China Hiking Tour from Hong Kong

Today, you will arrive at the airport in Hong Kong and be transferred to the hotel shortly.

Hong Kong, located at the southeast end of China, is a highly prosperous international metropolis. It has 18 administrative districts and a strong sense of modernization. Its economy, communication, transportation, science and technology, life, and entertainment are at the forefront of the world level of development. Moreover, with a subtropical climate, it has a high annual average temperature, reaching about 22.8 degrees Celsius (73 degrees Fahrenheit). When traveling here in spring, you can wear a thin coat or sweater.

After breakfast, you will visit the Wong Tai Sin Temple. As a Taoist temple, Wong Tai Sin Temple is a famous scenic area in Hong Kong. According to the locals, the Wong Tai Sin enshrined in this temple is very effective in realizing believers’ wishes. On the first day of every lunar New Year, local people will come here to burn incense and worship the Wong Tai Sin for blessings. There is also a story about Wong Tai Sin. Long ago, Wong Tai Sin was born in a poor family. When he was 15 years old, he met a Taoist priest while herding sheep in the mountains. The Taoist priest found that this young man in front of him had the talent to learn Taoist magic, so he accepted him as his student. Following this Taoist priest, Wong Tai Sin studied and practiced Taoist magic for nearly 40 years. Finally, he mastered what he had learned and became a Taoist immortal. Later, he traveled all over the country and used his power to cure the sick and save people in danger. Soon, his merits and virtues were well known to the public. Therefore, people built the Wong Tai Sin Temple to honor and worship him. Today, you can feel the magic of this Chinese immortal and learn more about him in the Wong Tai Sin Temple.

Then, the peak tram will take you to Victoria Peak where you will come to the Sky Terrace 428 on the top floor of the Peak Tower. The Peak Tower is the terminal of the Peak Tram on the top of the mountain. You will notice that the bowl-shaped Peak Tower is very distinctive from a distance. When you are at the Sky Terrace 428, you can have a bird’s-eye view of the whole Victoria Harbor. Here, you can use the free interactive voice guide service— “Hong Kong Skyscraper Guide”. By doing so, you can explore Hong Kong’s architecture, culture, life, history, and story while enjoying the intoxicating scenery of Victoria Harbor. Everyone loves the scenery at the top of the peak, doesn’t it?

Later, you will head for Repulse Bay, a fascinating bay that has the title of “Oriental Hawaii”. It is a half-moon-shaped beach. The sand grains on the beach are white, smooth, and bright. When walking on the beach here in sunny weather, you will feel the soles of your feet warm and itchy, which is very comfortable. In midsummer, many tourists would like to gather here. The reason why Repulse Bay is so popular in Hong Kong is because of its charming scenery and excellent environment. You can enjoy the breeze, waves, and the clear seawater here. In addition, first-time visitors to Hong Kong can easily reach Repulse Bay. Whether it is sightseeing, walking, playing water, or napping, everyone enjoys the cool summer by the sea in their way.

The next stop is the Tin Hau Temple, which is behind Repulse Bay. In fact, there are many Tin Hau Temples scattered all over Hong Kong at present. Most of them were built in the early Qing Dynasty (1636-1912). They were established to pray for the safety of navigation and maritime trade at that time. And the temple we are going to visit is no exception. By the way, Tin Hau is a sea goddess that people in the coastal area of southeast China believe in. At the very beginning, she was just an ordinary girl. She had a good command of medical knowledge so that she could treat diseases and prevent epidemics. More importantly, she wielded her meteorological knowledge to forecast the weather and whether the sea is calm or rough. In this way, she guided the crew to voyage safely. She also made an indelible contribution to the development of the maritime industry at that time. Sadly, she lost her life at the age of 28 when she was rescuing others on the sea. Later, with the change of dynasties, her status and influence in China’s marine culture gradually increased due to people’s deep memory and respect for her. Up to now, Tin Hau is not only the goddess of maritime protection but also the spiritual pillar of overseas Chinese. You can ask your guide for more information about this temple and this goddess.

