Best of China

Today your best China tour officially kicks off! Meet your group members in the hotel lobby at 08:00, and your guide will conduct a 15-minute pre-trip meeting to make a self-introduction, welcome everyone, present a brief introduction to the trip, and explain the guidelines for the following tour.

Then we will head to the first stop, the large Tiananmen Square. Many constructions of great historical importance have been built on and around it, and it is an important venue for most national ceremonies. From there, let's stroll all the way to the Forbidden City, the office and home of emperors of Ming and Qing dynasties (1368 – 1911 AD). Here, we will spend 2 to 3 hours covering the most worthwhile sites.

★ We make each minute of your tour in Forbidden City count
Our special ticket-booking service and a knowledgeable expert guide will save you a lot of time and energy, for you to visit as many as significant sites during these hours. With us, you also get to step into the Treasury Gallery, a site you may find missing in tours arranged by other agencies. Just as the name suggests, this is where you can find the most precious treasures left by ancient emperors or empresses, like the 1.29m tall Peal-Inlaid Gold Tower that was crafted with 85 kilo grams of gold and hundreds of pearls and gemstones. Your guide will also embellish your tour with some stories that happened here, like why the water from all those wells you see wasn’t used for drinking. Actually, it once were, but since maids and eunuchs were thrown into the wells due to court intrigue, the water became ominous and no one dared to drink ever after. It’s when they started to fetch drinking water from a nearby mountain more than 20 km away.

After a Chinese local food lunch, we will head to the Temple of Heaven, the majestic sacrificial building complex where Ming and Qing emperors worshipped the heaven in hope of good harvest. Then we will arrange for you a lively and dramatic Chinese Acrobatic Show at the Red Theater.

To round off a memorable start to your travel, we will serve a welcome dinner tonight at a superb restaurant, where you can have a taste of the world-renowned Peking Roast Duck and authentic Chinese food. It is in a la carte style with a standard of CNY150 per person included.

Let’s call it a day now. We will escort you back to your hotel after the dinner.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch, A la carte welcome dinner with Peking Duck 
Accommodation: Hotel New Otani Chang Fu Gong

This morning we will escort you to experience at first hand the wonder of the Great Wall of China at its Mutianyu section. A round-trip cable car ride will be arranged to allow enough time on the Great Wall. Standing on the wall and looking at it as it winds up and down into the boundless distance is an exciting experience and will leave you with a life-long memory.

★ Let’s drink to this exciting moment
To celebrate and commemorate your visit to the engineering feat of humanity, we will specially provide red wine for a group-toasting after you finish your hiking on the Wall.

Getting down from the Great Wall, we will serve a buffet lunch with a mix of Chinese and Western dishes. Then we return to Beijing. On the way back, we will drive by the Bird’s Nest, or the National Stadium, for you to take pictures of this award-winningly beautiful steel construction, originally built for Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, from close by. 

Thereafter we will arrange for you to take a rickshaw ride through Hutongs to experience Beijing’s local life. Hutongs are alleys that are lined with Chinese traditional courtyard houses, or “Siheyuan”, a quadrangular compound with houses on four sides. The rickshaw, a main vehicle for transportation in Beijing’s past, will escort you for a Hutong tour for around 40 minutes, until you stop to step into a Siheyuan to visit a local family.

Then it’s time for us to escort you back to your hotel. Have a good rest and prepare for tomorrow’s trip.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Buffet lunch
Accommodation: Hotel New Otani Chang Fu Gong

The first stop of today's itinerary is the Summer Palace, the largest existing imperial garden with graceful landscape and magnificent historical constructions. If you travel in early July, summertime, lovely lotus scenery will be a delight.

After a lunch of local flavors to conclude your memorable tour in Beijing, your guide will see you off at the railway station for the high-speed train to Xi'an. The duration is around 4.5 to 5.5 hours. It is a good opportunity to experience China's fast-growing high-speed rail. On arrival, your Xi'an local guide will meet you at the railway station and escort you to the downtown area to check in at your hotel for a two-night stay.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch
Accommodation: Crowne Plaza Xi'an

Kick off your today’s tour with a visit to the man-made miracle Terracotta Army! Discovered decades ago, the army turned out to be the funeral objects for the mausoleum of Emperor Qin Shi Huang (259 – 210 BC), founder of the Qin Empire (211 – 206 BC) and China’s imperial history. The reappearance of the hidden wonder once shocked the world. But just as the earth caged it, the long history has drowned numerous facts about the empire or even the emperor himself (for example, as a figure full of masculinity and charm, why he seemed to be in lack of an empress remains a mystery!). Aside from having panoramas of countless warriors in pits forming a battle array, we will also show you the newly-set hall where the essence of all the archaeological discoveries is exhibited in glass, meaning you can observe the real deal up close and in details! Through 230 collections, many of which are their first time to show up, your guide will lead you to delve deep into the heyday of the fearsome empire. Marvel at meticulously sculptured animals like Chinese cane and camel, as well as the coloring on pottery or bronze!Getting out from the museum, you will enjoy your lunch today at a nice restaurant nearby, and then attend more interesting activities we have scheduled for you in the afternoon.

