
Destinations: Forbidden City, Summer Palace, Temple of Heaven, Terra-cotta Warriors, ancient City Wall and Big Goose Pagoda
Overview
This multi city tour includes the main sights in Beijing, Xi’an and Shanghai. The 3 days independent Beijing tour show you the ancient architectures with their background history such as Forbidden City, Summer Palace, Temple of Heaven as well as the amazing Mutianyu Great Wall. The 2 days tour in Xi’an show you the amazing Terra-cotta Warriors, ancient City Wall and Big Goose Pagoda… The 2 days trip of Shanghai to visit the old downtown area as well as the internationalized architectures, Yu Garden, the Bund area as well as Zhujiajiao Water Town. All transfers listed, guide service and tickets to the sights are included. Please cover the lunch by your own expense.
Highlights
Visit the most popular and famous tourist spots of Beijing, Xi’an and Shanghai and experience the different parts of China from North to South;
Enjoy the fun of toboggan down from the Great Wall (Mutianyu section);
Explore the local snacks in Muslim Quarter in Xi’an;
Get insights into local history and culture from your guide;
Travel with high speed train experience from Beijing to Xi’an;
Take convenient domestic flight from Xi’an to Shanghai;
Ensures a personal experience hassle-free pickup and drop-off in Beijing, Xi’an and Shanghai;
Itinerary
Day 1Beijing: Tian’anmen Square – Forbidden City – Hutong – Lama Temple
Pick up at the hotel at 8:30am to 9:00am
Tour Tian’anmen Square – one of the world’s largest public square. Explore the sites around the square with opportunities to take some amazing pictures.
Forbidden City – the world’s largest public square. Explore the sites around the square with opportunities to take some amazing pictures.
After lunch, drive to the hutong (old residential area). Walk around old Beijing hutong nearby Shichahai Lake.
We will then take a 30-minute ride to the Lama Temple, it’s the largest and most well-preserved Tibetan Buddhist Temple in Beijing.
As an optional excursion, you may choose to include the deliciously famous Perking Roast Duck Dinner and the Acrobatic Show Performance at the Chaoyang Theatre. Please notify us if would like to take advantage of this special, exciting addition.
Day 2Beijing: Mutianyu Great Wall – Summer Palace
Pick up at your hotel (recommend start the tour at 7:30am to 8:00am)
Mutianyu Great Wall (1 1/2 to 2 hours drive)
This is a one of the most famous and ideal sections of the Great Wall. You will have your choice of taking the cable car or chair lift up the breathtaking wall and spend a leisurely 1 to 2 hours hiking up and down the various sections exploring the Watch Towers and marveling at the construction and beauty of the renown and legendary Wall. You then have the option of an exhilarating toboggan ride back down or simply return the way you came.
Lunch in a local Chinese restaurant or at the subway restaurant down the Mutianyu Wall.
Afternoon, visit Summer Palace, a summer resort for the imperial family members – considered the best preserved imperial park.
Day 3Beijing – Shanghai By High Speed Train – Temple of Heaven – Pearl Market
Temple of Heaven: the largest Imperial place of worship from ancient times. This special place becomes a park where the local community utilizes this beautiful and enormous space for social activities such as singing, dancing, and Taiji practice.
Pearl Market: Here you can find those fun knock-off brand bags, shoes, and watches as well as pearls. There is a little bit of everything here, and you will surely find some great souvenirs to bring home to family and friends.
Transfer to the railway station for taking the 14:00pm high speed train (departures from Beijing south railway station) from Beijing to Xi’an.
Be picked up at the Xi’an North railway station at 18:20pm by your local private driver & transfer to the hotel in downtown Xi’an.
Day 4Xi’an: Terra-Cotta Warriors – Big Goose Pagoda – Muslim Street
Terra-Cotta Warriors – One of the most significant archaeological finds in the world, this 16,300-square-meter excavation reveals more than 7,000 life-size terra-cotta figures of warriors and horses arranged in battle formations.
