Chinese National Day on October 1 is traditionally one of the busiest times of the year for the travel industry in China. It is a time when the people of China have several days vacation and millions of people return home to visit relatives.

This holiday period is one to avoid if you are thinking of a vacation in China. The trains and airliners are quite often filled to capacity, or beyond, and it is very difficult to obtain tickets for domestic trips within China.

Another peak period in China is the Spring Festival holiday or Lunar New Year which is normally in January or February. The date of the holiday varies as it is based on the lunar calendar. The next Spring Festival will be on January 26, 2009 which is the start of the year of the Ox. Spring Festival in 2010 falls on February 14.

One good thing about Chinese New Year is if you are in China you can quite often get a

cheap airfare out of Beijing

at the same time everyone is heading to China from overseas. I once got a return ticket to the United States for $250 as flights to Beijing were full however in the opposite direction they were empty.

After the National Day holiday it is probably a good time to find a cheap airfare to Beijing as the winter months are approaching and the Christmas period is still some time away. October is still not so cold that you cannot get out and about in Beijing without thick winter clothing.

Beijing International Airport Terminal 3

For Australian travellers I have checked several travel booking sites to compare flight prices for 1 October and 15 October from Australia. The later date was around $500 cheaper than the peak period. I could find a flight with Air China from Sydney to Beijing for 970.60 Australian dollars on 15 October returning 22 October. The 1 October flight to China costs $1483.

For US travellers it is actually cheaper to fly on 1 October compared with 15 October. The cheapest flight to Beijing from Los Angeles on 1 October was $910 USD. This compared to $1043 for 15 October.

The main thing when looking for a cheap flight to Beijing or anywhere for that matter is to try many different dates on a few of the search engines. Also give your local travel agent a call to see what they can come up with if you are looking to travel to Beijing.

On February 29 a Shandong Airlines flight touched at Beijing airport shortly before 9am local time. So what you might say. This flight is something special. It goes down in the history books as the first commercial service to land at Terminal Three at Beijing airport.

The new airport built to handle the peak Olympic traffic cost $2.7 billion to construct. And did I mention it is huge. The building runs for 3.25km and covers 98ha of floor space, the equivalent to about 170 soccer pitches. Terminal Three is the largest passenger terminal in the world.

I visited Beijing several years ago and at the time they had a nice new terminal. I expected that was the one for the Olympics. But no, the Chinese quickly built the monster that stands there now. In case the 170 soccer pitches size does not give you a feel for how big it is here is what the designer, British architect Norman Foster said.

“To get an idea of the scale, imagine (all five) Heathrow terminals under one roof and then add an extra 17 per cent of floor space,” Foster told the Chinese press this week.

On opening day there were Five airlines that began their operations, including British Airways and Qantas. By March 25 there should be a total of 24 airlines operating from the new terminal.

The new airport was built in four years with a reported 50 000 workers helping construct the airport. There was nothing standing in the way of the construction of terminal 3. 10 000 plus people from nearby villages were relocated to make way for the air terminal.

I am looking forward to jumping on the cheap flight to Beijing I was able to book last October to see the new Beijing airport when my family and I visit for the Beijing Olympics in August.

Beijing airport is expected to handle 60 million passengers this year. The airport has a capacity of 75 million. Queues which have become common place should be a thing of the past at this new airport terminal in Beijing.

Tonight I was at a Chinese New Year celebration at the Chinese Embassy in Canberra, Australia. They had a raffle where the main prize was a pair of return business class tickets to Beijing from Sydney. Winning that was one way to get a cheap flight to Beijing.

The other way is to read my tips in the flight to Beijing article on the website. Having recently been watching Survivor China and visiting the embassy tonight my desire to visit China is really strong.

In the embassy itself there are many items that showcase China. They have some Terracotta Warriors, a room decorated as if it is out of the Forbidden City in Beijing. There is a bamboo garden and also in the main garden they have several pavilions built in the traditional Chinese style.

