Pandas & Yangtze Cruise

Upon arrival at Beijing Airport, please clear yourself through Customs. Our English-speaking guide will meet you at the arrival hall and then transfer you to the hotel. Have a good rest to restore yourself for your lovely China tour; or, as your hotel is located right in Beijing’s cultural and commercial center, while away the hours by exploring whatever may interest you in the nearby areas.

Accommodation: Hotel New Otani Chang Fu Gong

After breakfast, our guide will host a 30-minute welcome meeting at the hotel lobby, to share some travel guidelines and tips for everyone to get prepared for your journeys ahead. Then, start this tour with an excursion to the world-famous Tiananmen Square, China’s open city square for grand national-level rallies. We will walk the square to reach the Forbidden City, with a visit to the Treasure Gallery included in the ticket.

The Forbidden City, once home and office to 24 emperors during the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368 – 1911 AD), is drawing people from all over the world to bathe themselves in the imperial radiance. Symbols and signs of imperial power can be found here and there, from the golden color of roofs, to images of Chinese dragon and phoenix, to lion statues... The former two are understandable, but, lions? Actually, Chinese emperors only began to see real ones since the Western Han dynasty (202 BC - 9 AD), when they were brought from Africa before His Majesty as tribute. For their intimidating magnificence, the lions were thought by the emperors as an emblem of power, and ever since began to sit at the doors of dignitaries. The bronze ones are those for Chinese emperors.

An a la carte welcome lunch (valued at CNY150.00 per person and included in our price) will follow at a noted nicely decorated local restaurant, for you to taste diversified Chinese food. Of course, Peking Roast Duck - an elaborately made cuisine served for royal families at ancient times - is covered.

The afternoon will see our visit to the Yonghe Temple, or Harmony and Peace Palace Lamasery, the largest imperial lamasery in China that survived over 300 years intact. Also the birthplace for two great Qing emperors, the temple is called “the womb of Chinese Dragons”.

Then we will head for the Temple of Heaven. This was where emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties offered sacrifices to Heaven in order to pray for bumper harvests. Its architecture, with round roofs symbolizing Heaven and square walls Earth, exudes a divine majesty you would hardly find anywhere else in the world.

To end today’s trip, we will surprise you with a special program: appreciating Peking Opera. We will go to a noted long-established theatre - Liyuan Theatre – to watch artists perform the art. There will be English subtitles displayed for you to understand it, so no need to worry about the language barrier. Listed as a Representative of Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO, it is something you would not want to miss. Wonder about the heavy makeup of the artists? We will come earlier to watch them wear it, as well as their lavish layers of costumes.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte welcome lunch

This morning, we will set off to the suburban Mutianyu Great Wall, the most beautiful part of an engineering feat of humanity – the Great Wall of China. As the Wall was originally built as a defensive system against the attack, you get to marvel at its impenetrable magnificence set against a pristine natural landscape. We will arrange for you to take a cable car up, hike all the way from No.14 watchtower to the highest No.20 watchtower, relish the picturesque landscape en route, and then come back down by cable car. The moderate incline of the segment makes it just the best choice for most people. We will also propose a toast and cheering with red wine for your accomplishment of the Great Wall tour.

Since restaurants and other businesses are restricted to protect the Wall from commercial pollution, we kindly suggest you have a sufficient breakfast at the hotel, and have some fast food for lunch around the site.

Then we will return downtown. A photo stop is arranged for you when we drive by the National Stadium, also the Bird's Nest. You don’t want to miss the Olympic sports venue, which is praised for its award-winning artistic exterior design.

Let’s finish today’s trip with a Hutong tour. A rickshaw ride will take you to experience real life of old Beijing though Hutong alleys, which are lined with courtyard houses – a traditional Chinese quadrangular residence. You get to see another side of Beijing through this 500-year-old historical part. The tour will end with a visit to a local family house in a Hutong, where you can interact with family members and ask them questions to learn about whatever you want. After that we will drive you back to the hotel.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast

Today you will be able to get close to those adored pandas in the Panda Hall, Beijing Zoo. Ever heard of the strange diet habit of these cute creatures? They satisfy their hunger with around 12 kilograms of bamboo per day and could spend up to 12 hours eating. We will have a lovely early morning by watching them eat and play!

