• Full Itinerary
• Brief Itinerary

B-- Breakfast     L-- Lunch     D-- Dinner

Exhibitions in the Hanyangling Museum, Xian

Day 10Xian - Lhasa

Visit the Great Mosque and a local family in the morning. Take flight to Lhasa, with an altitude of 3,600 meters above sea level and transfer to the hotel. Acclimatize yourself to the high altitude in the afternoon. Lunch is on your side. Dinner is served at your hotel.(B+D)

Tips: Just landing on this high altitude city, you maybe not fit for it and you have to accustom to this gradually. We suggest you take a short shower and with the door open for more breath tonight. Strolling slowly or some fresh fruits can do you some favor for easing slightly. If you have a strong high altitude sickness, you can buy a small bottle of oxygen at the hotel which can help you relieve from the suffering. It prices at 30 Yuan per bottle. However, it is not recommended because you may be reliant to that. We suggest you overcome it by yourself. Some amount of exercise before entering Lhasa can also help you a lot, and please make sure you do not catch a cold before you enter Lhasa.

Day 11Lhasa

Visit the Tibet Museum and the Carpet Factory. After having a western-style lunch, go head to visit the Sera Monastery and the Norbulingka Park. The a la carte dinner will be arranged for you at a local best Sichuan cuisine restaurant.(B+L+D)

Our clients with the local Tibetans

Day 12Lhasa

Visit the magnificent Potala Palace. After a western-style lunch, visit the Jokhang Temple, the thriving bazaar of the Barkhor Street and the Tibetan Traditional Medicine Hospital. Dinner is served at your hotel.(B+L+D)

Tips: Potala Palace is regards as the holiest place in Tibet. There are many restrictions when visiting the palace. For example, you are not allowed to wear hat when visiting, no stepping on the doorsill and no photos at all. Before enter the palace, the safe guard at the entrance will check your passport and the things you take. Any inflammable and explosive dangerous things, knives even the nail-clippers are forbidden. You are also constricted to visit the palace within one hour so some materials reading about the palace beforehand can help you learn more about it.  Descriptions: Sera Monastery - Built from 1419 to 1434, Sera Monastery is one of the three greatest monasteries in Lhasa with Drepung Monastery and Ganden Monastery. It is dedicated to the Gelugpa, a branch of Tibetan Buddhism. The monastery collects a large quantity of precious cultural relics and crafts, such as sutras, Buddha statues, scent cloth and unparallel murals. The most attractive activity here is the sutra-debating among lamas, which can enhance the comprehension of the sutra. It is going from 15:00 to 16:30 every day except Saturday and Sunday. You won't miss it.
 
Descriptions: 
Jokhang Temple - is a Tibetan Buddhist temple in the city center of Lhasa, and has the supreme position in Tibetan Buddhism. In the year of 2000, it was listed to the World Cultural Heritages. In the temple, a full-length statue of Sakyamuni when he was 12 years old is enshrined. The statue was brought from Chang'an (Xi'an nowadays) by Wencheng Princess in Tang Dynasty. To some extent, the Barkhor Street can be said as the symbol of Lhasa. It is a must for travelers. Locates in the old city area of Lhasa, it is an annular street surrounding the Jokhang Temple and is also the oldest street in Lhasa. To the travelers, the street is a shopping paradise for the Tibetan crafts and souvenirs. To the Tibetans, it is an annular road for pray.

Day 13Lhasa - Gyangtse

Drive to Gyangtse and transfer to the hotel. Stop off at the Yamdrok Yumtso Lake. Visit the Palkhor Monastery and the Gyangtse Old Street. Dinner is served at your hotel.(B+L+D)

Descriptions: Yamdrok Yumtso Lake - "Yamdrok Yumtso" means "Lake of Swan" in Tibetan. As one of three sacred lakes in Tibet, it absorbs both pilgrims and tourists to walk along its lakefront. In rainy season, Yamdrok is like a bashful girl hiding her nice face in the gauze-like mist. When a ray of sunlight penetrates the mist, the clear water like jade, towering snow-capped mountains and high blue sky appear in front of you instantly, which is really intoxicating.

