More updates on Travel to/from Hong Kong Airport to Shezhen

The questions about how to get from Hong Kong Airport to Shenzhen and back keep coming up in various forums. Even now that there are direct flights from Taiwan to China (rather than via Hong Kong) the topic is still active. The fact is there is still a border and a border check between China / Shenzhen and Hong Kong — so it takes time and effort to make the connections. I have done the trip via various modes
* Ferry: Hong Kong airport to Shekou (described here: http://site.chinafinds.com/travel/?s=Shekou)
* Plane: Shezhen to Hong Kong Airport or Macao Airport and on to next destination
* Van / car : you get picked up in Shenzhen and the driver helps you with the transfer
* Taxi to LoHu border crossing — cross on foot — taxi, MTR or van to other points in Hong Kong

All these modes are fine based on what your challenge is — time, money, effort…. :-) Or if you go often to Shenzhen / Hong Kong, try them all :-)

I have put the timetable for the CSK lines in the Resources section of this Blog

Interesting experience going through Beijing International Airport Terminal 3

Recently a took a flight from Taipei to Beijing. Yes, the flights between the two cities are now becoming the norm. Earlier in the Summer (of this year) I flew from Shenzhen directly to Taipei, and now from Taipei directly to Beijing. For those of us who remember just a couple-three years ago this was a dream…. I recall 2004 — possibly the first time we saw charter flights (during the Chinese New Year) take Taiwanese expats on direct flights between Shanghai and Taipei… That was a big happening. In that same time — in 2004, 2005, 2006….all of us traveling on business or pleasure between China and Taiwan had to take the long route via Hong Kong, or Macao, or South Korea or via Japan to make it from the mainland to Taiwan. That usually meant that a trip to Taiwan had to factor in a day to get there (from Beijing) and a day to come back….

Today the situation is different. I was able to get on a 7:55am flight from Taipei International Airport to Beijing via China Air and arrive in Beijing at 11:20am. What an improvement :-)

Once we arrived in Beijing I had to go through Terminal 3 of the new Beijing Capital airport. Each time I go through it I think how impressive the new structure is. Yes, an interesting and innovative building. All this is good until you hit the medical check point. While on the plane you are given a medical certification form — you describe your health condition etc. Fine. Then you get off the plane and start heading to immigration. Prior to immigration you go through the proverbial control point — infrared cameras take your temperature while you walk and then you face a government official who examines and stamps your medical certificate. Then you walk further and then “surprise…!” Another official collects the paper that was stamped just 2-3 minutes ago at another desk. Well, that is one way to fight unemployment :-) and create jobs. Who needs a stimulus package :-)

The next thing that surprises you about Terminal 3 is how huge it is. And how empty. I ended up walking for a while and went down three floors to find my way to the exit for the taxi stand…. So nice job in building the Terminal. I just wished it was easier to get in and out of it…. But then, who would mind a few miles of walking :-) We all need the exercise. Wait, wait, I sense a business opportunity: we can create a walking exercise routine for airline passengers. “Walk to fitness”

Happy travels!

Flying in China, or anywhere in the world for that matter…

Over the past 2 weeks I had the interesting experience of having a bunch of flights between Shenzhen, Shanghai and Beijing. The reason I call them interesting is that I heard again the strange explanation of why flights get delayed. Over the years of living and working in China I saw the country’s air travel network being stressed more and more. At the same time I also saw the masterful capability by the various airlines (Air China, Eastern, Southern….) not to answer your question when flights get messed up.

There are many ways to let the passengers know that they will not get on time to their destination, but the “best” one I hear all the time in China is “We regret to inform you that the flight is delayed due to aircraft delay”

Does this statement really provide any information? No, it just tells you “the flight is delayed” Why is it delayed? No plane… Duh…But why is the plane not on time? Well that is a whole different question isnt’t :-) and no, we will not tell you why :-)

So, that is about it. Don’t worry when you travel — you flight could be delayed, and you will not know why, but on the other hand, does it matter :-) ? You just sit back and relax.

Oh, and by the way, my flight from Hangzhou to Beijing earlier today left about 10 minutes ahead of schedule. You better not be late for your flight :-)

More on Air Travel in China - Also an observation about what services and products support need to be

About a year ago I posted on some of my experiences with how Chinese airlines manage delays and overall information to passengers…Well, it seems that a boiling over point has been reached for travelers in China. Recent article posted by Reuters provides a view of the activism performed by those travelers — taking matter in their own hands, they decided to stay on-board the canceled flight…

I have been in some of those situations — not staying on the plane - but having a whole bunch of passengers surrounding the airline representatives and not letting them leave until they resolve the situation with the delayed or canceled flight.

For those of you who believe that in China, consumers are not demanding, think twice…. This is one of the most challenging markets, or rather China has become extremely challenging place for companies who fail to meet expectations of the Chinese consumer. This latest report is just one example of the extremes you may experience as a product or service provider in China.

Sure, there are airline delays and flight cancellations in many places around the world, but few are the cases where passengers have done the act of staying on-board the aircraft and demanding action by the airline, while at the same time being served by the flight attendants….Quite something.

All in all, this can be viewed also as a red flag to companies who are planning market entry into the Chinese market…

More troubles in Air Travel - First Cancelled Flights, then Missing Baggage Handlers

Well, if you are looking for worry and trouble free flights these days, think twice. On a recent flight from China (Shenzhen - Shanghai - Chicago) to Austin, Texas, I got to experience the challenges of air travel disconnects and issues. As you are most likely aware American Airlines had to cancel a whole bunch of flights in the US as they were serviced by the fleet’s grounded MD-80 aircraft.

