Two Free Bags On United Airlines For All Passengers In The Year Of The Dog On All Routes From North America To China And Hong Kong

It’s the year of the dog. Facing stiff competition United Airlines will eliminate charges for customers’ second checked bag on all routes from North America to China and Hong Kong.

Currently, customers traveling from China/Hong Kong to the United States already receive two free checked bags. Fees for oversized and overweight bags will continue to apply.

“We are responding to valuable feedback from customers who are seeking added benefits when they travel to China and Hong Kong, particularly for leisure purposes,” said Marcel Fuchs, United’s Vice President, Atlantic and Pacific Sales. “By allowing a second checked bag at no additional fee, we aim to make the overall experience of traveling to China and Hong Kong easier for our customers.”

By

 Juergen T Steinmetz

Visit Beijing's Forbidden City Before It Starts Limiting Visitors

Soon, China will begin limiting how many tourists can visit the Forbidden City in Beijing. 

The former Imperial Palace sees about 7 million visitors each year, and officials think that's just too many people.

Worried about inflicting damage to the important historical site, China's state media recently announced that it will begin limiting how many tourists it admits to the Forbidden City. 

The new limitations will prohibit annual ticket holders from visiting during peak seasons, encourage tourists to visit in the afternoon and to buy tickets in advance during festivals and holidays.

Take a look around the UNESCO World Heritage Site — while you still can.

Take a tour of the Forbidden City »

Step Into A Real-World Watercolor Painting In Hangzhou, Home To China’s Most Picturesque Landscapes

 

Natural and Cultural Wonders of the West Lake, Grand Canal, XiXi Wetlands and Lingying Temple among Top Tourist Destinations in China

 

Hangzhou, China: Marco Polo fell in love with it. Poets and painters captured its beauty. Even ancient emperors were awestruck when they visited Hangzhou.

Like San Francisco, Hangzhou is a city by the bay. Like New York, it has world-class museums and cultural activity beating around a heart of green space. Like Venice, its houses are lapped by the gentle currents of a canal.

And like their historical predecessors, modern-day explorers marvel at the rivers, lakes, mountains, and monuments of Hangzhou; a thriving port and economic giant an hour south of Shanghai, but worlds away from anything else in China, that enjoys a reputation as the country’s happiest city.

In an area where man-made creations mesh with the best of nature, Hangzhou’s West Lake remains the canvass on which the city’s beauty is portrayed. As UNESCO explained when designating West Lake a World Heritage Site in 2011, “the key components of West Lake still allow it to inspire people to ‘project feelings onto the landscape.”

The West Lake - A UNESCO World Heritage Site

The West Lake is so photogenic, locals believe a dazzling pearl fell from heaven and transformed itself into the serene body of water, surrounded by rolling hills replete with tea houses, temples, monasteries, and museums. A bevy of bridges, causeways, and willow-shrouded walkways makes visitors forget the nearby city is the fourth largest in China.

By boat or bike is the best way to experience the West Lake, where the array of statues, pagodas, and monuments would take weeks to explore. On the short list of must-see attractions are the Mausoleum of General Yue Fei, Six Harmonies Pagoda, Two Peaks Embracing the Sky, Temple of Soul’s retreat, Peak Flown from Afar, and Solitary Hill.

In the nearby Hangzhou Botanical Gardens, more than 1,000 yellow wintersweets blossomed during the Laba Festival in January.

The Grand Canal

There are two wonders in China, one is the Great Wall, and the other is the Grand Canal. The Grand Canal lives up to its name in more ways than one: the man-made waterway stretches 1200 miles from Hangzhou to Beijing and has stood the test of time for more than 2,000 years. An engineering marvel comparable to the Great Wall of China, the Grand Canal has sightseeing boats that provide perspectives of life in South China river towns. With its array of venerable waterside dwellings and stone bridges, it has the Venetian flavor that Marco Polo favored.

Lingyin Temple

Not far from West Lake is Lingyin Temple also known as Temple of Soul's Retreat (literal translated name),  is the most celebrated place of interest around West Lake and one of the top ten Buddhist temples of China. Founded in the year 368, it once housed more than 3,000 monks.

With its network of cliffs and grottoes and its pastoral surroundings in the Wulin Mountains, the temple affords visitors both a religious and spiritual experience. The oldest and most significant statue on the site, the 800-year-old Skanda Buddha, guards the rear entrance, while the front is dominated by an enormous sculpture called “the Laughing Buddha.” Inside, in the Grand Hall of the Great Sage, is the largest wooden Buddhist statue in China.

Xixi National Wetland Park

Xixi National Wetland Park  is the only national wetland park in China, located at the west part of Hangzhou. The park is densely crisscrossed with six main watercourses, among which scatter various ponds, lakes and swamps. The wetland has a history and cultural heritage of more than 1,800 years, and is the original site of Chinese South Opera. It is home to traditional Dragon Boat races and vivid life of a water village, including silkworm feeding and silk production.

 

About Hangzhou

Hangzhou is one of the six oldest capitals in China and an integral part of the world’s sixth largest economic center – the Yangtze River Delta. Offering 5,000 years of rich culture, it was established as an important city in Chinese civilization by 221 BC. When Marco Polo visited 800 years ago, he declared it “the finest and most splendid city in the world.”

The city is located on West Lake, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Grand Canal, the world’s oldest and longest man-made canal, begins at Hangzhou and ends at Beijing and incorporates 132 heritage sites (seven of which are in Hangzhou). The city has a well-known heritage in the production of fine porcelain, silk and tea, and tourists may visit museums dedicated to each and learn how these skills have impacted civilization generally.

Hangzhou is at the center of stunning natural landscape with the West Lake encompassed on three sides by hills. The lake, a fusion of culture and nature, has inspired famous poets, scholars and artists since the 9^th century. Ten scenic sites have been given poetic names such as Autumn Moon, Twin Peaks Piercing the Clouds, etc. There are two causeways and three islands with picturesque pagodas, pavilions, lush gardens and historic temples. Hangzhou is the political, historical and cultural center of Zhejiang Province on the southeast coast of China, only 45 minutes from Shanghai on the bullet train. To facilitate connectivity within the city, use of bicycles is encouraged as a means of transportation and may be rented by the hour.

Travelore Tips: Now You Can Get A Visa To Visit Vietnam In Just 24 Hours

 Visa Vietnam Org has now announced that they can arrange for a visa to Vietnam is just 24 hours. Applicants can fill their form to request express visa processing. This is ideal for those who need to visit Vietnam for an emergency trip. This facility is available seven days a week, twenty four hours a day, irrespective of the fact that it is a Saturday or a Sunday or even a public holiday.

“Emergency processing is currently done only via email and not over phone. Getting a Vietnam visa is an expensive and complex process, and hence it is very important that we understand your request correctly. Seeking details through an email makes things clear,” says the spokesperson at Visa Vietnam Org.

Besides express visa service, they also specialize in providing e-visa. All that the applicant is required to do is to fill in an online form, pay for the same through their G2S paygate and receive their approval letter within 2 working days. They can then get their visa stamped at the ‘Landing Visa’ counter at the airport.

“You do not have to worry about giving your information being misused. The site is completely protected and there is absolutely no chance of your data being compromised,” adds the spokesperson.

At the end of the process, applicants are required to pay a service fee and a stamp fee. The charges are flexible and largely depend on the group size. For instance, a larger group of 10 or more people will have to pay less. “We know the laws and culture of Vietnam and are aware of the regulations that govern the process. With more than 10 years of experience in the Vietnam immigration industry, we are in a better position to help you with your visa problems,” adds the spokesperson.

 Thanks to Vietnam opening up its economy, there are plenty of opportunities for people looking to do business in the country. People no longer have to wait for days on end to get their visa. They can now get immediate visas through pre approved letters with codes that can be picked upon arrival at the international airports. Visa Vietnam Org uses this system to help applicants enter Vietnam.

About Visa Vietnam Org.: The Company has more than 10 years of experience in arranging visas for those visiting Vietnam. These visas can be arranged through pre approved letters that can be picked up at all international airports including Noi Bai international airport in Hanoi City, Tan Son Nhat International airport on Ho Chi Minh (Saigon) city and Danang international airport in Danang city.

To know more, visit, http://www.visa-vietnam.org/

Travelore Tips: 7 Recommended Things To Do In Hong Kong

Hong Kong is the world's most vertical city, with two hundred and ninety-three buildings higher than five hundred feet -- sixty more than second-place New York City. Here are our tips on getting the most out of this remarkable destination.

Bask in A Symphony of Lights

A traditional Chinese junk sets sail amid Hong Kong's modern skyscrapers during A Symphony of Lights.

Every night Hong Kong's skyline, on both sides of Victoria Harbor, comes alive in a spectacular musical laser light show that the Guinness Book of World Records has proclaimed the world's largest permanent light and sound show.

WATCH:The skyline comes to life!

Jumbo + Floating + Hong Kong 

Since 1976 one of Hong Kong's top attractions has been Jumbo Kingdom, a floating restaurant. Wait, floating? Yes floating, as in a boat moored in the middle of Aberdeen Harbor. It's so impressive that a Queen (as in Elizabeth II), a Duke (as in John Wayne), a Maverick (as in Tom Cruise) and over thirty million other people have all felt the need to see it.

Get Spiritual with a REALLY Big Buddha

We could certainly see why he is commonly called Big Buddha. He is really, really big, but since Buddhas come sitting, standing or reclining, it is difficult to judge just which one is the largest, still The Tian Tan Buddha is one of the biggest in the world. He stands, oops, sits, one hundred and twelve feet high, and weighs in at a slender 280 tons of bronze.

Catch a Ding Ding

Best seat in the house: We always tried to snag the upper deck front window! 

The trolleys of Hong Kong Island are affectionately known as "ding dings" for the bells they seem to be constantly ringing. A whole fleet of double decker street cars rolls endlessly back and forth along the north shore, which is the most bustling part of the city. Because the fare for these wonderful old trolleys is but a mere pittance, we jumped on and off several times, whenever something caught our eye.

Climb to the Top of Victoria Peak

By all accounts, the best place to gaze upon all the skyscrapers is from the top of Victoria Peak. At the top we briefly checked out the Peak Tower and Peak Galleria, before taking a little stroll along the Peak Circle Walk. We think that this trail offered the best views of the incredible cityscape below.

Ride the Star Ferry

For a just over two Hong Kong dollars -- that's pocket change, about thirty cents U.S. -- we climbed aboard the vintage 1965 Silver Star and enjoyed one of the most spectacular urban views on the planet. No wonder the line's dozen classic old boats carry up to twenty-six million passengers each year.

View the Wares of Tonic Food and Dried Seafood Streets

Des Voeux Road is known as Dried Seafood Street. We were amazed by the offerings, truly works of art, every one. Nearby Tonic Food Street is famous for ancient Chinese medicines, traditional herbal remedies, and tonic foods such as ginseng, deer fetus and bird's nest. With life expectancy in Hong Kong among the highest in the world, who are we to argue?

Contributed by David and Veronica, GypsyNester.com