Beijing Subway System Map

The Beijing subway system continues to expand and provide state of the art, affordable rapid transit to the city’s people.T he Beijing subway began as a primitive project in 1969 by digging trenches to place track and stations rather than using modern tunneling techniques. The central ring line and Western suburb  line was designed primarily as a means to quickly evacuate party officials from city center to the Western Hills in the event of nuclear war with the Soviet Union.

War never came and ridership increased steadily. The initial two lines and 39 stations remained unchanged until the new millennium when a massive expansion project to improve transportation infrastructure prior to the 2008 Olympics was implemented.

As of 2010, the system has 10 lines and 147 stations with 228 km (141 miles) of track. In April, 2010 daily ridership surpassed 6.4 million (the New York subway averages 5 million weekday riders). The  subsidized  ticket price of 2 yuan  (30 cents) per ride greatly helps reduce the surface traffic congestion

The system continues to expand, fueled by a $4 trillion yuan ($590 billion US) government stimulus package. The subway system is scheduled to be completed in 2015 with 19 lines and 561 km (348 miles) of track.

Almost all Access china tours include a visit to Beijing where the magnificent subway can be experienced.

Hong Kong International Commerce Center

Dubai may have the world’s single tallest building, but China has most of the highest skyscrapers on earth. Completion this year of Hong Kong’s (484 m/1588 ft) International Commerce Center and Nanjing’s (450m/1476 ft.) Greenland Financial Center gives the People’s Republic of China 10 of the 16 tallest buildings in the world. The ten towers, located in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Nanjing, Guangzhou and Shenzhen are all over 367m/1205 ft.  For comparison, the Willis (formerly Sears) tower in Chicago, America’s tallest building is 442m/1451 ft.

China has clearly taken the lead as the nation constructing the most ultra-tall skyscrapers in the world. The Asian continent is now the location of 16 of the world’s 20 tallest buildings (the US has the other 4).

The Ritz Carlton hotel will occupy the top 15 stories of the Hong Kong ICC, making it the world’s highest hotel, taking the current title from the Park Hyatt in the Shanghai  World Financial Center (currently the world’s third tallest balding ). China isn’t through with building, it has another 4 skyscrapers currently under construction that will exceed 440 m/1443 ft.

Our Tang, Shan Shui and Yunnan tours visit Hong Kong. The Heaven Earth tour visits Nanjing. All our tours allow views of the skyscrapers of Shanghai.

Nanjing Greenland Financial Center

Dunhuang Mogao Caves, Silk Road

The June 2010 National Geographic magzaine has a great article and photos about the Buddhist caves of Dunhuang on the Silk Road in Gansu province.

The Mogao caves have preserved thousands of sculptures and paintings of Buddha for over 1500 years in the arid climate of the Gobi Desert. Click here to read the story.

Our Silk Road and Middle Kingdom tours visit Dunhuang and its unique desert environment.

Pictured here are members of the committee with Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper standing in front of a bronze peacock statute presented to Denver as gift by Kunming.

Also pictured is John Yee, founder of the sister city relationship who worked as an interpreter for the US Flying Tigers fighter squadron based in Kunming during World War 2.

Besides meeting with the Mayor of Kunming staff, the delegation will visit the late sculptor’s workshop and academic institutions. The trip, arranged by Access China Tours, will visit Shanghai, Kunming, Lijiang, Dali and Beijing. Click here to view the complete trip itinerary.

Chuan Chuan at the Shanghai Zoo, 2010

Chuan Chuan, housed at the Shanghai Zoo, has passed away at the age of 30. Chuan Chuan was a wild born panda who fathered Le Le of the Memphis Zoo and Ling Ling of the Chongqing Zoo among many, many others. He was also the grandfather to Hong Kong Ocean Park resident Le Le.

With only around 290 pandas in the captive breeding program it is an especially hard loss to the species. Our partner Pandas International has started a memorial fund in Chuan Chuan’s honor. You can make a donation at the PI website

China Shanghai World Expo 2010 Flags, here are the flags of participating nations from the opening ceremony

It is believed that China is spending even more on this year’s World Expo infrastructure (over $60 billion US) than the highly successful 2008 Beijing Olympics, promising a grand experience for the expected 70 million visitors. The futuristic pavilions will feature exhibiting nations’ art, culture, and technology.

Almost all of Access China Tours include a stop in Shanghai where the Expo can be experienced.

To find out more about the Shanghai World Expo 2010, visit this link.

Although many governments around  the world have urged China to allow its currency, the yuan, to appreciate to address trade imbalances, they neglect the exceptional value a fixed rate provides tourists traveling in China.

Travel consumers have enjoyed  the predictable and favorable exchange rate for many years. Since 2007 China has kept its currency pegged to 6.82 yuan to the US dollar. Thus currencies such as the Euro, Yen and Pound which have appreciated against the dollar, provide an even greater value for European and Japanese tourists traveling in China.

While some governments complain the fixed currency is artificially low to make Chinese export goods cheaper, they neglect the value travelers receive when touring the country.

As long as the currency stays pegged to the dollar, China will remain an exceptional travel value. This will not last indefinitely, however, change is likely in the next 6-12 months. An April 9 New York Times article discussed when China might allow the yuan to appreciate.

The 30 kilometer (19 mile) elevated rail line takes just over 7 minutes to traverse at the cruising speed of 431 kph (268 mph). The experience is near frictionless, since the train floats above the rail on a magnetic field.

Several of Access China Tours such as the Tang and Shan Shui packages include the Maglev train experience. The train is expected to see record ridership in 2010 as the World Expo runs in Shanghai from May through October.

To find out more about maglev trains, click to read Wikipedia’s content.