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Adaptor: Make sure you take your adaptor or a solar charger!

Flight time: The flight from Shanghai was 55 minutes long.  (The flight on to Beijing is 2 hours.)

Drinking water: Tap water is not safe to drink.  Take plenty of bottles with you, soft drinks and cans of coffee are available at all the tourist shops on top of the mountain.

Bugs: Well my bug spray was confiscated by the airport security staff because it was in my hand luggage and apparently it’s flammable (oops!)  Luckily I had some bug spray wipes, but... when I got to the top of the mountain, the only bugs I saw were HUGE.  There’s a bee/wasp type of bug that is more like a hornet, and the only thing to do is to step gently away from it.  I guess anything would have to be pretty hardy to survive up here, so... beware of the bees (or whatever these are).

Safety: Be cautious about food, drink, heat, cold and sun exposure.  I was incredibly lucky that the weather didn’t change too much, but I wasn’t really properly dressed as the hotel staff told me the weather would be much like that on the ground.  Not so.  Above all follow the rule of the point of no return - when you get to a point when you could just manage to return the way you have come turn round and come back that way (or get a tour guide!)  Do not look and walk at the same time.  And make sure you are safely stopped at the top or bottom of a flight of steps before you take your camera out!

Packing: Essentials; walking stick (you can buy on the mountain - check it is sturdy, or you could bring a state of the art one - or two if you plan on doing a lot of walking), thick socks (Karrimor do good mountain climbing socks), suitable trainers or walking shoes (remember this is like walking up lots of stairs so trainers might be best as they allow flexibility in the ankle and cushioning), sun tan lotion, warm layers, raincoat, bug spray (more for travelling to and from the mountain as there are a lot of mosquitoes at the base of the mountain), energy bars (now I would definitely take some Jelly Belly Sports Beans).

Getting around: Huangshan / Tunxi Airport is reasonably close to Tunxi town - roughly 20 minutes.  Tunxi itself is an hour’s drive from the mountain.  The quality goes down and the cost goes up for hotels the closer you get to the mountain - with those on the top being renowned for poor quality.  There are buses from Tunxi to Huangshan, but because I was by myself and wanted to make the most of the day on the mountain I took a private car organised by the hotel 300RMB (£30).

The Guide: Be careful what advice you follow.  I am glad I took the hotel’s advice to take the cable car (and not the UK guidebooks’ advice to walk), but wish I had been more careful in the West Sea Canyon area.   Get all the maps you can for Huangshan and compare before you head off.  If you are worried about getting lost I would recommend visiting but staying near to the Wild Goose Station which is a much flatter and easier area.  Do not be afraid to insist on booking a guide even if the hotel tell you it’s “easy”.  I managed to get lost.

Shopping: Things you can buy on the mountain include Avatar T-shirts, walking sticks and lots and lots of pictures, videos and everything with the mountain on it.  Similarly in Tunxi you can buy thousands of paintings of the mountain, videos, postcards, plus any painting supplies, including the biggest brushes you have ever seen (bigger than me!)  There are also some insanely cheap shops where you can buy silk scarves, unfashionable underwear and lots of tat.  There is also a good quality toy shop where you can buy Chinese puzzles.  It’s also a good place to pick up anything you might need for the rest of your trips like umbrellas, baseball caps, etc. in the super cheap supermarket.