjoyed the opportunity to have regional cuisine wherever possible. In Guilin, Peter, our guide, noticed that we hadn't eaten much so he went out of his way and arranged an alternative restaurant for dinner on two nights. We appreciated that. The best meal of the tour was undoubtedly the last night dinner in Shanghai.

Guides
All our guides were fluent in English and were very professional in carrying out their duties. All were knowledgeable about the sites of interest in their areas and were easily able to communicate that knowledge. Personality factors influenced the manner of how they did this, and those guides with an extroverted outgoing personality, or those with a passion for their local culture, or a passion for their job, were able to give that little bit extra. These were the guides who could think on their feet, and where necessary change the itinerary around to adapt to local conditions. We are happy to say that most of the guides were able to do this. The exception was Leo in Shanghai. Whilst he was very professional in his manner, we didn't connect on a personal level.

Transport
The cars were all in excellent condition and very clean, and the drivers all very skilfull. The driver from Urumqi to Turpan, I think it was Mr. Tao, but I may have the name wrong, was very helpful when we had a camera malfunction. He drove around until he found a camera shop that was able to diagnose and correct our problem. We also had a bonus in Kashgar with our driver, Mr Mohammed Jusuf. He was much more than a driver, he was really a second guide and a very good one at that!

On the whole, we were very impressed by the general organisation of our China trip. We would not hesitate to recommend Travel China Guide to our friends, or use your services again.

Anne and Ron Hosking