from Great Wall to Terra Cotta to the
Bund
7-day Beijing-Xian-Shanghai
Impression Tour
Experience the best of
China, both old and new!
This package can also start
with Shanghai and end with Beijing.
Highlights:
• Visit Beijing, the
capital and the most important city of China. Highlights you
will visit include the Forbidden City, Great Wall, and the
Temple of Heaven
• Xi’an, the ancient capital of China is an intriguing city
where history comes alive. You will see the Terracotta Warriors,
perhaps the word’s greatest archaeological find.
• See the highlights of Shanghai, home of 2010
World Expo, the largest city of China and one of the
world�s great cities
• This tour can initiate from Shanghai and move
from Xian to Beijing.
B=(Breakfast) L=(lunch) D=(dinner) DEPARTURE: Daily
Package Price
Price is based on the time of
travel and number of customers. Please inquire through the form
on the left side of the page, we'll quote the best price we can
get. As this tour package involves domestic transfers, the
package price will vary from time to time because of the
changing airfares and hotel rates. |
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TOUR ITINERARY |
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Tour
code:
EXBJXIANSH |
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Day 1: Arrive in
Beijing, Beijing sightseeing
Morning
Upon arrival at the airport, our English-speaking
guide will be there to meet you and take you
directly to your 4 star hotel (e.g. Beijing Guangxi Hotel) which is located in
central Beijing. We will then embark on a city tour
of Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City.
Afternoon
The largest public square in the world, Tiananmen
Square is seen as China’s political center. Its
grounds have seen some turbulent moments, from the
May 4th Movement of 1919 to the political turmoil of
1989. The south of the square is marked by the
Chairman Mao Memorial Hall, while the center of the
square is dominated by the Monument to the People’s
Heroes, an imposing 10-story granite obelisk. To the
east is the National Museum of China, and to the
west is the Great Hall of the People, home to
China’s legislative bodies. The north of the square
is dominated by the Gate of Heavenly Peace, known
for its iconic portrait of Mao Zedong, and is the
national emblem of China.
After walking across the square we will enter the Forbidden City (known in Chinese as Gu Gong), the
largest surviving palace complex and the former home
of the emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasty. The
Forbidden City is one of the greatest attractions in
the world. Built by the third Ming emperor between
1406-1422, the Forbidden City served as the official
residence to the Emperor of China until the last
emperor, Puyi, was forced to evacuate in 1924. The
Forbidden City is divided into two parts. The
southern section, or the Outer Court was where the
emperor exercised his supreme power over the nation.
The northern section, or the Inner Court was where
he lived with his royal family. Consisting of 980
buildings and with 8,707 bays of rooms, the
Forbidden City is the best example of classical
Chinese architecture in the world, and is a wonder
to behold.
You will then be driven back to your hotel, with
your evening at your discretion. |
Day 2: Beijing
sightseeing (B/L)
Morning
After a morning pickup at your hotel we will drive
directly to the Great Wall at Mutianyu. As one of
the best-preserved parts of the Great Wall, the
Mutianyu section of the Great Wall used to serve as
the northern barrier defending the capital and the
imperial tombs. First built in the mid-6th century
during the Northern Qi, Mutianyu Great Wall is older
than the Badaling section of the Great Wall. In the
Ming dynasty, under the supervision of General Xu Da,
construction of the present wall began on the
foundation of the wall of Northern Qi. In 1404, a
pass was built in the wall. In 1569, the Mutianyu
Great Wall was rebuilt and till today most parts of
it are well preserved.
Compared with other sections of Great Wall, the
Mutianyu Great Wall possesses unique characteristics
in its construction. Watchtowers are densely placed
along this section of the Great Wall - 22
watchtowers on this 2,250-meter-long stretch. The
Mutianyu Pass consists of 3 watchtowers, one big in
the center and two smaller on both sides. Standing
on the same terrace, the three watchtowers are
connected to each other inside and compose a rarely
seen structure among all sections of Great Wall.
While Mutianyu does get its fair share of visitors,
it does not get as packed as Badaling, allowing you
to have a peaceful time exploring the wall. After
walking around on Mutianyu, you have the option of
coming down via walking, taking a cable car, or
taking a toboggan ride (lots of fun and highly
recommended!).
