12-Day China Classic Tour of Shanghai, Suzhou, Hangzhou, Guilin, Xi’an and Beijing

Attractions: No
Meal: Not Included
Hotel: Overnight in Shanghai

Welcome to Shanghai! After retrieving your luggage.Our guide will wait at the airport, holding a sign with your name on it. After a warm greeting, you will be taken to the hotel we have booked for you, which have prefect infrastructure.The rest of the day is at your disposal, you can take a warm rest or explore this city on your own.

Attractions:People’s Square, Shanghai Museum, Oriental Pearl TV Tower, The Bund, Nanjing Road, French Concession, Tianzifang
Meal: Not Included
Hotel: Overnight in Shanghai

A full day sightseeing begins with the Shanghai Museum and People’s Square, where you will experience the richness of Chinese culture. We will then take a fun walk in the charming Former French Concession. 

The next stop is Oriental Pearl TV Tower, a representation of traditional Chinese gardens. Walking through its decorated bridges, you may feel like stepping back in time to 400 years ago. Right next to the garden, you’ll get to the Yuyuan Market, where you can taste local snacks or buy unique souvenirs. Besides, you’ll visit a silk workshop to see how small cocoons are transformed into elegant silk. End the day with a bird’s view of the city from the 100th floor of Shanghai World Financial Center.

Afterwards, explore the tree-lined avenues of the French Concession where many fine old houses in the area still retain an air of the “Paris of the East”. Explore the arts and crafts enclave in the trendy area of Tianzifang.

End with the Bund to take in heritage buildings featuring architectural styles from Neoclassical to Gothic to Baroque. While walking on the streets full of various colonial architecture, the epitome of 19th-century Shanghai will come to your mind vividly.

Attractions: Humble Administrator’s Garden, Panmen Gate, Tiger Hill, Shantang Sreet
Meal: Not Included
Hotel: Overnight in Suzhou

Drive to Suzhou in the morning. Upon arrival, visit the UNESCO World Heritage Site – Humble Administrator’s Garden. Humble Administrator’s Garden is the largest garden in Suzhou and is considered the best garden in southern China. Continue to visit Panmen Gate, which was the initial entrance to Suzhou City and is said to have a history of 2400 years. Then, enjoy the oldest pagoda in Suzhou – Tiger Hill, also known as the Leaning Tower in China. Afterwards, stroll along the 1200 year old Shantang Street, where there are ancient residences and shops selling snacks and handicrafts, such as wood carvings and embroidery.

Attractions: West Lake, Six Harmonies Pagoda, Lingyin Tample, Qinghefang Ancient Street
Meal: Not Included
Hotel: Overnight in Hangzhou

Take a train to Hangzhou. Take a boat tour of West Lake. Next, visit the Six Harmonies Pagoda and enjoy the beautiful scenery of Hangzhou. The buildings and bridges are intertwined with the landscape on one side of the Qiantang River, and the green and lush trees are intertwined with the other side of the pagoda. Then, take a stroll in the peaceful area of the Lingyin Buddhist temple. The Lingyin Temple was founded in 326 AD and contains many pagodas and Buddhist grottoes. Continue to stroll on the Qinghefang Ancient Street, which is one of the oldest streets in Hangzhou and the only well preserved ancient historical block in Hangzhou.

Attractions: Elephant Trunk Hill, Reed Flute Cave
Meal: Not Included
Hotel: Overnight in Guilin

Fly to Guilin in the morning. Upon arrival, visit the Elephant Trunk Hill. The Elephant Trunk Hill is the symbol of Guilin and gets its name because it looks like a huge elephant that dig its trunk into the river. Continue visiting Reed Flute Cave. Inside this water-eroded cave is a spectacular world of various stalactites, stone pillars and rock formations formed by carbonate deposition. Illuminated by colored lighting, the fantastic spectacle is found in many variations along this 240-meter-long cave.

Attractions: Li river, West Street, Two Rivers & Four Lakes Scenic Area
Meal: Not Included
Hotel: Overnight in Guilin

Cruise Li River in the morning. This 83-kilometer-long waterway cruise from Guilin to Yangshuo is like traveling along a traditional Chinese painting. The landscape is decorated with startling hills, steep cliffs, fantastic caves and farming villages, and is lined with bamboo. Walk along the famous West Street upon arrival in Yangshuo. Back to Guilin in the afternoon, stroll along the Two Rivers & Four Lakes Scenic Area.