Tibetan lamas in the Tushilunpo Monastery

Day 14Gyangtse - Shigatse

Drive to Shigatse and transfer to the hotel. Visit the Tashilunpo Monastery and the New Palace of Panchen. Dinner is served at your hotel.(B+L+D)

Tips: It is an interesting phenomenon in Tibet that the cattle dung can be seen stored in piles in the yard or adhibiting on the wall in each house. Tibetan people are so clever and find that the cattle dung is a kind of clean and economical fuel, because the cattle only eat grass so that they are far from being polluted. The amount of cattle dung stocked is regarded as the token of wealth of each family. Namely, the more dung you pile, the more cattle you have, then the richer you are. You will have a deep sight when you take the family visit in Lhasa or roam around the Gyangtse old street.

Day 15Shigatse - Lhasa

Drive back to Lhasa and transfer to the hotel. Dinner is served at your hotel.(B+L+D)

Day 16Lhasa - Shanghai

Visit a Tibetan family. Take flight to Shanghai and transfer to the hotel.(B+L)

Tips: This evening, we would like to recommend the newly renovated recreational district Xin Tian Di (New World, New Heaven and Earth) for your free exploration. Xin Tian Di area was restored from the old Shikumen neighborhood, a type of tenement found only in old Shanghai. Now these old stone buildings are reconstructed into boutiques, clubs and restaurants. The "Wu Li Xiang House", meaning Open House, is a best kept old Shanghai style house in Xin Tian Di area. It is like a Shanghai family museum. If you are interested, you are suggested to visit it by yourself after dinner. Xin Tian Di also assembles the various Shanghai foods there and it is easily for you to find a restaurant or café for dinner. Xin Tian Di is in the downtown area and not far from your hotel. It is convenient to take a taxi there.

Golden roof of the Potala Palace, Lhasa

Day 17Shanghai

Visit the Shanghai Museum and the Yuyuan Garden. After lunch, different itinerary is scheduled for luxury and standard series according to the “Differences” specified below. The farewell dinner is served at Central Hotel, whose restaurant Wang Bao He has a history of around 260 years and is the best place to serve Shanghai Cuisine. The memorable dinner will be followed by the Portman Acrobatic Show at the Shanghai Centre Theatre.(B+L+D)

Differences:
Luxury series: You will take a short cruise tour from the Bund area to Wusongkou pier along the Huangpu River in the afternoon.
Standard series: The guide will accompany you walking along the Bund area and visiting a local family in the afternoon.
 
Descriptions:
Shanghai - Nicknamed as “Paris of the East” and “Oriental Pearl”, Shanghai is not only a commercial and financial hub, but also a renowned touristy city. There are a lot of attractions in the city, including the historical landmarks like the Bund and Xintiandi, and the modern structures such as the Oriental Pearl TV Tower and Yangpu Bridge, which are worthy of exploration.
 
The Bund - The Bund ("Wai Tan" in Chinese) is a must-see tourist attraction on the bank of Huangpu River. The name “Bund” derived from an Anglo-Indian term, means “a muddy embankment”. Over 150 years ago, Shanghai was a small coastal town on the bank of the Huangpu River. The Bund area was merely a towpath with a wide waterfront. In 1842, as the result of the Opium War, Shanghai was opened up as gateway to the West. The Bund became a crucial waterfront after foreigners flocked here to do business.
 
Shanghai Museum - Situated in Renmin Dadao on the south side of the People's Square, Shanghai ranks among the four greatest museums in China, together with the National Palace Museum of Beijing, Shaanxi History Museum in Xian and Nanjing Museum in Jiangsu Province. Its rich collection of artistic works includes bronze objects, calligraphy and paintings, potteries, jade wares, stone sculptures, seals, coins, silk and embroideries, handicrafts of ethnic minorities, inscriptions and carvings on bones and ivories.