Going to the embassy was just like visiting China. Inside one of the halls of the embassy they had Chinese tea tasting. Outside on the main stage a fantastic show was put on to entertain the hundreds of guests. It started with some lion dancing, followed by dancers from Shaanxi which is home of the Terracotta Warriors. Later came some tai chi, followed by more dancing.

Also at the embassy there was a travel information stand operated by Helen Wong’s tours. I grabbed a couple of brochures about some of the places I am interested in visiting. Lucky for me I am off to Beijing for the Olympics in August.

When not attending the Olympics I would like to visit Shanghai and Guilin. Some of the photos I have seen of Guilin are truly spectacular.

If you have visited China I would love to hear about your favorite spots and not so favorite places.

Check back here in a few days and I will have some video from tonights performance.

Travel.com.au are advertising cheap flights to China from Australia. Fly to Beijing/Shanghai plus 6 more cities in China with Japan Airlines from an amazing $899 + tax fr. $471. This HOT deal expires 30 Dec’07 so better be quick!

The airfare is great but don’t you hate it with you get hit for $471 in taxes. This can make what appears to be a cheap flight to Beijing a not so cheap flight. Departures for the above flight to Beijing are from 25/1/2008-31/3/2008.

Other destinations include Dalian, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Qingdao, Xiamen and
Xian. I highly recommend a visit to Qingdao and Xi’an having been there in the past. Qingdao is a nice coastal city with a European influence. Xi’an of course is home of the terracotta warriors. This is a must see if you make it to this ancient city. Home of the First Emperor.

Don’t forget the Olympics will be held in Beijing in August 2008. Prices are sure to skyrocket closer to this time. It is advisable to travel early in the new year if you have no interest in attending the Olympics.

In August 2008 Beijing will play host to the Summer games. You don’t have to wait for this sporting showcase to think about a visit to China. Here are some China travel tips to help you enjoy your next vacation in China.

Although history and culture tends to vary considerably between Asian countries, it can be helpful to get some general Asia travel tips. However, China is unique in that it is the world’s most populous country and is under quasi-Communist rule. The government is under the strict control of the Chinese Communist Party. Read up on travel advice that can be found free from various government websites before making travel plans.

The majority of Asian countries are much the same in that they display a high degree of respect for their elders and customs are very prevalent. There are also a number of items that are not allowed to be imported or exported from China. Unauthorized items include guns, ammunition, explosives, certain radio parts, Chinese currency, media that is contrary to China’s politics, economy, culture, and ethics such as pornography or religious texts.

When visiting China one must be careful even when taking what might seem like innocent magazines into the country. The image and suggestions that appear in many magazine ads may be considered pornographic by Chinese officials even though they are completely normal in many other cultures. It is also illegal to export rare items, such as relics, some books, rare plants and animals, as well as precious metals or diamonds. As you find information on this topic, you may find many Asian travel tips that indicate that other countries have similar policies.

In China, there is a low crime rate, but it has increased in recent years. However, foreigners are rarely victims of crime. Many experts suspect that the low crime rate is partially due to the lack of guns in China, but stabbings have become more prevalent. Many of the laws are different in China, although laws and penalties relating to drugs are strict and can result in serious jail time. Occasionally foreigners are detained and fined for improper sexual relations with Chinese citizens.

One of the China travel tips that is likely to come in handy is take some time to learn several basic phrases in Mandarin, the official language of China. Although you do not need to be fluent, knowing how to locate a bathroom and ask how much something costs will help immensely. Depending on how long you are in China, you may be present for one of their many holidays. If this is the case you should find some holiday tips, find out what is being celebrated, and join in on the festivities. Many times knowing the proper holiday tips and customs is enough for Chinese people to make you feel more welcome. The two main Chinese holiday periods are Spring Festival and National Day. A tip for you with these holidays is to try not to travel at these times as it is extremely busy.

Even though it may sound like China is too serious about many issues, their rules and regulations ensure that China remains a safe place for its citizens and visitors. Tourism is emerging as a major industry in China and the laws will likely become more lax in the future. Be sure to search for your China travel tips before departing on your Chinese vacation,and of course don’t forget your travel insurance.

