17 days private tour of Beijing, Silk Road, Xian, Shanghai

Entry Beijing

Day 1.

Arrive at Beijing airport.
Be picked by private vehicle and English-speaking tour guide from Beijingservice.com.
Be transferred to hotel for check in.
Remainder of the day is at leisure.

Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Summer Palace, Tea ceremony, Olympic Park

Day 2.

English speaking tour guide and private vehicle will pick you up from hotel at 08:30 am.

Visit Tiananmen Square - The biggest downtown Square of the world. Take a stroll in the square.

From the north end of Tiananmen Square, we will enter the Forbidden City -also called Palace Museum, is located at the center of Beijing. It was the imperial palace during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Rectangular in shape, Forbidden City is the world's largest palace complex. Visit Forbidden City along the central axis from south to north for 1.5 to 2 hours.

Take a Chinese Herbal Medicine class for about 40 minutes before lunch.
Drugs that the Chinese medicine uses are usually plants, so it usually called Chinese herbal medicine.
In Chinese people's process of fighting with the disease for thousands of years, rich medical knowledge was gradually accumulated through the practice and understanding.
These medical knowledge be passed by apprentice dictation first, and then were written down in books, which helped the medical knowledge spread fast and farther.

After lunch in a local restaurant, we will drive 30 minutes to Summer Palace - 20 kilometers northwest of downtown Beijing. Summer Palace is the largest imperial garden of Ming and Qing dynasty. The whole Summer Palace covers an area of over 290 hectares including more than 3,000 buildings, such as halls, pavilions, towers, etc. Take sightseeing in this beautiful garden for one hour and twenty minutes.

Taste Chinese tea, enjoy Chinese tea ceremony and have a rest in a local tea house.
China is the hometown and birthplace of Chinese tea.
Being the national drinks of China, tea have a history of four to five thousand years.
Tea culture is one of the specific representative of Chinese culture.

Proceed to visit the Olympic Park. As the major venue of the 2008 Olympic Games, the Olympic Park contains three areas including the Forest Park in the north, major venue and supporting facilities area in the center and the completed stadiums and the reserved area. The completed stadiums contains the National Stadium (Bird's Nest), National Swimming Center (Water Cube) and the National Indoor Stadium (Folding Fans). Take an outside view of the venues.

We will transfer you back to hotel after the whole day tour.

Breakfast, Lunch

Ming Tombs, Lunch, Badaling Great Wall

Day 3.

Be picked up from hotel at 08:30 am.

Drive 1.5 hours to the Ming Tombs. Ming Tombs is the final resting place of 13 Ming Dynasty emperors, along with 23 empresses and a number of concubines. It has a history of over 600 years. Surrounded by mountains on three sides,

the Ming Tombs features splendid landscape.
Chang Ling (the Tomb of Chang) was built by the third emperor of the Ming Dynasty in 1409 AD. Chang Ling is the largest tomb in architectural scale. The hall of Chang Ling is the largest structure of nanmu wood in China.
Visit Changling for 1 hour.

On the way to restaurant, we will visit a large scale jadeware processing factory. Jade culture is one important part of Chinese culture. We hope foreign travelers can get a glimpse of Chinese Jade culture during this stop. Thousands of pieces of jade, jewelry and handicraft articles are exhibited, from small bracelet to huge carving. An open workshop is available to demonstrate Jade carving, which enable customers to get some knowledge of Chinese jade carving processes. Visit time is around 40 minutes.

Move on to the famous Badaling Great Wall. The Great Wall was built and maintained between the 7th century BC and 17th century BC. It was originally built to protect the empire from northern invaders. The Great Wall stretches through the countryside over deserts, hills and plains for 8,851.8 kilometers.
Badaling was built in 1505 during the Ming Dynasty. This section of the Great Wall is the best preserved and most visited one. It is 7600 meters long and 1000 meters above sea level,commanding a strategic position in ancient times.
Take sightseeing on Badaling Great Wall for about 2 hours.

Be transferred back to your hotel after the whole day tour.

Breakfast, Lunch

Beijing Hutong, Temple of Heaven, Beijing-Lanzhou

Day 4.

Be picked up from hotel at 08:30 am.

Visit Beijing Hutong. Hutongs are lanes or alleys formed by lines of Siheyuan (a compound with houses around a courtyard). Most of them were built during the Yuan (1206-1368), Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1908) dynasties surrounding the Forbidden City. Many famous operas and dramas are based on the themes of hutong life. Man-power rickshaw is arranged for you to feel the Hutong of Beijing.

