12 Days China Ancient Culture Tour
During this tour, we will visit the famous Golden Triangle cities in China – Beijing, Xian and Shanghai, besides, the cultural and historical cities of Datong, Taiyuan and Pingyao are also included.
Highlights:
- Visit the popular Golden Triangle cities in China – Beijing, Xian and Shanghai.
- Explore the cultural and historical cities of Datong, Taiyuan and Pingyao.
Brief Itinerary
- Day 1: Beijing Arrival
- Day 2: Beijing
- Day 3: Beijing
- Day 4: Beijing
- Day 5: Beijing – Datong
- Day 6: Datong – Taiyuan
- Day 7: Taiyuan – Pingyao
- Day 8: Pingyao – Xian
- Day 9: Xian
- Day 10: Xian – Shanghai
- Day 11: Shanghai
- Day 12: Shanghai Tour
Detailed Itinerary
Day 1 Beijing Arrival
Sightseeing and Activities:
Accommodation: Beijing
Meals: none
Welcome to the capital of China – Beijing! Upon arrival, met by tour guide and transferred to you hotel. Free at leisure for the rest of the day.
Day 2 Beijing
Sightseeing and Activities: Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven
Accommodation: Beijing
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Breakfast at hotel, start today’s tour with Tiananmen Square. Go north through the square and you will reach the Forbidden City. As the largest and best-preserved ancient wooden structure in the world, it has more than 8,000 pavilions and thousands of historic treasures. Then enjoy the lunch.
In the afternoon, head to visit the royal altar of the Ming and Qing dynasties – the Temple of Heaven.
Day 3 Beijing
Sightseeing and Activities: Badaling Great Wall, Ming Tombs, Bord’s Nest
Accommodation: Beijing
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Get up early to visit Badaling Great Wall. Great Wall is one of the greatest architecture projects in human history. Then visit Ming Tomb, where 13 emperors and their wives of the Ming Dynasty were buried. See the appearance of Bird’s Nest on the way to your hotel at a distance.
Day 4 Beijing
Sightseeing and Activities: Summer Palace, Beijing hutong
Accommodation: Beijing
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Visit the Summer Palace in the morning, which used to be the summer resort for royal families and emperors. In the afternoon, walking along Beijing hutong alleys, narrow but original.
Day 5 Beijing – Datong
Sightseeing and Activities: Yungang Grottoes, Hanging Temple
Accommodation: Datong
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Today take a morning flight to Datong and visit Yungang Caves and Hanging Temple. Yungang Grottoes are excellent examples of rock-cut architecture and one of the three most famous ancient Buddhist sculptural sites of China. Built more than 1,500 years ago, this temple is notable for its location on a sheer precipice and the only existing temple with the combination of three Chinese traditional religions: Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism.
Day 6 Datong – Taiyuan
Sightseeing and Activities: Jinci Temple
Accommodation: Taiyuan
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Today drive about 3 hours to Taiyuan and visit Jinci Temple after lunch. Jinci Temple was founded about 1,400 years ago and expanded during the following centuries, resulting in a diverse collection of more than 100 sculptures, buildings, terraces, and bridges.
Day 7 Taiyuan – Pingyao
Sightseeing and Activities: Qiao Family Compound, Pingyao Ancient Town
Accommodation: Pingyao
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Today drive about 1.5 hours to Pingyao. Upon arrival, visit Qiao Family Compound and Pingyao Ancient Town. Qiao Family’s Compound is the residential compound of well-known financier Qiao Zhiyong, who was the most famous member of the Qiao family. It is to be one of the finest remaining examples of imposing private residences in northern China.
Day 8 Pingyao – Xian
Sightseeing and Activities: Shaanxi Provincial Museum
Accommodation: Xian
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Today take the bullet train to Xian and arrive in Xian at noon. After lunch, visit Shaanxi Provincial History Museum, one of the first huge state museums with modern facilities in China and one of the largest with the large storage of cultural relics from the Shang Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty.
Day 9 Xian
Sightseeing and Activities: Terracotta Warriors, the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Muslim Quarter
Accommodation: Xian
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
After breakfast, we will first visit the world famous Terracotta Warriors. The Terracotta Army is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China. After that, visit the Small Wild Goose Pagoda. Later taste some local snacks on the Muslim Quarter.
Day 10 Xian – Shanghai
Sightseeing and Activities: the City Wall, Tomb of Emperor Han Dynasty Jingdi
Accommodation: Shanghai
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Today visit the City Wall. Visitors can rent a bicycle and take a ride on the wall.
After that, escorted to the airport for the flight to Shanghai. On the way to airport, stop to visit Tomb of Emperor Han Dynasty Jingdi.
Day 11 Shanghai
Sightseeing and Activities: The Bund, Jade Buddha Temple, Yu Garden, Shanghai Oriental Pearl TV Tower
Accommodation: Shanghai
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Today visit the bund, which is located along the Huangpu River. It is a famous waterfront and regarded as the symbol of Shanghai. Then we will head to Jade Buddha Temple, which is a venerable and famous Buddhist temple built in 1928.
After that, continue the tour to Yuyuan Garden, a famous classical garden located in Anren Jie, Shanghai. The last stop is Oriental Pearl TV Tower. The ultra-modern Oriental Pearl TV Tower combines ancient concepts with 21st Century technology, where you can get a bird-eye-view of whole Shanghai city.
Day 12 Shanghai Departure
Sightseeing and Activities:
Accommodation: none
Meals: Breakfast
Explore this city at leisure until being transferred to airport for flight to your next destination. Service ends.
Recommended Hotels and Price List
| Destinations | Luxury Hotel | Comfortable Hotel | Economy Hotel |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beijing | Jin Nian Hotel | Sunworld Hotel | |
| Datong | |||
| Pingyao | |||
| Taiyuan | |||
| Xi’an | Grand Park Hotel | Bell Tower Hotel | Feilu Business Hotel |
| Shanghai | Howard Johnson Caida Plaza | Golden River View Hotel | Charms Hotel |
| Group Size | Tour Prices | ||
| 2 Travelers | |||
| 3-5 Travelers | |||
| 6-9 Travelers | |||
| Above 10 | |||
| Single Supplement | |||
| Remark |
|
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| Earlier Booking, Bigger Savings 10% off – book 60 days before, 5% off – book 30 days before |
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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;
- Private English-speaking tour guide;
- Private vehicle for transfers & sightseeing with skilled driver;
- Service charge & government taxes;
- Luggage transfers between airports and hotels;
- Domestic train tickets of soft sleeper.
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.
