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CHINA HIGHLIGHTS - 14 DAYS
USD. $2,298.00 - Per person Land only - taxes included
Tour Itinerary • Day 1 Mon 15-Sep-08 Destination: Arrival in Beijing Accommodation: Sun world Hotel Beijing **** Services & Highlights: Airport to Hotel Transfer (Beijing) • Day 2 Tue 16-Sep-08 Services & Highlights: Great Wall at Mutianyu, Mutianyu Cable Car(One way), Breakfast, Chinese Lunch, Chinese Roasted duck Dinner at Shuangjing --Great Wall at Mutianyu: This less-crowd section of the Great Wall is a pleasant drive 90km NE of Beijing. A cable car takes you to a good section (avoiding a very steep climb), where you can walk along the wall, through the watch towers and enjoy superb views as it snakes across the hills and mountains. You can return by cable car, walk down or walk along the wall for about an hour to descend by chairlift. Wear good walking shoes and protection from the weather. --Mutianyu Cable Car (One way): This less-crowded section of the Great Wall is a pleasant drive 90km NE of Beijing. A cable car takes you to a good section (avoiding a very steep climb), where you can walk along the wall, through the watch towers and enjoy superb views as it snakes across the hills and mountains. You can return by cable car, walk down or walk along the wall for about an hour to descend by chairlift. Wear good walking shoes and protection from the weather.
• Day 3 Wed 17-Sep-08 Services & Highlights: The Forbidden City, The Tiananmen Square, Hutong Tours in Rickshaw, Beijing Opera at Liyuan, Breakfast, Chinese Lunch --The Forbidden City: The Imperial Palace, home to 24 Emperors between 1420 and 1911. Great squares, halls and gates contrast with the intricate networks of side halls, gardens, courtyards and quarters for those who lived in this 'city within a city'. The exhibitions, both permanent and temporary, are also absolutely fascinating. Expect to spend at least 2-3 hours, wear good walking shoes and protection from the weather. Note: The Forbidden City is now undergoing large-scale renovations which are expected to be completed till 2020. The Forbidden City will remain open to visitors during the renovations, but there may be some temporary inconvenience, for which we apologize. The Forbidden City will adopt an electronic ticket-checking system from May onwards to control its crowd flow. The new system will keep a real-time record of visitors inside the museum, and automatically inform the ticket office to halt ticket sales once the number exceeds the museum's maximum reception capacity. --The Tiananmen Square: The world's largest city square and enduring symbol of China's national pride, surrounded by many imposing buildings including the Heavenly Gate (entry to the Forbidden City), Museums, government buildings and Chairman Mao's Mausoleum.
--Hutong Tours in Rickshaw: A maze of historic alleyways and old single storey traditional courtyard houses, now fast disappearing. Dotted around the Hutong are the Drum and Bell Towers, Kindergarten, Tea House, and local people's houses. Your tour includes a visit with a local family. - Beijing Opera at Liyuan: Beijing opera, more commonly known as Peking opera to westerners, is deemed the national opera of China. The accompanying music, singing and costumes are all fascinating and artistic. Full of Chinese cultural facts, the opera presents to the audience an encyclopedia of Chinese culture as well as unfolding stories, beautiful paintings, exquisite costumes, graceful gestures and acrobatic fighting. You don't need to dress up for the Opera, casual or smart casual would be fine. • Day 4 Thu 18-Sep-08 Destination: Beijing to Xian Travel: Air China CA1235 Dep 4:40PM - Arr 6:35PM Accommodation: Bell Tower Hotel Xian **** Services & Highlights: Temple of Heaven, Summer Palace with boat Cruise & The Garden of Virtue and Harmony, Breakfast, Chinese Lunch, Hotel to airport Transfer (Beijing), Airport to Hotel Transfer (Xian) --Temple of Heaven: One of the most famous sites in Beijing, this is Ming architecture at its best: beautiful, controlled, and highly symbolic. The surrounding gardens are full of interesting activity, particularly weekend mornings. Wear good walking shoes and protection from the weather. Note: The renovation project of the Temple of Heaven started May 21, 2005 has already been finished but some follow-up work is still underway, which may cause inconvenience for visitors.
