Description
Beijing is a huge sprawling city and home to over 12 million people. Having been the capital city of both Imperial and Modern China, it has a fantastic collection of sights and your time here will be spent visiting these including the vast Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, the Hutongs (the small lanes and courtyard houses of old Beijing), the magnificent Temple of Heaven and the Imperial Summer Palace to marvel at the opulence in which the Emperors lived. You will visit a remote part of the Great Wall of China and spend a few hours on a light trek along this section taking in the beautiful scenery. In the evenings retire to the opulent Peninsula hotel.
Fly onto Xian, the ancient capital, where the main attraction is to experience the incredible life size Army of Terracotta Warriors standing guard over the tomb of Emperor Qin Shihuang. A real treat will be to visit the recently discovered Han Dynasty Warriors afterwards. During in your time in Xian you will also visit the impressive Shaanxi Museum, Wild Goose Pagoda, The Islamic Quarter and take an exhilarating bicycle ride along the old city walls. This is a charming east meets west town and the Sofitel hotel has a great spa and restaurants, a perfect way to end the days here.
On to Chengdu where after a night at the Sofitel hotel visit the Giant Panda Breeding Research Institute and for the child in all of us it’s a great experience getting so close to these magnificent bears. This is one of the world’s leading research centres on the breeding habits of Pandas. From here you fly to Chongqing where you will board the decadent Yangtze cruise ship for a 3-night cruise. The ship sails through the Three Gorges, Qutang, Wu and Xiling and as you can expect, the scenery is stunning. Your time on the ship can be spent relaxing on deck enjoying the passing scenery and there are excursions onshore included. Of course you will witness the infamous Dam Site and get a bird’s eye view of this enormous engineering project.
As you disembark the ship you will be taken to the airport for your flight to Shanghai. Lying on the estuary of the Yangtze River, Shanghai is the centre of China’s trade and industry. European-style architecture, traditional Chinese buildings and sleek modern developments all co-exist in this cosmopolitan metropolis. The French Concession area has quiet colonial parks and neighbourhoods, the Yu Gardens are traditional Ming dynasty water gardens while the Bund along the Huangpu River has the celebrated strip of Art Deco towers.
On your penultimate day travel by private car to the picturesque, traditional water village of Zhouzhuang to visit one of the town’s old merchant’s houses, at Suzhou you will visit the fascinating Silk Museum before exploring Suzhou’s remarkable classical Chinese style gardens, which are on the United Nations’ World Heritage List. In Shanghai you will stay at the immaculate Peninsula.
This is a suggested itinerary and can be tailored to suit your individual needs.
Please note that the MS Yangzi Explorer sails on Thursdays only.
Guide price
£5,303
per person
£5,303 Per person for 13 nights in China, based on 2 people sharing including international flights, domestic flights within China, most meals, private transfers, sightseeing and the services of a private guide and driver.
Itinerary
Location and directions
Beijing, Xian, Chengdu, Yangtze River, Shanghai
Beijing, Xian, Chendgu, The Yangtze River and Shanghai.
