Great Wall of China Photo by our client Ms. Amelia Jordan Atkin with her feedback

Day 01Arrival in Beijing

Our guide will expect you outside the Arrival Hall of Beijing Capital Airport after you go through the customs. A comfortable private drive will take you to the hotel in Beijing for a three-night registration. Relax for the remainder of the day to recover from the jet leg. Dinner is on your own. Please refer to our suggestions around the luxury series hotel and standard series hotel. 

Meals: No meals

Day 02Beijing

After breakfast, you will come to the largest city square in the world, Tiananmen Square. Walk to the Forbidden City after a short stroll around the square. As the world's largest imperial palace complex, the 590-year-old Forbidden City presents you splendid imperial buildings and a large collection of historical items. As is our practice to avoid the cheap tourist restaurants, you will enjoy an a la carte lunch at a noted local restaurant to taste the authentic Chinese food. Your visit continues to the Temple of Heaven in the afternoon. Built in 1420, it was the imperial altar where emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties worshiped heaven for good harvest. The most attractive sites there are the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest and the Echo Wall. At night, you will go to the Red Theatre and enjoy a fantastic Chinese Kung Fu Show presented in the form of story-telling, acrobatics and dancing.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte lunch

Our clients at Beijing Tiananmen Square

Day 03Beijing

Today's visit starts from the excursion to one of the greatest world heritage sites, the Great Wall at Badaling, which is the best-preserved section of China Great Wall and features solidity, majesty and its strategic importance. To avoid shopping site restaurants near the Great Wall, we will serve you a decent lunch of Sichuan food at the best local restaurant. Then you will proceed to the Sacred Way and the Ming Tomb in the afternoon. As the entrance path of the Ming Tombs, the Sacred Way is lined up with statues of both human figures and animals on two sides, which are believed to be the guards of the owners of the tombs and important decorations in the cemetery. When passing by the Bird's Nest (Olympic National Stadium) on the way back to downtown Beijing, you will have a short stay there and take some photos with the huge nest.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch

Forbidden City, Beijing

Day 04Beijing - Xian

The first stop this morning is China's largest royal garden, the Summer Palace, where you will see traditional Chinese garden architecture merged into the natural landscape of hills, woods and lakes in the most harmonious way. Enjoying the rickshaw riding through Hutongs will be your memorable experience. Here you will feel the special Beijing culture and history by visiting the famous romantic Shichahai, classic Yinding Bridge, dazzling Yandaixiejie, grand Bell tower or Drum tower and local flavored family. We will serve you an a la carte lunch at a nice local restaurant with delicate cuisine and graceful environment. Late in the afternoon, you will head for Xian by air. Your local guide will meet you and accompany you to check in the hotel. 

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte lunch

Terracotta army, Xian

Day 05Xian

In the morning, you will visit the Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum, which is famed as the eighth wonder of the world. As an underground army served to protect the mausoleum of Qin Shihuang, the first emperor of China 2,200 years ago, the clay warriors and horses with distinct facial expressions and positions were arranged orderly in rectangular battle formations. The Bronze Chariots and Horses and weapons excavated here are also amazing parts of the museum. Around noon, you will enjoy an a la carte lunch at the best local restaurant rather than having mass-produced food at the tourist eateries near the site.  After lunch, get back to downtown Xian and visit the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, which is considered the symbol of Xian. Built over 1,300 year ago in the Tang Dynasty, the seven-storey square cone-shaped pagoda has seen huge changes and development of Xian City. Then you will visit the Provincial History Museum, one of the best museums in China. In the evening, clients of luxury series will have an exquisite Tang Dynasty Imperial Dinner accompanied by the fancy singing and dancing show at the splendid Tang Dynasty Palace (Addr: No.75, Chang'an Road, Xian); clients of standard series will taste a local Dumpling Dinner and enjoy the and Tang Dynasty Music and Dances Show at Shaanxi Opera Theater (Addr: No. 165, Wenyi Road, Xian).
 
Meals for Luxury series: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte lunch, Tang Dynasty dinner show
              Standard series: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte lunch, Dumpling dinner

Local people's life

Day 06Xian - Chongqing

Today's visit starts from another landmark of Xian, the City Wall. If time permits, you can either walk or rent a bicycle to ride around on the wall to discover the history and modern beauty of the city by yourself. Then take a tour to the Great Mosque, which is regarded as one of the most famous Islamic mosques in China for its unique combination of Islamic culture and traditional Chinese construction. After that, you will proceed to Chongqing by flight, where your local tour guide will provide you with comfortable transfer service. Your memorable Yangtze River tour will begin after you board the Yangtze cruise ship. 

