Q & A Flights Booking

Yes, it is possible as long as you will not go to Tibet and Yunan! But, we do not recommend you to do so.

We recommend you picking up the tickets once you are here in China due to the following reasons:

1. It would take at least 2 weeks or even longer for us to mail them to you even by using the fast cross county EMS service. It will be a pity if you failed to receive them before leaving for China.

2. Change of your flight or and even cancellation of flights happens quite often before flying date, airline company may put all clients into one flight if there will be not enough passengers for different flights. Airline Company will inform us only but not clients. If this happens, we have to re-issue or take the ticket back to receive a stamp confirmation. As a matter of fact, we usually wait until the last day according to airlines company regulations before issuing the tickets in order to avoid work in vain.

3. It may not always be possible to issue airline tickets for your whole tour before the commencement of your tour. This situation is caused by the need to purchase tickets in a particular city to obtain the best possible airfare. Your guide will ensure that your tickets are available for each leg of your journey. If you are unescorted for all or part of your tour we will ensure that your air tickets are available from your hotel in good time for your departure. We will attempt to have the tickets available when you check into your hotel on your arrival in the city.

1.Most major airlines in China are now able to issue E-tickets but not all of them.

2.E-tickets are more common to flights between larger cities than those on lesser routes.

3. Foreign traveler holding electronic ticket need only show their passports to board the plane but need to ensure that the name on the e-ticket is exactly the same as the name on the passport.

4.A confirmation code will be issued for each e-ticket.

There are many air companies in China. The following are the airlines that we often use:

Air China (CA), China Eastern Airlines (MU), China Southern (CZ), Dragon air (KA) , and Hainan airlines (HU).

All of them provide good service, and we choose the one that is most suitable for your tour.

Regulation: A passenger should arrive at the airport for check in at least 90 minutes prior to departure of the flight. Passengers are not allowed to carry liquids onboard the aircraft, but they can be included with checked baggage. One item of cosmetics is allowed provided it is not in excess of 100 ml. It must be put into a separate package after security inspection.

Prohibited Items: The following items are prohibited and cannot be carried in checked or carry on luggage: - Flammable, explosive, corrosive, poisonous, radioactive, polymerizable and magnetized materials. Passengers are forbidden to carry arms, sharp or lethal weapons during flight. These items will be confiscated by the security if detected. Lighter and matches can not be included in carry-on baggage either.

Carry-on baggage: As of May 1st, the maximum Carry-on baggage allowance for each economy class passenger is only one piece of 5kg, and passenger traveling first-class is allowed 2 separate articles of 5kg each. The piece should be no larger than 20x40x 55cm. Carry on baggage in excess of the limit is subject to the excess baggage fee and must be carried as checked baggage.

Free baggage allowance: Adult and children (economy class) are entitled to a free checked baggage allowance of 20kg. For passengers of business class, the allowance is 30kg while first class is 40kg. The maximum weight of checked baggage is 50kg. Each piece should be within 40x60x 100cm. No free baggage allowance is granted to infants. Excess baggage is charged at the rate of 1.5% of the full price of the economy fare per kg
For example,
Beijing to Xi'an: RMB1050, so RMB16 per kg
Xian to Chonquing: RMB700, so RMB11 per kg

Check-in Baggage: Groups of 10 or more traveling together are able to combine their baggage allowance if they check in together.

In most cases, fear of flying isn't innate, it's learned. There is a practical, physical approach to preventing the symptoms of panic, which include jumpiness, sweating, and difficulty breathing.

Don't Panic:

1.Avoid sugar and caffeine-soda, junk food, coffee-for five days before the flight.

2.Arrive at the airport early to avoid rushing, which can make your body produce extra adrenaline.

3.Don't have any alcohol before or during the flight.

You Panicked!

1.Drink orange juice to replace complex blood sugars that are burned off by stress.

2.Prop up the small of your back with a pillow, spread your legs to relax your abdomen, and breathe from your diaphragm. Don't inhale too deeply, or you'll speed up your heart rate.

3.If you start hyperventilating, either breathe into a paper bag or inhale the bubbles coming off a can of warm soda. The carbon dioxide will calm you.

