Pandas & Golden Cities

After you reclaim your luggage and clear Customs, you will find your English-speaking guide welcoming you at the arrival hall of the airport. Your driver will then transfer you to check in at the hotel for a three-night stay. You can use the rest of the day to have a good rest or walk around the hotel on your own.
 
Accommodation: Hotel New Otani Chang Fu Gong

This morning will be spent in the heart of Beijing. We will start our 13-day China tour in Beijing at Tiananmen Square. From there, walk over the Golden Water Bridge directly to the Forbidden City. With its marvelous structural layout, exquisite decorations and valuable treasures, the Imperial Palace attracts travelers from all over the world. 

Around noon, we will arrange a sumptuous a la carte welcome lunch (valued at CNY150.00 per person and included in our price) at a decent local restaurant and we specially recommend the roasted Peking duck. 

Then we'll continue to the Temple of Heaven, the royal temple for sacrifice in ancient times. Nowadays, it is not only a tourist spot, but also a large, beautiful park for local people to spend their leisure time, especially those who are retried. In the evening, a lively Chinese Kung Fu Show at the Red Theatre is scheduled for you.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte welcome lunch  

The Great Wall is one of the greatest architectural projects in human history. This morning, we will drive you to the Mutianyu section, where you will spend time exploring the steep stairs, smoke towers and grand views of this unique wonder. A round-trip cable car to ascend and descend the Wall is included during your Great Wall tour. 

As the Wall is in a rural area, the meals offered by restaurants nearby are not good. In this case, we suggest you have a hearty breakfast at the hotel this morning and then have some snacks or fast food there for lunch on your own. 

Later we will drive you back to the city and leave you with free time at a featured local market.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast

After checking out of the hotel, you will be escorted to visit the Summer Palace, which was the summer resort for emperors and royal families. In summer, beautiful lotuses bloom in Kunming Lake, and in winter, it is also a good place for ice skating. Next, we will stop at the Olympic National Stadium for you to take pictures of the Bird's Nest design at a distance.

Lunch will be a la carte (valued at CNY150.00 per person and included in our price) at a good local restaurant. 

After lunch, we will take you to the old Hutong area, where narrow alleys are lined with ancient-style residential houses. You'll get a taste of the traditional features of the city and experience Chinese paper cutting. Then you will take an afternoon flight to Xi'an, the second destination of your 13 days China tour package. Your Xi'an local guide will meet you on time at the airport and then accompany you to check in the hotel.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte lunch  
Accommodation: Crowne Plaza Xi'an

A full and interesting day awaits you. We will take you out of downtown to see the Terracotta Army, which is a huge project composed of three burial pits. It was built by Emperor Qinshihuang, the first emperor who united the nation in ancient times. The life-sized terracotta army is said to guard the entrance to the Emperor's tomb. It well represents his ambition to be honored even in the after-life. 

Then we move on to visit a local family. The elaborately prepared a la carte dishes (valued at CNY120.00 per person and included in our price) coupled with the hosts' cordial hospitality will surely make your lunch unforgettable. Learning Chinese dishes cooking recipes with the host will be a unique experience on your escorted China tour. 

After the family visit, we will proceed to Xi'an Museum and then visit the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda, an ancient Buddhist stupa with a unique structure and elegant appearance. Tonight, an exceptional performance awaits you. It is the Tang Dynasty Music and Dance Show displaying the rich culture of the Tang Dynasty. Before the show, you will have a Dumpling dinner.

This morning, your guide will take you to watch local people doing morning exercises in the City Wall Park and arrange a Tai Chi Practice for you. Then we will climb up the ancient City Wall. Enclosing the old city with a circuit of 13,700 meters, the square city wall is as thick as 14 meters. Visitors can rent bicycles and take a ride on the wall. Battery-powered carts are also available. The rental fee is at your expense. 

You will have a high-quality a la carte lunch (valued at CNY120.00 per person and included in our price) at a fine local eatery.

Afterwards, your guide will lead you to the treasure house of northwest China, the Provincial History Museum, which has collected a large number of rare historical relics illustrating the achievements of different eras. A visit to the Great Mosque is scheduled for you later. You can have some free time to stroll along the nearby bustling Muslim street. Food stalls featuring snacks and local dishes line the streets. Noodles and Chinese hamburger (Rou Jia Mo) are always popular in Xi'an. Try some street food for your dinner.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte lunch 

Your guide will escort you to the railway station for a high-speed train to Chengdu. After a four-hour trip, you will meet the local guide and get to the hotel. With all kinds of rich resources, Chengdu enjoys a reputation for being a 'Heavenly Land of Plenty'. And now Chengdu has become an ideal city for many young graduates. They would rather work and live here than go to big cities like Beijing and Shanghai. We will leave you with free time to explore this city on your own in the afternoon. Your local guide will offer you some suggestions upon request.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast
Accommodation: Holiday Inn Chengdu Oriental Plaza

We all know that Chengdu is the home of pandas, so our first stop in Chengdu is surely about pandas. The Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding is not far from the city center, about half an hour's journey. Early morning departure is essential if you want to see the pandas at their best. Usually the keepers will feed the pandas from about 08:00 to 09:00. At this time, all the pandas come out to wait, and then they begin to eat and play. By about 11:00, the pandas are full and most of them go to sleep. So according to our experiences the best time to visit the panda base is from 08:30 to 10:00 in the morning. During the visit, you will be touched by how lovely they are. If you visit them in August or September, you may have a chance to see newborn pandas.

Next, we head to the Broad and Narrow Alleys. Just take your time to stroll leisurely through the alleys. It is a very popular place not only for travelers but also for locals. You can have lunch at one of the restaurants by yourself. Your guide will also give you more advice.

Then, we visit the Jinsha Site Museum, which displays archaeological relics from the Jinsha Site going back 3,000 years. Many gold articles have been unearthed at the site, but the most important ones are the Gold Foil of Sun and Immortal Bird and the Gold Mask. After the history and culture appreciation, it's time for you to get relaxed at Renmin Park. You will enjoy the laid-back lifestyle of a local when you sip tea in a tea house, see people gathering together playing Mahjong, or dancing and singing. The most interesting is to see the matchmaking corner where parents advertise for their children.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast

A morning flight will take you to Shanghai today. When you arrive, your guide will greet you at Shanghai airport and escort you to check in at the hotel. You will have a free afternoon on your own arrangement.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast
Accommodation: Radisson Blu Hotel Shanghai New World

The morning excursion will take you to visit Shanghai Museum and Yu Garden. Yu Garden is an elaborately designed, delicately constructed inimitable garden of the Ming Dynasty. After that, you will spend some leisure time at the nearby bazaar, where you can find some interesting souvenirs at fair prices. 

Lunch will be our special offer - an a la carte meal (valued at CNY120.00 per person and included in our price) at a popular restaurant. In the afternoon, we will guide you to discover the Former French Concession. Then, drive to the Bund area, where you will take a one-hour cruise tour on the Huangpu River. Enjoy some free time to explore the Bund. There you can view Shanghai's colonial architecture and futuristic skyline. Upon returning to the hotel, your guide will see you into the lobby to say bon voyage.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte farewell lunch

Our 13-day China tour comes to an end today. The hotel check-out time is before 12:00 noon. Since clients will have different flight schedules to leave Shanghai, we do not include the airport see-off service today. You can charter a taxi to the airport, which is the most efficient and money-saving way. We wish you a smooth and pleasant journey!

Meals: Western buffet breakfast