Meals: Western buffet breakfast

Shennong Stream pea-boat floating, Yangtze River

Day 07Chongqing - Shibaozhai

The river guide will give you a brief introduction of the cruise and the itinerary after breakfast. You can walk around on the deck and enjoy the picturesque scenery of clear water and grotesque hills and peaks along the river in the morning. Then you will disembark and take an initial onshore excursion to the legendary Shibaozhai with a history of over 400 years. The Captain's Welcome Party will be held tonight.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 08Badong - Xiling Gorge - Sandouping

The highlight of the Yangtze River cruise comes today - you will appreciate the unique scenery of the Three Gorges, which is composed of Qutang Gorge, Wu Gorge, and Xiling Gorge. As you sail on to the border between Wu Gorge and Xiling Gorge, you will disembark and take an interesting junk adventure along Shennong Stream, where you will sit on the special local sampan and enjoy the breath-taking scenery of rip currents, lofty peaks and mountains, gorgeous Karst caves, beautiful waterfalls and many historical relics. Besides, the boat trackers' beautiful folk songs will accompany you on the way. The adventure lasts about 3 to 4 hours. When embark again, you will sail into the Xiling Gorge, which is the longest and most gorgeous one among the three. In the evening, the ship will pass through the Five Level Ship Lock of China Dam.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Yangtze Three Gorges tour

Day 09Yichang - Shanghai

In the morning, you will disembark for an excursion to the Three Gorges Dam, the largest water project in the world. Standing on the gigantic dam, you can not only enjoy the grand view of the river blocked by the dam and endeavoring to pass through it, but also have a bird's eye view of the beautiful scenery around the dam. Then embark again, please pack your luggage and follow the check-out procedures. Our local guide will be waiting for you onboard and transfer you to downtown Yichang. In the afternoon, visit Yichang Museum if time permits, where you will learn more about the history and culture of the Three Gorges area. Then head for Shanghai by flight. Your local tour guide will expect you at the airport and transfer you to the hotel.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch

Shanghai Bund

Day 10Shanghai

Your Shanghai tour starts from one of the best museums in China, Shanghai Museum, which is renowned for the large collections of historical items, such as bronze ware, chinaware, Chinese paintings and calligraphy works. Then continue to the famous Yuyuan Garden, which is a traditional Chinese garden with delicate buildings, exquisite layout and beautiful landscape. Around noon, you will have a sumptuous a la carte lunch. After lunch, proceed to the Bund area, and take a Huangpu River cruise, enjoying the different scenes on the two banks of the river: the skyscrapers on the east bank while old-style western buildings on the west. After that you will explore the Bund area and then visit an old street in Shanghai. 

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte lunch

Li River cruise, Guilin

Day 11Shanghai - Guilin

No escorted tour is scheduled in the morning so you can explore the city on your own. You may take a taxi to the newly rising Xin Tian Di (New World area) where the buildings perfectly combine both classical Chinese and western styles. The pubs and cafes there are very popular with local residents as well as foreign travelers. People at Xin Tian Di can almost speak some English, so basic communications will be no problem. In the afternoon, you will head to Guilin by air. Our local tour guide will greet you with our comfortable airport-hotel transfer service and help you check in the hotel.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast

Day 12Guilin - Yangshuo - Guilin

Your Guilin tour starts from the elite of it, Li River Cruise. As you cruise down from Guilin city to Yangshuo, you will see the splendid scenery of peaceful river and elegant hills all the way. Upon arrival, you will have a unique bicycle tour along the countryroad to enjoy the natural beauty of Yangshuo, and a family visit on the way to learn about the local farmers' life. Alternatively, we will transfer you there rather than riding a bicycle. After the sightseeing in Yangshuo, you will return to Guilin by our private car. Tips: Today we have to provide you a set lunch on the cruise which can not meet the serving standards of TravelChinaGuide. We kindly suggest you have a larger breakfast at the hotel this morning  to see you through the less than adequate cruise lunch. The cruise arrives at terminal Yangshuo around 13:30 to 14:30 according to the different water flows, where there are many cafes available for you.  

