Entering China?
 

Hi one and all. I've spent days reading all about entering China and sending countless emails to just about everyone I can... but still none the wiser so I thought I would post a thread on this part of the forum. I'm planning on entering China from Kazakhstan in mid june and exiting into Vietnam, 2 or 3 weeks later. Can anyone provide the name of a good guide/agent that can help?

:helpsmilie:Dave.

I would suggest that you do it after the 2008 OYLIMPICS

china guide
 

hi
i to am planning a china trip for 2009. entering mongolia, exiting nepal i hope. the only 2 agancies i have heard of that are no scammers is the caravan cafe (poss now shut) and stantours. I will be trying to contact them this week to suss out if our route is poss and the big question of how much. i will let you know if i get any replies or info.
cheers
oz

Vietnam not an easy task
 

getting into China is one thing, but getting from there into Vietnam (if its going with your own bike that were talking about here) would be almost impossible, I think.

You cannot legally enter Vietnam with any foreign-registered bike, no matter what cc it is. You would have to get a special permission from some high police authorities in Vietnam, and as a foreigner you can just forget about that.

My experience is from Vietnamese borders with Cambodia and Laos. I would figure it would be even more difficult from China.

But good luck, if you decide to give it a try!!

I can confirm that as of July of 07, Caravan had shut. This was about 2 weeks before i got there, but they effectively outsource to Newland Travel anyway, so i wasn't affected. See details of my trip and Newland at China Guide

If you want to do anything other than staying within a single province, things will get VERY expensive (i.e. in the order of USD 7000 for a two week escort per person). Things may change after the Olympics, but if I were you, I wouldn't base my trip around successfully going through this part of china. Xinjiang crossing you can be fairly confident of.

Charles

We just finished travelling from Nepal through Tibet and China to Laos. We used Trans-Himalaya - Specialist tours through Tibet and the Himalayan Kingdoms. For 45 days and 4 bikes we paid 24000 Euro. This covered the paperwork, guide, car and driver and the petrol for the car. On top of that we had to pay for our petrol and accommodation and food for everyone.

I think if you leave out Tibet "Autonomous" Region and travel more quickly you can do it cheaper. You can still visiting the bits of Tibet now incorporated into Sichuan and Yunnan, very interesting and no police hassles or special permits required.

Trans Himalaya work very professionally and we got a detailed itinerary. Unfortunately, our Tibetan guide was next to useless. They were also quick in doing the paperwork.

The latest rumour I have heard from a couple in a van going the other way is that China doesn't allow bikes any more. Can't confirm this here.

Just seen the posting by Pecha - 'Vietnam not an easy task'. Is Vietnam impossible to enter with a foreign-registered car in the same way as it is with a motorbike?

Don't forget the HUGE chunk of Tibet that got turned into the Qinghai province. You will BLOW your mind riding in Qinghai and, as far as moto-touring goes, the most underrated province in China.

CC

Yeah, there is a lot to see in Qinghai.

Carl, it was great seeing you last month. I have convinced the factory to support my trip to Tibet next May. So no worries about any technical or mechanical problems that may arise during the harsh trip.

I also have viewed your Riding Western China DVD and I shall be making some comments separately.

Franki,

It was nice to catch up and match faces with voices. As usual the time was a little rushed but all is good!]

Glad to hear about Jialing supporting your ride in May. Hopefully it won't be necessary. Have you decided on a route?

I look forward to your comments on the film. I've been busy recently with the new years and moving house so haven't had net access for a while. Also, would like to discuss plans for this May with you. Will try to ping you.

In the meantime, keep it shiney side up!

Paz,
Carl

Hi CC,

It was nice to have a mini HU meet in SZ. I love your adventure China bike travel DVD and would recommend it to any one who likes adventure touring.

I have posted trip details on a Chinese forum and I have sent the link to you via e-mail. You can find out most of the trip info there. I wonder where BB is and hope he has great success in touring Vietnam. I may be riding into Lao & Thailand from China.

My goal: Hong Kong to Gallway Ireland. On my US registered R1100GS. With a Chinese woman from Shanghai who speaks perfect english.

Do I still need to hire an "official" guide, if we're riding two-up?

thanks