Proceed to visit Temple of Heaven. Built in 1420 during Ming Dynasty, Temple of Heaven is the best preserved and largest sacrificial building complex in the world. The emperor came to the temple every winter to pray for ample harvests and good weather. Strictly built on the basis of philosophical requirements, the temple in many ways features the relationship between Heaven and Earth.
Visit Temple of Heaven for 1 hour.

Be transferred to airport to connect flight to Lanzhou.

Lanzhou tour guide and private vehicle will meet you at airport. Transfer your to the hotel.

Breakfast, Lunch

White Pagoda Park, the Provincial Museum

Day 5.

Be picked up from your hotel by English speaking tour guide and private vehicle.

Visit White Pagoda Park. Located on the north bank of the Yellow River with a white pagoda temple on its height, it is a large, quiet area for strolling. The pagoda is structured in 7 terraces with an octagonal body and 17-meter in height. GoldenCityPass and JadeFoldingPass are at the foot of the Hill.

Then visit the Provincial Museum. It has an excellent selection of exhibits relating to Gansu and the Silk Road. 75,000 cultural relics including natural resources and historical exhibits are exhibited here.

Be transferred back to your hotel after the whole day tour.

Breakfast, Lunch

Lanzhou - Xiahe, Sangke Grassland, Tibetan Family

Day 6.

Be picked up from your hotel at 08:30 am.

Be transferred to Xiahe.

Visit the Sangke Grassland and a Tibetan Family. Sangke Grassland is bordered by the DaxiaRiver and famous for its excellent pasture and frequent magnificent Buddhist ceremonies. Lush green grass and colorful flowers form a natural carpet covering this expansive area. Groups of sheep and yaks plus white tents form a beautiful picture.

Be transferred back to your hotel in Xiahe after the whole day tour.

Breakfast, Lunch

Labrang Monastery, Xiahe - Lanzhou

Day 7.

Be picked up from your hotel at 08:30 am.

Visit the Labrang Monastery. As one of the six great monasteries of the Gelukpa (Yellow Hat) Sect, Labrang Monastery is Tibetan Buddhism's most important monastery town outside Tibet itself. It is famous for thousands of statues of Buddha made of gold, silver, copper, and aluminum. Seven large-scale summon ceremonies are held a year here.

Be transferred back to Lanzhou.

Breakfast, Lunch

Binglingsi Grottoes, Lanzhou - Jiayuguan

Day 8.

Be picked up from your hotel at 08:30 am.

A full day excursion to the Binglingsi Grottoes. Located on the north bank of the Yellow River, Binglingsi Grottoes is one of the six famous Buddhist Caves started by some Buddhist monks from as early as the year of 265-316. After many years' work, there are 183 caves with 694 stone statues, 82 earth statues and 900 square meters murals existing.

Be transferred to the airport to connect the flight to Jiayuguan, overnight in Jiayuguan.

Breakfast, Lunch

Jiayuguan Pass, Overhanging Great Wall, Wei-Jin Art Gallery, Jiayuguan - Dunhuang

Day 9.

Be picked up from your hotel at 08:30 am.

Visit Jiayuguan Pass, Overhanging Great Wall and Wei-Jin Art Gallery.

Then take a bus to Dunhuang, check-in the hotel in Dunhuang.

Breakfast, Lunch

Echoing-Sand Dune, Crescent Moon Lake

Day 10.

Be picked up from your hotel at 08:30 am.

You will experience a short camel-riding along the Echoing-Sand Dune to reach the Crescent Moon Lake. Surrounded by rolling ridges and precipitous cliffs, Echoing-Sand Mountain reaches a relative elevation of 250 meters. Every time when the wind sweeps across the sands, a thunder-like sound can be heard from the mountain, and the sound like musical instruments if there is a breeze, hence the name Echoing-Sand Mountain.
Nearby, locates the Crescent Moon Lake. It is a natural spring fed pond measuring about 240 meters from east to west, and 50 meters from north to south. It appears its clear and beautiful quietly.

Be transferred back to your hotel in Dunhuang.

Breakfast, Lunch

Mogao Grottoes, the Dunhuang Museum

Day 11.

Be picked up from your hotel at 08:30 am.

Visit the Mogao Grottoes, a system of 492 Buddhist cave temples. They are the greatest and most consummate repository of historical and cultural collection over a thousand years between China and other nations. The most noted collections are many pilgrims painted murals, Clay statues and 50,000 manuscripts written in many languages.

