18 days china classic tour

includes: beijing, xi'an, chengdu, lhasa, wolong panda reserve, chongqing, yangtze river, wuhan & shanghai

a trip to tibet, "roof of the world", if you want your trip to china to be culturally enriching as well as adventurous, then this one is for you. you will visit the popular cities which include beijing, xi'an, yangtze river cruise & shanghai. but, you will also step into long closed -out tibet-a mysterious land that is about 3 miles high above sea level. plus, you will go deep into the panda reservation in wolong, outside of chengdu, to visit this almost extinct animal.

d1 arrive in beijing, the capital of china, a friendly english speaking guide will meet and transfer you to hotel.

d2 see the well-publicized tiananmen square, then the ancient forbidden city, the imperialpalace, the beautiful summerpalace, and tour the temple of heaven where the qing emperors worshipped, walk through traditional courtyard neighborhoods dating from ming dynasty, beijing's hutongs. enjoy a famous peking duck dinner.

d3 full day excursion to the great wall of china that now offers a cable car to the summit. later, on the return, drive along the famed sacred way to visit the museum of the ming tombs. enjoy a traditional chinese entertainment while shivering the tea and local desert delicacies in laoshe tea house.

d4 fly to xi'an, upon arrival visit the ancient city wall, bell tower, and the wild goose pagoda. check into hotel.

d5 sightseeing will include the excavation of terra-cotta warriors and horses, one of the greatest archaeological finds of the century, then visit hua qing springs and banpo neolithic village. in the evening enjoy a tang dynasty music and dance dinner show.

d6 today you fly to chengdu, the capital of sichuan province. meet your guide at the airport and check into hotel.

d7 get up early. your guide will take you to the airport for 6:45am flight to lhasagonggarairport. you will be greeted by your tibetan tour guide and driven about two hours to lhasacity. check into hotel upon arrival and relax for the rest of day to adjust the high altitude.

d8 after breakfast in the hotel, you will begin your exploration to this holy city. visit the potala palace, where the dalai lama used to preside. in the afternoon, visit the jorkang temple, which is located at the very center of lhasa. later you can stroll along the barkore street where tibetan shops present tibetan medicines, hand-made crafts, etc.

d9 today's sightseeing includes the tsepung monastery, one of the biggest monasteries in tibet, then onto tibetan carpet factory. in the afternoon, visit sera monastery and norbulingkatemple which is the summer palace of dalai lama.

d10 take a morning flight back to chengdu. your local guide will meet you at the airport and drive to wolongmountain area where the pandas live. stay overnight at the wolong cottage.

d11 you can spend the whole day hiking into the pandareservationcenter, playing and taking pictures with the pandas. late afternoon, drive back to chengdu and check into hotel.

d12 morning tour in chengdu to cottage of great tang dynasty poet, du fu, and qingyanggong cultural park in where you will visit the oldest and largest daoisttemple . then drive to chongqing via highway. you will board a 4 star cruise ship for your four day journey on the grand yangtze river.

d13 today you begin your downstream cruise. arrive at fengdu, the legendary ghost town. you will visit the mingshan hill's temples. continue to sail to badong.

d14 the cruise will sail through the most magnificent qutang gorge, the first of the three gorges. then you will be transferred to a small sampan for an excursion along the shengnong stream to view the parrot gorge and dragon boat gorge. return to the cruise and you will pass the wu gorge and xiling gorge.

d15 you will be taken on a bus to cross the three gorges bridge to see this controversial project up in the close. the project includes the five-step dam construction. upon returning to the cruise, you will sail through the gezhou dam ship lock.

d16 your cruise will arrive at wuhan around 12:00n. your local tour guide will meet you at the pier, city tour if time permits. then fly to shanghai. check into hotel.

d17 visit this bustling metropolitan city, which is becoming a symbolic of the rapid growth of china's economy. escorted tour to the old town, yuyuan garden, jade buddha temple. also visit the architectural master piece -shanghai museum, the bund (waterfront) and bustling nanjing road for shopping.

d18 your guide will transfer to the airport and hug you good-bye.