Just returned from the 12 day land tour/river cruise Imperial Jewels of China with Viking River cruises!

What a wonderful, wonderful trip! Flew into Shanghai and the Viking reps met us at the airport - we were lucky enough to stay at the Shangri-La in downtown Shanghai - an incredible hotel! The Garden tour was lovely and the acrobat show was fantastic! The next day, we flew out to Wuhan for tours and to board the Emerald.

This was the only snafu of the trip - and it had nothing to do with Viking. Our flight, after we had already boarded the plane, was cancelled due to a "bird strike". Hard to believe as it was sitting on the ground... In any case, our guide, Jamie, moved heaven and earth to get us on another flight - unfortunately at another airport, which ate up most of the day - so by the time we got to the ship in Wuhan, it was 7:30 at night, way past the tours of the museum and the bronze bells. The last group did not get in until after 10PM - so we embarked late and also missed the shore excursion to the Viking school the next day. But they brought the children onto the ship instead - which still gave us an opportunity to meet and interact with them. Read more