Attractions: Small Wild Goose Pagoda, Xi’an Museum, Xi’an City Wall
Meal: Not Included
Hotel: Overnight in Xi’an

Fly to Xian in the morning. Visit Small Wild Goose Pagoda and Xi’an Museum upon arrival. With a history of more than 1,300 years, Small Wild Goose Pagoda was built to store the Buddhist scriptures delivered from ancient India. It is a perfect example of the multi-eaved square brick pagodas built in ancient China.Continue visiting Xian Museum. Xian Museum boasts nearly 130,000 relics that all relate to the history of Ancient China and Xian specifically. Afterwards, visit Xi’an City Wall. The City Wall of Xi’an is one of the oldest and best-preserved city walls in the world. Walking atop the Wall you can get the panorama of Xi’an skyline.

Attractions: Terracotta Warriors, Ancient City Wall, Muslim Quarter
Meal: Not Included
Hotel: Overnight in Xi’an

Drive to discover one of the greatest man-made wonders in the world – the Terracotta Warriors, built by the first emperor of China Qin Shihuang to protect him in his afterlife. Take a wonderful stroll on the Ancient City Wall, the largest and best-preserved ancient city wall in China. This visit is followed by a relaxing wander around bustling and lively Muslim Quarter.

Attractions: Summer Palace
Meal: Not Included
Hotel: Overnight in Beijing

Depart from Xi’an to Beijing in the morning. Upon arrival, visit the Summer Palace, which is the largest and most well preserved royal garden in China. The Summer Palace takes Kunming Lake and Longevity Hill as the basic framework. The natural landscape of hills and open waters is combined with the artificial landscape such as pavilions, palaces, temples and bridges, forming a harmonious whole with outstanding aesthetic value.

Attractions: Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Summer Palace
Meal: Not Included
Hotel: Overnight in Beijing

Today, we embark on our journey of exploration of Beijing from Tnanmen Square. Tiananmen Square is now the largest city square in the world.

Passing through Tiananmen Square, you can see the five most important palaces in the world, the Forbidden City. It was the residence of the Ming and Qing emperors and represented the supreme power of ancient China.

After that, we will spend a relaxing afternoon at the Summer Palace, the largest and best-preserved imperial garden in China.

Attractions: The Great Wall, Water Cube, Bird’s Nest
Meal: Not Included
Hotel: Overnight in Beijing

After breakfast, our guide and driver will pick you up from your hotel at the agreed time, and then drive about 70 km to witness one of the eight wonders of the world, the Great Wall. Visit the Mutianyu Great Wall, an off-the-beaten-path but well-preserved Ming Dynasty Great Wall, where you will take a cable car to Mutianyu! You will take a cable car up to the Great Wall and then hike the most beautiful and interesting part of Mutianyu. Afterwards, take the cable car down the mountain. Continue your journey to the Sacred Way, a 7 km long passage leading to the imperial tombs of the 13 emperors of the Ming Dynasty. The emperors known as the Son of Heaven came to his country from heaven through the Sacred Way and would also return to heaven through this path. Walking through the largest archway in China and the Great Palace Gate, you will see 12 groups of sacred animals and 12 officials with magnificent stone guards. Then drive back to the city of Beijing, stopping briefly at the Beijing Olympic Village to view the overall appearance of its famous Bird’s Nest and Water Cube from a distance.

Attractions: Temple of Heaven, Hutongs
Meal: Not Included
Hotel: No

Drive to the Temple of Heaven. Once a place where the emperor offered sacrifices and prayers, the Temple of Heaven has now become a lively place.

Then, head back to the city to experience the various Hutongs and learn about where Beijingers life.Walk through the different hutongs to experience the old Beijing way of life, visit various antique stores and small stores to get a real sense of the historical changes in Beijing, and visit a local family in a traditional hutong.

At the end of the tour, your trip to Beijing will come to an end. Near check-in time our tour guide will take you to the airport and you will be ready to go home.