Tour Guide to Hiking the Great Wall
FAQs: What to bring with for Great Wall hiking
tour for single day and multiple days
First thing first. Bring some more cash, but not
credit card or passport, or any important items. You may bring a
photocopy of your passport or other identification just in case you and
for emergency identification. However, if you take an overnight camping
tour (2-day or multiple day-trekking) to the Great Wall, please bring
your passport.
Do bring some snacks, or sandwich for your lunch or for the case of
getting hungry while you are walking on the Wall. You also want to bring
a clean t-shirt or more (You'll get sweat!) for exchange. Bring an
umbrella or a raincoat if it gets very cloudy. Check the weather before
hand. Here are more remarks to prepare for your hiking.
Hiking poles (walking sticks) will help you walk better but they are not
absolutely necessary. This is because there are steps on the long wall
that make it a lot easier to walk on rather than muddy mountain paths.
Sometimes, it'll be easy to use your hands to help grabbing the Wall or
some rocks or bushes while a stick would make you handful. Great Wall
Adventure Club no longer provide pole rental.
To keep the cost low to promote the outdoor activities in Beijing, we
only include the tour guide and transfer fees. The tourist insurance is
not included, we suggest participant purchase their own insurance before
going or buy our PICC accidental insurance.
Mobile phones have limited coverage in the area, so if you see someone
trekking alone, stay with them. This trip is to "smell the fresh air",
rather than a competition. But in summer, thunder storms and rain are
common while hiking on the Wall. Please make sure to turn off your cell
phone in the bad weather. Using cell phone while thundering could be
fatal!!!
There are local people selling Great Wall postcards, book, maps, bottled
water and even Coco Cola all along the wall. You are likely to be chased
by the peddlers who will walk with you as a company until you decide to
buy any. You should say NO at the beginning otherwise you will be
followed throughout the whole walk. For water, they generally charge
four or ten yuan (RMB 10) for each. Not too bad if you do need water.
However, you are recommended to carry some water at hand. Our
recommended drink is Gatorade which can be bought at Carrefour or other
supermarkets. Tap-water is not drinkable in China.
For one-day hike, it is really a long drive for about six hours to and
back. We may be delayed by the traffic or something unforeseen, so don't
come if you have something planned for that evening. For overnight trip,
we usually get back by 5 PM on the last day, so you are free for that
night.
It is likely to be very hot at noon under the sun from May to October.,
but there is always gentle breeze or even gale. In winter, you are
recommended to wear thick winter jacket as it is very cold in the
mountains. Do as if you were traveling to New York City or Toronto in
cold January.
Some parts of the way are really rough, and the wall is broken and
loose. So you must take care, and bring some medical bits.
Toilets. No toilet is available on the Wall but at the foot of the
mountain (entry points). You should take the advantage of these toilets
seriously although the facilities are very basic. Bring your own toilet
paper as it is not usually supplied in the restrooms in China.
Leave nothing except your footprints. Take nothing except photograph and
garbage. We will ensure that all rubbish is disposed of responsibly
(burnt, buried or fed to domestic animals!) Batteries should be brought
back to the city or your home country. We follow the local guidelines on
cultural and environmental protection and we ask that all hiking
participants also respect the environment they are travelling through.
Gifts for the locals. We'll come through local villages in China's
countryside when we trek the Great Wall (more for multiple-day
trekking). Generally we advise against giving small gifts to children as
it can encourage begging. However, if you have any small items or
clothing, balloons, toys, pens, stickers that you would like to give,
please check with your tour guide for advice. Tipping to local farmers
(when you lodge in their house) is not necessary, either.
For those who are taking overnight hiking or multiple-day trekking,
you'll be lodging in our certified farmotels. Those “farmotel”, as we
call them, some include brand new rooms with city-hotel standard beds,
in-suite bathrooms, and even new flat-screen TVs. Overall, those are
clean and safe environment that you would expect from any hotel. However
due to their rural location there are a few amenities that are lacking,
so we’d like to advise you on bringing some items (especially
toiletries) that you would normally use in a hotel. To make sure that
your “farmotel” stay is satisfactory, please plan on bringing some of
the following: wash towel, shower towel, shampoo/conditioner, tooth
paste and brush, mouth wash, toilet paper, dryer, and slippers. If you
can think of any items your children might need it is probably better to
bring those as well.
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