Then visit the Summer Palace, the former imperial summer resort, originally ordered as a birthday gift from a Qing Emperor to his mother. In this largest, best-preserved imperial garden in the world, one thing of note is its Long Gallery. Listed in the "The Book of Guinness World Records" in 1992, it’s the longest gallery (728 meters, or 2,388 feet long) on earth with 14,000 paintings decorated up inside the roof.

Take your time to enjoy some local food as your lunch in Beijing, which will be the last memory Beijing leaves to you. Then you will be transferred to the airport for your flight to Xi'an. Our professional guide will meet you outside the baggage claim area of the airport and transfer you to the hotel.

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

Start our journey in Xi’an with a visit to a world-famous astounding discovery - the Terracotta Army. You are to step onto the mausoleum of Emperor Qin Shi Huang (259 – 210 BC), the founder of imperial China, who commissioned over nine thousands of terracotta warriors to serve his afterlife. It’s likely some of you may wonder if there is a Hua Mulan in the army. No, we have to say, there is none. Just like any other countries, women used to play the role of protecting babies, instead of their countries. But that’s not some unchangeable law, as historical records did find women in battles when there was shortage of soldiers.

★ Privilege of our guests:

► Family visit to discoverer of the first terracotta warrior.
The Terracotta Army might have still been underground if it was not for Mr. Yang Zhifa, who dug into the ground and found some pottery pieces with his hoe in 1974. Today, we will visit his family home and get to hear authentic stories from their mouths. Inside his house, the hoe used to dig, the cart carrying the first warrior, and its 1:1 copy might also interest you.

► Make your mini clay warrior and bring it home.
We have also prepared a special souvenir for you. In a workshop which appears to be a traditional cave dwelling for northern Shaanxi people in the past, an artisan will instruct you on how to craft a mini warrior with the help of a mold you will select from several of them provided. Your masterpiece will be done in 40 minutes. Gain a sense of unusual achievement and take it with you!Then a visit to the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda is scheduled. A major participant along the Silk Road in translating and introducing Indian Buddhism, this pagoda invites you to witness the history through its remains.

Tonight, a delicious dumpling dinner will be served along with the Tang Dynasty Music and Dance Show, for you to gain more insights into China’s intangible cultural heritage. We will escort you back as the curtain falls.

Travel Tip: If you are keen on the dumpling dinner and the show, you might want to join us in months except Jan, Feb, Mar and Dec, when the theatre is usually not open.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Dumpling dinner

This morning, refresh yourself at the City Wall Park, spend some time leisurely, and experience local life. A Tai Chi master will also take you on a mind-nurturing journey by teaching you some moves of a 600-year-old tradition that combines martial art and meditation.

From the park, you will ascend the ancient City Wall and have a panoramic view of the city. You can either stroll the broad brick walkway to take in all vistas from various angles, or ride a bike for a breezy experience.

As for lunch, we take you to the Muslim Quarter, which should be your top choice if you want to experience local life and flavors. You might be curious about some local dishes like Rou Jia Mo (Chinese burger), Niu Rou Guo Tie (fried beef dumplings), Ma Jiang Liang Pi (cold noodle with sesame paste)… Or the most interesting Biang Biang Mian, a type of sauced hand-pulled kind of noodles that dates back to Qin Dynasty, wide as belt, with a name consisting of complicated Chinese characters that don’t even exist.

After lunch, we will have a tranquil afternoon first at the Great Mosque and then at the Shaanxi History Museum. Constructed during Tang Dynasty (618–907 AD), the Great Mosque is a mosque but with classical Chinese garden architecture. It is a quiet delight hidden deep amid the bustling Muslim Quarter. If the temple attests to the religious side of the inclusive Tang culture, then the relics in the Shaanxi History Museum, which boasts over a million historical treasures with an emphasis on those crafted by Tang people, illustrates the Tang culture on a more comprehensive level. If the Shaanxi History Museum is not available, alternatively, the famous Forest of Stone Steles Museum will be arranged instead. Out from the museum, we will take you back.

Meals included: Western buffet breakfast, Local flavor lunch

Your stay in Xi’an ends with a morning flight to Guilin, a city world-famous for its natural beauty beyond compare. Upon your arrival, our guide will meet you outside the baggage claim area. Have a little break and prepare for your lovely excursions ahead!