Big Goose Pagoda – is a Buddhist pagoda built in 652 AD during the Tang Dynasty and originally had five stories. The original construction of rammed earth with a stone exterior fade eventually collapsed five decades later to be rebuilt by Empress Wu Zetian in 704AD who added five more stories. A massive earthquake in 1556 heavily damaged the pagoda and reduced it by three stories, to its current height of seven stories.
Muslim Street – located within the shadow of the Drum Tower, Huimin Jie is a 500-meter street lined with restaurants whose proprietors are almost exclusively Chinese Muslims.
Day 5Xi’An/Shanghai By Flight- Ancient Traditions
City Wall – the most complete city wall that has survived in China, as well being one of the largest ancient military defensive systems in the world.
Drum Tower & Bell Tower – the Drum Tower was built in 1380 during the early Ming Dynasty, and got its name from the huge drum located within the building. In contrast to the Bell Tower, where bell was stricken at dawn, drum was beat at sunset to indicate the end of the day.
Great Mosque – is the oldest and one of the most renowned mosques in the country, founded in 742 during the Tang Dynasty (618-907).
Hangyang Tombs Museum – is the historical site designated for state protection. This mausoleum which combines modern technology, ancient civilization, historical culture and garden scenery, is built at the base of the joint tomb of Emperor Jingdi and his Empress. It is the largest museum in China.
Drop off at the Xi’an airport & take the evening domestic flight from Xi’an to Shanghai (2.5 hours, economic class).
Be picked up at Shanghai airport by your local driver & transfer to Shanghai center city hotel.
Day 6Shanghai: Long Hua Temple & Pagoda – Old Town area – Xintiandi – The Bund area
Pick you up after breakfast at your hotel at 8:30am or 9:00am.
Long Hua Temple & Pagoda – is located on the Longhua Road at the south of the city, famous for the ancient Longhua Temple and its pagoda. It was built in 242 AD which is during the period of the Three Kingdoms, Longhua Temple is the oldest temple in Shanghai for its long history of over 1700 years. Besides its long history, Longhua Temple is also the largest temple in Shanghai city.
Old Town area – visiting famous Yu Yuan Garden and Bazaar – Yu Yuan Garden is the largest and best known of the historic gardens of Shanghai (Built in 1559). The bazaar – is a market with lots of small shops / vendors selling souvenirs, hand-made crafts, folk crafts, and packed snacks.
Xintiandi – is composed of an area of restored traditional “stone gate” (Shikumen) houses on narrow alleys, a modern shopping mall with a cinema complex, and some adjoining houses which now serve as book stores, cafes and restaurants. Most of the cafes and restaurants feature both indoor and outdoor seating. A Stone Gate House Museum there is the place for you to pay a visit to the inside of a house to experience the life in the “Stone Gate” house.
Local Flower & Bird Market Experience-experience the local people’s life.
The Bund area – is one of the top ten Shanghai attractions. Just like a gallery of international architectures – historic European style buildings located on the Bund. It’s the showcase of the city’s colonial past and its transformation in the new year. Known as “the Wall Street in the Far East” in the colonial period. We will visit the original HSBC bank and the Peace hotel including the history gallery in the hotel.
Lujiazui Finance and Trade Zone – is the place not only being the finance and trade center of Shanghai, even China, but also full of the high skyscrapers.
Day 7Shanghai – Water Town
Local Park in the Former French Concession Area – have an idea of the morning activities of the Shanghai locals, experience the life style and be a local here.
Old Alley / Lane in Former French Concession Area – walking along the old alley / lane to explore the local life in the old house / lane. Best way to get away the hustling urban life and relax in that area.
Little White House – is a spectacular mansion which was one of the most opulent houses in former French Concession. It was home to a high-ranking official of the French Municipality at that time. Now is Shanghai Arts and Crafts Museum.
Water Village (Zhujiajiao) – is crisscrossed by rivers and canals, with 9 long streets running along the rivers and thousand of buildings of Ming and Qing Dynasty architecture flanking both sides.
After the tour, drop you off at the hotel in Shanghai in the end of the entire trip.