As a result of those flight cancellations on my recent flight to the US, I looked into requesting a switch to a United flight from Chicago O’Hare to Austin airport. My initial reaction was “Score — I was able to get on the flight”, and be able to avoid staying the night in a hotel in Chicago. That was the 30 seconds of elation. Then the reality of the current flight conditions settled in. The United flight was initially delayed by 2 hours. Then, by the time we actually boarded the plane (after having to wait for a flight crew to arrive from another city) it was already 3, or 3+ hours delay. Well, you may say, “Whats the big deal — only 3 hours delay…” —- But that was not all. Once we boarded the plane the additional wait started. Come to find out (based on the plane captain’s update to us the passengers) — the baggage handlers had decided to go home. So after midnight the Chicago O’Hare airport was being served by a tiny crew of baggage handlers — statements were made to the effect of “Only 2 baggage handlers are servicing all the gates in this part of the airport. No, we do not know when they will get to our plane….”

The net effect was that we had to sit for a whole lot of time on the tarmac in the plane while someone had to load our bags in the plane. We (the passengers) could have done that. I am sure most of us wanted to get it done so we can get back home…..

Well, long story short, eventually the baggage handlers showed up, and eventually we were airborne. But the sour taste in my mouth remains — what a crazy setup — You have a whole bunch of aircraft / flights canceled, you have a whole lot of tired and frustrated passengers, and NO ONE from the airport management makes an effort to ensure that at least the ground crews are operational….. Go figure….!

That was a very frustrating experience. So where was that bill of passenger rights :-)

I wonder….

Happy Travels!

More Legroom in Economy Plus Middle Section on United 747s

Recently, I traveled with my nine year old daughter to Beijing to visit friends and buy jewelry for my website, Chinafinds. As my daughter had elite status on United, we were able to sit in the Economy Plus section. This is particularly important on the San Francisco - Beijing flight, because United uses rather tired old 747s for that route and as I’m sure you know, they lack the amenities of the newer 777s such as seatback video and are generally not as spiffy. Anyway, the 747 had a 3 – 5 – 3 configuration (meaning three seats next to the window on either side of the plane flanking five seats in the middle section). We were in the middle five, and I noted to my surprise that the seats in the middle five had considerably more legroom (by about two inches) than the seats in the outer three on either side of the aisle. The difference was apparent to the naked eye and I confirmed it by taking an actual measurement. I was surprised, as this detail was not indicated on Seatguru, one of my favorite travel tools. I habitually check Seatguru whenever I fly to make sure of getting the best seat possible. However, this small detail was not noted there. Anyway, my daughter and I were pleased to be in the section with superior legroom and enjoyed our 12 hour flight to Beijing to the extent to which it was possible.

Air Travel Experiences - Plane Mechanical Troubles and Delays Abound

Over the last three weeks my family and I have had to travel on a number of flights and across several airlines (American, United…) for both business and personal reasons. Between the Thanksgiving holiday and business travel for me we logged in over 18K miles each and over 6 flights. During these flights we experienced numerous delays due to plane mechanical issues. For example - our Thanksgiving trip included travel from Austin (TX) to Huntsville (AL). That involved 4 flights. Out of the 4 flights, three had mechanical trouble. These were all on American airlines. That resulted in delays from 40minutes to 2 hours per flight.

Then last week I had to fly to San Jose. I arrived at the airport (for an early morning flight === for an early morning meeting in San Jose) to find out that the night before the 6:40 am flight has been canceled. Lucky for me I was able to jump on a flight to Dallas and from there to San Jose resulting in only 1 hour delay of arrival. The alternative was pretty bad — I was going to meet a critical customer meeting! By flying via Dallas I was able to notify the customer and delay the meeting by one and a half hour — 1 hour flight delay plus time to get to the customer site (my original flight was to arrive early enough that I could make it to the customer’s location way before the meeting time)

Then came my most recent flight Taipei - San Francisco - Austin (just yesterday) —> the flight from San Francisco to Austin got delayed as well (by 1 hour) as the plane had trouble with the navigation system and required parts replacement while the passengers were on-board….That was an United flight.

Have I had only one or two such troubles in a short three week window of time, I would have thought — “This is just a normal / sudden issue”. But the case here was different — I was on 12 flights in a matter of three weeks and four of the flights had issues with the planes. Add to that the now usual time delays due to traffic congestion and you have yourself a pretty tough situation for us the travelers.

What is the lesson learned from all this — well, I do not think we can do much to change the readiness of the planes — this is the airlines’ responsibility. I hope the airlines are taking steps to renew their fleet and / or keep the planes in better shape. What can we, the travelers do? One thing only — always plan your trips with the thought that you will be delayed and figure out ahead of time what your options could be.

Traveling from Shenzhen to Taipei — avoid travel via Macao

If you need to travel from Shenzhen to Taipei, you may want to avoid air travel via Macao. During a recent trip I discovered the inconveniences of traveling via Macao (on Macao Airlines). First of all, when you leave Shenzhen you are departing on an international flight. So once you pass the passport control you are in this small departure hall which has no services to speak of. Just a small restaurant with limited selection for food and a vending machine. Second of all, you wait for one hour to get on a plane for a flight that takes about 15-20 minutes….and then you need to change planes for the flight from Macao to Taipei. A major hassle…..!

So, what can you do instead? Easy — just take a ferry from Shenzhen to Hong Kong International airport. The ferry leaves from Shekou, the ticket price is about 240RMB and the ferry takes about 30 minutes to reach the airport, then a 10 minute bus ride to the airport terminal / gate.