11 Days Beijing-Xian-Chongqing-Yangtze Cruise-Yichang-Shanghai Small Group Tour

During this 11 Days BeijingXianChongqing-Yangtze River Cruise-YichangShanghai Small Group Tour, we will explore 5 different cities in China and have a 3 night cruise trip on the Yangtze River. During the tour, we are going to experience different traditional Chinese cultures and history in the Beijing and Xian, visit three Gorges Dam site, and explore one of the busiest cities in the world, Shanghai.

Highlight

  • Exciting hiking tour on Badaling Great Wall
  • Visit the biggest public square in the world
  • Enjoy Chinese Kung Fu Show
  • Experience the ancient royal’s life
  • Enjoy authentic Chinese foods
  • Explore local culture and life
  • View terracotta Army and other historical relic
  • Taste Dumpling Banquet, and watch famous Tang Show
  • Small Wild Goose Pagoda explore the classic Buddhist artifacts
  • Enjoy the beautiful night views of the Shanghai from the cruise ship
  • 3 night exciting cruise trip on the Yangtze River

Brief Itinerary

  • Day 1: Arrival Beijing
  • Day 2: Beijing City Tour
  • Day 3: Beijing City Tour
  • Day 4: Beijing – Xian
  • Day 5: Xian City Tour
  • Day 6: Xian – Chongqing
  • Day 7: Shibaozhai
  • Day 8: Baodong – Xiling Gorge
  • Day 9: Yichang – Shanghai
  • Day 10: Shanghai City Tour
  • Day 11: Departure Shanghai

Full Itinerary

Day 1 Beijing City Tour:

Sightseeing and Activities:
Accommodation: The Great Wall Hotel Beijing (5 Star)
Meals:

Welcome to Beijing. Arrival in Beijing, your tour guide will wait you at the airport and transfer you to the hotel in Beijing. Then you can either explore the city by yourself or take a rest in the hotel.

Day 2 Beijing City Tour:

Sightseeing and Activities: Tiananmen Square; Forbidden City; Temple of Heaven; Kung Fu Show;
Accommodation: The Great Wall Hotel Beijing (5 Star)
Meals: Lunch

Tiananmen Square in Beijing

After breakfast, we will first visit Tiananmen Square (40 minutes sightseeing), which is the biggest public square in the world that can hold more than million people.

Then We will cross over the Golden River Bridge to visit the Forbidden City (2 hours sightseeing) and experience the ancient royal’s life here.

Exit Forbidden City, and move on to Jingshan Park (40minutes sightseeing) to have a bird’s view of the entire Forbidden City. Jingshan Park is filled with community activities during sundays, such as tai chi, square dance, and other traditional activities.

Lunch at a nice Cantonese restaurant (la carte lunch).

After lunch, we will visit the Temple of Heaven (2 hours sightseeing), which was the spot where the Emperor pray for a good harvest. Three blue-tiled cone-shaped roofs of it, already become a worldwide symbol of Beijing.

Tonight we will appreciate a Kung Fu Show at Red Theatre, that tells a story about Chin Yu entering the monastery and making his way through life to finally becoming the Abbott.

We will transfer back to hotel after the show.

Day 3 Beijing City Tour:

Sightseeing and Activities: Badaling Great Wall; Ming Tombs; Jade factory; Olympic Park;
Accommodation: The Great Wall Hotel Beijing (5 Star)
Meals:

Badaling Great Wall in Beijing

08:30am, you will meet your guide in the lobby.

Transfer to Badaling Great Wall (80km, 1.5hrs driving). Badaling Great Wall, one of the most gorgeous and magnificent part of the Great Wall in Beijing. The hiking on the Great Wall takes 1-2 hours. Cable car or slide is optional.

We don’t arrange lunch for today, so please prepare some snakes and have a big breakfast. We will continue to visit a Jade factory after a break.

Later, we will transfer to the Sacred Way, the first attraction of Ming Tombs. And then go to Changling, one of the 13 Ming Tombs, which is the Mausoleum of Emperor Zhu Di, the third Emperor of Ming Dynasty. It is the largest, original and the best preserved among the 13 Ming Tombs.

After all, we will return to downtown Beijing and drop at the Olympic Park to take some picture from outside of the Bird’s Nest and Water Cube. The bird nest stadium hosted the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2008 Summer Olympics, and it’s the stadium for football competitions. Water Cube, or the Beijing National Aquatics Center, it’s the main stadium for all indoor aquatics competitions in the 2008 Olympics.

Back to hotel around 7:00 PM.

Day 4 Beijing – Xian:

Sightseeing and Activities: Summer Palace; Hutongs;
Accommodation: Sheraton Hotel (5 Star)
Meals: Lunch

After breakfast, we will visit Summer Palace (2 hours sightseeing), originally a royal garden and a temporary dwelling palace for emperors of Qing Dynasty. And experience old Beijing cultures in different Hutongs.

Lunch at Sichuan restaurant (la carte lunch).

After lunch, you will head to the airport and fly to Xian. The local guide in there will wait you at the airport, and transfer you to the hotel.

