Hainan Island Tour

[Seaweed]

ya....hotel in town...that's precisely what I wanted to find out as well other than the condition of the hotel...no point putting us in a "5 star" hotel out of nowhere...... .....seem that i make a wrong move....nevermind.....will give it a shoot and update you guys when I am back...

[Genie47]

All those PRC guys I worked with gave pretty scathing reviews of Hainan.

 

They do like the resorts on the island most notably the Marriott Resort and Spa at Sanya but other than that, they said the lack of infrastructure on Hainan is exploited by the locals upon tourists.

 

The exploitation is not covert like you see in Phuket or Koh Samui. It is overt and this makes the PRC guys boil. All-in-all, they do think it is a nice tropical island by Chinese standards but the exploitation is what makes it bad.

[Genie47]

Actually if you are there for the first time, go to the 5* hotel. In fact, Sanya is the best beach on Hainan so you are not exactly in the middle of nowhere.

 

The Wikitravel info on it is pretty accurate according to my PRC co-workers.

 

http://wikitravel.org/en/Hainan

 

Cycling is definitely a good thing to do on Hainan. The Wenchang Chicken rRce is the forerunner of our Hainanese Chicken Rice. So maybe going to Wenchang might be good but again, according to my PRC co-workers, nothing beats our local Hainanese Chicken Rice.

 

Check out Sanya on Wikitravel.

 

http://wikitravel.org/en/Sanya

[Ender]

Well........... I'm going back to my ancestor place and pay respect also. Lost touch with them since my father passed away and recently (2 wks ago), they (my cousin) came over to SG and look for me.

 

Had not been there and heard a lot of nice places to visit especially Hai Kou and a huge Goddess of Mercy statue.

 

Maybe after you come back and post some pictures here ........

Went back with my dad to visit relative a couple years go. The southern temple with the goddes of mercy is a really nice place to spend some time around.. However some parts are rather commercialised.

[Seaweed]

alamak....seem hainan is full of con-men/women liao leh !!! In fact I have never been to China for any tour/holidays before...This would be the first in my life.....ha ha...My trip to China is all because of work...when travelling in cities like Beijing & Shanghai etc...they probably know that I am not local but they didn't try pull any trick on me before...in fact I feel they were rather honest in the big cities...of course during some taxi ride....they would ask me if I am interested to go for some "R&R" etc which I politely rejected and they did not persist...In very rural area...those farmers probably didn't know I am a foreigner...they probably just thought I am from other parts of China so they too didn't try to trick me....

 

There was once I took a 3 days train from Xian to a rural place call Shanshan...then work there for a day before taking another 6 hrs train from Shanshan to Wulumuqi before catching a plane back....the trip let me see how crowded China really is but overall experience hanging around with them is rather ok....

 

seem I got to prepare for the worst to happen in Hainan....ha ha ha

[Fantasy]

can go but dun expect too much lah. for that price, there is not much to lose anyway. hainan weather is not always hot like sg. choose a cooler season so at least can enjoy the cool air and play some golf.worst case just eat, see and sleep lor. same as going to genting, sure not as modern as sg but you go there to experience difference lah. at least can get away from daily stress life for a while. heehee

[Seaweed]

yes...was trying to get the tour agent if they could altered the package to hotel which we prefer...but don't know if they could as I have not yet check with them....and the other thing was the cost...won't want it to get to extreme....

[Dwoon]

Eh.... you went there already? How was it?

 

Thinking of going....... but how on earth to get to the other side of the island? Budget air goes to Haikou not Sanya.???

 

Sounds like driving is the way to go since taxis are costly. Any tips on rental?

 

Cheers

 

 

 

On Sanya itself, the best resort on it is the Marriott Resort and Spa.

 

I don't know why but Marriott seems to set up the best beach resorts on the best beaches. Can't say the same for their hotels in the city.

 

[Genie47]

Was thinking of going until all my PRC co-workers started telling me all these horror stories.

 

Funny thing is that they don't like to be scammed and I think the SGer don't mind being scammed. We had a discussion. SGer can scam but don't scam him too much.

[Dwoon]

Guess I'll put it last on my list then .......

 

Hawaii it is ...

[Genie47]

Hawaii got a lot more to offer other than their beaches actually. The volcanoes and forests. 3 climates on one island. Cold frigid mountain tops, then desert like mid section and then lush green tropical forest at sea level.

 

Weather combined with geography makes Hawaii very interesting.

[Dwoon]

Hmmm.... I didn't realise that..... I did a 2 days stopover some 15 years ago, drove round the island and didn't really noticed.

 

Guess with the 10 days or so I intend to spend there..... I'll take my time to better appreciate the place. (Now with US dollar also at the low.... it's probably as good a time to do it)

[Genie47]

Then 10 days is good. Hawaii (Big Island) in geological terms is quite "new".

 

In fact the chain of islands is a trail for a hotspot deep in the ocean floor as the tectonic plate moved. So the erupting stuff just made islands like a conveyor belt.

 

Since it is so damn spanking new geologically, the erosion is not so evident and the Big Island has lots of tall mountains, an arid mid section thanks to sheltering and drainage from the rain. Finally the tropical forest at sea level where all the rain water collected.

 

If you go further westward to the rest of the islands like Maui, you will see the effects of the erosion and no tall mountains.

 

That is why if anybody interested in a living planet, Hawaii is the place to go.

 

Don't forget to see the lava tubes.

[Dwoon]

Ok, thanks for the feedback. Now to get the package of airmiles with 5 nights Courtyard stay. (5 other nights stay Ko Olina). I'm saving all my 2010 points to blow it there next June.

[Ccjna]

no choice liao leh...flight book liao...

 

ic..den bo bian lo. Remember to upload photos for us to share.

[Seaweed]

no worries...will definitely put on some info when I am back...seem that it's not a popular place to Singaporean at least for now....except for visiting relative....

[Ccjna]

no worries...will definitely put on some info when I am back...seem that it's not a popular place to Singaporean at least for now....except for visiting relative....

 

[Fedup-camry]

SENIOR Minister Goh Chok Tong will visit Hainan province, China, from Wednesday to Sunday to attend the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual Conference.

 

At the forum, SM Goh will be inducted as a new member of the BFA's board of directors. He will also participate as a panelist in a luncheon discussion on trade protectionism, said a statement from the Prime Minister's Office on Tuesday.

 

While in Hainan, Mr Goh will call on Vice-President Xi Jinping and meet the provincial leaders of Hainan.

 

He will also visit Haikou and Sanya to update himself on recent economic developments in Hainan.

 

SM Goh will be accompanied by senior officials from PMO and Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

 

 

if SM Goh is going, must be good huh