Here is a reply I wrote on 17 Aug to a simiar inquiry found in the Cruise Line Section of this forum under the title Viking River Cruises:Hello Frosty4:
My apologies for not having replied earlier to you - have had a lot going on as of late. Now to try to remember my China trip - I have 2 other cruises since - they all seem to blur together after a while.
My cruise w/ Uniworld River Cruises (using the Victoria Katarina as the ship). 3 nights in Beijing, 3 nights cruise from Chongqing to Yichang and then 2 nights in Shanghai.
I am going to try and reply component ny component.
Air:
To China - as I had meeting in LA after the cruise I flew from LA to Tokyo on United Airlines. Fortunately the airplane was over sold in Economy so they were offering reduced upgrades to Business Class for only $350 USD - I figured for a 10 hour flight @ $35 an hour - WELL worth it. Unfortunately on the return home, the upgrade was $900 USD which I couldn't mentally justify - but if you have an aisle seat it really wasn't all that bad. Between Tokyo and Beijing and then from Shanghai I flew with Nippon Airways. Very good airline and it's only a short flight so it was quite manageable.
Within China - we flew Air China with very comfortabel schedules (no need to wake up at 4 am for a 7 am flight or anything like that). The flights were very comfortabel with very good service and the snacks onboard were Chinese in nature (obviously) and quite palatable although the Chinese do like their fish and some of the snacks were a bit harsh to my nose. Fortunately when I travel - I get that I am not at home - and take it all in stride.
While in China, not once did we have to queue up for boarding passes - our guide did that for us. Literally the only time you had to handle your baggage throughout the whole trip was to put it outside your hotel room/ cabin for transport.
Hotel/ Ship (in ALL cases you supplied with bottled water by each hotel at no charge for you consumption as the water is NOT safe to drink ANYWHERE):
Beijing - we were assigned the Hotel Kempinski which is a fabulous 5 star hotel with all the amenities one would expect - amazingly comfortable rooms and beds. The one drawback was that nothing was really "within walking disctance" but with a bit of adventure in your pocket it was a short cab ride from Silk Alley and we had a whole afternoon on our own. Some people went shopping (be prepared to barter - it is expected).
Victoria Katarina - I had only seen the pictures of the ship in the brochure but was not preparpared for how impressed I was with the ship itself. All standard cabins are outside w/ balcony and full bathrooms. Among the most comforatble beds I have slept on (except for Seabourn). About 211 sq ft. If you prefer a more deluxe accommodation there are also a couple of Deluxe cabins and also some Jun ior suites and Suites. Wonderful public areas - large main lounge, smaller lounge for TV/ cards/ etc. There is also a wonderful shopping area above the atrium lobby with authentic Chinese items of the highest quality (not your usual cruise ship junk) - but rather things like silk carpets/ handmade kites/ literature/ art (yes I came home rather broke ).
The dining room was wonderful. The ship caters to many other groups ie.e Cosmos/ Globus etc. What was uniwue for Uniworld guests is that we were the guests to receive dinner upon embarkation (it is a LATE embarkation (around 7pm)). The other companies had shoreside dinners (yet again). Another unique feature is that there is a designated table for tour operator guides to eat at (they DO NOT dine w/ their guests); however, the Uniworld guide was with us at ALL meals at our designated tables. The food onboard was very good with a choice of both Asian and North American fare; however, I stuck to the Asian food (When in Rome).
We did have internet onboard but don't try to use it - it took some folk up to 45 mins to get connected.
The entertainment was a cultural delight and nothing like you get on the big ships. The "fashion show" was a retrospective of Chinese costume through the centuries. There was a wonderfull cultural show put on by the staff. As for lectures there were daily lectures about the places we visited and also a lecture by the ships doctor on varies Eastern treatments (i.e. acupuncture/ reflexology/ hot bubble treatments - all of which he will perform onboard for you at VERY reasonable rates - I think you could get a 1 hour full body massage for about $35 USD for an hour). While sailing thorugh the 3 Gorges we were also able to do some kite flying up on the top deck.
