The best season
We visited Gansu in August. The weather was hot and humid but still manageable. Deciding when is the best time to go there is not easy, especially if your itinerary includes several countries, so you have to compromise.
What to wear
Summer clothing is fine, without any kind of restriction. In the Karakorum Highway area it’s like being in the mountains so we recommend wearing multiple layers of clothing.
Where to stay and transportation
In China, in order to plan our trips, excursions, food and so on, we turned to John cafe (also because of the famous Chinese border crossing at the Torugart Pass). We were able to deal directly with Mr John, who proved to be very helpful and professional. The agency, has several branches scattered throughout China. This is the website: www.johncafe.net.
Language
In the regions we visited, it was really hard for us to communicate with local people, even for planning a simple day trip or booking a train ticket.
So, if you want to be completely independent, we recommend bringing a very basic phrasebook with you. For example, we found the one on the Lonely Planet guide very useful.
Visa
Most foreign visitors (with the exception of those arriving from Hong Kong and Macao) must have an entry visa, which allows a one-month stay, and it must be requested prior to departure because it cannot be issued at the moment of the arrival. We remind you that the passport must be valid for at least six months and have at least three blank pages; in addition, you must provide the booking receipt of the return ticket or the hotel reservation in China. For more information on times, costs and issuing procedures of visas, you should contact the Embassy of China in your country.
