China holiday

su1_2

I am trying to convince my partner to go on a touring holiday (with Archers/Cosmos) to China later in the year. The trouble is he doesn't think he can eat Chinese food for two weeks. Can anybody give any help on what the food is like in the hotels, they should be 4*
Thanks

Bob_the_Saver

Traditional Chinese restaurants like KFC will be available (if he REALLY must))

Moneybot

My parents did a tour of China and my mother can't stand Chinese food ie wont eat it here at all; they managed fine as there was always a western option available.

[Deleted User]

When we went hotels had a very good choice of food at breakfast but we were full board and ate at Chinese restaurants all the time, no escape from Chinese food but good as it did differ from each region. Does your tour eat at hotels or do you eat out?

StumpyPumpy

It all comes down to the hotels and which region you'll be in. But the major thing to note is that "Chinese" food in China bears little resemblance to "Chinese" food in this country. It is like someone judging British food based on a Fish and Chip Shop.

If the hotels are mainly for Westerners then you will get Western style food, and if you are in major tourist cities like Shanghai and Beijing then there is lots of Western choice, but be aware that many hotels are mainly set up for Chinese tourists, and things you take for granted (eg toast for breakfast) may not be available. Oh, and if you are not adept with chopsticks, take your own cutlery, local restuarants may not own any.

As you would be going with Archers/Cosmos, I assume they will know how "Western" the tour is; to be honest, I'd just ring them up and ask them for sample menus etc.

SP

lady1964

You don't mention where in China your tour takes you but I'm from the UK & living in Beijing.

There is a huge choice of Western restaurants here, as well as traditional Chinese, you may find yourself pleasantly surprised. Some local restaurants won't have an English menu and has been mentioned already, some won't supply a knife & fork so it's a good idea to take your own (in your hold luggage not hand luggage).

I'm sure your tour company will take this into account and you should be able to get the appropriate advice.

Research really is the key to not having any problems getting food you want or avoiding certain types of food.

Have a great time!

trrk

The places that a lot of tourists go (probably the places your tour will stop) have plenty of western restaurants but I often found the food a bit dissapointing. Real Chinese food on the other hand is amazing and totally different to most Chinese restaurants in other countries - it is one of the highlights of travelling in China. If we got sick of Chinese food we'd go for a western option sometimes and only end up wishing we had stuck with the Chinese food!

Hotels (and hostels) catering to Westerners will provide western style breakfasts but those catering mostly to Chinese tourists might not. I imagine a top end tour company would make sre you have access to these sort of home comforts.

bluenitsuj

I agree with last post, just got back from three weeks in Taiwan and China ( Nanjing ), and the food was incredible. I always thought that part of travelling and seeing the world was trying the food in these countries. My daughter refused to try anything and practically lived on rice for the whole time.

su1_2

Thanks to all of you for replying to my post, they are a good help. We will be full board but don't know if we will be eating in the hotels or restaurants and the girls at the travel agent don't know either. I agree with you bluenitsuj and will try any type of food from the country we are in, but never been to Asia before, KFC and McD's are the same where ever you eat them, mostly tasteless.
It will be the first time I have ever taken a knife & fork on holiday.
The tour takes in Beijing, Xian, Leshan, Chengdu, Yangtze River Cruise and Shanghai visiting all the tourist places.
Again thanks for the help, now to convince him :T (easy).

StumpyPumpy

su1 wrote: »

Thanks to all of you for replying to my post, they are a good help. We will be full board but don't know if we will be eating in the hotels or restaurants and the girls at the travel agent don't know either. I agree with you bluenitsuj and will try any type of food from the country we are in, but never been to Asia before, KFC and McD's are the same where ever you eat them, mostly tasteless.
It will be the first time I have ever taken a knife & fork on holiday.
The tour takes in Beijing, Xian, Leshan, Chengdu, Yangtze River Cruise and Shanghai visiting all the tourist places.
Again thanks for the help, now to convince him :T (easy).

FYI:I've been to all these places except Leshan, and you won't have trouble finding food anywhere. You may be somewhat restricted on the cruise, and some of the probable stop offs are small so choice is slightly limited, but the scenery makes it all worthwhile and much of it is disappearing because of the 3 Gorges Dam project, so it really is a "last chance to see" sort of cruise.

Shanghai is the most Western (was dragged into a Starbucks there) and Beijing caters well for western food, though is more Chinese. Xi'an and Chengdu are the most touristy and cater for everything. But try to encourage OH to try the local cuisine and immerse yourself in the culture and people, you'll miss out on a lot otherwise.

SP