Shanghai - the hotel at which we stayed was the Shanghai Hilton. Very comfortable (not as nice as the Kempinksi). Fortunately we were upgraded to the concierge floor which made it even mor comfortable. I was greated with a nice plate of lychee nuts (one of my favourites). While it is not very close to the water front - it was very close to the LRT and other shopping areas.
Excursions:
Prepare to do a lot of walking and DON'T go in July if you don't like the heat. It was about 43 C for the entire trip.
In Beijing our tours consisted of the standard site seeing Must Sees. Tianneman Square, the Forbidden City (I understand that the main palace is undercover right now in preparation for the 2008 Olympics). This was followed by a lunch and then I believe the afternoon was free for shopping if we wanted or whatever else we wanted to do. That evening was the Peking Duck Dinner.
The next day was a visit to the Great Wall followed by a tour of the Ming Tombs. All of which were very intersting. The evening was a "night at the opera" which started with a dinner in a local restaurant. The opera was an experience (certainly not Mozart or Puccini) but if being very musically inclined I was able to appreciate it - although I wouldn't rush out and build a collection of it. The seconf part of the opera were the acrobats which were very good. The auditorium in which the opera is performed is set up like a standard auditorium with the exception that at the front bit of the auditorium there are dining room style tables set with Chinese deserts and teas. That is where the Unirold passengers sat and enjoyed the impressive sight of having our teacups filled up using a teapot with about a 3 foot spout and the server accurately filled our cups from about 5 feet away - quite impressive.
While on the cruise we had a tour of Chongqing upon our arrival and toured the Zoo to see the pandas and some other landmarks - we also visited the house of a second world war two US general (I am NOT interested in this) but it gave you some appreciation of how big the city is - population 32 million (about the same as the whole of Canada). There was also a stop for people who wanted to buy beer or other drinks to take onboard the ship.
During the cruise we made a stop at the famous wooden pagoda at Shibazou - truly a remarkable piece of architecture built against a sheer rock face using nothing but wood (i.e. no nails).
The definite highlight was the cruise through the 3 lesser gorges!!! The main gorges are nice - but you get so upclose in the lesser gorges you can see the monkies etc. BE PREPARED - the Yangtze is one of the DIRTIEST rivers I have ever sailed on. It is not uncommon to see shoes/ garbage/ bodies etc. float by.
This was all capped off by a tour of the Great DAm - very impressive - prior to our arrival in Yichang.
Upon arrival in Shanghai we had the evening to ourselves and the next day was a city tour including a visit to the Children's Palace (essentially an arts school for kids), Yu Yuan Gardens and the Silk Factory - all of which were followed by an afternoon of free time. Our evening was our last dinner in China followed by a performance of the Shanghai Acrobats - VERY impressive and probaly the height of the "entertainment" aspect of the trip.
Food:
Overall this would have to be the biggest diappointment of all for me. Let me preface this by saying that living in Vancouver with such a LARGE Chinese population we can go to some of the best restaurants and experience AUTHENTIC Chinese cuisine. All of the meals both shoreside and onboard the ship seemed to be geared to a typical North American guest whose only experience with Chinese cuisine has been from the take-a-way. Clearly they have different menus for "the locals" and the tourists. After a while it seemed as though it was the "same old/ same old". YOU'll also realize the easiest beverage to order for consuption with your meals is beer. The ship did offer Western Style cuisine which I sampled once - and although it was quite good it was not 5 star or anything. Onboard the breakfasts/ lunches were buffet style with a decent selection.
Guides:
We had the same guides from start to finish and they were EXCELLENT. Uniworld has their own office in Beijing and appeared to keep a tight reign on all aspects of the cruise. Initially one forgets they are in a communist country but after a while you listen to what the guides are telling you ab out their lifestyle/ culture etc. and you really can see that they "toe the party line" - although they might say something "honest" to you if establish a good report and ask them discretely.
WOW - I never thought I would write so much. I hope this answers some quesitons - if you have anything else (I am sure I left out sokmething) - please ask. I shall reply in a more timely manner.