Taking your inaugural
business trip to China? Seasoned Asia business traveler David Dayton
offers advice to let you stay focused on the business, rather than the trip.By David Dayton
So, you're planning China travel and
you're thinking, best case scenario, a nice hotel, a comfortable flight,
a good trade show, maybe you'll even have time to see a couple of sights
in China and at least one supplier that you think you can work with
and ultimately save you a lot of money. So polish your black leather
shoes, order extra business cards, get your pocket dictionary and chopsticks
ready, recharge your laptop battery and get ready for an adventure!
Travel arrangements
The first priority should be your travel arrangements simply because
this could mess up the whole trip if it's not done correctly. To travel
to China you must have a valid passport from your home country and a
visa from the People's Republic of China. Your passport must have at
least six months left on it from the time you plan to enter China. If
you are from the United States you will have to get a visa prior to
coming to China from a Chinese embassy or consulate or China Travel
Service in Hong Kong. European Union and Australian citizens can get
a visa at the airport or border crossings (in Hong Kong, for example).
Visitors from both the United States
and the EU can get a visa at the China Travel Service in Hong Kong if
you can go in person during regular business hours. You need to be there
before noon to turn in your passport, application and two 2-by-2 inch
photos (photo booth available in the sixth floor lobby). You can then
pick up your passport and new visa from three to 76 hours later, depending
on what you pay for (US$100-$150). The address is: 5/F, Lower Block,
China Resources Building, 26 Harbour Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong. Phone:
+852 2585-1794. This is next door to the Hong Kong Convention &
Exhibition Center that sits on the harbor (not the new one by the airport).
You can also get your visa through a
broker online (for example: www.passportsandvisas.com). This requires you to mail your passport and
a credit card number to the broker. The broker will act as your proxy
and will get the Chinese visa from the embassy and mail it back to you.
They can get the visa for you in as little as two or three days. If
you are a U.S. citizen and flying directly to China (not Hong Kong)
this is really the only option that you have unless you live in a city
with a Chinese Embassy. A broker can also get you a new or renewed passport
if you need one.
Flight arrangements
Once you've got the passport and visa, next are your flight arrangements.
The trip from Europe or the United States to China is long -- 12 to
20-plus hours depending on layovers and departure point. There is no
getting around it, so prepare yourself well. Some suggestions to make
it more comfortable include:
- If you want to afford it,
business class is totally worth it. Unless you are on a tight budget,
even at double the price, it may be worth the extra cost to have enough
space and comfort to arrive rested and ready to work.
- Before you leave, understand
what the weather will be like where you arrive. Check out Yahoo or MSN
or Google for regional weather forecasts all over the world. Check seasons
and weather trends (in a guide book, for example) and pack accordingly.
Even in the summer, bring an extra sweater or jacket for the plane too.
- Get some melatonin, a good
travel pillow, a couple of good books, extra batteries for your laptop
and some snacks. In addition to the international flight, domestic transportation
in China can also be uncomfortably long and with thousands of people
going to the same show as you, plan on waiting in lines and waiting
rooms.
- Stay awake or take short naps
if you are going to land in the evening and sleep as much as possible
if you are going to be arriving in the morning. Adjust to your new time
zone as soon as possible to avoid jet lag.
- Arrange your schedule so that
you are up early and working or out of your hotel room until bedtime
for the first week of your trip -- this will force you to adjust to
the time zone you are working in.
- Direct flights are shorter
and won't leave you stuck in an airport in Japan or Korea for hours
of extra wasted time and expensive airport food.
- If you do get stuck, find
a comfortable spot, try out the local treats, grab a good book or, if
you're an e-mail addict, get online and catch up with what happened
at home in the last 12 hours. All the international airports in Asia
have wireless access points -- some for free.
- If you're tall make sure the
airline you are flying on has enough leg room for you to be comfortable
for 12-plus hours. Most airlines have about 32 inches in economy class.
Thai Airlines has the most with 34. Consider requesting an aisle or
a bulkhead seat if you need more. Aisles are nice to stretch out in,
but know that you'll be woken up by the cart running over your foot
or people stepping on you on their way to the bathroom. Bulkhead seats
have more leg room but the armrests are fixed so you can't spread out
if the seat next to you is empty.
- Don't let the lure of free
miles blind you to higher prices or bad service. If you have a miles
program that you like, see if you can use it. On some programs a single
round trip ticket to Asia can get you almost enough points for a free
domestic ticket. But a free domestic ticket (US$200-300) is not worth
the days of pain and frustration resulting from a bad international
flight.
Hotel arrangements
After you make your flight arrangements and before you get there,
make sure you are going to be comfortable in China. Book your flight
and hotel with a travel agent that specifically knows about where you
are going. Be warned: Chinese "four star" and international
"four star" standards are not the same! We've known a lot
of people who were booked in "four star" hotels only to wind
up in real dives -- especially in Asia where the hotel may have given
itself its star rating. An agent knowledgeable in China travel will
make sure that the hotel you are going to stay in isn't four stars on
paper only. A name brand hotel, while more expensive, will be more of
what you are used to. Even if you think that you want to get a "real
cultural experience" in China, your hotel is not the place to start.
Chances are you are going to a well-developed
city of at least 8-15 million people. So if you've booked a nice hotel,
don't worry, there will be all the comforts of home -- McDonald's, Subway,
Papa Johns, KFC, Pizza Hut, Starbucks, Jusco, Carrefour, Western toiletries,
cable TV, the internet, etc. In addition, there may also be more people
than you have probably ever seen in one place before, lots of bones
in the Chinese food and unfamiliar names on the menus of the Chinese
restaurants (this isn't your neighborhood Chinese take-out). There will
also be some scary bathrooms and traffic, great photo opportunities,
a fascinating culture and some wonderful people! So plan some time to
get out and see the sites and time to hole up in your hotel and recharge
your batteries for another outing.
While you are booking your hotel and
shocked at the sticker prices, just remember, during a major trade show,
prices will be higher no matter where you stay. The biggest shows in
China attract hundreds of thousands of foreign visitors, in addition
to the thousands manning the booths and other show services. This isn't
your father's Communist China -- the whole world is here now and supply
and demand is the rule of the hospitality industry. Expect that the
three to four weeks surrounding most trade shows hotel prices will double,
at least. Adam Smith would be proud.
David Dayton the owner
of Silk Road International and currently lives full-time in Shenzhen,
China. He speaks English, Thai and Mandarin and has worked in Asia for
more than 15 years. You can contact him at david@silkroadintl.net or atwww.silkroadintl.net.
Source: http://www.smartchinasourcing.com/