Afternoon
For the afternoon, we will make the short trip to
the Ming Tombs. The Ming Tombs, about 50 km/31 miles
from Beijing, are where 13 emperors of the Ming
Dynasty (1368-1644) are buried. This site was
carefully chosen for its feng shui principles by the
third Ming emperor Yongle (who also moved the
capital from Nanjing to Beijing and began
construction on the Forbidden City). The tomb we
will visit, Dingling, is the tomb of the Wanli
Emperor. It is the only one of the Ming Dynasty
Tombs to have been excavated. It also remains the
only imperial tomb to have been excavated since the
founding of the People's Republic of China, After
viewing the tombs, we will head to the “Shenlu”, or
the Spirit Way. The Spirit Way leads into the
complex, lined with statues of guardian animals and
officials, with a front gate consisting of a
three-arches, painted red, and called the "Great Red
Gate". The Sacred Way, starts with a huge stone
memorial archway lying at the front of the area.
Constructed in 1540, during the Ming Dynasty, this
archway is one of the biggest stone archways in
China today.
After walking the Spirit Way we will take you back
to your hotel, completing the day’s travels. |
Day 3: Beijing
sightseeing-Xi’an (B, L)
Morning
After having breakfast in the hotel, we will embark
on another full day of touring before your evening
flight to Xi’an. Our first stop will be the Temple
of Heaven park. The complex was visited by the
Emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties for annual
ceremonies of prayer to Heaven for good harvest. The
Temple of Heaven park is best known for the Hall of
Prayer for Good Harvests, an iconic building famed
for its magnificent triple-gabled circular roof. You
will also have an opportunity to walk the same
imperial walkway that the same emperors walked
hundreds of years ago in their holy rites. You will
also see Beijing’s senior citizens using the park
grounds for everything from tai chi and ballroom
dancing to bullwhip practice!
Then it is off to the Summer Palace, to the
northwest of the Beijing city center. Having the
largest royal park and being well preserved, the
Summer Palace is ranked amongst the most noted and
classical gardens of the world. In 1998, UNESCO
listed it as one of the World Heritage Sites. Like
most of the gardens of Beijing, it could not elude
the rampages of the Anglo-French allied force of
1860 and was destroyed by fire. In 1888, Empress
Dowager Cixi embezzled navy funds to reconstruct it
for her own benefit, changing its name to Summer
Palace (Yiheyuan). She spent most of her later years
there, dealing with state affairs and entertaining.
Highlights not to be missed are climbing Longevity
Hill, viewing the Empress Dowager Cixi’s extravagant
Marble Boat, and talking a walk down Suzhou jie, a
canal meant to resemble the river city of Suzhou.
Afternoon
Before your flight, we will stop off at one more
sight, this one highlighting the more modern aspects
of Beijing. The Olympic Green was the center of the
event that captivated the world for two weeks in
August of 2008. The highlights include the Bird’s
Nest (officially known as the Beijing National
stadium) and the Water Cube (the Beijing National
Aquatics Center). The stadium gets its nickname from
its outward design, which originated from the study
of Chinese ceramics, implementing steel beams in
order to hide supports for the retractable roof,
thus giving the stadium the appearance of a "Bird's
nest". The Bird’s Nest hosted the Opening and
Closing Ceremonies, athletic events, and football
final of the 2008 Summer Olympics, from 8 August to
24 August 2008. Since the Olympic end, the Bird’s
Nest has been used to host events from opera to a
ski park.
Despite its nickname, the Water Cube is not a cube
but a cuboid, (a rectangular box). The outer wall of
the building is based on the Weaire–Phelan
structure, a structure devised from the natural
formation of bubbles in soap foam. The complex
Weaire–Phelan pattern was developed by slicing
through bubbles in soap foam, resulting in more
irregular, organic patterns than foam bubble
structures proposed earlier by the scientist Kelvin.
The Water Cube hosted the swimming, diving, and
synchronized swimming events during the Olympics,
and was the sight of Michael Phelps’ record breaking
Olympic triumph.
You will then be taken to the airport for your
flight to Xi’an. Upon your arrival in Xi’an our
Guide will meet you to take you to your 4 star
hotel. |
Day 4: Xi’an sightseeing (B,
L, D)
Morning
After breakfast in the hotel, you will get to walk
on the Xi’an city walls. It's the most complete city
wall that has survived in China, as well being one
of the largest ancient military defensive systems in
the world. Since the ancient weapons did not have
the power to break through a wall and the only way
for an enemy to enter the city was by attacking the
gate of the city wall. This is why complicated gate
structures were built within the wall. In Xian, the
city wall includes four gates and they are
respectively named as Changle (meaning eternal joy)
in the east, ending (harmony peace) in the west,
Yongning (eternal peace) in the south and Anyuan
(forever harmony) in the north. The south gate,
Yongning, is the most beautifully decorated one. It
is very near to the Bell Tower, center of the city.
