Job Discussion Forums

[backtochina2017]

This for Canadians and Americans mostly because of the time zones. I imagine Britons and Australians have it easier or a different can of worms to deal with.

Here's my situation. I am in Detroit, but I can't get a flight from Detroit to China ($1,000) as cheap as I can by getting a flight from Chicago ($600) which goes to Detroit and then China because it is a connecting flight. I can save $400 by simply going to Chicago. And the lovely caveat to this is you can't just skip the flight from Chicago to Detroit. If you miss that flight, you are not allowed to meet them at the connecting terminal and check in there.

Same kind of idea if I go from Detroit to Washington DC, and then Washington DC to China. That type of flight is cheaper than going from Detroit to China or Washington to China.

I can also go from Detroit to Toronto and then China

Hey why not try Detroit to London back west to Shanghai while I'm at it?

Why do they do this? Well, looking at the times of arrival it seems quite obvious they don't want you to arrive at your destination at a comfortable hour in the afternoon. They intentionally schedule arrivals in Shanghai between 6-8pm with a 3 hour layover before your final domestic flight. This puts me in a situation where I would arrive at midnight and the school will only pick me up during work hours!!! They want you to shop and eat at restaurants.

Ah!! Another reason to do this schedule is now I would have to book at least one hotel stay before my school could come pick me up.

Some sneaky tactics are in order if I am to get around this.

I found if I booked a flight now for tomorrow from Detroit to LA, it would only cost about $250-$350. So, I could pretty much just show up at the Detroit airport and get the next flight out to LA. If it shows a layover time, then obviously I could just start later. Once in LA, I could then book a flight from there to my destination with a stop in Shanghai for about $435 with Sichuan Airlines and $450 with Air China. Delta charges $900. Don't go with them unless you are getting one of those connecting flights, then Delta is nicely priced.

This would allow me a chance to arrive at my destination on a Friday at around 3:30pm, during working hours and the school could pick me up. No shopping, no hotel expenses, and no restaurants necessary. I figure $200-$300 savings added to the flight savings of $300, ~$550 in savings.

Anyone else have experiences with this from America or Canada? If other country, please specify your city of departure at least and the relative area if you are going to the east like Shanghai, north Beijing, or west Sichuan so we can get a rough idea.

If you know costs, that would be cool too.

[LarssonCrew]

Hotel can be had for $25 and a taxi from airport maybe $20 tops, so you'll only be spending $60 if you stay in a hotel, and couldn't the school pick you up at 8am the next day?

[rocket man]

i got a headache trying to figure out what you are trying to say.

My advice, if the school is going to reimburse you just fly from DTW, much easier, yeah it's more expensive (Because DTW is a major hub for Delta, bet 60-70% of the flights out of there are Delta flights), but a hell of a lot less hassle than having someone drive you to Chicago, Cleveland etc. If the school is decent no matter what the time you arrive somebody will pick you up.

regarding arrival times from the US to China, my flight arrived in Beijing from Dulles at 2:30P, I've seen arrival times for Shanghai vary but most are in the mid afternoon so they can turn the planes around to get them out by say 6P for a decent arrival time in the US though I've seen some flights to the US that leave Shanghai around midnight

Why again are you making this harder than it needs to be?

[OhBudPowellWhereArtThou]

A train from Detroit to Chicago costs $37.00. Give that a try.

[astrotrain]

My school was really great with the airport pickup, on a Sat evening. The program boss met me at the airport entrance with the owner's car and I was driven to my campus flat.

The flight time to Southern China was just brutal. I flew to Beijing from Toronto then waited 3 hours for the connecting flight to Nanning, another 6 hours.

Thankfully I met an American going to the same city and we both were stumped as to what gate was our connecting flight. It was not posted on the board. We wandered around for a good hour before we found it with no help from the airport staff. It was raining in Beijing and the bloody plane didn't even come to the gate, out at the tarmac and we had to board it via shuttle bus.

If I didn't befriend that American dude, probably would have missed my flight.