If visiting China you will find getting a cheap flight to Beijing is a great starting point for your vacation. Beijing can be used as a base before heading to attractions such as the great wall of China and the Terracotta Warriors in Xi’an. You can also take a train ride down to Shanghai and enjoy many attractions in that region. When taking a vacation in China the options are endless. I hope you enjoy the China travel tips.

Today marks one year to go until the opening of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. You don’t need to wait until then to get a flight to Beijing and take in some top class sporting events.

Between now and May 2008 Beijing and the other cities in China that will be hosting Olympic events will be testing facilities by holding test events. Right now in Beijing there is a hockey tournament.

If sport is not what excites you there are plenty of other reasons to visit Beijing and beyond. A flight to Beijing takes around 12 hours 40 mins from Los Angeles and around 14 hours from Washington DC. Flying from London to Beijing the flying time is around 10 hours 30 mins.

Once you arrive in Beijing you have many great tourist attractions just waiting for you to explore. You could start with a day trip out to the Great Wall. Other must see places include Tiananamen Square, the Forbidden City and the Temple of Heaven.

If shopping is more your thing you will find many of the name brands in fashionable shopping districts such as Wangfujing or if you like a bargain the Silk Market will be more for you.

In my opinion April and May are the best months to visit Beijing. It is a great time of year for several reasons. Number one is that the heat of summer has not arrived. Also the huge tourist crowds have not made their way to the capital. I also love the fact that the blossoms are in full bloom at this time of year.

A visit to Jingshan Park is highly recommended, first for the views and second to see flowers. This park is located directly north of the Forbidden City Shenwu Gate. The park has a long history going back 800 years. To the west of Jingshan Park is Beihei Park, another great park to visit. What I like most about this Jingshan Park is that it is the highest point in Beijing and is a good photo vantage point. The hill in the park is 48 metres high. It is hard to imagine at only 48 metres that is the highest place in Beijing. The great thing about going to the park is that the hill overlooks the Forbidden City on one side and looks north to the Drum and Bell Tower which are located at the end of Di An Men Da Jie. You also get great panoramic views of Beijing.

The last time I visited Jingshan Park one of the many flower shows that are held in the park was in full bloom to make a spectacular addition to the already impressive park. Most notable were the beautiful peonies flowers for which the Park is well known. April to mid-May is the best time for seeing the large variety of more than 200 peonies you can find in the park. I highly recommend a visit to the park but don’t forget your digital camera.

The park is open from 6.00 am to 9.30 pm year round. The admission price is 5 RMB November through to the end of March and 10 RMB from April to the end of October. Buses that service the park are no’s 5, 13, 103, 105, 107, 109, 118, 121.

If you are considering a visit to Beijing you can start your journey by reading the information on the cheapflightscruises.com website which has tips for booking a flight to Beijing. Just in case you don’t know the Olympics will be held in Beijing starting on August 8 at 8.08 pm in 2008. If you are looking for a hotel in Beijing I suggest checking out HotelsCombined.com. This website allows you to search multiple hotel booking sites with one search.

A flight to Beijing from Washington DC takes around 14 hours. From the west coast of the USA it takes about 12 hours 50 minutes. Air China flights direct to Beijing from Los Angeles every Wednesday and Friday. United airlines provide the service from Washington to Beijing.

Today I was searching some hotel booking websites to see what the prices would be for a hotel during the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing. I came across a price that seems to be just too amazing to believe.

From my HotelsCombined link I performed a search that requested hotels in Beijing for 5 August through to 16 August 2008. This covers a period that takes in most of the games. The result was astounding. If I did not have relatives that I am staying with when visiting Beijing I would be looking into this further. Anyway the price I got was $9.33 per night staying at a 3 star hotel called the Wangfujing Dawan Hotel Beijing.

