18 days china classic tour-a

?

includes: beijing, xi'an, dazu, chongqing, yangtze river cruise & shanghai

d1 arrive in beijing, meet at airport and transfer to the hotel.

d2 begin the day with a visit to tian'anmen square, the world largest. then, move on to the imperial palace, also known as the "forbidden city" that symbolizes the imperial and traditional china. after lunch, you will go to visit the enchanting summer palace, one of china's largest and best-preserved imperial gardens. a peking duck banquet concludes your first full day activities in china.

d3 today's highlight is your visit to the great wall, symbol of chinese civilization. in the afternoon, you will visit temple of heaven, the place where the emperors of ming and qing dynasties worshipped heaven and prayed for peace and harvest. tonight's dinner is the royal cuisine at fangshan restaurant in beihaipark. enjoy a short episode of classic peking opera after dinner in a nearby theatre.

d4 this morning, follow your guide to walk through some old "hutongs", a kind of ancient-city compound, to see traditional style courtyards and locals doing their daily chores. in the afternoon, move on to yonghegong lamasery in the eastern part of the city for a visit. take an afternoon flight to xi'an and transfer to the hotel upon arrival. in the evening, enjoy an interesting dumpling dinner at a local restaurant.

d5 today's highlight is the visit to the extra-ordinary 2,200-year-old terra cotta warriors of china's first emperor, qin shihuang. in the afternoon, visit the superb shaanxihistorymuseum.

d6 visit the city walls of xi'an and the great mosque in the morning before taking a flight to chongqing. upon arrival, transfer by motor coach to the small county town of dazu. check in the hotel for a two-night stay.

d7 visit the celebrated cliff sculptures of dazu which is a world culture heritage.

d8 return to chongqing by motor coach. upon arrival, you will first go to the pipahillpark. later stop by the chongqing zoo where giant pandas amiably greet visitors. overnight at a 4 star hotel in chongqing.

d9 yangtze river cruise. after breakfast, you are transferred to the dock and board victoria, the only american managed cruise ship on the yangtze river, and begin our enthralling downstream yangtze cruise. today's excursion is to visit the city of fengdu on the south bank of the river. in the evening, you will enjoy the captain's cocktail party. the ship continues sailing through the night.

d10 today the ship will pass the qutang and wu gorges. get yourself prepared for the thrilling side trip on a wooden sampan through the small gorges of daningriver (or shennong stream depending on water level).

d11 you will see the beauty of the last of the three gorges early this morning. the cruise ship docks at sanduoping for an excursion to three gorges dam construction site, the newest attraction on the cruise line.

d12 after a night and a half-day's sailing through the central plains, you arrive in the transport hub city of wuhan by noon. take a city tour that includes visits to the provincial museum and the guiyuantemple.

d13 yangtze river cruise. after a night's sailing on the yangtze river, we arrive at the city of jiujiang on the south bank of the yangtze. today's excursion includes a brief city tour of jiujiang and exploration on mountlushan, a unesco world heritage site. return to victoria by the evening.

d14 yangtze river cruise. this is going to be a full day excursion on the yellow mountain so get yourself prepared. a cable-car will take you to the mountaintop and from there you start your exploration of the beautiful scenery on the yellow mountain which is also a world nature heritage.

d15 yangtze river cruise. today your cruise will dock at nanjing, an ancient capital of china, for a full day excursion. visits include the confuciustemple, sun-yat-sen mausoleum, and the ling gu temple. return to your cruise ship in late afternoon.

d16 finally your cruise ship sails into the shanghai harbour. upon disembarking, go to visit yuyuangarden, jade buddha temple and shanghai museum. later check in a 4 star hotel.

d17 take a stroll on the bund after breakfast. you will be given some free time for your own exploration. tonight, enjoy a farewell banquet at your hotel featuring shanghai cuisine.

d18 after a relaxed breakfast in your hotel, we will transfer you to the airport for your departure