My return to T.O was even more brutal 11 hr layover in BJ. spent the night at the airport becus I was cheap. lol

[jimpellow]

Yeah, I got a headache too from reading this. I would think that you would be best with a one-way ticket. I would recommend kiwi.com. They do a fantastic job at finding great prices on hacker fares and all types of controls to look at different flying scenarios. Adore that world map too.

I am down in the Yucatan these days and getting restless again. I have started playing with Kiwi to look at a return to Colombia or Asia. I have seen the prices for cities in China for about 450 dollars on average one way, and that is out of Cancun. I would think you could do better with them.

The only downside to them is that if you miss a connection due to bad weather you are screwed on the other tickets. They do have a guarantee, unlike other hacker fare sites like Kayak, but it only covers issues like mechanical failure. Worked for me when I was going to go to Armenia earlier this year and the Jet Blue flight had mechanical issues. Took a couple weeks, but they got me all my money back from the subsequent airlines where I was a no-show. Point is that you know, so don't choose an itinerary where the connection times are brief.

Get to know it and you will likely be rewarded. Best!

PS. I always found it a miraculous bonus when I arrive on time (especially when the US is involved) so I wouldn't focus so precisely on arrival times.

[backtochina2017]

"Hotel can be had for $25 and a taxi from airport maybe $20 tops, so you'll only be spending $60 if you stay in a hotel, and couldn't the school pick you up at 8am the next day?"

They said they could only pick up on weekdays Monday to Friday. I was trying to find a way to get to the airport final destination before working hours ended on Friday, March 3. I am expecting my work visa to arrive on Wednesday, March 1, but I assume if it comes on that day it will be in the afternoon. I have done some test flight ideas but they all seem to arrive at 11pm the earliest or on Saturday.

If I did the hotel idea, I would need to find a hotel for 2 nights at least. I know you can get $25 hotels, but usually that takes some knowing of the area and haggling with side street people who see a foreigner (at least that was my experience at the train station in Beijing).

My goal in the sport of it all is to find a way to get from point A to point B (final destination) without having to worry about hotels, restaurants, shopping, etc... and save money.

Kind of like Moss from IT Crowd who tried to get an iphone without paying for one at the arcade. If you can get youtube, check out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YM3d7ANOyjY


"if the school is going to reimburse you just fly from DTW, much easier, yeah it's more expensive"

Yes and no. Yes, they are supposed to but I don't feel airfare is something the employer should always have to pay for. I have been through discussions on this issue when Seoul public school teachers were simply given a set amount back around 2010 I think it was.

I signed the contract because the monthly salary is high. If things work out, I most likely won't ask for 100% reimbursement or any if the situation is good. Instead I will use it later as a negotiating factor when asking for time off to go to Japan. By time, I mean a full 3 months to research a location and start up an English franchise school and hire other teachers to teach at it. If anyone wants to live in Osaka, Nagoya, or Tokyo I might be able to hire you to manage it when I return back to China or traveling. Salary would be based on existing students if a school is bought out and any new students you sign up.


"If the school is decent no matter what the time you arrive somebody will pick you up."

Actually I have the opposite experience. The schools that bend the rules and tell their Chinese workers to "Pick up that waiguoren" usually do the same to the English teachers with their schedule. Schools that respect weekends are time off don't send their lackey office worker to pick up and do extra work. They are the employers who don't hassle the English teachers during the year. My contract states specifically that I am to only teach during the school year and not summer or winter vacation. If they honor that, then I am getting some start up money before summer starts as well as what I have in savings and can return for the new September school year.


"Why again are you making this harder than it needs to be?"

I am not trying to make it harder than it needs to be, I think you missed the part where I mentioned arriving before working hours ended on a Friday. It simply isn't doable according to several conversations with different online cheap flight places.


"A train from Detroit to Chicago costs $37.00. Give that a try."

Yes, but that initial flight back to Detroit delays things and I couldn't find a flight from Chicago to my final destination airport before 6pm on Friday, March 3.

So, it's kind of pointless to worry about going to Chicago. They had a different flight which does the same thing but would send you to New York John F. Kennedy airport first and then to Guangzhou and finally your final destination.