In the afternoon, we will head to the Reed Flute Cave, a 240 meter (787 feet) deep karst cave. Praised as the splendid “museum of natural sculptures”, the cave is a symphonic poem written with stalactites, stalagmites, rock formations in various shapes, as well as environment-friendly atmospheric lightening against the darkness. Remember to wear non-slip shoes, for it might be slippery sometimes because of the moisture. Then we head to the Elephant Trunk Hill, which is a cult destination for its lifelike resemblance of a giant elephant scooping water from the Li River with its trunk.

The sun is setting. Time for us to drive you back to hotel.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast
Accommodation: Sheraton Guilin Hotel

After breakfast at hotel, we drive to a pier of the Li River where you will start your river cruise all the way down to Yangshuo. Revel in the primitive majesty flanking the river and experience local life through the popular West Street and then in the countryside.

The cruise will be a journey awe-inspiring from start to finish, getting past views acclaimed as the most beautiful karst landscape in the world. During the cruise, you will enjoy a simple folksy lunch before continuing to appreciate the intoxicating natural paintings surrounding you.

After 4 hours of cruise, disembark at Yangshuo County and walk into the 600-year-old West Street. A hot attraction for both domestic and foreign tourists, it has everything you might be interested in: local flavors loved nationwide, boutiques for souvenirs, cafes, bars… all amid hills and rivers.

Then we take you to explore the rustic side of Yangshuo. Through villages nestling in green hills, you get to see traditional houses very different from Beijing’s courtyard residences. Your trip here will be perfected with a visit to a local peasant's home. Perhaps you will learn how to fetch water from a well, or try on a traditional bamboo hat and a straw rain cape, just to have fun! After that, we will drive you back to the hotel in Guilin.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch

After breakfast, say goodbye to Guilin and we will transfer you to the station to take a high speed train with first class seat to Chengdu. In about 5 to 6 hours, your guide and driver in Chengdu will pick you up and transfer to the hotel. If time allows today, you will have a break and then be escorted to the most popular park in Chengdu – the Renmin Park, or Peolple’s Park. To experience real life of the locals, you get to drink local Gai Wan tea, tea served in cup with lid and saucer, and have a glimpse of the China's marriage market. Called “Blind Date Corner” in a literal sense, the market here is where parents post their children's profiles to "help" them find their future partners. It should be an interesting experience for you.

Thereafter, you will be transferred back to the hotel. As your hotel is located at the most lively center of Chengdu, it would be convenient to explore whatever may cater to your private taste for dinner, be it of local or western style. Feel free to ask your guide for any recommendations!

Meals: Western buffet breakfast
Accommodation: Holiday Inn Chengdu Oriental Plaza

If the Panda Hall in Beijing is an introduction, now you are going to watch the main part of the drama. Today you will have a pleasant date with those black and white fur balls at the Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, pandas’ home on earth. We will visit the base this morning, when our stars are most willing to show their active personality.

Then, continue to the Wide and Narrow Alleys, a relic that has survived from Qing Dynasty to become one of the hottest historical attractions here in the city for both tourists and locals. With quaint restaurants for local snacks, tea houses, bars and boutiques lined on both sides of alleys, the site is where authentic Chengdu cultures meet modern pleasures.

In the afternoon, our guide will drop you off at the railway station and help you get on a high speed train to Chongqing. It is a two hours trip. Upon your arrival, our guide in Chongqing will meet you and then escort you to board one of the most luxurious cruise ships on Yangtze River, on which you will spend your next two days to fully take in the views along its length.

It will be late into the afternoon when you’re aboard the ship. Have a break, eat a buffet dinner, and make this evening special by joining the Welcome Party at the cordial invitation of the captain. Dream sweetly, and then your unforgettable journey begins!

► Century Glory, one of the most luxurious cruise ships on Yangtze!
With advanced purified water systems, largest standard cabins with private balconies, a bar on sun deck, a la carte restaurants, grand atrium lobby and so on, Century Glory is carefully selected after field researches to provide you with consistent five-star services and the most immersive tour experience. Since the Century fleet were newly-built and launched only in recent two years, you are going to enjoy state-of-the-art amenities. There will also be a buffet dinner the day you go aboard, alcoholic drinks with themed meals each day, as well as night snacks, all for free, and all exclusive to Century Glory.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Dinner
Cruises: Century Glory

Disembark at Fengdu County, and we will visit the “underworld” mentioned numerous times in Chinese classics and folklores – the Ghost City, where the spirits of the dead face the judgement of the God of Hell. Perching on a mountain by Yangtze River, the Ghost City is a compact palace complex, built 2,000 years ago by Chinese ancestors to simulate Hell. This is definitely a hot attraction for everyone who take an interest in Chinese version of afterlife, although a little spooky!