Important greeting ceremonies organized by the
Provincial Government are usually held in the south
gate square.
We will then drive to the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, a
pagoda surrounded by a still functioning Buddhist
temple (named Da Ci’en Temple). Originally built in
652 during the reign of Emperor Gaozong of the Tang
Dynasty (618-907), it functioned to collect Buddhist
materials that were taken from India by the hierarch
Xuanzang. As for the reason why it is called Big
Wild Goose Pagoda, there is a legend. According to
ancient stories of Buddhists, there were two
branches, for one of which eating meat was not a
taboo. One day, they couldn't find meat to buy. Upon
seeing a group of big wild geese flying by, a monk
said to himself: 'Today we have no meat. I hope the
merciful Bodhisattva will give us some.' At that
very moment, the leading wild goose broke its wings
and fell to the ground. All the monks were startled
and believed that Bodhisattva showed his spirit to
order them to be more pious. They established a
pagoda where the wild goose fell and stopped eating
meat. Hence it got the name 'Big Wild Goose Pagoda'.
Afternoon
Just a 5-minute drive from the Big Wild Goose pagoda is the Shaanxi Museum, which is probably the best
provincial museum in all of China. Since Shaanxi,
the province Xi’an is in, is the considered the
cradle of Chinese civilization this museum takes on
a special importance. The museum is divided into 3
main exhibition halls. The Basic Exhibition Hall is
composed of the No 1 exhibition hall, the No 2
exhibition hall and the No 3 exhibition hall, marked
by time order. The No 1 exhibition on the first
floor hall displays the articles used during the
period from 1.7 million years ago to 206 BC of the
Qin Dynasty (221 BC-206 BC). This exhibition
contains rough stone tools used by the ape man, the
pottery, bronze sacrificial vessels, weapons and
terracotta figures. By visiting the No 2 Exhibition
Hall on the second floor, you will gain a general
understanding of the historical process from 206 BC
in the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220AD) to 589 AD in the
Northern and Southern Dynasties (386-589). To the
west of the Basic Exhibition Hall lies the Theme
Exhibition Hall. The exhibitions in this hall are
often theme-oriented to show the history or the
culture relics of Shaanxi Province, such as the
'Shanxi Bronze Ware Exhibition', the 'Shaanxi
Pottery Figure Exhibition' and the 'Buddhist Culture
Relic Exhibition'. The East Exhibition Hall, equal
in size to the Theme Exhibition Hall, is also on the
first floor and to the east of the basic hall. It is
used for contemporary exhibitions of high quality.
Exhibitions of the frescos, the culture relics, the
folkways, the fine arts and calligraphy are
conducted continuously.
You will cap off your day in Xi’an with the
wonderful Tang Dynasty Music and Dance dinner
show. Xi’an, which was formerly known as Chang'an has
a very long history, and was the imperial capital
during 13 dynastic periods. Of these, the Tang
Dynasty (618 - 907) was the most prosperous and
glorious of all. The Tang Dynasty Music and Dance
Show is an outstanding exponent of this ancient
stable and prosperous society, keeping alive its
splendid culture and providing an insight into the
peaceful life style of the period. The production
has toured many cities in China as well as numerous
foreign countries such as Japan, Russia, Korea,
Singapore, Norway, Denmark, and many others |
Day 5: Xi’an
sightseeing-Shanghai (B, L)
Morning
After breakfast you will be taken to Xi’an most
famed attraction, the Terracotta Army Museum. The Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses are the most
significant archeological excavations of the 20th
century. Work is ongoing at this site, which is
around 1.5 kilometers east of Emperor Qin Shi
Huang's Mausoleum. It is a sight not to be missed by
any visitor to China. Upon ascending the throne at
the age of 13 (in 246 BC), Qin Shi Huang, later the
first Emperor of all China, had begun to work for
his mausoleum. It took 11 years to finish. It is
speculated that many buried treasures and
sacrificial objects had accompanied the emperor in
his after life. A group of peasants uncovered some
pottery while digging for a well nearby the royal
tomb in 1974. Life size terracotta figures of
warriors and horses arranged in battle formations
are the star features at the museum. They are
replicas of what the imperial guard should look like
in those days of pomp and vigor.
The museum is divided into three sections: No. 1
Pit, No. 2 Pit, and No. 3 Pit respectively. They
were tagged in the order of their discoveries. No. 1
Pit is the largest, first opened to the public on
China's National Day, 1979. There are columns of
soldiers at the front, followed by war chariots at
the back.
