Expert: Victoria Hamilton - 7/21/2009

Question
QUESTION: I want to go to Yunnan province in Sept. but I am afraid of getting stuck in quarantine. I can only travel for a week, if I get quarantined it will be for my whole trip. What are my chances of being quarantined? Should I put off my trip to next year?

ANSWER: Hello Louie,

You can't go around thinking that you are going to be on a plane/train with H1N1 carriers, you can't go around thinking that you'll be the one that gets it..that's no way to live! If you are sitting next to or near a person who they think may have the virus, then that's bad luck and you'll likely be quarantined. Other than that, you'll be fine. I can't predict who around you may or may not have it though.

What are you chances of getting quarantined? I would say the same stakes as getting hit by a bus or being offered chicken feet for dinner! It CAN happen yes, but it also has a high chance of not happening too! If you feel strongly about this, I suggest you wear a face mask when you are in crowded areas and if you see anyone sneeze move away from them! Wash your hands frequently and just in general make hygiene a priority.

I live in China and I don't think about this on a day to day basis as I'd never remain sane otherwise!

Come to China this year or come to China next year...chances are there could be another illness then too!

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank You. I'm not worried about getting it, I'm just worried about being quarantined. Please recommend a travel agent who can help arrange travel between Los Angeles, Kunming, Dali, Lijiang and back to Los Angeles. I'm open to busses, trains, and planes, but I'll only be there for 7 days. Thank you for your help.

ANSWER: Hi Louie,

Well although I cannot recommend a travel agent in Los Angeles as I do not live there and therefore do not know the reputation on those available, I CAN recommend that you do not set up any domestic China travel from abroad as it will be much more expensive than figuring it out when you get here.

The whole Kunming-Dali-Lijiang route is very easy and people do it all the time. Kunming is the capital of Yunnan Province as you probably already know so they have an airport. However you cannot fly directly there from Los Angeles. So your choices would be either to fly to Hong Kong and then take a bus to the Chinese border and then either a flight or another bus (over 24hours) to Kunming, or fly to Beijing and then take a flight to Kunming, or perhaps even to Guangzhou (also in the south of China and then a bus or train to Kunming. But I remember you saying you were only there for a week, so it seems catching flights would be the safest bet.

Once you're in Kunming, you take the bus to Dali which is about a 7-8hour ride. From Dali to Lijiang it is another 2-3 hour ride. Then you do the same route back. You can fly from Kunming to Lijiang (50mins) and then work your way down to Kunming via Dali if that also sounds interesting to you.

But with just a week, you're not going to see very much or have much time to rest and take in the beauty of these places especially as you can't fly in directly to Kunming from Los Angeles.

Victoria.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Can you recommend an on line travel agent? I want to buy all the transpertation at one time. Take the bus from Dali to Lijiang  and fly the rest of the time.

Answer
The problem with transportation in China is that it is very hard if not impossible to buy train and bus tickets in advance. Plane tickets can be bought no problem.

I suggest you go to www.elong.com or www.ctrip.com to book your flight tickets.

As I said, you can fly from Kunming to Lijiang. You have said that you would like to take the bus from Dali To Lijiang and fly the rest of the time. Well there is no airport in Dali so you would have to take the bus from Kunming to Dali and then a bus to Lijiang. OR you fly from Kunming to Lijiang and then take a bus to Dali and later another bus to Kunming.

For bus tickets, you can either try to buy them at your hotel/hostel in Kunming or go directly to the bus terminal in Kunming but this would be harder if you dont speak Chinese. Bus tickets can sometimes only be bought on the day of travel. Train tickets can be bought a few days in advance except none of the places youre going has train transportation.

Victoria.