Tiger Leaping Gorge cycling holiday, China

Reviewed 27 May 2008 by Ceinwen Jones

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?

The most memorable part of the holiday for me was staying in a beautiful old-style Chinese town, Shaxi, currently only reachable by cobblestone road. It hadn't made it into the guidebooks at the time we were there (April 2008) even though it is on UNESCO's list of the world's 100 most endangered historical sites. It was a complete joy to stay in a traditional Chinese house with the rooms set around a courtyard and to wander through the narrow car-free streets with intricate wooden carving on many of the buildings. The only other people were locals going about their business. Some were coming back from the surrounding fields with poles over their shoulders balancing freshly-picked produce on either end. Others were operating sewing machines or cutting hair in the open shop fronts...It was so peaceful.

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?

If you haven't done mountain biking before (as I hadn't) be prepared for some bumpy off-road riding. Although there is also lots of riding on tarmac it is the off-road riding that makes it possible to see some of the most spectacular scenery. And it is certainly well worth the soreness afterwards!

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?

Yes, the whole trip was organised in partnership with a very knowledgeable team of local people who shared the sustainability principles of the Australian tour operators. I felt very much that we were staying in places that were helping to preserve and develop the local culture - nearly always family-run places. We ate the most local and freshest food and were even supplied with our own set of chopsticks at the beginning of the tour so that we didn't have to use a new disposable set at every meal as is the custom in China. Also, our tour leaders carried vast drums of drinking water with us so that we didn't have to buy individually bottled water.

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?

I thought this was an incredibly well-organised and imaginatively-planned holiday. The only reason I am giving it four stars rather than five is that it was slightly marred for me by the fact I had had a bad bike accident at home a few days before I set off. Not bad enough to stop me going but enough to make me self-conscious about my appearance (my face was affected) and much more cautious about falling off the bike. However, there was nothing the tour operators could have done about this!