Day 18Departure from Shanghai

Today you will be transferred to the airport for your homeward flight.(B)

Destinations	Today's Activities	Meals Included
Day 01 Arrival in Beijing	Pick up & airport-hotel transfer	No meals
Day 02 Beijing	Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, Beijing Duck Dinner, Peking Opera performance	B+L+D
Day 03 Beijing	Badaling Great Wall, Sacred Way, Ming Tomb, Bird's Nest (drive by)  Luxury: A la carte dinner  Standard: Dinner on your own	Luxury: B+L+D Standard: B+L
Day 04 Beijing - Urumqi	Summer Palace. Fly to Urumqi & airport-hotel transfer	B+L
Day 05 Urumqi - Turpan	Urumqi-Turpan transfer, Jiaohe Ruins, Karez Well, Sugong Pagoda	B+L
Day 06 Turpan - Dunhuang	Gaochang Ruins, Baizikeli Thousand Buddha Cave, Flaming Hill.Overnight soft sleeper train to Dunhuang	B+L+D
Day 07 Dunhuang	Railway station-hotel transfer, Camel-ride along the Echoing-Sand Dune to reach the Crescent Lake, Mogao Grottoes	L
Day 08 Dunhuang - Xian	Fly to Xian & airport-hotel transfer, City Wall, A la carte lunch  Luxury: Buffet dinner at your hotel  Standard: Dinner on your own	Luxury: B+L+D Standard: B+L
Day 09 Xian	Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum, A la carte lunch, Big Wild Goose Pagoda  Luxury: Tang Dynasty Dinner Show  Standard: Dumpling Banquet and Tang Dynasty Music and Dance Performance	B+L+D
Day 10 Xian - Lhasa	Great Mosque, a local family visit. Fly to Lhasa & airport-hotel transfer, dinner at hotel	B+D
Day 11 Lhasa	Tibet Museum, Carpet Factory, a western-style lunch, Sera Monastery, Norbulingka Park, A la carte dinner	B+L+D
Day 12 Lhasa	Potala Palace, a western style lunch, Jokhang Temple, Barkhor Street, Tibetan Traditional Medicine Hospital, dinner at hotel	B+L+D
Day 13 Lhasa - Gyangtse	Lhasa-Gyangtse transfer, Yamdrok Yumtso Lake, Palkhor Monastery, Gyangtse Old Street, dinner at hotel	B+L+D
Day 14 Gyangtse - Shigatse	Gyangtse-Shigatse transfer, Tashilunpo Monastery, New Palace of Panchen, dinner at hotel	B+L+D
Day 15 Shigatse - Lhasa	Shigatse-Lhasa transfer, dinner at hotel	B+L+D
Day 16 Lhasa - Shanghai	Tibetan Family. Fly to Shanghai & airport-hotel transfer	B+L
Day 17 Shanghai	Shanghai Museum, Yuyuan Garden in the morning, A la carte farewell dinner, Portman Acrobatic Show  Luxury: Huangpu River cruise in the afternoon  Standard: Bund area, a family visit in the afternoon	B+L+D
Day 18 Departure from Shanghai	Hotel-airport transfer & see off	B
Accommodation Grade Luxury Standard Beijing Crowne Plaza Holiday Inn Central Plaza the best Holiday Inn Hotel in Beijing Urumqi Sheraton Urumqi Hotel Ramada Tunhe Hotel Urumqi Turpan Huozhou Hotel Huozhou Hotel Dunhuang Dunhuang Hotel Building No. 8 Dunhuang Hotel Building No. 8 Xian Hyatt Regency Hotel Grand New World Hotel Lhasa Four Points by Sheraton Lhasa The ShangBala Hotel Gyangtse Gyangtse Hotel Gyangtse Hotel Shigatse Shigatse Hotel Shigatse Hotel Shanghai Majesty Plaza Shanghai Ya Fan Long Men Hotel For the detailed hotel information, please click. Currency Converter Prices (based on per person and shown in US dollars) 2010 Prices (Valid from Mar. 1st, 2010 to Feb. 28th, 2011) Grade Luxury Standard High Season Low Season High Season Low Season Double Sole Double Sole Double Sole Double Sole 2-5 persons $4299 $5239 $3979 $4609 $3769 $4309 $3589 $3969 6-9 persons $3739 $4679 $3429 $4059 $3219 $3749 $3039 $3409 10 & above $3389 $4259 $3049 $3589 $2889 $3389 $2699 $3019