China during Spring Festival

[Dave&Hong]

Silly me, I scheduled my next trip to China during Spring Festival thinking that it would be a great time to get to know Hong's family better. I should have checked with her first (I'm a slow learner I guess) because she tells me that spending time with her family during Spring Festival would not be a good idea as she is afraid that I would be subject to attempts to make me appear foolish. Now we need to find a place where we can spend time together and be some distance from her family (Note to self; ALWAYS check with Hong first on any matters concerning family or China).

 

So I'm looking to my fellow CFLer's for advice on where to go! I'm thinking someplace warm, but any place where we can be together and have a few sights to visit and not be freezing or wading through knee deep snow would do. Keep in mind that it will be Spring Festival. We want to avoid massive crowds as much is possible during that time so we can enjoy our limited time together. Thanks

[GZBILL]

Silly me, I scheduled my next trip to China during Spring Festival thinking that it would be a great time to get to know Hong's family better. I should have checked with her first (I'm a slow learner I guess) because she tells me that spending time with her family during Spring Festival would not be a good idea as she is afraid that I would be subject to attempts to make me appear foolish. Now we need to find a place where we can spend time together and be some distance from her family (Note to self; ALWAYS check with Hong first on any matters concerning family or China).

 

So I'm looking to my fellow CFLer's for advice on where to go! I'm thinking someplace warm, but any place where we can be together and have a few sights to visit and not be freezing or wading through knee deep snow would do. Keep in mind that it will be Spring Festival. We want to avoid massive crowds as much is possible during that time so we can enjoy our limited time together. Thanks

 

Everybody and their brother travels during Spring Festival. If you do not make reservations early, you'll find that either you cannot get reservations at all, prices will be 5 times normal rate or that your reserved seat on the 36-hour train to Beijing is actually in the 1 m2 toilet.

[Mike62356]

You gotta reserve early, oh and Happy Birthday B)

[Guest ShaQuaNew]

Silly me, I scheduled my next trip to China during Spring Festival thinking that it would be a great time to get to know Hong's family better. I should have checked with her first (I'm a slow learner I guess) because she tells me that spending time with her family during Spring Festival would not be a good idea as she is afraid that I would be subject to attempts to make me appear foolish. Now we need to find a place where we can spend time together and be some distance from her family (Note to self; ALWAYS check with Hong first on any matters concerning family or China).

 

So I'm looking to my fellow CFLer's for advice on where to go! I'm thinking someplace warm, but any place where we can be together and have a few sights to visit and not be freezing or wading through knee deep snow would do. Keep in mind that it will be Spring Festival. We want to avoid massive crowds as much is possible during that time so we can enjoy our limited time together. Thanks

 

Everybody and their brother travels during Spring Festival. If you do not make reservations early, you'll find that either you cannot get reservations at all, prices will be 5 times normal rate or that your reserved seat on the 36-hour train to Beijing is actually in the 1 m2 toilet.

 

Bill has a great point. Traveling during the spring festival is one of the busiest times of year. Still, if you want to travel, and avoid cold and snow, you are limiting your self to the southern areas of China. Guess it just depends and what kinds of things you like. Personally, I don't much care for big cities, and avoid them when I can. If you like the mountains a countryside, I would recommend Guizhou.

[david_dawei]

Cherish being in china during Spring festival.... fewer memories will stay with you. Let her pick the place... that way, she probably has not been there and wants to... I would ask her to name 3-4 places... ask her why... see if she will talk about them... and let the pick emerge...

[Sebastian]

Silly me, I scheduled my next trip to China during Spring Festival thinking that it would be a great time to get to know Hong's family better. I should have checked with her first (I'm a slow learner I guess) because she tells me that spending time with her family during Spring Festival would not be a good idea as she is afraid that I would be subject to attempts to make me appear foolish. Now we need to find a place where we can spend time together and be some distance from her family (Note to self; ALWAYS check with Hong first on any matters concerning family or China).

 

So I'm looking to my fellow CFLer's for advice on where to go! I'm thinking someplace warm, but any place where we can be together and have a few sights to visit and not be freezing or wading through knee deep snow would do. Keep in mind that it will be Spring Festival. We want to avoid massive crowds as much is possible during that time so we can enjoy our limited time together. Thanks

 

 

Whats her family doing for Spring Festival? Are they all headed in to See Mama? Or is Mama Travelling to see Grandma ???

 

If they are travelling OUT of KaiFeng, then maybe just as well for you to stay IN KaiFeng with yer lass.

 

During Spring Festival, the Entire Country is on the Move. Migrant Workers go home to see their One Child that they parked with GrandMa. It's a huge (did I say HUGE?) move-about.

 

Would you consider a different country? Singapore is nice that time of year, most of the Chinese Migrant Workers from PRC LEAVE Singapore and GO HOME to PRC, but still have some nice things to do there. It's MultiCultural and MultiLingual - BOTH of you would NOT feel lost there at all.

 

She could get Singapore Tourist Visa very easily, but must make application through the Singapore Embassy in BeiJing ..

 

Embassy of Singapore in Beijing, China

No. 1 Xiu Shui Bei Jie

Jian Guo Men Wai

Chaoyang District

Beijing 100600 China

Phone: +(86)(10)6532 1115

Fax: +(86)(10)6532 9405

 

The process is similar to this one - http://app.mfa.gov.sg/generator/asppages/w...isa_chinese.asp but obviously, she'll be applying in China and NOT DC.

 

You, as a USC, don't need to apply for tourist visa (like she does) - you are granted one automatically when you go through customs and immigration.

[chilton747]

Shenzhen (big city) or Zhongshan (not so big city) They are both south and have a lot of cultural festivals.

As David states, great memories!!