4.Think of a calming scene, such as a beach or forest.

5.Try progressive relaxation, tightening and relaxing first your feet, then your calves, thighs, buttocks, abdomen, on up to your scalp.

Relaxation Exercises

Exercise: 1. Slow rhythmic breathing for relaxation

1.Breath in slowly and deeply.

2.As you breathe out slowly, feel yourself beginning to relax; feel the tension leaving your body.

3.Now breathe in and out slowly and regularly, at whatever rate is comfortable for you. You may wish to try abdominal breathing.

4.To help you focus on your breathing technique:

a.breathe in as you say silently to yourself,

b.breathe out as you say silently to yourself, 'out, two, three.

or Each time you breathe out, say silently to yourself a word such as 'peace' or 'relax.'

5.Do steps 1 through 4 only once or repeat steps 3 and 4 for up to 20 minutes.

6.End with a slow deep breath.

On arrival in China you will need to clear Immigration, claim your baggage and go through Customs. You will then need to check-in again for your new flight.

Some airlines have transfer desks at certain airports and they will give you instructions when you check-in in your home country.

I am writing to explain the situation regarding the issuing of tickets for tour groups in China as this is sometimes a concern for our customers who think the system is unusual. There are differences in the way the systems operates in China to other countries and the team China Highlights Travel wants to ensure you that we will always protect you and your interests. We are working to ensure you get the best deals and service.

It may not always be possible to issue airline tickets for you whole tour before the commencement of your tour. This situation is caused by the need to purchase tickets in a particular city to obtain the best possible airfare. Your guide will ensure that your tickets are available for each leg of your journey. If you are unescorted for all or part of your tour we will ensure that your air tickets are available form your hotel in good time for your departure. We will attempt to have the tickets available when you check into your hotel on your arrival in the city.

Travelers to Tibet and Yannan will always have to collect tickets when they arrive as laws prevent us from purchasing tickets outside those regions.

1. Try to book or purchase early

The earlier you book, the more discount you can get. When booking or purchasing tickets in advance (also known as advance tickets), you can usually have five choices, namely reserving 15, 30, 45, 60 or 90 days ahead. It is always the case that tickets reserved 30 days ahead have a bigger discount than those reserved 15 days ahead. It is of great risk to purchase tickets within 10 days before the flight departure, although the airline may increase the discount if the sales volume is less than required because of customers canceling. Early ticket purchasing and booking thus are highly suggested.

2. Choose Off-Season Flights

Typically Mondays, Tuesdays or the periods before and after a Golden Week (May Day Holiday, National Holiday and Chinese New Year) are the cheapest times to fly (off-season). Most airlines offer a relatively big discount. Additionally, late-night flights and early-morning flights tend to be discounted as well. However, the impact of large number of business travelers traveling causes late-night flights to Guangzhou and Shanghai to be more expensive than early-morning flights.

3. Buy an E-ticket Online

Many online airfare ticket brokers offer a lower price, about 5%-10% below regular rates. Furthermore, buying an E-ticket online can cut the cost of airline agent fees.

China Highlights offer very favorable flight discounts, and our professional trip advisors will help you and make sure that your booking process is worry-free. Please search and book China flights at http://www.mybeijingchina.com/beijing-flights/

4. Connect-Flight Tickets are More Expensive than Direct Flight Tickets

Since some of the direct lines are operated by one single airline, discount tickets are rarely offered. On the other hand, the connecting-flight is almost as convenient as the non-stop lines and its price is often 300-800 yuan lower per ticket. For example, when flying from Guangzhou to Lhasa, you can first take flight from Guangzhou to Chengdu, and then transfer flight to Lhasa.

5. Choose an Airline

Stay with the same airline during your entire trip to receive round-trip or connecting fare discounts. Under normal circumstances, flights on China Southern Airlines to Guangzhou, flights on China Northwest Airlines to Chongqing, flights on Hainan Airlines to Sanya or Haikou, and flights on China Eastern Airlines to Shanghai are relatively cheaper compared to taking other airlines.