China Tour from Brisbane

Today, please arrange your own way to the airport for your flight to Beijing. As there is no direct flight from Brisbane to Beijing, we suggest you plan a connection in Sydney or Hong Kong with the help of flight trackers. You will fly at least 14 hours, so please make sure that your flight arrives in Beijing today (we will confirm with you your flight information in advance). If you have any questions on flight booking, feel free to ask your travel consultant.

Upon arriving in Beijing, meet your guide outside the customs of the airport. Your driver will transfer you to the arranged hotel for check-in.

Accommodation: Hotel New Otani Chang Fu Gong

In the morning, we will first visit Tiananmen Square to approach the Forbidden City, the residence of imperial families during the Ming and Qing Dynasties (1368 - 1911). Even from a distance, you will notice yellow glazed tiles, which symbolizes imperial power, covering the roof of the City’s main gate. Inside, images of dragon and phoenix – emblems of Chinese emperor and empress - dotting everywhere will also constantly remind you of what place you are now at. Even the layout is worth a checkout - you will find it fascinatingly symmetrical from east to west. Our tour in the City will climax with a visit to Treasure Gallery.

Enjoy an a la carte welcome lunch (valued at CNY150.00 per person and included in our price) with Peking Duck at a famous restaurant. In the afternoon, first visit Yonghe Temple, a place of pilgrimage for Tibetan Buddhists, and then Temple of Heaven, an imperial altar to pray for good harvests in ancient times.

In the evening, head for Liyuan Theatre to experience the live Peking Opera. We will be there earlier to watch the artists in the dressing room painting their face with character-telling designs. You will watch an opera performance that is way more than soprano singing arias - there are a lot to think of when we speak of Peking Opera all at once: acrobatics fights, dances, narrative, flamboyant costumes, and totem-like facial make-up, apart from live music and singing. With history, culture, traditional aesthetic values all condensed into one art form, it is hailed as the quintessence of Chinese culture for a reason. Lots of meaning is unfortunately lost when it’s simply translated as “opera”. Anyway, hope you will enjoy this centuries-old Chinese art!

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte welcome lunch

his morning, be ready to set foot on the Great Wall of China (the section in Mutianyu), one of the biggest highlights of your tour in China! You are going to see the most beautiful part of the wall, constructed in the Ming era over 650 years ago. We will take a round-trip cable car to ascend and descend. A toast with red wine is also specially arranged to celebrate our visit.

Lunch is not arranged because restaurants nearby are not up to our standards. You may have a simple lunch at a nearby restaurant with the help of your guide.

Then, drive back to downtown. We will stop at the Olympic Stadium of Bird's Nest for a while for you to take some photos. Your tour for today will be perfected with a visit on rickshaw through Beijing’s hutongs, a historical area to find traditional courtyard houses and local life. We will also explore one of those houses and interact with its dwellers.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast

After breakfast, visit Panda House in Beijing Zoo. We will then head to Summer Palace, acclaimed as the Royal Garden Museum for the natural beauties and cultural relics in display.

Enjoy a local-flavor lunch around noon. Afterwards, you will be escorted to catch your flight to the next destination - Xi'an. Your Xi'an guide and driver will meet you at the arrival hall and drive you to the hotel.

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

The first stop of your tour in Xi'an is the Terracotta Army, the eighth of Wonders of the World, of life-size pottery warriors stationed here by First Emperor of China - Emperor Qin Shi Huang (259 - 210 BC) - to protect his mausoleum. We will then pay a visit to the family of Mr. Yang Zhifa, the very first man among other discoverers of the Army, to learn about details about his discovery. Next, spend some time in a workshop crafting a mini clay soldier of your own - a souvenir prepared for you - with a professional local artisan.

In the afternoon, learn more about this ancient city at the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda. At night, appreciate a fantastic Tang Dynasty Music and Dance Show while savoring the renowned Dumpling Dinner.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Dumpling dinner

Tip:
If today is a day in January, February, March, and December, you will enjoy a free evening, since the theater is usually not open at those times.

The morning will see you ambling around the City Wall Park, where locals do morning exercises and recreational activities. There, a master will teach you some moves of Tai Chi martial art. Then, climb up the famous Xi'an City Wall. You may either walk or ride a rental bike on the wall (bike rental fee not included). It’s hard to imagine the City Wall in Xi’an has survived some 1,400 years, since it’s first erected in the year 582 during the Sui Dynasty. How did it make it, then? Think of it as a hamburger - or Chinese Hamburger, a specialty of Shaanxi - of five layers: earth right in the middle mixed with sticky, cohesive fruit juice, with blue brick layers added to it by each following dynasty. It’s even more solid now, as it has been further upgraded by modern efforts.

