Summer Palace, Beijing

Day 01Arrival in Beijing

Our guide will meet you outside the baggage claim area at Beijing Airport and transfer you to hotel. The rest day is free.

Day 02Beijing

Visit Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City and the Temple of Heaven. The Beijing Duck Dinner is served at a famous restaurant followed by a lively Peking Opera performance at the Liyuan Theatre.(B+L+D)

Tips: It is a better route to enter the Temple of Heaven via the South Gate and get out of it through the East or West Gate. You can visit the Circular Mound Altar, Echo Wall and the Hall of Praying for Good Harvest in order to avoid returning to the sites that you have visited. Besides, you will have a chance to see how the local retired people enjoy at the Temple of Heaven. Everyday there are many retired people coming here to relax and entertain themselves. They are playing Chinese chess, playing the musical instruments, teasing their pet birds, chatting, singing and dancing. To join them for a short time is quite an interesting experience.
 
Descriptions: 
Forbidden City - The architecture in the Outer Court of the Forbidden City seems very magnificent. The dooryards are widen and lightful. The Hall of Supreme Harmony, Taihedian, lies on the center of diagonals of the Forbidden City. On the four corners of the Hall of Supreme Harmony stand four animal statues with auspicious signs. Compared with the Outer Court, the architectural style of the Inner Court is so different. The construction of the Inner Court is deep and compact. Decorated with palace lanterns, the buildings stand in a very good order.

Painting face for Peking Opera performance

Day 03Beijing

Visit the Badaling Great Wall. Lunch will be at a popular local Sichuan restaurant. Visit the Ming Tomb. On the way back to downtown, drive by the Bird's Nest (Olympic National Stadium). You will see its appearance at a distance. Then visit the Summer Palace. (B+L, D is included for luxury series)

Differences 
Luxury Series: an a la carte dinner is served at a famous Cantonese cuisine restaurant in the Wangfujing area. 
Standard Series: We prefer to leave this dinner on your own since it is easy for you to find some good Chinese restaurants or western-style ones in this metropolis. Also you may ask for some useful suggestions from your local guide or the hotel reception.  
 
Descriptions: 
Badaling Great Wall - the extraordinary megalith of ancient China. Badaling Great wall is the most developed section for tourism - it attracts millions of people each year. Seen from afar, it looks like a gigantic dragon winding its way along the mountain. It has been under the national protection since 1961.
  
Ming Tomb - The Ming tomb complex consists of thirteen tombs in different sizes. Each tomb leans against a mountain. Except Siling which lies in the southwest of Changling, the other twelve tombs assume a fan shape around Changling. Following the principle of Feng Shui, the thirteen tombs are in harmony with the mountains, rivers and vegetation around them. The philosophy of 'Harmony between Man and Nature' and the wisdom of the architects and the workers are exemplified very well by the Ming Tombs.

Golden roof of the Potala Palace, Lhasa

Day 04Beijing - Lhasa

This morning we flight to Lhasa where the altitude is 3,650 meters above sea level. Transfer to the hotel and spend the afternoon to acclimatize yourself to the high altitude in the afternoon. Dinner is served at your hotel.(B+D)

Tips: 1. All of our clients are presented a piece of white Hada on arrival in Tibet, which indicates you are pure, honest, loyal, respectable and highly welcomed by the Tibetans. As a matter of fact, it is quite a common practice for presenting Hada in Tibet. Hada is in general white-colored, because white represents purity and auspiciousness in their mind. There is also a kind of Hada that has five colors which is the most precious present for Bodhisattva and only used on certain occasions. Hada is made of raw or processed silk. The length of the Hada ranges from a few to several meters. The quality varies as the economic conditions differ. It is only the good wishes hada bears that people care about. In some festive days, Hada is exchanged for the purpose of wishing a happy life and eternal love, while when it appears on funerals, it bears the meaning of mourning for the dead and condoling the family.
 
2. You are required to show your Tibet Travel Permit when you board on the flight for Lhasa. The flight of Beijing and Lhasa is generally scheduled to take off in the early morning, so we advise you to go to bed early the day before. What's more, the flight lasts nearly 6 hours, it is very necessary for you to have enough breakfast at the hotel.

Drepung Monastery, Lhasa

Day 05Lhasa

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 the best local Sichuan cuisine restaurant.(B+L+D)

Descriptions:  
Tibet Museum - it is a treasure house of different sorts of antiques and artistic articles. It is composed of three parts: a main exhibition hall, a folk cultural garden and an administrative section. It is where people can have a deep understanding of Tibetan history and culture. The murals, title-conferring document, sutras, Buddhas, bodhisattvas and colorful tangkas are all on display here.
 
Sera Monastery - The Sera Monastery, a sacred land worth visiting in Lhasa, is lying at the bottom of Tatipu Hill. There are about 5,000 monks, and this number reaches to nearly 10,000 at the peak time. Go around, visitors will be dazzled by the colorful frescos painted in the halls. The Buddha statues, sacred vessels, thangkas, Buddhist sutra streamers and Sutra Pillars can be found everywhere. Many precious cultural heritages such as Buddha statues and Buddhist classics sent by the Ming administration are well kept in the monastery, which values very much to the research of Tibetan history, art and the relationship between Han and Tibetan People.

Tibetan people

Day 06Lhasa

Visit the Jokhang Temple and the thriving bazaar of the Barkhor Street. After having a western-style lunch, go ahead to visit the Tibet Museum, the Tibetan Traditional Medicine Hospital and the Carpet Factory. Dinner is served at your hotel.(B+L+D)

Tips: 
To avoid any embarrassment or unnecessary trouble, you are advised to learn more about Tibetan customs and taboos before entry. For instance, in the monasteries, you shouldn't touch the sutras, Buddha or murals as you like. Shorts, miniskirts and vests are unacceptable. Sunglasses and hats should be taken off. Tibetans hate killing animals particularly like snakes, frogs, cats etc. When you come across a child and intend to take photos with him. It is polite to get his permission first and give him a small gift in return. 
 
Descriptions: 
Potala Palace - the grandest complex building in Tibet, Potala palace was enlisted in the World Cultural heritage in 1994. It was initially built for Wencheng princess of Tang Dynasty, who got married to Songtsen Gampo, the king of Tubo. The original palace was ravaged by fire, lightning and war later. Additions and repairs have made it the present scale and state.

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