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Travel Arrangements Within China
Packaged tours, while often more expensive than self arranged
travel, will insulate you from the difficulties of booking travel
by air, rail, bus or car in China. Transportation systems have
not expanded as fast as the number of Chinese and international
travelers has increased. Planes and trains are often overbooked.
Tickets or reservations for onward travel should be reconfirmed
at each stop. Hotels, for a fee, will assist in making reservations
and purchasing tickets.
Train travel can be difficult to reserve, even for the experienced
traveler. Round trip rail tickets are not generally available
without the services of a travel agency. Beware of counterfeit
train tickets. Unethical entrepreneurs manufacture and sell such
tickets at railway stations.
Restricted Areas
Visitors to China should be aware that Chinese regulations strictly
prohibit travel in "closed" areas without special permission.
However, over 1,200 cities and areas in China are open to visitors
without special travel permits, including most major scenic and
historical sites. If you need to know if an area is open to travel
without a permit, seek advice from the nearest Chinese embassy
or consulate, or, if you are already in China, from the U.S. Embassy
in Beijing, the nearest U.S. consulate, or the local Chinese public
security bureau. (See addresses at the end of the document.)
Travel to Tibet
Americans visiting Tibet, whether individually or in tour groups,
must obtain permission in advance from the Tibet Travel Bureau.
U.S. should be aware that all areas of the region are closed to
foreign traveler except for Lhasa, Shigatze (Xigaze), Naqu, Zedong,
Zhang Muxkhasa, and the main roads between these points. Special
permission to visit any of the closed areas must be obtained from
the regions public security bureau. Travel arrangements booked
through Chinese travel agencies will include necessary advance
approvals. Occasionally, visitors have been refused admission
or had difficulty entering Tibet from Nepal. In addition, the
Kathmandu/Lhasa Highway that connects Nepal and Tibet can be washed
out in the monsoon season, from June through September. Avoid
this road during the monsoon. You should also be aware that foreign
travelers have been the victims of robberies on this road.
Virtually all of the Tibetan autonomous region, much of Qinghai
and Xinjiang, and parts of Sichuan, Yunnan, and Gansu are above
13,000 feet (4,000 meters) in altitude. Some main roads in Tibet,
Qinghai, and Xinjiang go above 17,000 feet (5,200 meters), where
available oxygen is only half of that at sea level. Conditions
in Tibet are primitive, and travel there can be particularly arduous.
Medical facilities are practically nonexistent. Many otherwise
healthy visitors to the high altitude areas may suffer severe
headaches, nausea, dizziness, shortness of breath, or a dry cough.
These symptoms usually disappear after a few days of acclimatization.
However, if symptoms persist, sufferers should descend to a lower
altitude, or seek medical assistance as soon as possible. Visitors
with respiratory or cardiac problems should avoid such high altitudes.
Consult a physician before making the trip.
Travel on the Trans-Siberian Express
If you wish to take the Trans-Siberian railway from Beijing
to Europe, you must obtain visas for Mongolia, Russia and other
countries en route. Plan ahead. The Mongolian Consulate in Beijing
is only open a few hours per week.
Chinese Embassy and Consulates in the United States
Embassy of the People's Republic of China
2300 Connecticut Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20008
(202) 328-2517
Chinese Consulate General
104 South Michigan Avenue, Suite 1200
Chicago, Illinois 60603
(312) 346-0287
Chinese Consulate General
3417 Montrose Boulevard
Houston, Texas 77006
(713) 524-4311
Chinese Consulate General
502 Shatto Place, Suite 300
Los Angeles, California 90020
(213) 380-2507
Chinese Consulate General
520 12th Avenue
New York, New York 10036
(212) 279-4275
Chinese Consulate General
1450 Laguna Street
San Francisco, California 94115
(415) 563-4885
U.S. Embassy and Consulates in China
Note: APO and FPO addresses may only be used for mail originating
in the United States. When you use an APO or FPO address, do not
include the local street address.
People's Republic of China
American Embassy
2 Xiu Shui Dong Jie
Beijing 100600
Tel: (86-10) 532-3831 ext. 249, (86-10) 532-1910 (after hours)
Fax: (86-10) 532-3178
Mailing address:
PSC 461
Box 50
FPO AP 96521-0002
American Consulate General
1 South Shamian Street
Guangzhou 510133
Tel: (86-20) 886-2418 or (86-20) 886-2402 ext. 256,
(86-20) 930-3004 (after hours)
Fax: (86-20) 886-2341
Mailing address:
PSC 461
Box 100
FPO AP 96521-0002
American Consulate General
1469 Huaihai Zhong Lu
Shanghai 200031
Tel: (86-21) 433-6880, (86-21) 433-3936 (after hours)
Fax: (86-21) 433-4122
Mailing address:
PSC 461
Box 200
FPO AP 96521-0002
American Consulate General
Number 52, 14th Wei Road
Shenyang 110003
Tel: (86-24) 282-0038, 0048, 0068 or 0074, same as above (after
hours)
Fax: (86-24) 282-0074
Mailing address:
PSC 461
Box 45
FPO AP 96521-0002
American Consulate General
Number 4 Lingshiguan Road
Chengdu 610041
Tel: (86-28) 558-9642, (86-28) 901-1899 (after hours)
Fax: (86-28) 558-3520
Mailing address:
PSC 461
Box 85
FPO AP 96521-0002
Hong Kong
American Consulate General
26 Garden Road
Hong Kong
Tel: (852) 2841-2211 or (852) 2523-9011, (852) 252-9011 (after
hours)
Fax: (852) 2845-4845
Mailing address:
PSC 464
Box 30
FPO AP 96522-0002
Planning Another Trip?
*For general travel information, the following pamphlets may
be ordered for $1 each from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S.
Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20420:
Your Trip Abroad ($1.25)
A Safe Trip Abroad
Tips for Americans Residing Abroad
Travel Tips for Older Americans
*Copies of the following publications in this series are also
available from the U.S. Government Printing Office:
Tips for Travelers to the Caribbean
Tips for Travelers to Central and South America
Tips for Travelers to Mexico
Tips for Travelers to the Middle East and North Africa ($1.50)
Tips for Travelers to South Asia
Tips for Travelers to Sub-Saharan Africa ($1.50)
Tips for Travelers to Russia and the Newly Independent States
General visa information for these and other countries are available
in Foreign Entry Requirements. Information on how, when and where
to apply for your U.S. passport is provided in Passports: Applying
for Them the Easy Way. Both publications may be ordered for 50
cents each from the Consumer Information Center, Pueblo, Colorado
81009.
*Prices and availability are subject to change without notice.
Please check with the Government Printing Office for more information.
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