Sample local food to tackle your lunch at Muslim Quarter, where you can find the said Chinese Hamburger, or Rou Jia Mo. Then, visit the Great Mosque and Shaanxi History Museum.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Local lunch

Today, you will be transferred to the airport for a morning flight to Guilin. Upon arrival, your guide will pick you up and transfer you to the hotel. After a short break, head to the Reed Flute Cave, a karst wonderland housing various stone formations, and later Elephant Trunk Hill, a giant sandstone elephant sucking water from the Li River. Actually, you are not visiting the only elephant-like natural formation in the world, as its incredible doppelganger has been found drinking the sea water off Étretat, a coastal town in the northwest of France. For their likeness, a sister relationship has been forged between the two.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast
Accommodation: Sheraton Guilin Hotel

Expect a spectacular experience today as you take a Li River cruise from Guilin to Yangshuo. A picturesque landscape portrayed as "Hundred Miles Gallery" will unfold before your eyes. We will spend about 4.5 hours on the ship.

Have a box lunch onboard. (It’s likely that you may find it too simple, in which case a hearty breakfast and some snacks prepared beforehand might help).

After disembarking in Yangshuo, head to its countryside. You can take a stroll to soak up its rustic scenery, but you will find a ride via rental bike or scooter (at your own expense) more fascinating. Round off your today’s trip with a family visit at a village, before we drive back to the hotel in downtown Guilin.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch

In the morning, you will be transferred to take a 5-hour bullet train trip from Guilin to Chongqing. Upon arrival, transfer with your guide to a pier to board the luxury Century Cruise Ship.

As the sun sets, enjoy a buffet dinner onboard and a Welcome Party at the invitation of your captain.

Your cruise on the Yangtze River is about to begin. A cradle of Chinese civilization, the river is often compared to the Nile, which gave birth to the ancient Egypt and all its sagas. Both are the longest rivers and boast the largest hydro-power plants - Three Gorges Dam in China and Aswan High Dam in Egypt - in the world. Hope you will enjoy the cruise with us, and perhaps in one day join us to explore mysterious Egypt.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Dinner
Cruises: Century Oasis

After breakfast, an onshore adventure at Fengdu Ghost City awaits.

Go back to the cruise at noon for lunch. You will enjoy a leisurely afternoon to see charming views on the banks passing by. There are also some cultural activities you can join to while away your time.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

The ship will cleave forward through the majestic Three Gorges today. You will first meet the Qutang Gorge about an hour before noon, and then the Wu Gorge an hour after lunch. While sailing through the Wu Gorge, be surprised by a side shore excursion to Shennv Stream. Enjoy dinner onboard.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

After breakfast, please pack your luggage and check out. You will go ashore to visit the grand Three Gorges Dam we have mentioned. Later, the ship company will transfer you to the Three Gorges Tourist Center in Yichang. Meet your local guide there and go on to take a 7.5-hour bullet train ride to Shanghai. At Shanghai’s train station, your local guide will pick you up and accompany you to the hotel.

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

Today's itinerary starts with the famous Shanghai Museum. After that, get to know what a typical classical Chinese garden is from a visit to Yu Garden. You will be amazed at how greenery, zigzag bridges over ponds, pavilions, and rockeries can be packed into such a small garden. Check out the nearby Yu Bazaar next.

At noon, enjoy a la carte farewell lunch (valued at CNY150.00 per person and included in our price) at a well-reputed restaurant. After lunch, go to Duo Yun Bookstore – the world’s highest bookstore located on the 52nd floor of the Shanghai Tower - to find a commanding perspective to take in Shanghai’s modern charm. Then, explore the Bund area, the place in Shanghai to appreciate skylines above colonial heritage and modern skyscrapers. We will also arrange a cruise along the Huangpu River for you. Have a free walk at the Bund for some time, until it’s time to drive back to the hotel.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte farewell lunch

Today is the last day in this package of China tour from Brisbane. After breakfast, please arrange your own trip from your hotel to the Pudong International Airport (PVG). We recommend you take a taxi to go there, which would cost about CNY 200. Wish you have had a nice tour with us! For your reference, there is a direct flight from Shanghai to Brisbane every day, with flight time about 10 hours.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast