It is hard to overestimate how good this trip was!.. We learned so much and enjoyed our guides and our fellow travelers so much! I would almost do THIS trip again!!!...

Best of China: Imperial Capitals, Tibet and the Yangtze River: We have recently returned from our trip to China. My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed this program. The prior planning and execution of the itinerary was superb. The program content was excellent. We enjoyed the quality of the lectures and presentations. Our primary guide was a joy, friendly and informative.

As a single traveler,the trip to Tibet and China was a mind altering experience-it has it all-great friendly people, wonderful food adventures, interesting travel peers, interesting lectures from accomplished experts in a wide range of interests,and experiencing the world's cultural sites-walk the Great Wall,the Forbidden City,the terra cotta warriors and so many others. WOW-pack your bag and enjoy this travel jewel.

I was on the same trip as Stephen and Jeff and agree that Liu was everything you want in a guide. His sense of humor kept my attention and I wish I could remember some of his jokes. His telling of his personal life including the story of his grandmother visiting his imprisoned grandfather. She had "bound feet" so you can imagine the challenge she had to walk any distance.
I especially enjoyed the Great Wall, Longmen Grotto, the walk down quiet streets in Beijing to the antique store, climbing the 700 steps to the Potola Temple as a personal challenge, visiting the nomad village in Tibet. An overall wonderful opportunity to see the highlights of Chine and Tibet. Stephen mentioned the noise of the military activity near the Lhasa Hotel. I had barking dogs. I did like the old hotel in Lhasa but it does need upgrading.

I was on the same trip as Jeff and highly agree about our national tour guide Liu. His caring and sharing of personal stories as well as how he guided us through viewing "people's activities," visiting with families (relocated, nomads), schools (both university and K-12 students), hutong walks in Beijing, etc. made the trip for me. The food was fine for me -- hotels were good to great with Beijing, Luoyang, Shanghai hotels super, Lhasa hotel well-situated but needs remodeling and military post nearby with frequent nightly singing/chanting was annoying, and cruise ship accomodations good. We went to tourist sites that many other tourist groups were visiting and those were fine (I liked walking on the Great Wall of China best, overall, along with seeing the terracotta soldiers and the Yangtze River cruise -- and museums in Lhasa, Shanghai, the small one on the Yangtze with artifacts from areas flooded by the dam). However, usually only the Road Scholars tourists got private lectures on Chinese history, Buddhism in Tibet, Thangka painting, Chinese instruments (with musical performance), and Chinese medicine. Although this was not a "shopping tour," Liu made sure to tell us where the best places to buy jade and silk were and took us to the wholesale places where Chinese shop and prices aren't jacked up for tourists to get those (and one can still bargain). The small shop in the Himalaya Hotel is well worth a visit.

The trip was fascinating, fellow group members were warm and supportive, and our national tour guide (Liu) was personable, fun, extremely organized and knowledgeable; he shared many personal and family insights into recent Chinese history which added immeasurably to our understanding. It is hard to imagine a better guide/leader.

Trip was an interesting overview of China. Our lead guide, Hui, was engaging, funny, knowledgeable, caring, and made everything run smoothly. We interacted with locals at home visits (though one must realize that they were carefully chosen for their adherence to the party line), visited nomads, walked through back alleys, visited schools and interacted and sang with the children; all adding to our understanding of the country and culture. Particularly interesting was our visit to Tibet. A real highlight. Some of the activities (shows, pedmobile ride) were too touristy for my taste. The food was just average though most of the accommodations were much better than I had expected. Local guides were knowledgeable and worked well with Hui. All in, a great trip and highly recommended. (Given recent turmoil in Tibet, not clear that portion of the trip can be included in the future.)

The tour provided an enlightening and comprehensive overview of China – past and present. Our guide, Mr. Liuhao, was excellent. He worked hard to ensure that we were able to see and learn as much as possible. Highly recommended tour!

A wonderful eye-opening program with a superb guide and a great group of compatible travelling companions.

Mr Liuhao is very experienced and knowledgeable about China and about guiding people in China. More importantly, he is a thoughtful and candid representative of his country, one who is generous in sharing his perspectives and eager for us to share ours.

The lecture at Xian University was very good, speaker was outstanding. Trip to nomads of Tibet good as well as meeting two groups of grade school childern. If all your guides are like Liuhao I will enjoy taking more trips with you even as a single.

This program certainly gave us outstanding value for the price. The fact that most meals and all excursions were included sets Road Scholar apart from other tour companies. It was great not to have to worry about how much money to carry. We were able to have close personal contact with residents in most of the areas that we stopped in--a true people-to-people experience.

The local guides, in addition to our national guide, were very knowledgable, their English was good.