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We are excited you are interested in being part of this amazing experience! Below is some information that should help you get prepared for the journey.
Tips on Coming to China and Meeting Up with the Tour:
1) E-mail us at team@biketheworld.org explaining your interest and where or when along the tour you would like to meet up with us (Note: you must be flexible with the dates of your trip if you want to join us in a specific location. If you are flexible with the location of your trip we can arrange for you to meet up with us at any location).
2) Get a visa for China. You need to download and complete the following two forms Fly China Visa Form and China Q1 Visa Form. It costs $93 typically takes 8 to 12 business days to receive your visa from the date you send it, rush service is available -- contact us if necessary. It's valid for 30 days and if necessary you should be able to get an extension in Xi'an or Lanzhou.
3) Watch for flights to Beijing or Shanghai on www.flychina.com, www.travelzoo.com, and www.kayak.com. Or call
Rebecca Mak
USA International Travel
851 Burlway road suite 101
Burlingame CA 94010
TEL 650 548 0248
FAX 650 548 0249
United Airlines has a direct flight to Beijing from Chicago. Contential has a direct flight from New York. We will help you arrange your transfer from Beijing or Shanghai to your desired starting location. Expect to pay ~$1000 for your flight to China.
4) Please read the "FAQs For Those Interested In Meeting Up With the Tour"
Tips on Coming to China and Meeting Up with the Tour:
- When should I come?
It is really up to you, the only key is that you are relatively flexible in your timing or location unless you join us early in the trip. Please see the route map for our approximate schedule. We will try to pre-arrange our meeting and will have cell phones in case problems arise. If the tour is ahead or behind schedule it is relatively easy (and inexpensive in US terms) to arrange for your transport to a location.
- Is it safe?
Yes. My experiences with the chinese people have been nothing than absolutely pleasant. Obviously there are always exceptions, but I have yet to encounter any problems.
- How much will it cost?
The expenses you should expect to incur are plane/transport $800-$1200US, food $5/day, accomodations $15/day.
- Where are the airports? How can I travel in China?
We will be flying out of
- What vaccinations do I need?
Although we suggest you check with your physican, the mostly likely vaccinations you may need are hepitatis A and B, tetanus/diptheria. We have been vaccinated for hepitatis and tetanus/diptheria and since we will be traveling through rurual areas in the east of China we are looking into Japanese encephalitis vaccinations. Please e-mail us if you have any questions.
- Where will we stay at night?
We will make every effort to stay at hotels or houses along the trip. It is possible that we may not be able to find accomodations in certain parts of Xinjiang and in those cases we will decide to either camp for the evening or make arrangements to drive to a hotel.
- What about the food? Will I get sick?
We will be near civilization for most of the trip, we expect to eat at Chinese restaurants for the majority of our meals.
Newcomers to China may experience food sickness, but I have only experienced one case of severe food sickness and have found the pre-cautions of many people to be a little overdone. Noet: if you are seriously sick, we can help arrange to get you to a doctor and if necessary arrange for your travel back to the US or a Western hospital in Beijing or Shanghai (Beijing United and Shanghai United).
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