Day 1 Beijing
Upon arrival you will be met and transferred to the Holiday Inn Temple of Heaven.
Day 2 Beijing (BL)
Full day tour to Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven & Summer Palace
Forbidden City– was the Chinese imperial palace from the mid Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty. It is located in the middle of Beijing and now houses the Palace Museum. For almost five centuries, it served as the home of the Emperor and his household, as well as the ceremonial and political centre of the Chinese government. Tiananmen Square – is the large plaza near the centre of Beijing. It has great cultural significants as a symbol because it was the site of several key events in Chinese history. Temple of Heaven – literally the Altar of Heaven, is a complex of Taoist buildings situated in south eastern Beijing. The complex was visited by the Emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasties for annual ceremonies of prayer to Heaven for good harvest. Summer Palace – is the largest imperial garden in the world. It is a veritable museum of classical Chinese garden architecture. The initial construction of the Summer Palace began in 1750, commissioned by Emperor Qinglong as a gift for his mother’s birthday. The construction took 15yrs to complete
Day 3 Beijing (BL)
Full day tour to the Great Wall at Mutianyu (cable cars) & Sacred Way.
Great Wall – First built in the mid 6th Century during the Northern Qi, Mutianyu Great Wall is older than the Badaling section of the Great Wall. The Muitianyu section is the best quality among all sections of the wall. Spirit of Guardians at the Ming Tombs – one of the most impressive sights at the Ming Tombs. The Sacred way runs for about a kilometre and is flanked on both sides by carvings of human and animal figures. There are 12 large stone human figures and 24 of animals, all carved from single block of granite in 1435
Day 4 Beijing (BL)
Full day tour to Lama Temple, Beijing Zoo to see the Pandas and the Hutongs by rickshaw. Also see an exterior view of Olympic Park including the Bird’s Nest and Water Cube.
Hutongs - are alleys formed by lines of traditional courtyard residences. Lama Temple – is a working Monastery with Tibetan Monks
Transfer to the railway station for your overnight train to Xian. Z53 2124/0825
Day 5 Xian (BL)
Upon arrival into Xian you will be met and transferred to the Tianyu Gloria Plaza Hotel.
Afternoon tour of the Shanxi Historical Museum, City Wall and the Great Mosque
City Wall - is one of the largest and most complete ancient military systems of defence in the world. Shanxi Museum – without a doubt this is the best museum in China will a collection of more than 370,000 exhibits. Great Mosque – built in the Tang Dynasty this place of worship is still used by the Chinese Muslims. Unlike most mosques in the Middle East, the Great Mosque is completely Chinese in its construction and architectural style, for the mosque has neither domes nor traditional style minarets.
Day 6 Xian (BL)
Full day tour to the Terracotta Warriors, Banpo Musuem and Big Wild Goose Pagoda.
Terracotta Warriors – these terracotta figures were discovered in 1974 by several local farmers near Xian. The figures include warriors, chariots, horses, officials, acrobats, strongmen and musicians. Current estimates are that the three pits contain over 8000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses, the majority are still buried. Banpo Village – a Neolithic archaeological site more than 6,000 years old. Big Wild Goose Pagoda – a 7 storey, 64 metre high structure built with layers of bricks without any cement
Evening transfer to the railway station for your overnight train to Chongqing. T224/221 2233/0908
Day 7 Chongqing (BL)
Upon arrival into Chongqing you will be met to immediately start your tour of Erling Park, People’s Square and Stilwell Museum.
Erling Park – echo’s the layout of Suzhou gardens. There are pavilions, platforms, high buildings, winding paths and corridors, lotus ponds, arc bridges and so on in the whole garden. People’s Square- is a relaxing casual attraction with a musical fountain and evergreen meadow. Stilwell Museum - It covers 5,000 square meters. Its main structure is a two-storey building with a basement, which was used to house distinguished government guests during the Anti-Japanese wars
Afternoon transfer to the dock to board your Victoria Yangtze River Cruise Ship
Day 8 On Yangtze River Cruise (BLD)
Day 9 On Yangtze River Cruise (BLD)
Day 10 Wuhan (B)
Upon arrival into Yichang at noon, transfer by road to Wuhan. Overnight at the holiday Inn Tian An
Day 11 Wuhan – Guangzhou (BL)
Morning tour to Wuhan Museum
Wuhan Museum - collects, protects, and exhibits the cultural relics discovered in the province. Since 1953, the museum has collected over 200,000 cultural relics, including pottery, porcelains, jade, bronze vessels, ancient weapons, and ancient musical instruments Afternoon transfer to the railway for the world’s fastest train to Guangzhou. G1003 1600/1857. Upon arrival into Guangzhou you will be met and transferred to the Ocean Hotel
Day 12 Guangzhou (BL)
Today’s full day tour will take in Chen Clan Temple, Nanyue King’s Tomb, Yuexiu Park, Shamian and the Markets.
Chen Clan Temple - is known for its superb art of decoration for it epitomizes the folk decoration art of Guangdong. Nanyue King’s Tomb - is the largest color-painting stone tomb of Southern China. Yuexiu Park - Covering an area of 860,000 square meters (212.5 acres), the park is made up of three artificial lakes and seven hills of Yuexiu Mountain; hence the name Yuexiu Park. Shamain - Located on the north bank of the Pearl River, Shamian is an oval islet, covering a tiny area of 0.3 sq. meters Evening transfer to either the airport or train station for your onward travels
