How to Visit Mainland China

China! Ten years ago, it almost seemed easier to fly to the moon than to tread the streets of Peking or take a stroll along the Great Wall. Now all that has changed, and a new generation of old China hands has sprung up, having followed in the foot-steps of Teddy Kennedy and Candice Bergen. Last year alone, 5500 Americans visited China and twice that many are expected to make the pilgrimage in 1978. That doesn't mean, however, that you can dash off to the nearest Chinese consulate and come away with a tourist visa neatly stamped in your passport. Tourism is still new to the country and the People's Republic lacks ample hotel facilities as well as English-speaking personnel. China experts, nonetheless, are cautiously optimistic, predicting a substantial leap forward in tourism by 1980.

Take A Cruise

One of the easiest ways to see China---if you have the bucks---is to sign aboard a packaged cruise that guarantees the country as one of its ports of call. Nine cruise ships, including Holland America's Rotterdam, Cunard's Queen Elizabeth 2, the Royal Viking Sea and Flagship's M. S. Kungsholm, offer China excursions, most as part of their winter, world-cruise itineraries. In addition, the M. S. Lindblad Explorer, flagship of Lindblad Travel in New York, will embark on a 40-day Orient cruise out of Yokohama that includes 12 days in China (visiting Shanghai, Soochow, Wusih and Canton).

Packaged Tours

If you don't have the time or the money to take a slow boat to China, a limited number of packaged air tours have been made available by the People's Republic on a trial basis through several travel wholesalers in Manhattan, including Friendly International Tours, 60 East 42nd Street, New York, New York 10017, and Lotus Orient Tours, 244 East 46th Street, New York, New York 10017. Lotus offers a 21-day Orient tour with seven days in China (visiting Canton and Kweilin) for $1689, including air fare from San Francisco. Most of the tours are unescorted through Hong Kong, but then the Chinese take over and you're shown the sights accompanied by courteous attendants.

Study Tours

Even though the Chinese have liberalized their attitude toward commercial tours, Peking still views tourism, in general, as an educational rather than a commercial venture. So if you have a specific interest or skill, such as medicine, that the Chinese deem valuable to their culture, your chances of traveling there (with a group of equally qualified individuals) are greatly improved. Study tours can range from eight days to two weeks and often must be organized several months in advance. They offer the visitor a much more leisurely, in-depth look at China than the commercial junkets do. Two organizations that work closely with the Chinese to form such groups are: The United States Travel Bureau, 11478 Burbank Boulevard, North Hollywood, California 91601, and Special Tours for Special People, 250 West 57th Street, New York, New York 10019. Both require groups with an educational focus. The U. S.-China Peoples Friendship Association, with offices in most major cities, also offers educational study tours and is an excellent source of information on China travel.

Business Travel

Most businessmen traveling to China do so to visit the huge Chinese Export Commodities Fair held twice yearly in Canton. To find out how to obtain an invitation---and they aren't handed out like free passes to a movie---write to the National Council for U. S.-China Trade, 1050 17th Street N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036. The council also provides a briefing session in New York for first-time participants prior to the fair and assistance in visa processing.

Victory Through Visas

If you've bought a packaged tour or a cruise, your travel agent will do most of the paperwork to obtain a Chinese visa for you. But if you wish to travel to China as part of a study group, this is the basic procedure: 1. Write a formal proposal letter to Guoji Luxingshe (China International Travel Service), 6 East Changan Street, Peking, People's Republic of China, stating your purpose, mode of transportation, date of visit, length of stay, cities you wish to visit, number in your group and a brief biography of each member. 2. Wait patiently. You can resubmit your proposal, along with follow-up letters, apprising the Chinese of your continued interest. 3. If your visa application is accepted, you'll receive a confirmation form that must be returned to Luxingshe. You'll then receive visa forms that must be submitted, together with your passport, to the Liaison Office, People's Republic of China, 2300 Connecticut Avenue N.W., Washington, D.C. 20008. Remember, your passport must not contain a Taiwan visa.