The arrival would be during working hours on Monday March 6 though, and the price right now is a little over $750.


"I would recommend kiwi.com"
"My return to T.O was even more brutal 11 hr layover in BJ."

That's why if you get those cheap flights, you are going to extend your whole travel time.

The best solution so far I have seen is to get to LAX airport and then take Sichuan Airlines or China Air for about $450. I saw some without the long layovers.

Note to self, move to LA. Seattle is a good second. Their flights are a little more expensive but not as bad as Detroit.


"The only downside to them is that if you miss a connection due to bad weather you are screwed on the other tickets."

I see China Southern covers a lot of offers exclusively. I wonder what people's experiences are with them. If there is a delay, I would hope being on the same airline would help in this case.


"PS. I always found it a miraculous bonus when I arrive on time (especially when the US is involved) so I wouldn't focus so precisely on arrival times."

The only time I have had arrival issues is when I traveled from China to the US taking Hainan airlines.

When I returned to China, it didn't matter Hainan was late because the previous flight was on time. I just had a longer layover than planned.

[ChrisHenry15]

[jimpellow]

Hmm..if I am following you, and your final destination is Beijing, I just found several flight itineraries on kiwi leaving March 1st and 2nd for about 500 dollars one way. Man, your window is so tight with getting your visa on the first(God willing) and getting there before close of business Friday with the time zone differential.

I would assume you have tried the airlines directly? They rarely offer the cheapest fares, but on occasion will hold back a few low-priced tickets on their site to help traffic. I was looking at a frustrating 1,800 one summer for a Shanghai-Buffalo return flight with long times, and then nailed an 888 one with great times on the Delta site.

I would suggest waiting a day or two less there be any Z-visa delay. Then taking a kiwi flight out of Detroit and using some of the savings on a hotel to recuperate before a Monday pick-up. Just food for thought...

[backtochina2017]

[backtochina2017]

[ChrisHenry15]

[jimpellow]

My hometown of Buffalo is an even worse hub these days.

Searching March 1st through 3rd, the cheapest I saw from Detroit to Zhengzhou was 508 one way, but a whopping 58 hours flight. Best overall is 637 and 24 hours but it leaves too early on the 1st - 11am. Most are about 35 hours total time and high 500s for cost. But no travel time or expense to and from the airport. Have your last Coney dog at the Airport, and arrive for some tasty Yellow River carp cooked three ways. You know the site, can't offer you much more...

[rocket man]

well I just played around on the Delta site (like I said DTW is a hub for Delta) and if you are willing to pay the US$1000 airfare (get the school to reimburse you, 90% of the schools will, why are you wanting to pay this) you can get into Zhengzhou at 11AM, yeah you have a 13 hour layover at Pundong but get a hotel, get some sleep, and head on refreshed. We used to do that all the time when we lived in Gwangju South Korea, we'd get into ICN at between 7:30 and 10P, just grabbed a hotel nearby and fly on to Gwangju the next morning, made the journey much more bearable.

edit: have you looked at ctrip.com?

Again why are you making this whole process so hard? Then again why are we being such nice people trying to help you given all headaches you gave us with the degree authentication process?

[OhBudPowellWhereArtThou]

I would assume you have tried the airlines directly? They rarely offer the cheapest fares, but on occasion will hold back a few low-priced tickets on their site to help traffic. I was looking at a frustrating 1,800 one summer for a Shanghai-Buffalo return flight with long times, and then nailed an 888 one with great times on the Delta site.

Good advice. The last time I flew back to China I called American Airlines to see what it could do. My visa was late in coming, and I was running out of time. American got me seats on two connecting flights for the same price that I would have gotten from a third party. Best of all, there was no layover.

The OP lives in Detroit and seems heck-bent on taking flights all over to connect with Chicago. Why doesn't he just take the train from Detroit to Chicago? Granted, it's a five hour commuter trip, but he'd spend as much time and much more money than if he were to take the simple solution of taking a train.

I am a bit puzzled. The OP professed in PMs to me to know so much about living and working in China, but he has difficulty with simple things like flight itineraries and the necessary bureaucracy involved in working in China. I don't get it.