Then, we will drive to the Stanley Market, which is a popular tourist spot in Hong Kong. People always say that Hong Kong is a paradise for shoppers, so the Stanley Market here can also provide you with a nice shopping experience. Famous shops here include Pacific Coffee and French Bakery. In the French Bakery here, for example, you can buy a common French baguette, whose price varies with its thickness and length. It is worth noting that French bakeries do not use plastic bags, and French baguettes are wrapped in short paper bags or even a sheet of paper. Other buildings here are small and medium-sized enterprises, small restaurants, and foreign currency exchange stores. During your free shopping time, you can select various commodities including Chinese handicrafts, postcards, ready-made clothes, oil paintings, souvenirs for foreign tourists, etc.

After that, you will go back to the hotel in Hong Kong to rest.

Stanley Market

Peak Tram

This morning, we will drive southeast from downtown Hong Kong to Shek O for about 35 minutes (22KM) after breakfast. Then, we will begin hiking up the mountain from the To Tei Wan in Shek O. This Hong Kong Hiking Tour is about 8 kilometers and 3 hours. The continuous mountains here are the famous Dragon’s Back. While hiking along the mountain road, you will find many flowers and plants. Bauhinia, for example, is in full bloom every winter and spring, which is particularly beautiful against the sky. Besides, this flower is a beautiful image representing Hong Kong. When you climb to the top of the mountain, you can overlook the sea, the beaches, and the yachts passing by. Isn’t it comfortable to climb mountains here on a refreshing day?

Later, you will walk down the mountain along the road to Big Wave Bay Beach, an excellent beach tourist destination. It has a wide beach surface, fine and soft sand, clean seawater, and turbulent waves, which are unmatched by other beaches. Stepping on the sand of this beach, you can see scattered islands on the distant sea, and occasionally speedboats passing by. Overall, the scenery here is extraordinarily charming, and you can really enjoy it very comfortably.

After today’s hiking tour, you will follow your tour guide to return to the hotel in Hong Kong.

Big Wave Bay Beach

Big Wave Bay Beach

Today, you can have a good breakfast. Then, you will board the estimated train G408 12:05/15:25 from West Kowloon Railway Station to Guilin West Railway Station.

Then, we will drive north to the Longji Rice Terrace in the Ping’an Village for about 1 hour and 40 minutes (78KM). Longji Rice Terrace is a large-scale terrace group, with the highest altitude of 1,180 meters and the lowest of 380 meters. It is divided into three parts: Ping’an Zhuang Minority Terrace, Jinkeng Dazhai Hongyao Terrace, and Longji Ancient Zhuang Village Terrace. They all combine the natural landscape with the ethnic minority cultural landscape, embracing a culture of terraced rice farming. It is the most poetic and picturesque experience if you encounter drizzly weather while watching the Ping’an Zhuang Minority Terrace. You will certainly feel that you have stepped into an ancient Chinese ink painting. In addition, you can feel the traditional life of the Zhuang Minority during this Hiking Tour to Longji Rice Terrace. Here, you can enjoy the simple folk dance and costumes of the Zhuang Minority and can also hear the graceful Zhuang folk songs and enjoy the original Zhuang traditions.

After that, you will stay in the Ping’an Village for the night.

Longji Rice Terrace

Longji Rice Terrace

After breakfast, you will start hiking from Ping’an Village to Zhonglu Village and then to Dazhai Village. The two hikes take about 2 hours each. In the first half of the hike, you will find the locals using the sloping land to cultivate terraces layer by layer and divert water for irrigation. However, such land treatment has not caused any damage to the forest ecosystem. The local villagers can only build irregular terraces according to the complex terrain but inadvertently create a beautiful and amazing landscape. You will be amazed by the survival wisdom of the harmony between man and nature of the Zhuang and Yao nationalities who have lived here for thousands of years.