--Summer Palace with boat Cruise & The Garden of Virtue and Harmony: The palace is positioned in the west suburb of Beijing, about 12 kilometers northwest of the city center. Equally famous as the Forbidden City, the Summer Palace is called'Yiheyuan'(Garden of Nurtured Harmony) in Chinese. It is up to now the best preserved and the largest imperial gardens in China. You may regret it if you come to Beijing without visiting this grand imperial garden.in the palace, you can also cruise on the lake. It will take 10 minutes by the ferry boat. Besides this, you can also visit The Garden of Virtue and Harmony, it was built as a theater for the Empress Dowager. Its construction began in the 17th year of Emperor Guangxu's reign (1891) and lasted for five years. • Day 5 Fri 19-Sep-08 Destination: Xian Accommodation: Bell Tower Hotel Xian **** Services & Highlights: Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Terracotta Warriors, Banpo Museum, Breakfast, Chinese Lunch --Big Wild Goose Pagoda: A major Buddhist site, the simple, elegant brick Pagoda stands in the grounds of the attractive Da Ci'en Temple. The Pagoda was built in the 7th century to house the Buddhist materials that Xuanzang (Tripitaka) brought back from his epic journey to India. The Temple complex has several large halls with some great Buddhist statues and murals.
--City Wall: The walls, ramparts, gates and watchtowers form one of the oldest and most complete city defences still around. Built in the 13th century on the foundations of the original Tang Forbidden City surrounding the city centre you can walk, rent a bike or take an electric cart around the full 14km circuit, with great views of the city on either side. --Forest of Stone Steles Museum: A fascinating collection of inscribed stone tablets (steles), from very ancient to quite modern (Han-Qing Dynasties, 206BC-1911). All kinds of calligraphies and scripts tell stories, poems, classics, reports from around the Empire. Other exhibits include early sculptures and objects from Imperial tombs. This was once a Confucian temple, and the architecture and grounds are well worth a visit on their own account.
Day 7 Sun 21-Sep-08 Services & Highlights: Yuyuan Garden, Jade Buddha Temple, Oriental Pearl TV Tower, Pujiang Cruise(from South bund to Yangpu Bridge), Breakfast, Chinese Lunch --Yuyuan Garden: In the centre of Shanghai next to the Yuyuan Bazaar, this exquisite old 5-acre garden is famous for its design. The paths wander across bridges, past rockeries and miniature lakes, and through pretty halls and pavilions. The trees and shrubs are planted with an eye to providing charming views, and a sense of peace and harmony. --Jade Buddha Temple: An active Buddhist temple, and one of the richest in Shanghai. The main treasures are two statues of Buddha, carved from rare single blocks of white jade adorned with precious stones. The temple is a hive of activity with monks, worshippers and visitors, and photos of the Buddhas are forbidden. --Oriental Pearl TV Tower: Standing by the Huangpu River with 468 meters high, Oriental Pearl TV Tower is the highest TV Tower in Asia (up to the last floor to see Shanghai scenery).It is a new landmark of Shanghai in 21st century.. --Pujiang Cruise (from South bund to Yangpu Bridge): A Huangpu River Cruise is one of the best ways to see both old and new Shanghai. • Day 8 Mon 22-Sep-08 Destination: Shanghai to Guilin Travel: Shanghai Airlines FM9331 Dep 5:25PM - Arr 7:30PM Accommodation: Guilin Bravo Hotel **** Services & Highlights: Shanghai Museum, Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Hall, Jinmao Tower, Breakfast, Chinese Lunch, Hotel to airport Transfer (Shanghai), Airport
to Hotel Transfer (Guilin) --Shanghai Museum: The biggest, and many think the best museum in China. The galleries in this outstanding building display stunning collections of bronzes, sculptures, ceramics and porcelain, paintings, calligraphy, seals, jade, coins, furniture, ethnic artifacts from minority groups, temporary traveling exhibitions from places like the Guggenheim, and so much more ... give yourself time to enjoy it. --Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Hall: A short walk across Renmin Square from the Shanghai Museum, this is a fascinating insight into Shanghai’s future. The 2nd floor has a giant walk around model of the city, and other floors have great displays, interactive exhibitions and walkthroughs of aspects such as the ports, greening, leisure etc. --Jinmao Tower: 88 storey’s high, this stunning building is one of the tallest in the world. There’s an observation deck on the 88th, bars and coffee shops in the Grand Hyatt (on the 53rd-87th). • Day 9 Tue 23-Sep-08 Destination: Guilin to Yangshuo Accommodation: Aiyuan Hotel **** Services & Highlights: Li River Cruise, Breakfast, Chinese Lunch --Li River Cruise: A cruise along the Li River between Guilin and Yangshuo is an unforgettable experience. As you take in the stunning scenery there's something interesting to see at almost every bend in the river. Between spectacular limestone peaks you'll see graceful bamboo groves, farmers tending rice paddies, and lumbering water buffaloes pulling carts or cooling off in the river. You may see fishermen gliding along on their narrow bamboo rafts, and if you're very lucky you might see one of the famous fishing cormorants.
