Travelers prepping for a trip to China know that bicycling is a large part of the culture and they are sure to see thousands of bikes along the roads. Biking to work or cycling to run errands is commonplace on the Mainland, especially when small cycles can easily pass through the hordes of rush-hour traffic. Joining in the biking frenzy can be an exciting experience for travelers and travel company, The China Guide, is offering a Beijing city bike tour as a unique opportunity for guests.

“Personally I bike quite a lot in Beijing,” says Peter Danford, Managing Operator of The China Guide. “When I’m on my bike and see something interesting, like a shop or snack stall, it’s easy to stop and check it out. If I’m in a car then that’s not possible. Also for photographers it’s the way to go. Biking in Beijing also brings you close to the local people. You have to go slowly and become part of the sea of bikes passing like water around a multitude of obstacles. Also my kids love riding on the back of my bike and watching the scene. People notice them, make comments and chat at traffic lights.”

The China Guide‘s bike tours can be arranged as a full morning or afternoon activity or as a shorter two hour option. The most interesting area for biking is in Beijing’s hutong district where cyclists will be led by a local guide to see the historic city alleyways and traditional urban architecture. The alleyways are wide and comfortable for cycling and there is plenty of opportunity to stop for photographs. Riders can also cycle past historical city highlights including Tiananmen and the Gate of Heavenly Peace.

Bike riding in the big city can appear stressful but The China Guide carefully selects safe and easy routes so time can be spent enjoying the surroundings. Beijing roadways have been designed with bikes in mind and there are wide bike lanes on the majority of streets.

Cycling Tours can be arranged individually or as part of a complete China itinerary. A morning spent biking the streets can be perfectly combined with a variety of other activities, sightseeing and meals.

Source: The China Guide

As technology marches on, 360- degree panoramas which were once static images (such as Quicktime VR) have evolved into the realm of video. Thus you can now pan and zoom in a circle, look up and down, inside of a video. This opens a whole new world of possibilities for web developers.

The camera, produced by Grey Point Research, is an expensive piece of equipment produced primarily for surveillance purposes. Some clients, including The China Guide, are using it for tourism.

American Peter Danford, founder of The China Guide, a Beijing based travel agency is a professional photographer and has been shooting 360-degree panoramas since Apple introduced the Quicktime VR technology in the mid-1990′s. The China Guide’s web site has been using 360 degree panoramas since its founding in 2001.

“As a photographer and computer programmer, 360-degree panoramas have always held a certain fascination for me,” said Peter Danford. “The ability to take a photograph and let people look all around is very powerful. Combined with hot spots which the user can click, the possibilities for interactivity are high. When I saw the first use of 360-degree technology on the web I immediately saw its application in tourism. While the initial investment in equipment has been high, as it always is with leading edge technology, the return is also high. Visitors to our website get an experience they cannot get on any other in the area of China tourism.”

The China Guide uses interactive panoramas on its web site to allow visitors to preview tourist destinations in China so they can have a better idea where they would like to travel. To experience the latest in video panorama technology visit the web site of The China Guide, http://www.thechinaguide.com/ .