Itinerary
- Day 1
Shanghai
You'll arrive in Shanghai and get transferred to your hotel. If your flight comes in early, there's time to walk around and check out Yuyuan Gardens with its Ming Dynasty sculptures and pagodas. At 6 pm you'll attend a welcome meeting, then head out with the group for dinner at a local restaurant serving regional dishes like fried dumplings, braised pork, and crystal shrimp.
- Meals
- Dinner (Shanghai cuisine welcome dinner at local restaurant featuring regional specialties like fried dumplings, braised pork and crystal shrimp)
Included Activities
- Airport transfer
- Shanghai cuisine welcome dinner at local restaurant
Optional Activities
- Visit Yuyuan Gardens
Landmarks Yuyuan Gardens 
- Day 2
Shanghai
This morning starts with a walking tour through Shanghai's old nongtang neighborhoods and tree-lined Wukang Road in the former French Concession, which has 37 protected historic buildings. You'll stop at a local market, then take the metro to the Bund, an iconic riverside promenade with art deco buildings showing off 1920s architecture next to modern Pudong skyscrapers. Your afternoon is free to explore on your own.
Included Activities
- City walking tour of neighborhoods and French Concession
- Market visit
- Bund promenade visit
Landmarks Wukang Road The Bund Huangpu River - Day 3
Shanghai to Huizhou
Board a high-speed train to Huizhou this morning to see villages with distinctive Hui-style architecture. You'll have a home-cooked Hui lunch with a local family, then tour Tangmo, an ancient village founded during the Tang dynasty. Afterward, visit bamboo weaving families and meet a stone inscription artisan while learning about Chinese calligraphy. Tonight you're staying at a Feature Stay hotel that's a converted Ming Dynasty poet's mansion with traditional 17th-century Hui design and modern amenities.
- Meals
- Lunch (Home-cooked Hui lunch with local family)
Included Activities
- Home-cooked Hui lunch with local family
- Tangmo village tour
- Bamboo weaving family visit
- Stone tablet inscription printing demonstration
Landmarks Tangmo Village Huizhou - Day 4
Huizhou to Shanghai
Spend your morning wandering Huizhou's narrow lanes and looking at local gardens at your own pace. In the afternoon, take the high-speed train back to Shanghai. Later this evening, head to a rooftop bar with your group to see the city's tall buildings and bright neon lights glowing above the skyline.
Included Activities
- Rooftop bar visit (one drink included)
Optional Activities
- Wander village lanes
- Explore local gardens
Landmarks Huizhou village - Day 5
Shanghai to Yangshuo
After your final morning in Shanghai, catch a midday flight to Guilin and then transfer to Yangshuo. You'll arrive in a landscape where karst mountains rise like domes around the Li River, the kind of scenery you see in traditional Chinese paintings. Check into your hotel for the next two nights, a modern place surrounded by karst hills and rivers. Your evening is free to explore the natural surroundings or just relax.
Included Activities
- Transfer from Guilin to Yangshuo
Optional Activities
- Walk in surrounding area
- Relax at accommodation
Landmarks Li River Yangshuo karst landscape 
- Day 6
Yangshuo
After breakfast, head to one of the largest tea plantations in the area to learn about tea production from picking to brewing, then taste some fragrant green tea. Climb steep Xianggong Hill for views of the Li River and karst landscape below. You'll walk through local villages where people might invite you into their homes to see countryside life. Have lunch in a village, then explore Yangshuo town and check out the busy West shopping street. Later, take a cooking class where you'll prepare traditional Chinese dishes that become your dinner.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch (Lunch in local village), Dinner (Traditional Chinese dishes prepared during cooking class)
Included Activities
- Tea farm visit and tea tasting
- Xianggong Hill climb
- Village walking tour
- Yangshuo town exploration and history
- Cooking class with traditional Chinese dishes
Optional Activities
- Browse shops on West shopping street
- Relax in a cafe
Landmarks Xianggong Hill Yangshuo town - Day 7
Yangshuo to Xi'an
This morning at your accommodation is relaxed, then catch a midday flight to Xi'an, which served as an imperial center for 2000 years. You'll arrive in the late afternoon and get settled at your hotel. During a walking tour with your leader, you'll pass the Bell and Drum tower and reach the bustling Muslim quarter with its narrow streets, shops, and markets where men in skull caps sit drinking tea. Tonight sample Xi'an's regional food at a local restaurant with various types of dumplings.
