Best Cities & Yangtze - 12 Days

Welcome to China! Our professional guide will meet you at the Airport Arrival Exit according to your flight. After a warm greeting, you will be escorted to the comfortable hotel for check-in. For the remaining time, you may take a good rest to get over the air travel fatigue.  Tomorrow you will head to Beijing to meet your group first. All the highlight attractions in Shanghai will be arranged to visit when you come back with your group. So there is no guided sightseeing arranged in Shanghai at the beginning.  If you arrive earlier, you can take a bit adventure to explore the city by yourself in the afternoon. Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Hall is the best site to present Shanghai's past, today and tomorrow. The famous pedestrian street - Nanjing Road is also a good option. Accommodation: Parkline Century Park Hotel Shanghai (5 stars) - the former Crowne Plaza

After having breakfast at the hotel, our guide will escort you to the railway station for a high-speed train bound for Beijing. It is a fantastic experience to ride the 4.5 hours train, which has a top speed up to 186 miles per hour. There are many trains operating between Shanghai and Beijing every day. Normally we book morning trains. If you have any preferred time, please let your travel consultant know in advance.  On arriving in Beijing, our local guide will greet you at the railway station exit on time and escort you to check in at the hotel.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast
Accommodation: The Great Wall Hotel Beijing (5 stars) - the former Sheraton 

This morning, you will meet the fellow travelers in the group. A short briefing will be held before your China group tours from Shanghai. We start the exciting day with Tiananmen Square, which is located in the very center of the city. After admiring the remarkable buildings all around, we head north to the Forbidden City. Serving as the royal palace during the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911), it well presents the essence of ancient Chinese imperial court buildings.  You will have an a la carte lunch (valued at CNY150.00 per person and included in our price) at a nice local restaurant to taste the diversified Chinese food and try Peking Roast Duck. In the afternoon, we continue on to visit the Temple of Heaven, which used to be the altar for emperors to offer sacrifice to the God of Heaven. When night comes, we will enjoy a marvelous Kung Fu Show at the Red Theater.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte welcome lunch 

It is advisable to have a big breakfast so that you can get sufficient stamina to challenge the splendid Mutianyu Great Wall. Although the round way cable car is included, climbing the Great Wall is not an easy activity.  Lunch today is not included. Our guide is happy to recommend a restaurant as per your request. In the afternoon, we drive back to downtown and stop for a while at the Bird's Nest, the Olympic National Stadium, to appreciate its distinctive appearance and take photos at close quarters. Today's visiting comes to an end after having some free time at a local market.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast

This morning we visit the Summer Palace, where you can enjoy both pleasant natural beauty and gorgeous royal gardens. Around noon, an a la carte lunch (valued at CNY150.00 per person and included in our price) is served at a decent restaurant. To learn about the essential culture and characteristics of old Beijing, you will ride a rickshaw to visit the Hutong area.  Afterwards, we will take you to the airport and help you board a flight to Xian. Again, you will find our excellent local guide awaits you at the Airport Arrival Exit. And then a comfortable transfer will take you to check in at the hotel. 

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte lunch

In the morning, we will drive out of Xian city to show you the awe inspiring Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum. The thousands of life-sized pottery soldiers, horses, as well as bronze chariots and weapons that have been unearthed here will definitely impress you. Around noon, a home-cooked a la carte lunch will be served at a Chinese family. In addition to enjoying the delicious dishes, you also get chance to learn about the locals' daily life.  Following the morning activities, we will take you to visit the Xian Museum and then the Small Wild Goose Pagoda built in the Tang Dynasty. At night, we'll arrange you a dumpling dinner, and there are various kinds of dumplings available. After that, a feast for eye is prepared, the Tang Dynasty Music and Dance Show. 

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Home-cooked a la carte lunch, Dumpling Dinner Friendly Tips: Clients visiting in Jan, Feb, Mar and Dec need to arrange the dinner and evening activity on their own for this day, since the theater is usually not open at that time.

After breakfast, you will be escorted to admire the well-maintained City Wall. You can rent a bicycle on the spot to get great views of the ancient city. Then you will head to Chongqing by flight. Our local guide is ready to meet you at the airport and transfer you to visit Ciqikou Ancient Town. After that, you are helped to get on board the luxurious Yangtze River cruise ship. Your memorable cruise experience begins at 22:00 as the ship sets sail. 

Meals: Western buffet breakfast 
Accommodation: President No. 6 with balcony (5 stars)

After breakfast, you will attend a briefing on the cruise. Today's onshore excursion is to visit Shibaozhai, the main construction of which is Shibaozhai tower. Built leaning on the Jade seal mountain with upturned eaves and unique appearance, it is one of the rare existing wood structure buildings. Late in the afternoon, there will be a ceremonious Captain's Welcome Party waiting for your participation. 

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

The most essential part of your ship ride comes today. The ship will first sail through the short but grandiose Qutang Gorge and then the most brilliant Wu Gorge. In Wu Gorge, you will disembark at Wushan Daning River for an excursion to Shennong Stream. When you visit the verdant Shennong Stream, you will first take an electric boat for about 40 minutes. After that you will take a little pea-boat rowed by local boatmen. The local guide may sing melodious folk songs with the boatmen for you along the way. Please follow the guide's instruction to wear your life jacket properly even though the stream seems not to be dangerous at all. It is a scenic joy to roam among the green mountains and blue waters. Get back to the ship and the cruise continues sailing into the western section of Xiling Gorge. Historically known for its tortuous channel, dense reefs and shoaly waters, Xiling Gorge is the longest and most dangerous gorge of the Yangtze River. 

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

In the morning, you will check out and disembark for an excursion to the Three Gorges Dam, the largest hydro-electric power station in the world.  Then the cruise ship company will transport you to the Three Gorges Tourist Center in Yichang city, where our local guide will come to meet you and escort you to the railway station to catch a bullet train to Shanghai with a duration of about 7.5 hours. Our local guide in Shanghai will greet you at the railway station and accompany you to the hotel. Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch Accommodation: Parkline Century Park Hotel Shanghai (5 stars) - the former Crowne Plaza 

Shanghai is regarded as the most dynamic and fastest-growing city in China. Today, you will first visit Shanghai Museum, one of the most renowned museums. It is a large treasure house of ancient Chinese art with a collection of 120,000 antiques which especially features bronze, pottery, calligraphy and panting articles. Then go to visit the Yuyuan Garden, a classical garden having a history of about 400 years. It is a quiet and elegant garden with the southern architectural features of the Ming and Qing dynasties. An a la carte farewell lunch (valued at CNY150.00 per person and included in our price) is served at a nice local restaurant.  In the afternoon, we will have a relax walking along the Bund, where you will also have a short cruise tour along the Huangpu River. Afterwards, our guide and driver will transfer you back to the hotel and bid farewell in the lobby. 

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte farewell lunch

Your China group tour from Shanghai will come to an end today. If your flight takes off from Hongqiao Airport, we suggest you take a taxi to the airport. If it leaves from Pudong Airport, you can either take a taxi or the Airport Shuttle Bus Line 5 nearby your hotel. 

Meals included: Western buffet breakfast