China anyone?

I really would like to go to Beijing, Xian, Chengdu & maybe Thailand for a couple of weeks, but in this environment it is difficult to get anyone to come with. It seems that everyone I know is scared to take 2 weeks off…

I’m looking for advice on traveling alone; as a 29 yr woman. Is it crazy? Will I be bored?
Should I go with a tour? Anyone going around the same time?

I think travel alone will be a good memory for your life.

2 weeks maybe a littel longer for a trip.You will feel tired about that.

But I think if you want to visit most place for these citys, My suggestion is:
Beijing 4~5days.
Chengdu 5~6 days.
Xian 3~4 days.

I have never been to Thailand, so I have no idea about that.

yeah!!! Let me congratulate you!
China was great! I was in Beijing a week (!!!) and two weeks in Thailand. The trip was amazing.
Wonderful climat (it was in the late of autumn), a real eastern spirit! i was in Bangkok, that remains resolutely Thai. Whatever you do, it involves in a sense of playfulness - so great it was there. I've stayed in the hotel "green house". There were my friends with me and we had a fun and real good days! the hotel service was perfect and with the oriental colouring. if you have an interest in it, see here greenhousebkk.com, you can try some Googling.
It didn't rain almost, the weather was soft and calm. So, you will not be sorry about it. It's better to take trip between November and February, 'cause it rains the least and it's not too hot during these months.
Good trip.
all best!

China is a relatively safe country- you should have no problems, especially in the cities you mentioned. You certainly don't have to worry about being bored! China is also very affordable. If you're travelling by train, you can go from Beijing to Xian in 14-16 hours, for about US$40 ('hard' sleeper). Then to Chengdu from Xian, it's about the same time, same price. But if you're just going to major tourist destinations, like those 3 cities, and it's your first trip to China, alone, then yes: a tour might be a good idea (at least you'll be sure to have someone to talk to).

THREE first time posters...

ADS galore

Hi girl,

I'm in Beijing now. I'd like to give you some suggestions on the visiting of the three cities of China.

For the time:
Absolutely 2 weeks is not enough for you to have a deeper impression of China, especially the life of people in China. But that's enough to visit the famous places around the 3 cities.

For the travelling in China - There're vairous things you may enjoy, too many. Let me introduce them a little one by one:
1.sights:
Beijing - Of course the forbidden city(and the imperial palace) - old, famous
the summer palace - old, famous
the bird nest for Olympic - Chinese people are interested in it very much.
Beijing Zoo - if you want to see Pandas
The temple of heaven park - old, famous, for the religion purpose in history
And many museums
Chengdu - the wide-thin street - old
the Jinli and Wuhouci(for memory of a clever man named Zhuge Kongming)- not sure how to put in English- old - Everyone of Chinese went Chengdu would visit there.
And many cities around Chengdu - Dujiangyan, Qingchengshan(Qingcheng mountain), etc.
the Zoo - the hometown of Pandas
Wenshuyuan - a lot of stuff of ancient China
Xi'an - The bell building and brum building - old
The Dayanta(Dayan tower or Wide Goose Tower) - old, famous
The Bingmayong(the Emperor Qin's Terra-cotta Warriors) - very very old and famous
The Huashan(Huashan mountain) - The most famous mountain in China for its dangerous sights.

2.food:
The food around china differs quite a lot.
Beijing - Possibly you may heared of baking duck?
And other foods of Beijing.
Chengdu - The food here tastes very hot.
Xi'an - The food here tastes similar to that of Chengdu, but for me it uses more Bunge prickly ash.
There're a lot of Moslem here, so you may try their specific food.

3. Lifestyle :
I don't think you can really feel the life style within so little time. Different cities have different life style.

Feel free to send me a email for any questions.

If you are visiting Beijing on weekends, I'd be glad to be a guid for free - I'm only for language learning. I'm a software engineer of a US company in China, as old as you are.

Best of luck.

On your way through stop in Kunming (Yunnan province) its a fantasic city!

Quoting Swept Away

THREE first time posters...

ADS galore

Nein! Nein! Nein! ich würde so nicht schätzen