30 Days China Panoramic Tour with Yangtze River Cruise

Welcome to Beijing, the capital city of China! It is the first stop of your wonderful 30 days China Yangtze river tour, and it will leave you a memorable impression! As an ancient city with a history of over 3,000 years, it serves as the capital city of 6 dynasties, including Yuan (1271-1368), Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1636-1912) dynasties. Today, Beijing has been an international metropolis with permanent residents of more than 21 million, as well as its developed economy, culture and technology. This world-famous city also enjoys a large number of attractions that you cannot miss! And you will visit them in the remaining days! After arrival, the guide with your name sign will meet you at the airport, then accompany you to the hotel downtown. You could wander around in beautiful Beijing or take a good rest at the hotel to ease yourself after the long flight. 

Free Time Suggestion: It is a good recommendation to wander around Wangfujing Street on your own. The renowned commercial street is a popular destination for both locals and travelers. And it is world-famous like the Eiffel Tower in Paris so that attracts a lot of foreigners. Visiting here, you cannot the popular snacks, including soybean paste noodles, tanghulu (sugar-coated haws on a stick), Beijing Roast Duck, etc. I believe the authentic Beijing midnight snacks will satisfy your stomach! 

After breakfast, we will head for the first destination in Beijing, which is Tian’anmen Square. Extending 500 meters from the west side to the east side, it covers 440,000 square meters. It is the venue for China to hold grand gatherings to celebrate the country’s commemorative events, for example, former chairman Mao Zedong declared the founding of the People’s Republic of China on October 1, 1949. Since then, the day on October 1st was determined as China’s National Day. And beginning from 1986, ornate floral displays have been arranged as the annual national day decoration to celebrate the day important for both China and its people. On October 1, 2021, the huge flower basket arrangement themed “Blessing to the Motherland” is 18 meters high and the base of its container is 45 meters in diameter, which attracts a lot of visitors. Also, you will see the Great Hall of the People, the Monument to the People’s Heroes, and the National Museum of China. And if time permits, maybe you could visit the National Museum of China, where you will be attracted by China’s historical relics that span thousands of years. 

Through the Tian’anmen Gate Tower, you will enter the Forbidden City (closed on Mondays). It was built in 1420, and it is the imperial palace for 24 emperors in the Ming and Qing dynasties. Here, I would like to share with you stories about the Screen Wall of Nine Dragons. And you will notice that there is a wooden section in a dragon. While being fired, a dragon is failed to be fired. But the deadline was so close that craftsmen were not allowed to fire a new one. At that time, a craftsman engraved a wooden dragon’s abdomen, nailed it together to the dragon, and coated it with white paint. The man was highly skilled and his work was not found by officers who came to inspect the screen wall. However, the white paint peeled after passing days. The different design of the dragon brings visitors an amazing visual effect. Today, the wooden section of the Screen Wall of Nine Dragons has become a popular attraction in the Forbidden City. 

After a delicious lunch, we will visit the Temple of Heaven. It was built in 1420 and was the place for emperors in Ming and Qing dynasties to worship heaven for a fruitful harvest. At that time, emperors come here to worship heaven 3 times annually. Emperors worship heaven in the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest on the Lantern Festival and in the lunar April on the Circular Mound Altar with a wish for a good harvest. And they worship the heaven in the Circular Mound Altar on the day of Winter Solstice to express gratitude to the heaven for his blessing. While visiting, the guide will also share with you a lot of interesting stories, and I believe you will get a better understanding of the Temple of Heaven! 

Next, we will go to the Summer Palace, which is the imperial garden in the Qing Dynasty and the best-preserved one in China’s history. It covers 3.009 square kilometers with lake area of three quarters. In the Summer Palace, you will be attracted by the Long Corridor. On rainy or snowy days, emperors would stand there to enjoy the adorable scenery of Kunming Lake. What’s more, it is a colorful gallery with about 14,000 colorful paintings. There is a painting named “ju’anqimei (implies a harmonious relationship of couples)” in Chinese, which is a story in the early years of the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220). At that time, there is a girl named Meng Guang who is fat and not good looking. She was unmarried till 30-year old, and only wanted to marry Liang Hong, a man of integrity but lived in poor. After hearing this, Liang married her. And then, they chose to live in seclusion in Baling mountain. They loved each other very much and Meng always raised the tray rice bowls put high in front of her eyebrow to ask her husband to have meals. And it was the way for Meng Guang to show her respect to Liang Hong. Since then, the Chinese character “ju’anqimei” was used to describe the deep love and respect of couples. Please ask your guide if you would like to unlock more about these paintings! 