- Meals
- Dinner (Muslim Quarter dumpling dinner at local restaurant featuring regional specialties including variety of delicious dumplings)
Included Activities
- Walking tour of Xi'an including Bell and Drum tower and Muslim Quarter
- Muslim Quarter dumpling dinner at local restaurant
Landmarks Bell and Drum Tower Muslim Quarter 
- Day 8
Xi'an
Head into the countryside to see the Terracotta Warriors, a major archaeological site. Your leader will explain how farmers discovered this buried treasure in 1974 after 2000 years underground. Three pits hold thousands of uniquely sculpted soldiers in battle formation, commissioned by Emperor Qin Shi Huangdi for his tomb. Lunch happens at a family restaurant where the owner talks about what the excavation meant locally. Back in Xi'an, your afternoon is free to cycle on the ancient city wall or visit the Big Wild Goose pagoda and its musical fountain.
- Meals
- Lunch (Home-cooked lunch at local family restaurant)
Included Activities
- Terracotta Warriors tour with leader
- Home-cooked lunch at local family restaurant
Optional Activities
- Cycle across ancient city wall
- Visit Big Wild Goose pagoda and musical fountain
Landmarks Terracotta Warriors Big Wild Goose Pagoda - Day 9
Xi'an to Beijing
Leave Xi'an by high-speed train to Beijing, capital of the world's most populous country. While Beijing has embraced modernity, plenty of places still show the nation's ancient history. Your evening is free - you can catch a Chinese opera performance if you want. Restaurants throughout the city offer all kinds of food and styles.
Optional Activities
- Attend Chinese opera performance
- Explore restaurants across the city
Landmarks Beijing 
- Day 10
Beijing
Start at Tiananmen Square, the symbolic heart of Chinese power surrounded by the Gate of Heavenly Peace, Mao's Mausoleum, the Great Hall of the People, and the National Museum. Enter the Forbidden City built 500 years ago with its grand halls and courtyards. Head to Jingshan Park for views across the city. Have an authentic home-cooked lunch at a local home, then walk through Beijing's 800-year-old hutongs and learn about traditional mortise and tenon building methods. The rest of your afternoon is free.
- Meals
- Lunch (Authentic home-cooked lunch at local home)
Included Activities
- Tiananmen Square visit
- Forbidden City exploration
- Jingshan Park visit
- Home-cooked lunch at local home
- Hutong walking tour with wood mortise and tenon demonstration
Landmarks Tiananmen Square Gate of Heavenly Peace Forbidden City Jingshan Park - Day 11
Great Wall
Visit the Great Wall at the well-preserved Hanghuacheng section, also called the Water Great Wall. This Ming Dynasty defensive structure has guard towers and sections that are partially underwater. Stroll along the wall winding through hills as your leader talks about its history and the views of the surrounding countryside. Return to Beijing in the afternoon to rest before a Beijing duck feast for your final group dinner at a traditional courtyard restaurant.
- Meals
- Dinner (Beijing duck feast at traditional courtyard restaurant)
Included Activities
- Great Wall (Hanghuacheng section) visit with leader
- Peking Duck dinner at traditional courtyard restaurant
Landmarks Great Wall of China - Hanghuacheng (Water Great Wall) - Day 12
Beijing
Your trip finishes today after breakfast. If you have extra time, Beijing has plenty more to see. You can contact your booking agent about arranging more nights if you'd like to stay longer.
- Meals
- Breakfast
Optional Activities
- Additional sightseeing in Beijing
