YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED A selection of our most frequently asked questions. BEFORE YOU TRAVEL Q. How soon after making our booking will we receive confirmation? A. Once we have received your deposit we will send your confirmation documents. Q. Do you send us information about the destinations we will visit? A. It is essential that you read the relevant tour dossier before booking, which you can find on wendywutours. co.nz, or we can arrange for one to be sent to you. If there are any particular challenges such as the length of time spent on your feet, journey times or accommodation standards, they will be explained in these concise trip notes. Two weeks before you travel, you will receive your final documents, together with a detailed day-by-day itinerary and a travel guide with phrasebook. Q. Will I know which hotels I will be staying in before I go? A. Hotel details will be sent with your final documents. Note that these may be subject to change. We use 3 star plus to 4 star hotels on our group tours in China. Typically, a 4 star hotel in rural areas cannot be compared to a 4 star hotel in the city and therefore may be of a lower standard. No international classification system exists and a 4 star Chinese rated hotel cannot be compared to a 4 star NZ rated hotel. Rest assured, all hotels used by Wendy Wu Tours are regularly inspected by our staff and our partners to ensure that standards meet your needs. Q. How do I get my visa? A. The cost of your visa is nearly always included in the price of your tour (for NZ passports). Additional fees may apply for non-New Zealand passport holders. All passports must be valid for at least six months beyond the duration of your tour. Simply send your passport and visa application form to us or your travel agent, along with your visa application form, at least 75 days prior to departure. Some visas take longer to process (Myanmar and multi-country tours and Central Asia tours take 90 days). We will notify you of this at time of booking. The cost for passport photos and dispatch of your application to our office is at your own expense. We will submit your passport and visa application to the relevant consulate on your behalf. Your passport will be returned to you once your visa has been issued. For Land Only bookings, visas are included in your price. Please ensure you advise your departure date from New Zealand to ensure these are processed in a timely manner. Q. Do I need travel insurance? A. Your protection and safety are our main priority. That’s why having adequate travel insurance is a condition of booking with us for all the destinations you plan to travel to. You may also need to comply with local requirements to undertake COVID-19 tests.
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Q. What vaccinations do I need? A. We recommend you see your doctor at least six weeks prior to travel for advice and to allow time for any necessary vaccinations. Please remember to take your itinerary with you. Q. What size are your tour groups? A. The group size on our Classic tours is on average around 21 passengers, with a maximum group size of 28. On our Go Beyond tours and exclusive Solo Departures the average group size is around 14 with a maximum of 18. You may meet other tour groups travelling concurrently. On our group tours we operate a seat-and-a-half policy, allowing you to travel in greater comfort. Q. Do you run guaranteed departures? A. Group tours are guaranteed to run subject to a minimum of 8 passengers. A National Escort will accompany each group of 10 or more. We will endeavour to run groups of a smaller size if viable to do so. Q. As a single traveller, will I have to pay a single supplement? A. We offer two ways to avoid paying a single supplement. The first is to book onto one of our Solo Departures, which are reserved exclusively for solo travellers and have single occupancy of a double room built into the tour price (along with other features like free private airport transfers, free access to an airport departure lounge in Auckland and Christchurch and a drinks reception on arrival). The second is to choose our ‘Happy to Share’ option, if you are willing to share with another solo tour member of the same gender, and we are able to match you with someone. You will be introduced to your share partner on arrival at the start of the tour. Alternatively a private room of your own is available on any of our tours at an extra cost. Please check the tour pages or our website for details.
Q. When is the best time of year to visit China? A. China is a destination for all seasons. With four distinct seasons, the ideal travel periods are spring (Mar to May) and autumn (Sep to Oct). Many people choose to travel at other times of the year when there are fewer tourists, but please keep in mind that the summer months may be very hot and the winter months may be very cold. Our tours cover the length and breath of China and depending on the time of year and where you travel, you may experience two or more seasons as journey through the country. Please refer to your Travel Guide & Phrasebook for more information. Q. When are Chinese public holidays? A. Chinese New Year is on 12 February 2021 and 1 February 2022. Their Golden Week public holidays fall annually between 1-3 May and 1-7 October. Celebrations last for several days and during this time, some businesses will be closed. Tour attractions will be open, but may be crowded. Q. How fit do I need to be? A. Our Group Tours are graded on each page to reflect the level of fitness required. The specific reasons for a particular grading for each tour are clearly described in the Tour Dossiers which you can find on our website. Please contact us if you require any advice. Our range of Private Tours is more flexible and may better cater for individual needs. Ask us for more details.
Q. What is the maximum luggage allowance on your tours? A. Your main suitcase or backpack must not exceed 20kg and your hand luggage must not exceed 5kg as this is the maximum allowance on internal flights. Q. What currency should I take? A. We recommend you take the local currency (RMB) and a credit/debit card. We do not recommend travellers cheques. Please ensure you have sufficient funds to pay for personal expenses such as drinks, snacks, souvenirs, additional tipping and optional extras. Tipping must be in RMB for China tours and in US dollars for other countries. See page 88.
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