Then visit the Dunhuang Museum. Established in 1979 with an area of 2400 square meters, this museum houses more than 4000 pieces of cultural relics from primitive society to the end of the Qing Dynasty. The material objects providing the plenty evidences to "Silk Road" are also exhibited here.

Be transferred back to your hotel.

Breakfast, Lunch

Dunhuang - Xian

Day 12.

Be transferred to Dunhuang airport to connect the flight to Xian.

Be picked up by Xian guide and vehicle, transfer the hotel.

Remainder of the day is at leisure.

Breakfast

Terracotta, Huaqing Hot Spring, Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Dumpling, Tang Dynasty Show

Day 13.

Be picked up from your hotel at 08:30 am.

Visit the Terracotta Warriors and Horses -the Eighth Wonder of the World. More than 6,000 different looking pottery figures depict the history of the Qin Dynasty from 221 BC-206 BC.

Move on to appreciate the imperial garden of Tang Dynasty- Huaqing Hot Spring - a palace since the Tang Dynasty, the resort place of many emperors in ancient.

Then we will visit the Big Wild Goose Pagoda -Originally built in 652 of Tang Dynasty, the pagoda is functioned to collect Buddhist materials that were taken from India by the hierarch Xuanzang. Now it is Landmark of the Xian.

Taste local Dumpling Banquet -traditional food for Chinese New Year. It is a must taste food in China.

Enjoy Tang Dynasty Show -performance of Chang'an music and dances that was originated in the Tang dynasty over a thousand years ago. The musicians present the music with the Tang-dynasty-style musical instruments. You will enjoy a national art that reflects the glory and richness of the Tang Dynasty era.

Be transferred back to your hotel.

Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Provincial History Museum, Great Mosque and Bazaar, City Wall, Drum Tower and Square

Day 14.

Be picked up from your hotel at 08:30 am.

Visit the Provincial Museum -a magnificent architectural complex in the Tang Dynasty style. It is the first huge state museum with modern facilities in China.

Visit the Great Mosque -the largest and best-preserved mosques of China, which serves as an important spot for religious activities of over 60,000 Muslims in Xi'an.

Visit Great Mosque Bazaar.

Move on to visit the City Wall - the best preserved, oldest and largest ancient city defense system in China. The wall has a history of over 600 years.

Proceed to visit Drum Tower and Square.

Be transferred back to your hotel.

Breakfast, Lunch

Xian - Shanghai

Day 15.

Pick you up from the hotel. Drive to visit the Statues at the start of the Silk Road before connecting the flight to Shanghai.

Arrive in Shanghai.

Be met and transferred to the hotel by Shanghai guide and vehicle.

Breakfast

Yu Garden, Jade Buddha Temple, Nanjing Road, Oriental Pearl TV Tower, the Bund

Day 16.

Be picked up from your hotel at 08:30 am.

Visit Yu Garden. Located in the southern part of Shanghai, Yu Garden is a well-restored Suzhou-style garden. It is one of the best gardens in southern China. With pavilions, halls, chambers, towers, ponds and rockeries, it presents more than 40 scenic spots. No wonder people say "Those who have come to Shanghai missing Yu Garden and the City God Temple Bazaar can not claim that they have been to the city."

Visit Jade Buddha Temple. Built in 1882, Jade Buddha Temple has 2 jade statues of the Sakyamuni Buddha, one seated and one reclining. The seated Buddha is 1.9 meters tall and was carved out of a single piece of white jade, wearing a robe inlaid with precious jewels. The temple also houses a number of ancient sculptures, rare paintings and Buddhist scriptures.

After lunch, we will visit Nanjing Road. Nanjing Road is one of the most famous and bustling business streets in the world. It is also called Chinese First Business Street. It is the window for Shanghai to open to the world and also shopping paradise for people at home and abroad.

Move on to Oriental Pearl TV Tower -the world's third tallest TV and radio tower, which combines ancient concepts with 21st Century technology.

Then visit the Bund. The Bund, also called Zhongshan Road, is a famous waterfront and regarded as the symbol of Shanghai for hundreds of years. The most famous and attractive sights are the 52 various buildings of different architectural styles including Gothic, Baroque, Romanesque, Classicism and the Renaissance, which are also located at the west side of the Bund. The Bund was the centre of Shanghai's politics, economy and culture hundreds of years ago, consulates of most countries. Many banks, businesses and newspaper offices were settled there, and that's why we have these art-like buildings.

Have a short Cruise on Huangpu River.

Be transferred back to your hotel.

Breakfast, Lunch

Departure

Day 17.

Be picked up from your hotel, transferred to the airport to connect the flight for departure.

Breakfast