How to book a tour
Highlights of China motherland
Tour code: beijing 033
Duration: 16 days
Route: Beijing, Huangshan, Shanghai, Suzhou, Xian, Guilin, Hong Kong
Attractions: Visit some of the best scenery and historical icons in China. From north to south it's all here.
Itinerary:
Day 1 Arrival / Beijing
Transfer via: Flight TBA on your own arrangement
Arrive at Beijing. Be met & transferred to your hotel.
Day 2 Beijing (B,L)
The Great Wall Tour, Ming Tombs, watch Peking opera in the evening.
The Great Wall of China is the longest structure ever built. It is about 4,000 miles long, and it was built entirely by hand. About 1, 200 - 1, 500 miles of the Great Wall were built during the reign of Emperor Shi Huangdi (Qin Dynasty). The Great Wall crosses northern China from the east coast to the central part of China.
Visit the fabled Ming Tombs, the resting places of thirteen emperors and their splendid treasures, passing down the Spirit Way, a road lined with statues of dignitaries, as well as huge elephants, lions, camels and horses, you will encounter the marble tombs of the Ming Dynasty emperors. Visit one of the spectacular tombs- Dingling featuring an underground palace.
Peking Opera or Beijing Opera is a synthesis of stylized action, singing, dialogue and mime, acrobatic fighting and dancing to represent a story or depict different characters and their feelings of gladness, anger, sorrow, happiness, surprise, fear and sadness.
Day 3 Beijing (B,L)
Forbidden City, the Temple of Heaven Tian'anmen Square and Summer Palace.
Tian'anmen Square, the symbolical heart of China and gathering place for the masses. It is the biggest public square in the world, which can hold one million people. Having a free walk there, imagining the great historic events of the 20th century took place there. You will also see legendary landmarks including the Great Hall of the People and the towering 125 foot granite obelisk, Monument to the Peoples Heroes, honoring those who died in revolution.
Walking across the Golden River Bridge, enter the Forbidden City, the inner sanctum and palace where for centuries Chinese emperors ruled their world. It has 9000-room maze of courtyards, places, and ceremonial halls, where 24 emperors used to live. Forbidden City was indeed a forbidden place, where commoners were kept out for nearly 500 years in the past. Tour the palace and imagine the mystery, intrigue and incredible power that reigned here.
Temple of Heaven was built in the 15th century, a sacred site for ancient Beijing, where the emperor and his 1000 member entourage would retreat twice a year for religious ritual. Surrounded by enormous grounds designed in accordance with fengshshui, the Temple complex consists of the Celebrated Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests, a unique wooden and blue-tiled structure built without a nail. It is considered the supreme achievement of traditional Chinese architecture.
Day 4 Beijing / Huangshan (B,L)
Transfer via: by air
Visit Hutongs by rickshaw & The Summer Palace. Take afternoon flight to Huangshan. Arrive at Huangshan, be met and trasfered to your hotel.
Hutongs: The old narrow paths where common people lived. All the Hutongs crisscross with each other, dotted with the Kindergarten, the Bell Tower, the Drum Tower, the Tea House, and the lake, House of Gong Infant and local people's houses among them.
The Summer Palace is the largest and best-preserved royal garden in China with a history of over 800 years. With its cool features - water, gardens and hills, it was the palace of choice for vacationing emperors and Dowager Empresses. It was badly damaged by Anglo-French troops during the Second Opium War (1860) and its restoration became a pet project of Empress Dowager Cixi, the last of the Qing dynasty rulers.
Day 5 Huangshan (B,L)
Take cable car to the top of Mt. Huangshan, tour to Jade valley and other peaks. Stay overnight on top of the mountain.
Mt. Huangshan: known as "the loveliest mountain in China", famous for its magnificent scenery made up of many granite peaks and rocks emerging out of clouds.
Day 6 Huangshan / Shanghai (B,L)
Transfer via: by air
Take cable car down from the mountain. Then visit Hong Cun Village. Be transferred to the airport for the flight to Shanghai. Arriving in Shanghai, be met & transferred to the hotel.
Hong Cun Village: An ancient town over 800 years old leaning against Mountain.
Huangshan, it is folded in the fog of the Mt. which makes it look like a river and mountain picts. It enjoys the reputation of "The Chinese town in the pictures". Especially, the whole town distributes like a "cow", which made it one of the wonders in the world culture heritage. The famous film"Crouching Tiger" was made here.
Day 7 Shanghai / Suzhou (B,L)
Transfer via: by train for soft seat
Transferred to Shanghai railway station for the train to Suzhou. Be met and drive to take city tour of the Grand Canal, Pan Gate, Lingering Garden, The No.1 Silk Factory and enjoy the Garden Show in the evening.
Grand Canal: The Grand Canal ranks alongside the Great Wall of China as the country's greatest engineering achievement and it is the longest man-made waterway in world.Cruising on the Canal,you can see the local people's life.
Pan Gate: Pan Gate is an ancient city gate with land and water entrances. One gate with land and water entrances was quite typical in ancient China. Pan Gate is the only one left.