Boats depart from various wharves, according to the height of the river at different times of the year. Note: Luggage: It is possible to leave your luggage in your Guilin Hotel and take a small bag with your requirements for the overnight stay in Yangshou. If you need your luggage please tell your guide in advance so that he can arrange a van to take your luggage to the Yangshou hotel. • Day 10 Wed 24-Sep-08 Destination: Yangshuo to Guilin Accommodation: Guilin Bravo Hotel **** Services & Highlights: Biking in Beautiful Yangshuo, Yulong River, Chinese Cooking Class, Breakfast, Chinese Lunch --Biking in Beautiful Yangshuo: Experience the hustle & bustle of the Yangshou traffic for 5 minutes before you escape onto the country roads, lanes and tracks of the distinctive and beautiful Yangshou countryside. Biking through the paddy field and orchards that surround the famous mountains will give a fascinating insight into life in rural China. Centuries old farming methods sit side by side with mobile phones and satellite dishes. Note: Please let your guide test the renting bike first regarding to the different quality of the bike.
- Chinese Cooking: Would you like to be able to cook authentic Chinese food and learn the recipes that they use in the restaurants? Yangshuo Jufulou Restaurant and their professional chefs will teach you the tricks of the trade. They will teach you both to cook and to understand some of Chinese Guilin culinary culture. The lesson lasts for 3 hours and during this time you will prepare 3 dishes. All material supplied. • Day 11 Thu 25-Sep-08 Destination: Guilin to Hong Kong Travel: China Southern Airlines CZ3031 Dep 5:30PM - Arr 6:35PM Services & Highlights: Reed Flute Cave, Fubo(Whirlpool) Hill, Elephant Trunk Hill, Breakfast, Chinese Lunch, Hotel to airport Transfer (Guilin), Airport Transfer (Hong Kong) --Reed Flute Cave: Known as 'the Palace of Natural Arts' this large and well-presented cave system has some remarkable formations. Make sure you have some small change for the children who sell flutes for as little as one yuan if you've got nothing less than a dollar you'll end up with their whole stock. --Fubo (Whirlpool) Hill: It is located in the city proper. Fubo Hill is a 4A scenic spot of national grade. It is cliffy, propping up from the ground, famous for the Pearl-Returning Cave (nearly 350 steps to enjoy the view). Note: For your personal security, you'd better not climb the hill if the weather is not suitable for visit (Heavy Rain or foggy day), your guide will recommend you to stay at the bottom of the hill or take you to other options instead.
--Elephant Trunk Hill: At the confluence of Li River and Peach Blossom River in the southwest of Guilin city It is a national 4A scenery spot. The Water Moon Cave is close to the river. The water flows through it and the cave looks like a moon floating in the water. The stone drooped into the water like an elephant drinking the water of the Li River. • Day 12 Fri 26-Sep-08 Destination: Hong Kong Accommodation: Salisbury YMCA Hotel **** Services & Highlights: Half day tour to Victoria Peak, Aberdeen, Repulse Bay, Chinese Lunch in the city --Half day tour to Victoria Peak, Aberdeen, Repulse Bay: -Victoria Peak: The Peak is Hong Kong’s number one tourist destination. It features the city's of oldest mode transport, the 112-year old Peak Tram and Hong Kong's most unusual building and icon, The Peak Tower. It combine shopping, restaurants, and entertainment. -Aberdeen: Aberdeen Harbor is home of hundreds of people living on fishing junks. If to get a close-up look at this unusual way of life, you can take sampan ride (US$10-12 at your expense). -Repulse Bay: Primarily an exclusive residential area.
• Day 13 Sat 27-Sep-08 Destination: Hong Kong Accommodation: Salisbury YMCA Hotel **** Services & Highlights: Breakfast, Free day to explore the city • Day 14 Sun 28-Sep-08 Destination: Hong Kong to Departure City Travel: Flight by your arrangements Services & Highlights: Hotel to airport Transfer (Hong Kong), Breakfast