Day 5 Xian City Tour:

Sightseeing and Activities: Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum; Terracotta factory; Shaanxi Historical Museum; Small Wild Goose Pagoda;Dumpling Banquet; Tang Show;
Accommodation: Sheraton Hotel (5 Star)
Meals: Lunch & Dinner

Terracotta Army, Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses Museum, Xian

Today, we will start from the World’s Eighth Wonder, the Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum and a Terracotta factory.

Lunch at a local family, we will try some homemade a la carte lunch.

In the afternoon, we will visit the Small Wild Goose Pagoda —As the symbol of the old-line Xian, Big Wild Goose Pagoda is a well-preserved ancient building and a holy place for Buddhists.

For the dinner, we will taste the local Dumpling Banquet, and enjoy the famous Tang Show. (Note: The show and Banquet will be closed in Jan, Feb, Mar and Dec. So the prices of it won’t include in our tour during the periods.)

Back to the hotel.

Day 6 Xian – Chongqing:

Sightseeing and Activities:
Accommodation: President No. 86 with balcony (5 Star)
Meals:

After breakfast, After breakfast, we will take a stroll along the Ancient City Wall. The Ming City wall is one of the best preserved protection project in ancient time.

In the afternoon, the guide will transfer you to airport to take a flight to Chongqing. The local guide will pick you up from the station, and transfer you to board the President Series cruise ship (Stay on it for 3-night).

You can take a rest on the cruise, and wait for it to set sail. (No meals will be included for today)

Day 7 Shibaozhai:

Sightseeing and Activities:
Accommodation:
Meals: Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner

Today you will enjoy the activities on the ship.

In the early afternoon, you will have an onshore excursion while the ship anchors at Shibaozhai.

In the evening, you will be invited to participate in the Welcome Party hosted by the Captain.

Day 8 Badong – Xiling Gorge:

Sightseeing and Activities:
Accommodation:
Meals: Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner

Today our ship will sail through the part of the Three Gorges with the best views.

In the morning, we will pass through the Qutang Gorge, which is the most dangerous part of today. Then we will sail into Wu Gorge.

After lunch on the ship, we will have an excursion (3-4 hours) along the Shennong Stream by sampan.

Afterwards, the ship will continue to Xiling Gorge.

In the evening, our ship will arrive a magnificent building project of the Three Gorges, the Five Level Ship Lock.

Day 9 Yichang – Shanghai:

Sightseeing and Activities: Three Gorges Dam site;
Accommodation: Hotel Equatorial Shanghai (4 Star)
Meals: Lunch

Today our cruise trip will finish. We will pack the luggage and ready for check out from the ship. After this, we will get to visit the Three Gorges Dam site. We will check out after we finish, and the cruise company will drive you to Yichang City.

The local guide will wait you on board and take you to have lunch. Then transfer you to airport for the flight to Shanghai, the guide in Shanghai will wait you at the airport and transfer you to the hotel.

Day 10 Shanghai City Tour:

Sightseeing and Activities: Shanghai Museum; Yuyuan Garden; Bund; Huang Pu River;
Accommodation: Hotel Equatorial Shanghai (4 Star)
Meals: Lunch

After breakfast, we will first visit the Shanghai Museum, the selection of over 112,000 Chinese cultural relics from the Old Stone Age to modern times. Then we will head to Yuyuan Garden, which is a famous traditional Chinese gardens in Shanghai.

Lunch at a nice local restaurant (a la carte lunch).

After lunch, we will visit the Bund, which is one of the waterfront landmark and symbols of Shanghai. And we will have a cruise trip on the Huang Pu River (1 hour), and enjoy the beautiful lake views of the Shanghai from the cruise ship.

Back to your hotel.

Day 11 Departure Shanghai:

Sightseeing and Activities:
Accommodation:
Meals:

We are able to provide transfer service from the hotel to the airport for departure. (Please let us know when you booking the tour packages, if you want us to provide airport transfer service for departure.)

If you want to arrange the departure on your own. Following are the guide for you to transfer to the airports:
Pudong Airport (PVG): Take about 1 hour from the hotel, cost about 180 RMB for taxi.
Hongqiao Airport (SHA): 30 minutes drive from the hotel, cost about 50 RMB for taxi.

Please contact us for tour extension, if you would like to spend more time in China.

End of the services.

Service Included:

  • Admission fees for all of the sightseeing spots listed in the itinerary;
  • Meals as listed in the itinerary;
  • Hotels as listed in the itinerary;
  • English-speaking tour guide;
  • Group vehicle for transfers; sightseeing with skilled driver;
  • Service charge; government taxes;
  • Luggage transfers between airports and hotels;
  • Domestic airfares list in the itinerary;
  • Yangtze River cruise with full board;

Service Excluded:

  • Any arrival and departure international airfares or train tickets;
  • Chinese visa fees;
  • Excess baggage charged by Airlines;
  • Single room supplement;
  • Tips to guides and drivers;
  • Personal expenses and gratuities to service staff;
  • Personal travel accident insurance;
  • All optional programs.

Note:

The quotation is different for China Public Holidays. For instance, Chinese Spring Festival,Tomb-sweeping Festival, Labor Day, Dragon-boat Festival, Mid-autumn Festival, China National Day, etc.