Air? Flew United Airlines non-stop Chicago to Being and then used air miles for a economy, open jaw ticket on Air China. Beijing to Xining and Chengdu back to Beijing. There are many different gateways into this region. Check out Hotwire, Orbitz, Vayama, Fare Buzz…

Hotels? We booked two extra days pre-trip in Beijing to revisit and do a little recovering from jet lag. I waffled back and forth over booking a simple but small Chinese-style hotel or a moderate, modern hotel, and completely eliminated expensive five-star hotels from the budget. Pondering…but we’d be staying in typical Chinese hostels, and small hotels during the Kham exploration. Instead, opted for a Days Inn. Before you turn up your nose, this Days Inn is inexpensive, located within spitting distance of the Forbidden City and busy Wufujing Street. Also needed a hotel in Chengdu for the end of the trip and chose a Holiday Inn located in the outskirts of Chengdu but with free transportation to the center and, again, inexpensive.

Visa? You must have a Chinese Visa which is easy to get at your local Chinese Embassy/Consulate. The Chicago Embassy used to let you arrange for one in the same day but just changed the rules and now will only issue same-day if you are leaving for China in a few days. Bring a copy of your plane ticket to prove you need the visa post-haste. Otherwise, use mail or drop off and pickup one week later.

Health? Just the usual precautions. No malaria pills, and all innoculations are always kept up-to-date. Then check the Centers for Disease Control updates to see what they suggest.

Travel Insurance? As I’ve stated before, we always buy travel insurance that covers cancellation and medical emergencies. All it takes is one incident where you lose all money paid for the trip and you’ll be a convert. We purchase Travel insurance through Travel Guard, insurance starts at $30 depending on the cost of your tour.

The Tour? Very detailed. A 16-day tour visiting: Xining, Gonghe, Maduo, Yushu Horse Festival, into Sichuan Province, Shiqu, Mani Gange, Dege, Ganzi, Danba, Hailuogou (Conch Valley), and end in Chengdu. Have you ever heard of any of these towns other than Chengdu? We hadn’t, but trusted Shanghai Far East. The tour itself would focus on the Eastern Tibetan Plateau, mingling with the Khampa people, day hiking, the yearly Yushu Horse Festival, driving through high and perilous mountains and remote Buddhist monasteries.

And then, add the two days spent actually getting to China, two days in Beijing, two days in Chengdu, one returning home and it was a 22-day trip.
Included?

- A variety of “best available” accommodations

- Mr. Wang, as our great driver and a local English-speaking guide who would travel with us throughout

- All private transportation, airport transfers, baggage handling, admission fees

- Bottled water

- All meals

We happen to love Chinese food but still bring a small stash of goodies for long drives and emergencies. Granola bars, several packs of tuna, candy and other munchies. There was one memorable occasion spent sitting on the floor of the Kashgar Airport overnight with no chance to buy either food or water.

Clothing? The climate was going to be mild with cooler nights at the higher elevations.

- Boots, fleece, a waterproof jacket, and thermals (I get cold easily), lightweight hat and gloves, just in case.

- Casual clothes: Lightweight pants, long shorts/capris, t-shirts, tevas (or sandals) for walking around town.

Planning over, we were ready to go….