| Rating |
Date Attended [v] |
Reviewer |
Gender |
Age |
Where From? |
Group Type? |
|
Fun Tour
|
| Mon, Mar 10, 08 10:00 AM |
ReachELS |
Male |
50-59 |
Domestic Tourist(s) |
Couple on a Date |
| My wife and I enjoyed the tour - intesting stops and a fun Din Sum meal at the end. |
|
Great Day Great Guide
|
| Sun, Mar 9, 08 10:00 AM |
ledaniels |
Female |
40-49 |
Domestic Tourist(s) |
Unspecified |
| Hank was our guide and a native of Chinatown. He had all the history and inside information on the area. It was so interesting and fun. Had I just gone to Chinatown to eat or shop I would have missed the whole point of it. This was great value with lunch included and great fun I highly recommend it. Funny thing was that out of the eight of us on the tour six were locals residents we were the only "tourists" in the group. I would recommend the longer tour that includes the North Beach Area wish we had gone for more!
Gets a thumbs up from us! |
|
|
The only way to see Chinatown
|
| Sun, Mar 9, 08 10:00 AM |
VickiRas |
Female |
30-39 |
Domestic Tourist(s) |
Couple on a Date |
| My husband and I were visiting San Francisco and wanted to see Chinatown but knew we'd have no clue of where to start. I found great reviews about the Wok Wiz tour and sounded interesting. It went above and beyond our expectations. Walking in the alleyways & streets, going into small shops, eating the food, shopping, etc. was very eye-opening. Alberta was our tour leader and what a fun, knowledgeable lady. Do not hesitate to go on this tour if you want to learn the true meaning of Chinatown. We had another couple along with us not go on the tour and they had no idea of certain things that were happening. Luckily they had us to explain it to them. Don't go walking around there lost. Take the tour! |
|
|
Insightful and fun
|
| Sat, Mar 8, 08 10:00 AM |
Jolyne |
Female |
40-49 |
Local |
Group of Friends |
| We just took the Wok Wiz tour through Chinatown in San Francisco. We have lived here all our lives and have never really explored the area. Our guide, Dorothy, was very knowledgable, had answers to all our questions, spoke very clearly and was a pleasure to be around. We had the added bonus of watching a funeral procession-that was very interesting. The only thing I was a little disappointed about was that we did not see or hear too much about was the "official entrance" into Chinatown on Grant Street. I had the impression that our tour would start there and proceed into Chinatown. To me that is like going through a door into another world. I would have liked to have heard more on the history of why it is there, who built it and how the locals feel about it. Other than that, it was a nice way to spend an afternoon and learn more about the city in which I was born and raised. Thank you, now I am considering making some time to check out the Ciao, Chow tour in the near future. |
|
|
More than I expected
|
| Sat, Mar 8, 08 10:00 AM |
jmort847 |
Male |
40-49 |
Domestic Tourist(s) |
Other |
| When I signed up for the tour, I was expecting more of a culinary-focused tour, which would definitely appeal to my wife. However, I was pleasantly surprised... Dorothy gave us a wonderful historical tour of Chinatown - showing us the wonderful nuiances of the local - along with some great culinary information and a great dim sum luncheon. I heartily recommend the Wok Wiz tour! |
|
|
wonderful three hours
|
| Tue, Mar 4, 08 10:00 AM |
wdkendrick |
Male |
40-49 |
Domestic Tourist(s) |
Family Without Children |
| informative, interesting -- gives you a nice overview of chinatown with its merchants,
food vendors, religions, history and culture. |
|
|
looking inside Chinatown
|
| Tue, Mar 4, 08 10:00 AM |
orthoroda |
Male |
50-59 |
International Tourist(s) |
Individual |
| a lot of information about Chinese living, shopping, thinking and last not least dining. |
|
|
A most interesting tour!!
|
| Sun, Feb 24, 08 10:00 AM |
jeth25 |
Female |
50-59 |
Domestic Tourist(s) |
Couple on a Date |
| The tour director had grown up in Chinatown, which really add a lot of authenticity to the tour, and she included many interesting stories about what it was like to grow up there and the habits of the local residents. Wonderful tour, and we highly recommend it. |
|
|
Very interesting and enjoyable
|
| Sat, Feb 23, 08 10:00 AM |
wcs5822 |
Female |
20-29 |
Domestic Tourist(s) |
Couple on a Date |
| Lola was great- she was very sweet and knowledgeable. Her personality and rapport with the vendors we met made me feel very comfortable in such a different environment. |
|
Fun, but not for everyone
|
| Sat, Feb 23, 08 10:00 AM |
grumbledog |
Male |
40-49 |
Local |
Group of Friends |
| I had family in from out of town, and we did our tour on the Saturday of the Chinese New Year Festival. Our guide, Alberta, was lively and very friendly. Having grown up in the area, she knew it well and was able to show us Chinatown from the perspective of a local. There were perhaps a few too many personal stories, which were fun to hear but not particularly relevant to understanding Chinatown's history. As far as the tour, it covers a fairly predictable routine. You're taken to a tea shop, a Taoist temple, a fish market, and several shops featuring jade, traditional Chinese medicines, produce used in Chinese cooking, and other goods. The concluding lunch was good, providing a sampling of dim sum staples, but nothing remarkable.
I think whether you enjoy the tour or not depends on what you want from a tour. My family, who had never seen anything like Chinatown, enjoyed it very much. I would have preferred fewer shops and more history. Also, despite repeated assurances that we were under no obligation to buy anything at the shops we visited, or to make a donation at the temple, there was definitely a sense that the shopkeepers expected us to purchase something. A sample of what we would find in the next shop to be visited was handed out by the guide before we got there, business cards for each establishment were given out, and we were encouraged to come back following the tour. While photos were allowed, if not encouraged, in most of the establishments (including the temple), the manager of the fish market asked that we not take photos, most likely due to the fact that he had huge tubs of live bullfrogs and red-eared slider turtles out front which, while currently legal, has been a subject of enormous controversy in San Francisco and the subject of repeated attempts to ban the practice due to the endangered status of some of the animals.
All in all, the tour is well-run and enjoyable if you want an overview of life in Chinatown. But it isn't ideal for everyone. As Chinatown is relatively small and easy to navigate, depending on what you're primary interest is (restaurants, photography, just looking around) you might be better off exploring on your own with the help of a guidebook and some adventurous friends. |