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch

Elephant Trunk Hill, Guilin, Photo by our clients Mr. Klaus Joachim Zanker and Ms. Helen Zanker

Day 13Guilin - Hong Kong

Today you will visit three famous attractions in Guilin, the Reed Flute Cave, the Seven Star Park and the Elephant Trunk Hill. The Reed Flute Cave is famous for the exquisite stalagmites and stalactites with interesting names. In the Seven Star Park, you can not only enjoy the beautiful stalactites, but also learn about the city's history from the historical sites, such as temples, bridges and stone tablets. Your last stop in Guilin is the Elephant Trunk Hill, which is a huge rock resembling an elephant drinking water at the riverside. Then your guide will see you off for the flight to Hong Kong. Upon arrival, you will head to the hotel by yourself. You can follow the signposts to take the Airport Express and get off at Kowloon Station. At the train station, the free bus K3 could transfer you to the hotel directly. Alternatively, you can also take a taxi from the airport to the hotel; the charge is around HKD350.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch

Our clients in Hong Kong

Day 14Hong Kong

Full day is free for you to explore the city on your own. We only reserve the hotel accommodation with daily breakfast for you in Hong Kong. Hereunder are our suggestions for your Hong Kong exploration tour, you can also make your own arrangement. In the morning, you can have a half-day Hong Kong Island tour. Take a peak tram ride to mid-level of Central District and then get to the Victoria Peak. The Repulse Bay, Aberdeen and Stanley Market are all the must-sees in Hong Kong. Finally you will come to the pier to take the Star Ferry to Kowloon and then walk along the waterfront back to your hotel. If feel interested, you could visit the Victoria Harbor to watch the wonderful A Symphony of Highlights at 20:00. If you travel with chidren, Hongkong Disneyland should not be missed in your family tour.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast

Day 15Departure from Hong Kong

Today you will head to the airport for your return flight by yourself. Please consult the hotel bellboy about where to take the limousine to the airport, or you can take free bus K3 to Kowloon station, from where you could transfer to the Airport Express directly. Wish you a pleasant journey home! If your tour duration is much longer, you can check our City Package to plan an extension tour.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast

Accommodation

Grade	Luxury	Standard
Beijing	Crowne Plaza	Holiday Inn Central Plaza the best Holiday Inn Hotel in Beijing
Xian	Shangri-la Golden Flower Hotel - South Wing	Grand New World Hotel
Yangtze River	President No.1	President No. 2 President No. 3
Shanghai	Renaissance Shanghai Yuyuan Hotel	Ya Fan Long Men Hotel
Guilin	Sheraton Hotel	Guilin Bravo Hotel
Hongkong	InterContinental Grand Stanford Hong Kong	Regal Kowloon Hotel

• ◆ 2012 Price
• ◆ 2011 Price

Based on per person and in U.S. dollars, valid from Mar. 1st, 2012 to Feb. 28th, 2013

Grade	Luxury				Standard
	High season		Shoulder season		High season		Shoulder season
	Double	Single	Double	Single	Double	Single	Double	Single
2-5 persons	$3809	$5069	$3769	$4999	$3389	$4299	$3349	$4229
6-9 persons	$3399	$4659	$3349	$4589	$2979	$3889	$2939	$3819
10 & above	$3139	$4369	$3099	$4299	$2689	$3529	$2649	$3459

Note: For the Yangtze portion of this itinerary, we quote the price based on the President No.1 cruise ship (Luxury Series). The quotation is subject to change if you happen to meet the sailing date of any other cruise ships. Besides, the prices also exclude the service charge of CNY150.00 per person recruited by the cruise company, you need to pay on the spot when you board the cruise.

Based on per person and in U.S. dollars, valid from Mar. 1st, 2011 to Feb. 29th, 2012

Grade	Luxury				Standard
	High season		Shoulder season		High season		Shoulder season
	Double	Single	Double	Single	Double	Single	Double	Single
2-5 persons	$3839	$5079	$3799	$4999	$3369	$4249	$3329	$4179
6-9 persons	$3409	$4649	$3369	$4569	$2949	$3829	$2909	$3759
10 & above	$3209	$4399	$3169	$4339	$2729	$3549	$2689	$3479

Note: For the Yangtze portion of this itinerary, we quote the price based on the President No.1 cruise ship (Luxury Series). The quotation is subject to change if you happen to meet the sailing date of any other cruise ships. Besides, the prices also exclude the service charge of CNY150.00 per person recruited by the cruise company, you need to pay on the spot when you board the cruise.

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For our quotation inclusions & exclusions, booking and cancellation terms, please read Terms and Conditions.