Wangfujing is a prime location in Beijing. It is probably the premier shopping district in Beijing and also is not that far from the Forbidden City and Tiananamen Square.

If anyone out there is considering going to the games I suggest you give this search a try and see what you come up with. Maybe it was just a computer glitch at the time but who knows.

If this Beijing hotel room bargain is not a mistake all you need now for that truly bargain summer games holiday is a cheap flight to Beijing. You can check out the tips for a flight to Beijing at the cheapflightcruises.com website.

The 500 day countdown for the Beijing Olympics is fast approaching. As I write this post there are 506 days to go until the opening ceremony is scheduled to start. The action kicks off at 8.08 pm on August 8, 2008. Something lucky about 8 in the Chinese culture.

The other day I started searching through my frequent flyers membership site for flights to Beijing sometime in August 2008. It looks as though I will have to wait until August 2007 for the flights to be available. I have been wondering if it will be possible to find a flight going to Beijing that will allow people to book using frequent flyer points. As an alternative I have been thinking about trying to get to Hong Kong by airplane and then taking a train from Hong Kong to Beijing. I think this would be quite an adventure.

I will be doing some research into cheap flights to Beijing for the Olympics in upcoming months. I think the best opportunity to get a good deal will be to fly into cities other than Beijing and then do some sightseeing while travelling by train into the capital.

Recently I noticed on the Beijing 2008 website they have opened registration to buy tickets for the Olympics. The http://www.tickets.beijing2008.cn/ website is only allowing Chinese nationals or Foreign Residents to register for tickets. The cost for opening ceremony tickets ranges from 200 to 5000 RMB which is roughly 25 to 625 USD. A bargain if you ask me. The only problem is that this price is for the locals. I am sure prices will be a lot higher for the visiting sports fans from western countries.

If you are interested in going to the Beijing Olympics and come from the countries listed below head over to the www.cosport.com website. They are the official ticket agent for Australia, Austria, Bulgaria, Canada, New Zealand, Slovak Republic and USA. Once you are on that website you can register an interest for the tickets you would like to purchase. After that you register and then wait to be contacted by the Cosport staff.

I have registered my tickets and look forward to seeing what I can get from my selections. I was lucky enough to attend the Sydney Olympics and remember fondly the great feeling you got just walking the streets during the festive occasion. I have never felt so excited when walking the streets of a major city. The Olympic buzz was alive and well back in 2000.

I am counting the days until the Beijing Olympics and can’t wait to visit the city once again.

I have just got home from a night out with my wife as we were celebrating Chinese New Year. My wife is from Beijing however right now she is in Australia so she has to settle for watching the Chinese celebration on television. Watching some of the performances it makes me want to hurry over to Beijing right now.

If you have read my article about finding a cheap flight to Beijing you would know right now is not the time to be able to get a reasonable priced flight to China. This week in China is probably the time that the most people in the world are travelling as a large percentage of the Chinese population is either returning to China from abroad or they are travelling to visit relatives within China.

In the next few days it is a good time to be going to Beijing as the flight traffic will be going the other way on return journeys. Unless you are an impulse traveller with up-to-date visas and passport it is probably a bit late to be taking advantage of the cheap airfares to Beijing that follow Chinese New Year but this is something to keep in mind for next year.

In the next few months it is the low season for Beijing. If you do not mind cooler weather and prefer less people at the tourist attractions it is a good time to be searching for your cheap flight to Beijing and heading off to check out the Great Wall of China, the Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, Summer Palace and many other attractions.

If you are a sports fan you would no doubt be aware that Beijing will be hosting the summer Olympics in 2008. As of Sunday 18 February 2007 there are 536 days until the games start. If you are planning a visit to Beijing in 2007 one thing to keep in mind is that there will be test events in the sports to be contested at the Beijing Olympics. If you look at the test event calender you may find something of interest that you could plan to see while in Beijing. I am thinking about the beach volleyball to be held on 13-18 August.

For all the people that celebrate the Chinese New Year of Spring Festival I wish you all the best for the new year. It is the year of the pig.