Lingering Garden: Shouzhou is famouse for its the Gardens. Lingering Garden is an elaborate succession of small gardens. Linging in the garden you would marver this unique architecture art.
The No.1 Silk Factory: Suzhou is also famous for its silk production. In the factory you can see how the silk is processed from the silk worm to the final woven cloth.
Garden Show: You can engjoy the tranditional Chinese darmars, folk instruments performance and so on in the Garden.
Day 8 Suzhou / Shanghai (B,L)
Transfer via: by train for soft seat
Take a 30 minutes Rickshaw ride then visit Ouyang, Hanshan Temple & Tiger Hill. Be transferred to your Shanghai hotel tonight.
Rickshaw ride: Sitting on the rickshaw through the old town of Suzhou, you will see the small Hutongs,the open markets and the local people's life.
Ouyuan: one of the famous garden in Suzhou, where you can see the local opera under the Pavilion of the Ou garden.
Tiger Hill: is one of the most famous sight of Suzhou, Entitled as "the most famous place in Wuzhong", also named "Surging Sea Hill", "Surging Sea Peak".
Hanshan Temple: It used to be one of ten most famous temples in China where ther are a lot of cultural relics.
Day 9 Shanghai (B,L)
One day visit of Shanghai Museum, Yu Garden, the Yu Market and the bund.
Shanghai Museum: The biggest museum in China, with a collection of over 120,000 pieces of Chinese art & cultural relics. The museum is especially famous for its treasures of bronzes, ceramics, paintings, and calligraphy.
Yu Garden: It is characteristic of the architectural style of the Ming Dynasty and it used to be a private garden with 400 years' history. Infront of the garden, there is a market called Yu Market.
The Bund: the former foreign settlement, ranged along with imposing buildings of the colonial period.
Day 10 Shanghai / Xi'an (B,L)
Transfer via: by air
Be transferred to the airport for your flight to Xi'an. Arrive at Xian. Be met & transferred to your hotel. Have city tours to the Provincial Museum and the Ancient City Wall. Enjoy the Tang Dynasty show in the evening.
The Provincial Museum: One of the main museums in China which holds numerous unearthed cultural relics of China.
The Ancient City Wall: An extension of the old Tang Dynasty structure boasting the most complete city wall that survives through Chinese long history.
The Tang Dynasty show: The show that presents the palace dances and sings in the Tang Dynasty when Xian was the capital.
Day 11 Xi'an (B,L)
Visit the Terra-cotta Warriors and Horses, the Bell Tower and the Wild Goose Pagoda.
Terra-Cotta Warriors: The greatest archaeological findings of the century: the army of terra-cotta warriors and the bronze chariots entombed in vast underground vaults at emperor Qin's tomb.
Bell Tower: The emblem of Xi'an city.
The Wild Goose Pagoda: The pagoda where widely renowned Master Xuanzang (Monk Tripitaka) stored his classics brought from India.
Day 12 Xi'an / Guilin (B)
Transfer via: by air
Visit the Hanyang Tomb. Take flight to the next destination. Arriving in Guilin, be met & transferred to your hotel.
The Hanyang Tomb: The Jing Emperor's tomb in Han Dynasty which was opened in 2001 and is famous for its rich collections of different kinds of tombs.
Day 13 Guilin (B,L)
After the breakfast you take bus to Dock. You will start your Li River Cruise from here. The total Journey is around 30 Kilometers and takes 4 hours. On the way you will see the most beautiful landscapes and pass throw the local villages.
Later this day you will arrive at Yangshuo. You can also choose to stay in the town, stroll around the local market, witness the daily activities of local society. Or you might enjoy a class for Chinese Tachi in Yangshuo at sunset.
Yangshuo, the natural scenery features unique karst hills, crystal water, exquisite stones and intricate caves as well as a cultural historic heritage and folks of diverse customs. At night, have fun on the West Street, don't drink too much to miss tomorrow's program. Or you can go to watch the envening show -
Impression Liu Sanjie (optional). The optional ticket is RMB 188 per person. The Cormorant fishing show at night is also something new (optional).
Day 14 Guilin / Hong Kong (B,L)
Transfer via: by air
Morning bike ride to discover the rice paddies. To be transferred to the airport in the afternoon.Arrive at Honkong, be met and transferred to your hotel.
From 6:30 to 9:00 am, cycle for 2 hours from Yangshuo to Aishan Village in the early morning, you will arrive at the Licun village and then you continue you bike ride on the trails to Yangshuo. After a hot shower in the hotel, you will be transfer by company vehicle to take bamboo rafting for two hours on Yulong River through limestone mountains and trails.
Day 15 Hong Kong (B)
Full day tour to Victoria Peak, Aberdeen, Stanley Market and Wong Tai Sin Temple, Kowloon Walled City Park.
Day 16 Hong Kong / Exit (B)
Transfer via: Flight TBA on your own arrangement
Transferred to Shanghai airport for your flight to your next destination.
Service ends.