A Passage Through China: Early Years as an Independent Traveler

This essay abstracts the nature of travel in China in the early years of being open to tourists, particularly as an independent traveler. I use my own and my travel partner’s direct thoughts and observations as quotes; recorded in separate diaries over the 30-days of Chinese travel in the winter of 1987. The essay reflects on the impact this trip had on subsequent travel taken over my lifetime and becoming an academic tourism scholar. The topic of trip planning, then and now, is explored before the journey across China is described in situ. The travel experience is described through modes of transportation, accommodations, food and restaurants, and visiting sites. Across my own travels and the study of others’ travels, a common thread is travel requires skills and planning.