Korean Job Discussion Forums

[gaychel]

Two questions:

1. What does getting a visa for China while in Korea (as an American) entail? Can I just go to the embassy once to submit everything, and then have them mail my stuff back to me? I'd need to have this done ASAP. Like before Lunar New Year. If that's even feasible.

2. Is it even worth goig to Beijing for Lunar New Year? I've been thinking about it and I just found a deal I'm happy with (around $400 for a flight and 3 nights at a cheap yet central hotel), but I'm also aware that the country effectively shuts down for a few weeks. If I were to go from Saturday the 24th to Tuesday the 27th, would I still be able to check out things like the Great Wall and Tiannamen Square?

Thanks.

[Xuanzang]

Either go to the Myeongdong embassy or have your travel agent do it for you. I think you can pay for a same day visa but it costs more.

China during New year? Not so bad from tourist's perspective, because not everything is closed. Restaurants, tourist spots, hotels, airports, etc., all will be open and ready for business. Some restaurants might have limited hours over the holiday period but for the most part, the tourist is not going to have any trouble with tourist-related (service industry) places being closed over the New Year.

[moosehead]

I just returned from Beijing and you better be prepared for very bitter cold weather - it's absolutely frigid - and the temp never got above freezing when I was there. In fact, a cold front came in and it dropped even lower. It's also incredibly dry - my skin was so chapped - I was constantly using lotions and vaseline.

as for places being open - I heard a lot of places are not open during the New Year's time - of course hotels will be - but their tourist operations are run separately even if in the same place - I would not count on it - even if they say so - I've traveled during the New Year in China a couple of years back and it's deader 'n a doornail.

as for visa - I paid 150,000 for mine - Americans pay a premium - IMO - go when you can spend some time and make the most of it - just to get your money's worth from the visa cost.

as for getting the actual visa - my travel agent always takes care of that - dealing directly with the Chinese Embassy here can be difficult - I've heard some nightmare stories about it so try and go thru a travel agent.