No. 2 Pit, found in 1976, contains over a thousand
warriors and 90 chariots of wood. It was unveiled to
the public in 1994. Archeologists came upon No. 3
Pit also in 1976. It is the command center of the
armed forces. It went on display in 1989, with 68
warriors, a war chariot and four horses.
Afternoon
After viewing the Terracotta Warriors, you will be
taken to the Xi’an airport, where you will catch
your flight to Shanghai. When you arrive you will be
met by our guide at the Shanghai airport and taken
to the 4.5 star Courtyard by Marriott Hotel in
downtown Shanghai. |
Day 6:
Shanghai Sightseeing
Morning
After breakfast at the hotel, you will visit the Yuyuan Garden, a world-famous classical garden.
Yuyuan Garden occupies an area of 20,000 square
meters (about five acres). However, the small size
is not a representative of the attractions of the
garden. The pavilions, halls, rockeries, ponds and
cloisters all have unique characteristics. There are
six main scenic areas in the garden: Sansui Hall,
Wanhua Chamber, Dianchun Hall, Huijing Hall, Yuhua
Hall and the Inner Garden. Each area features
several scenic spots within its borders.
Then we will pay a visit to Shanghai Old Street.
Hidden behind the modern tall buildings and deep in
those squiggly lanes and bystreets where the old
fashioned living ways of Shanghai people still
exist, Shanghai Old Street southwest of Yuyuan
Garden is the one most worth visiting to find the
old culture and customs. The street is over a
hundred years old. The earliest private banks,
jewelry stores, opera towers, hongs, taverns and
teahouses in Shanghai were here originally. The
restaurants, opera towers and teahouses are the
definite highlights in the old street.
Afternoon
After experiencing the charm of the old street, we
will take a time machine from old Shanghai into the
city’s glittering present and future, which the Jin
Mao Tower is a prime example. Being the fourth
tallest building of the world and the second tallest
building in China, Jin Mao Tower is located in the
center of Lujiazui Finance and Trade Districts in
Pudong. The architect, Adrian D. Smith, of this
skyscraper ingeniously combined the elements of
traditional Chinese culture with the newest
architectural styles of the time, which makes Jin
Mao Tower one of the best-constructed buildings in
China. The tower’s observation decks give you an
almost bird’s eye view of the city’s rapidly rising
skyline.
The Shanghai Museum our next stop today, is a large
museum of ancient Chinese art. The museum style and
presentation surround visitors with artifacts
demonstrating ancient wisdom and philosophy. The
exterior design of the round dome and the square
base symbolizes the ancient idea of a round heaven
and a square land. The museum is divided into eleven
galleries and three exhibition halls. The eleven
Galleries cover most of the major categories of
Chinese art: Ancient Bronze, Ancient Ceramics,
Paintings, Calligraphy, Ancient Sculpture, Ancient
Jade, Coins, Ming and Qing Furniture, Seals, and
Minority Nationalities. The museum is a wonderful
primer on ancient Chinese culture, and is a must-see
when coming to Shanghai.
Our next destination today is the jade Buddah
Temple. In 1882, an old temple was built to keep two
jade Buddha statues which had been brought from
Burma by a monk named Huigen. The temple was
destroyed during the revolution that overthrew the
Qing Dynasty. Fortunately the jade Buddha statues
were saved and a new temple was built on the present
site in 1928. It was named the Jade Buddha Temple.
Although the history of the Jade Buddha Temple is
not very long, the old-time and classical
architectural style makes the temple unique and
inimitable in this modern city.
Your first full day in Shanghai will conclude with a
walk down Nanjing Road, Shanghai’s premier shopping
street. Open-air bars, abstract sculptures, and
lingering sounds from street musicians enhance
evening strolls. A trackless sightseeing train
provides a comfortable tour of the night-transformed
pedestrian street. Flashing neon signs illuminate
the magnificent buildings and spangle the night
skyline of this lively city.
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Day 7: Exit from Shanghai
You will be driven to the airport, and from there
you will catch your flight to your next destination,
thus completing your tour with us. After a whirlwind
8 days of seeing the best China has to offer, you
will probably sleep like a baby on the plane ride
home! |
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Tour Inclusions：
1. Hotels with daily western
breakfasts;
2. Meals in accordance with
that listed on the itinerary.
3. professional local guide
& driver;
4. Private air-conditioned
car or van for transportation;
5. Admission of the first
gate.
6.Two bottles of mineral
water per day.
Tour exclusions：
1. Tip of the guide
2. Personal costs
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