★ Privileges of Our Guests:
1. Family Visit to Home of the First Discoverer of the Terracotta Army
Not only the Terracotta Army but its discovery has been an intriguing mystery to most people, even to the former US president Bill Clinton, who, during his visit to the museum in 1998, invited the discoverer to recount how he unearthed the first terracotta warrior in 1974. After visiting the museum, let's visit the home of the discoverer, whose name is Yang Zhifa, to hear what President Clinton once heard and interact with his family. Inside the house, you can see the hoe he used to dig out the first warrior, the wooden cart used to transport it, and its 1:1 replica. Also, you may take photos with Mr. Yang personally if he's there.
2. Make a Mini Terracotta Warrior by Yourself
Then a visit is followed to a terracotta warrior making workshop. An artisan will explain the procedure and show you how to craft it step by step with the help of molds. Spend around 40 minutes to make your own mini warrior, which, of course, you can take home as a memento.

Put your little warrior in a safe place, and continue to visit the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda, which was built in the Tang Dynasty (618–907 AD) to store the Buddhist scriptures brought from ancient India. In addition to the strong Buddhist atmosphere, the fascinating royal stories of Da Ci’en Temple where the pagoda sits, are also waiting for you to explore. It is said that Tang Emperor Li Zhi, who built the temple in order to thank his father for electing him as the crown prince and to express his deep missing to his late mother. Then a splendid evening is in store, highlighted by the famous Dumpling Dinner and Tang Dynasty Music and Dance Show. After the show, we will escort you back to your hotel.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch, Dumpling Dinner
Accommodation: Crowne Plaza Xi'an

The day begins with a refreshing visit to the City Wall Park, where you can observe the day-to-day life of locals in the morning. You may see them singing, dancing, playing musical instruments, and playing chess. Join them if you want! A traditional shadowboxing class will also be arranged for you here. Shadowboxing, a form of traditional Chinese martial arts that strengthens both body and mind through slow gentle moves, is considered a quintessential Chinese culture, which you might want to experience yourself.

After that, let's pay a visit to the City Wall. It is the most complete existing urban fortification in China that dates back to 1300s. Cycling on the ancient wall is a recommended experience that many people find it unforgettable. Please note that bike rental fee is at your own expense.

Today we provide you with a special a la carte lunch at the Muslim Quarter, to taste local foods, like Chinese Burger, Biang Biang Noodles, Fried Beef Dumplings, and Cold Noodles with Sesame Paste. We particularly recommend you to try the Chinese Burger. The succulent shredded beef sandwiched into two halves of flatbread will make your day.

It’s time for you to say goodbye to Xi’an now, as we will escort you to the airport to board the flight to Shanghai. Your local guide will pick you up at the airport and escort you to the hotel.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte local food lunch
Accommodation: The Sunrise on the Bund

A day trip will show you the essence of Shanghai. This morning, your guide will accompany you to visit one of the four largest museums in China, Shanghai Museum, which specializes in exhibiting art works from ancient times. After that, explore Yu Garden. Symbols of the Garden - the Nine Zigzag Bridge, built of granite and grass-white jade, and the mid-lake pavilion - will mesmerize you with their quaint elegancy. Search for some souvenirs at its nearby historical bazaar if you like. Lunch today is on your choice and expense, and our guide will be glad to assist.

In the afternoon, follow your guide to wander along the prosperous Bund area and then take a one-hour cruise tour along the Huangpu River, during which you could appreciate the city's historical buildings on one side and modern skyscrapers on the other side, such as Oriental Pearl Tower and Jinmao Tower – two landmarks of Shanghai. Finally, upon returning to the hotel your guide will see you into the lobby to say bon voyage.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast
Accommodation: The Sunrise on the Bund

Check out from the hotel any time before 12:00 pm, and then head to the airport for your homeward flight. Your 8 days China tour package is waning to its close with wonderful memories. We suggest you reserve a taxi at the hotel reception beforehand to avoid having to wait for a taxi outside. The trip to Pudong Airport (PVG) will take about 1.5 hours and cost around CNY200. Ensure you have at least an hour drive if your flight leaves from Hongqiao Airport (SHA). The cost for the taxi there is about CNY100. Please check carefully from which airport your flight will depart. We wish you a smooth journey home.

Alternatively, should you wish to stay on rather than return home right away, we would be glad to assist you for an extension trip!

Meals: Western buffet breakfast