Now it’s near lunch time. Get back on the ship and have an exquisite buffet lunch. In the afternoon, you may enjoy leisure time on sundeck or in your private balcony to appreciate river sceneries. The cruise company will also hold some cultural activities like a lecture on the Yangtze Three Gorges, flying kites, learning to tie a silk scarf, etc. You are welcomed to join in.

Meals: Full board served in buffet style

Today, your journey through the Three Gorges officially begins. The cruise guide onboard is expected to make a formal presentation. Get your camera ready! You are going to have one of the most breathtaking cruises in China. The Three Gorges comprises Qutang Gorge, Wu Gorge, and Xiling Gorge from west to east, each with its own unique landscape. If you describe Qutang Gorge as the steep, Wu Gorge would be the poetic, and Xiling Gorge the fearsome for its turbulent currents. Although the last is the longest, you would be most impressed by the middle one, which is the most sung gorge in Chinese poetry.

This morning, you will cruise by Qutang Gorge and Wu Gorge, until it’s time for a buffet lunch. Your afternoon will start with a side trip on a boat to Shennv Stream, a tributary from Wu Gorge, to get even closer to the natural primitive beauty and the tranquil life of Tujia Minority, a Chinese ethnic group who live an isolated life from the bustling outside world. Then you will get back ship and continue to cruise down the western section of Xiling Gorge.

Then, come inside the lobby from the twilight to have a buffet dinner and watch evening artistic performances prepared for you. Hope you will enjoy!

Meals: Full board served in buffet style

Your last excursion stop on Yangtze will be the Three Gorges Dam in Yichang City, the world's largest hydro project for flood control and providing more than enough electricity to the entire area of southwestern China. It is a symbol of humanity’s unbending will against destructive natural disasters. Pack your belongings for disembarking before the visit. It is an engineering feat you would not want to miss.

Afterwards, the cruise ship company will drive you to the Three Gorges Tourist Center to meet the local guide. You will take a convenient high speed train to your last scheduled destination, Shanghai. Since it’s a 7.5-hour trip, you might want to entertain yourself with music, books or movies. On arriving at Shanghai railway station, you will be met and transferred to the hotel.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast
Accommodation: Radisson Blu Hotel Shanghai New World

After breakfast, you will start your trip from Shanghai Museum, one of the four most important museums in China. It’s a treasure house for precious ancient Chinese art works, with a focus on ceramic art. Then head to the 460-year-old Yu Garden, a typical classical garden. You will walk into a nature in miniature, where trees, potted plants, pavilions, rockery, and ponds are harmonized into a mesmerizing waterscape. Nearby is Yuyuan Bazaar. We will leave you some free time, so you can explore the marketplace, perhaps for some souvenirs.

Around noon, you will enjoy an a la carte farewell lunch (valued at CNY150.00 per person and included in our price) at a famed local restaurant.

The afternoon trip will enable you to experience the energy of the city’s landmark first. The various architectural styles on the west side of the Bund will make you travel back to 1800s. To perfect your trip, a one-hour cruise tour along the Huangpu River will be followed, which stood witness to the vicissitudes on its riverfront in the past. The views on the banks, as well as the breeze through your hair, will surely leave you an unforgettable memory of this place. Next, you will be guided to walk through the Former French Concession, Tianzifang neighborhood, to explore the hidden charms of Shanghai. After a whole day’s sightseeing, now it’s time for our guide to transfer you back to the hotel and bid farewell to you.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte farewell lunch

My friends, it’s time for us to part ways and to wish you bon voyage. You will check out from your hotel before noon, and choose a way to the airport according to your flight schedule. To go to Shanghai Pudong International Airport or Shanghai Hongqiao Airport, You can either take Metro Line 2 from the metro station just outside your hotel, or hail a cab, which costs about CNY200 and CNY100 respectively.

We will be of your assistance at any time you need. Be safe and have a pleasant journey home!

Meals: Western buffet breakfast