During this hiking tour from Zhonglu Village to Dazhai Village, you will see the Jinkeng Dazhai Hongyao Terrace. Looking at the outline of these curved shapes of the terraces, you might think that these terraces are ribbons falling from the sky. What’s more, you can take photos at will because this scenic area is also a dreamland for Chinese and foreign photographers.

Then, you can have a nice lunch around these villages. After today’s visit, we will drive south for about 2 hours (102KM) back to Guilin and check in the hotel there.

Zhonglu Village

Dazhai-Village

After today’s breakfast, we will drive southeast from downtown Guilin to Mopanshan Pier for about 45 minutes (26KM). Then, we will go on the Li River Cruise for a cruise tour which lasts for about 4 hours and includes a Chinese box lunch. One wonderful thing about visiting the Li River on a cruise ship is that there is no need for you to worry about weather changes. The characteristics of the Li River’s scenery vary in different weather. On sunny days, you can see the reflection of green peaks in the clear water. On cloudy days, you can look at the mountains surrounded by white clouds. You can surely get an excellent sightseeing experience on the Li River Cruise.

Later, we will come to Yangshuo County to visit Yangshuo West Street. This pedestrian street is about 8 meters wide and nearly 800 meters long, running east to west. With a history of more than 1,400 years, it is also the oldest and most prosperous street in Yangshuo County. In the early 1970s, when Yangshuo County was opened to the outside world, many Western tourists discovered the beautiful West Street here. At the same time, these Western tourists showed a strong interest in its local elegant folk houses, traditional culture, and customs. Since then, an endless stream of overseas tourists came to Yangshuo West Street for sightseeing and leisure every year. Later, Yangshuo West Street has become a foreigner street integrating Chinese and Western cultures. Furthermore, there is a German Hot Dog Shop here. If you are hungry, you can have an authentic German hot dog. It is very nice to enjoy delicious food while watching the ancient buildings on this street.

After that, we will drive north back to Guilin for 1.5 hours (70KM).

Li river

Yangshuo west street

After breakfast, you can get ready to start your trekking trip to Shanghai. You will take the estimated flight MU6472 10:40/12:55 from Guilin to Shanghai. Your China hiking tour from Shanghai begins when you are welcomed by your tour guide at the airport in Shanghai.

You will first go to the Bund. It is about 1,500 meters long, with the Huangpu River on its east side and the financial and foreign trade institutions on its west side. On the Bund, you will find dozens of buildings with different styles, including French Classical, Gothic, Roman, Baroque, and so on. Although they are designed by different designers and have their own characteristics, these buildings stand silently in unison, forming an indispensable landscape on the Bund. Moreover, the Bund is never short of visitors. No matter which season, people who swarm to appreciate it every day have come wave after wave.

Then, you will come to Nanjing Road. It is a prosperous street in Shanghai, with more than 700 shops on its both sides. Generally, it has two parts: the Nanjing West Road and the Nanjing East Road. With the further opening of Shanghai to the outside world and the influx of businesses from various countries, this street has become a top commercial street in China. On this street with a long history and developed commerce, you will find many shopping malls and stores. One store among them is particularly fascinating, which is the Shanghai First Foodhall. As soon as you walk into this food hall, you will find a bewildering variety of featured delicious food available. You can spend money on the desserts here, such as butterfly crisps, salty cookies, and cream cakes, which will certainly tickle your taste buds!

The bund

Nanjing Road

After breakfast, you will visit the Jing’an Temple, which is located in the prosperous area of Nanjing West Road. This temple is one of the earliest Buddhist temples in Shanghai, with a history of more than 1,700 years. With an area of 22,000 square meters, Jing’an Temple has many well-known Buddhist buildings. Here, you can visit the Dharma Hall, a hall for preaching the Buddhist doctrine. It used teakwood as its main material and copper tiles as its roof, with 7 floors and a height of 32 meters. When you look at the roof of this hall, you will find some representative images of Buddhism such as elephants and lotus. These exquisite buildings are solemn and sacred when illuminated by the sun. Today’s Jing’an Temple is a pure place in the world of mortals. Entering this temple will take off your fatigue and make you get supreme coolness in your heart.

