Zhangjiajie, China

Zhangjiajie is located in the northwestern Hunan Province. Zhangjiajie is a rising tourism city famous for its unique natural scenery and abudant tourism resources. It is located about 400km away from Changsha; capital of Hunan Province. Out of its total population of 1.62 million, almost 72% belong to ethnic minority groups, including Tujia, Bai and Miao nationalities.
There are 3 ways getting there; by air, by train and by road. Zhangjiajie airport is located in Hehua (Lotus) Village, Yongding District, 5km from Zhangjiajie City. Hehua Airport was put into service in 1994 to meet the needs of the city's blooming in tourism industry. The termical is uniquely designed in the traditional architectural style of the local Tujia people. Hehua Airport, a domestic airport has served over 50 destinations to mainlanbd Chinese cities; Shanghai, Guangzhou, Qingdao, Xian, and Changsha. There is shuttle bus btween Hehua Aiport and the aiport Hotel (No.11 Daqiao Road) in the downtown. It departs once every 20-30 minutes for the fare about RMB5. Bus No.4 and 5 stop at the Airport Hotel and the bus fare is only RMB1. There is also Bus No.3 running from the airport to downtown. Taxis usually charge RMB15 for one way service, making transportation fairly convenient.
Due to the domestic flight is very expensive in China, you can choose by train which is more economical. There are 2 railway stations in Zhangjiajie. One is a small station located in Cili Country which is used for local traffic. The other is the main Zhangjiajie Railway Sataion located in Yongding district, 12km from downtown. Bus No.1,2,6,and 7 connect Zhangjiajie Railway Station and downtown. The bus fre is usually RMB1. If you travel by train from Changsha to Zhangjiaje (train No. K533/K536) us recommended as ot travels the direct route.
The Zhangjiajie long-distance Bus Station is located at the intersection of Huilong Road and Renmin Road. There are regular buses to cities such as Changde, Shanghai, Changsha, Yueyang, Wuhan, Dongguan and Zhuhau. Buses to the nearby Yangjiajie Scenic Area and surrounding countries such as Feng Huang (Phoenix) Country operate everyday. Buses No.1,2,3,4, and 5 stop at the Zhangjiajie long-distance Bus Station.
There are 10 bus lines route within Zhangjiajie City. The bus fare is only RMB1 and buses operate at 30 minutes interval.
*Bus No.1: services from Zhangjiajie Railway Station - Xixiping - Lantian Hotel - Miaoyuan Hotel - Bank of China Dongmenqiao Branch - Hualian Supermarket - Long distance Bus Station
*Bus No.2: services from Zhangjiajie Railway Station - Lantian Hotel - Miaoyuan Hotel - Bank of China Dongmenqiao Branch - Hualian Supermarket - Long distance Bus Station - Department Store - People's Hospital - Bei Dou xing Hotel - Hulilai Hotel -Xinhe Hotel
*Bus No.3: services from Miaoyuan Hotel - Bank of China Dongmenqiao Branch - Hualian Supermarket - Long distance Bus Station - Department Store - Hulilai Hotel -Xinhe Hotel
*Bus No.4: services from Zhangjiajie Hehua Airport - Wai Tai Hotel - Hulilai Hotel - Dragon International Hotel - Department Store - Long distance Bus Station - Hualian Supermarket - Bank of China Dongmenqiao Branch
*Bus No.5: services from Bank of China Dongmenqiao Branch - Hualian Supermarket - Long distance Bus Station - Department Store - Airport Hotel (Lishui Daqiao), Nanzhuangping - Yujia Folk Customs Park
*Bus No.6: services from Dongmeiqiao, Wuling Shopping Mall, Department Store. Perople's Hospital, Wuling University
*Bus No.7: services from Zhangjiajie Railway Station - Lantian Hotel - Miaoyuan Hotel - Martyr Memorial Park - Dragon International Hotel - Department Store - People's Hospital - Hulilai Hotel -Dongyulou Hotel - Minnan International Hotel - City Square
It is very convenient to take a taxi in Zhagnjiajie City and travel around the city is inexpensive because of the small size of the city. The distance from the eastern part of the city ot the western will cost you onlt RMB10, one way to Hehua Airport cost you only RMB15. Mainly all the featured scenic spots centralize in the north part of Zhangjiajie City - Wulingyuan Scenic Area which became China's 1st National Forest Park in 1983. This park is comprised of 3 major parklands - Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, Suoxiyu Nature Reserve and Tianzi (Son of Heaven) Mountain Nature Reserve. Additionally, Tianmen Mountain just south of Zhangjiajie City is another 'must see' scenic area.

Mt Huangshan, China

Mt. Huangshan, located in Tuanxi District, 70km from the downtown, Huangshan City. Mt. Huangshan is celebrated for having all the wonders of mountain scenery; spectacular rocky peaks, oddly-shaped pines, crystal-clear springs, and seas of cloud. Huangshan City has convenient transportation and perfect tourist facilities. It has many well-equipped hotels, and has established 3 cable ways in Mt. Huangshan. It is the best choice for holiday.
There are 3 ways to reach Huangshan City; by air, by train and by road. If you choose to save time on traveling, by air is the best choice. Huangshan airport is a domestic airport which served flight from most of the international airports in China such as Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. It takes about 1 hour for these flights. Huangshan airport is located about 15 minutes drive from the downtown (7km); one and a half hours drive from Mt. Huangshan scenic area (70km). Once you arrived, you can choose either to take a taxi to downtown; enjoy the ancient town or transfer direct to the mountain scenic area. Bus service is provided from airport to downtown; between 0700 and 1730. There are 2 bus lines service from the airport; No.17 and No.19.
The more economical way is by train, the Huangshan Railway Station is located in Qianyuan Bei Road, downtown Tunxi District. Wan-gan railway line (from Anhui Province to Jiangxi Province) runs through Huangshan City. Many trains run directly yo Beijing (about 19 hours journey), Shanghai (11-12 hours Journey), Guangzhou (about 19 hours journey), Nanhing (5-8 hours journey).
If you are travel from the country which opreates direct flight to Hangzhou (eg. Airasia from Malaysia); you can choose to travel by road. A tourist bus from Hangzhou to Huangshan might cost you less than RMB100; about 2 and a half hours drive. There are 2 main bus station in Huangshan; downtown Huangshan City and foot of the mountain scenic spot. Huangshan City Bus Station is near the railway station in the Huangshan East Road - 10 minutes on foot from railway station.
There is no direct bus from Tunxi to the Mt. Huangshan Scenic Area. Visitors should take a bus from Huangshan City Bus Station to Tangkou town near the south entrance of Mt. Huangshan Scenic Area. The fare is RMB13 per person. The coach will take visitors to the Ciguang Pavilion (the starting point for climbing the mountain from the back).
There are 2 foot routes to the top of the Mt.Huangshan from this area.
Route 1: From mountain front (Mt. Huangshan Gate) - Tiandu Peak - Jade Screen Tower - Lotus Blossom Peak - Bright Summit Peak - West Sea - North Sea - down from White Goose Peak to Yungu Temple.
Route 2: From mountain back (Yungu Temple) - White Goose Peak - North Sea - down from mountain front.
If you prefer to save time and energy on climbing, choose the cableways. You will still need to do a lot of climbing while you reach the top; from White Goose Peak to Tiandu Peak.
The 3 ropeways operate from 0800 to 1600 during winter adn 0630 to 1630 in other seasons.
* Cloud Valley (Yungu) Cableway: from Cloud Valley (Yungu) Temple to White Goose Ridge.
* Jade Screen Cableway: from Merciful Light Pavilion (Ciguang Ge) to Jade Screen Tower.
* Taiping Cableway: from Songgu Station to Paiyun Pavilion (from Taiping town)
If you wish to save some energy and experience the most adventurous path, choose to take cable car from Cloud valley then return by foot from front mountian by crossing through the Heavenly City Peak (Tiandu Peak). Check it out before you go if you wish to go to Tiandu Peak because this peak is open alternatively 3 years with Lotus Peak.
Enjoy your trips!

Jeju Island, Korea

Jeju Island is the largest island in Korea, one of the 9 provinces of Korea, located at the southwest of the Korean Peninsula. Roughly and oval in shape, it is 73 km from east to west and 41 km from north to south. Jeju is filled with and abundance of natural attractions! It is also known as a paradise island for honeymoon in Korea, with fresh air. You can reach Jeju either by air or by sea. There are direct flight from Japan (Tokyo), China (Shanghai) and Taiwan (Taipei) else you need to transit in Seoul. It takes 1 hour from Seoul by air or you can choose to take ferry from Busan(10 hours) or Makpo(5 hours).

Taking a flight to Jeju is expensive (even though domestic flight). If you are from Malaysia, the cheapest way is by taking Airasia to Hangzhou, take a bus or train to Shanghai, and here you can take the China Eastern Air to Jeju. Remember you need to apply for visa if you choose this path. Else you can choose to take the China Eastern Air to Shanghai and transit in Shanghai without checkout from the Pudong airport (do not need China Visa). This is very much cheaper as compare to take Korean Air to transit in Seoul. Flight from Shanghai to Jeju is only 1½ hours. Welcome to Jeju Island!
The best way to travel in Jeju Island is self-driving. Choose a car rental company from the ads beside and book it thru the website. (It is cheaper to book thru web than walk-in, furthermore we do not speak Korean, just show them the booking print out will save all the conversation.) Avis car rental is one of the choices because they are having a counter in the airport terminal. Present your booking print out at the counter and they will arrange you to the car pick up point by free shuttle bus. You would need to register here and pay for deposit. (Self driving in Jeju Island is easy because of the low traffic; the important thing is you must own an international driving license.)

If you are not a driver, a tour is recommended because most Korean are not English speaking. Choose a local tour from the ads beside, a package tour from your own country would only spend 2D1N here, which you are unable to enjoy the paradise here. You can also choose to take airport limousine bus to Seogwipo, tourist attraction located in the middle of the southern region of the island. Limousine Bus #600 will bring you to Seogwipo (big red and white color bus). The bus runs every 15 minutes; the bus stop is on the very left when you exit from the airport. This bus does several stops at hotels in the Jungmun tourist area and then goes to Seogwipo. You can buy tickets right inside the bus before the bus departs from the airport. The bus has comfortable seats and air-con, it takes about 1hour 20min from the airport to Seogwipo. Ticket costs 3.900 won to Jungmun area and 5.000 won to Seogwipo. If you are brave enough you can choose to travel by bus because most Korean are very helpful, there are airport shuttle buses and local buses service can bring you to most of the destination. Enjoy your trip!

**You are advisable to choose an apartment (with cooking facility) instead of hotel from the ads beside. Food in Jeju Island is expensive as you can cook for your own breakfast and dinner. If you are the RCI member, pick up this vacation during spring; you will enjoy an unforgettable vacation.