Then, you will go to the Yu Garden (Closed on Mondays). This garden has a history of more than 400 years. Date back to the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), the first owner of the Yu Garden was Pan Yunduan. Before the Yu Garden was built, Pan wanted to ensure his parents enjoy their old age in peace in a beautiful garden. Therefore, Pan invited a famous horticulturist to take charge of the whole design of this garden. In addition, the name of this garden is blessed with auspicious implications. Yu, in ancient Chinese, means peace, safe, quiet, and comfortable, especially to please the elder generation. But unfortunately, Pan’s parents passed away before they could witness the completion of the Yu Garden. Because the Yu Garden was finally built after more than twenty years of painstaking efforts. A few years later, Pan Yunduan died. The Pan family declined and was unable to bear the huge expenses required for garden management. To preserve this magnificent garden, local gentry-merchants gathered to buy the Yu Garden. As time passed, the Yu Garden changed hands many times. Today’s Yu Garden has become a public open tourist spot that you can feel the long history of this centuries-old garden.

Next, you will move to the Shanghai Old Street. This old street has fulfilled the idea of running a street that integrates catering, culture, entertainment, leisure, and shopping. Today, many Chinese time-honored brands stand on the Shanghai Old Street. For example, you can take a look at the Nan Xiang Steamed Bun Restaurant that is not far from the Yu Garden. It has a history of more than 100 years since its establishment. The steamed stuffed buns sold here have the characteristics of thin skin and big filling, which is very palatable. Furthermore, you can find that numerous types of commodities are available here. You can select ornamental paper fans, silk lamps, tin wares, jade, Chinese calligraphy and paintings, incense candles, and many other handicrafts, and buy some of them if you like.

After lunch, you will move to the Former French Concession, which was a prosperous concession in 1990s with a history of about one hundred years. This place represents the combination of Chinese and Western elements and the history and culture of modern Shanghai. According to our itinerary recommendations, you can go to Fuxing Park here. The Fuxing Park is the only park that retains the French classical style in Shanghai. It is also a masterpiece of the blending of Chinese and Western Garden Culture in modern Shanghai. Besides, various carnivals and concerts are often held in Fuxing Park. This beautiful garden and other tourist spots in the Former French Concession are very suitable for hikers to visit.

Later, you will head for the Shanghai Tower, which is the tallest building in Asia, which deserves the title of "Top of Shanghai" for its observation deck. If you want to choose a building to overlook the scenery of Shanghai, it must be the Shanghai Tower. The total height of this skyscraper is 632m, with 127 floors above the ground. You can take the world’s fastest elevator to the 118th floor of the Shanghai Tower: Top of Shanghai Observatory. You can enjoy a unique sightseeing experience on this 546-meter-high observatory platform. You can have a peak perspective, count the locations of the world’s famous buildings in the cloud, and browse the urban beauty of the world’s super high-rise buildings. In addition, there is a green “Wishing Tree” full of vitality and hope. You are welcomed to make wishes on the Top of Shanghai for a better life.

After the visit, you will be transferred to the hotel in Shanghai.

Option: If you want to continue your visit to Shanghai, you might as well watch the Acrobatic Show (19:30-21:00) at the Shanghai Center Theater. The name of the show is “SPIRAL”. More than 200 professional actors in this theater can give you unimaginable acrobatic show experience, making you feel the tension and excitement of every organ on your body. These thrilling stunts include motorcycle riding in cages, high wire walking, etc. If you are interested in acrobatic art, you can buy tickets and watch the “SPIRAL”.

Shanghai Tower

Yu Garden

Today, after breakfast, you can get on the return plane and leave China. We sincerely hope that you have a wonderful hiking experience during these days. At last, you are warmly welcomed to choose our services after reading the above introductions.

Author：Yan Weiran

Proofreader: Lexie