Option: If you are interested in Chinese Kung Fu, I recommend you to watch a Legend of Kung Fu Show in the Red Theater, you will be stunned by the marvelous Chinese Kung Fu and moved by the story of Chun Yi, who studied Kung Fu in his childhood and became a master after relentless efforts. The show starts at 19:30 and ends at 21:00. 

Forbidden City

Summer Palace

After breakfast, you will visit the Ding Tomb in the northwest of Beijing downtown, 51 kilometers away. And we need to get there by private car for about 1 hour and 23 minutes. It is the tomb of Emperor Wanli (the 13th emperor in the Ming Dynasty) along with the empresses of Xiaoduan and Xiaojing. Covering 182,000 square meters, it is the only tomb that was excavated. Here, I’d like to share with you stories about the Ding Tomb when it was built. While being built, over 30,000 laborers took participated in the construction of it. Once when Wanli came to inspect the progress, he found artisans grinding bricks slowly. And next year when he came again, artisans were still grinding bricks slackly. Then, he was outraged, “How tardy! When my tomb will be built?” Artisans were so clever, “my majesty, please don’t be mad. We extended the time because we wish you health and longevity.” After hearing the words, Wanli smiled and released artisans. 

After lunch, our destination will be the Badaling Great Wall. It is the first section of the Great Wall that opened to the public. I recommend you to visit the Great Wall Museum there. The museum theme the Great Wall reflects the history, construction, culture & art, and the current situation of the Great Wall. With cultural relics, pictures as well as a touch-screen, projector and other multimedia devices, it shows all-around aspects of the Great Wall. I believe you will have a deep understanding of the Great Wall after visiting it! Besides, there is a cable car in the Badaling Great Wall, you could take it to enjoy the beauty of the Great Wall. It will be a good idea to take a short video about the magnificent scenery of the Badaling Great Wall! And if you tweet it, I believe you will get a lot of “thumb-ups”!

Ding Tomb

Badaling Great Wall

This morning, you will check out after breakfast. And then, you will be transferred to the train station and take the estimated train G571 09:22/15:06 to Xi’an (Chang’an in ancient times). Covering 10,108 square kilometers, it has permanent residents of over 120 million. As the capital city of over 10 dynasties, it is famous for its history and culture. As the starting point of the ancient Belt & Silk Road, it was determined as a World Famous Historical City by UNESCO in 1981. Also, Xi’an is the strong power in Northwestern China with its rapid and sound development in education, economy, and society! After arrival, your guide will wait for you at the station and accompany you to the hotel to check in. Wish you have a pleasant time in Xi’an! 

After breakfast, you will be driven to the northeastern Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum with 40 KM, which will take you about 43 minutes to get there. Recognized as one of the “Eight Wonders of the World”, it is a superb paradigm of ancient Chinese sculpture. Do you know who first found the Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum? That’s villagers when they were digging a well. They dug out pottery fragments that looked like human figures. After that, archeologists came to unearth a huge army of terracotta warriors and horses. Besides, you will find that all the terracotta warriors in there have single-edged eyelids. Try to guess why they are single-edged eyelids! That is because the painted double-edged eyelid came off after unearth. Visiting the Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum, you will be amazed by the vivid terracotta warriors, horses, and chariots.

After lunch, you will visit the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, which is a blend of the characteristics of the Indian Buddhist temple with Chinese culture. It was built supervised by Xuanzang who devoted all his life to developing the Buddhist doctrine. Now, I’d like to share with you the story of Xuanzang. He spent 17 years studying Buddhism in over 110 states from 627 to 645 and worked hard for 19 years as the chief translator to translate scriptures with 50 assistants’ help. Finally, 75 sets of scriptures in 1,335 volumes were translated. Also, he dictated the 12-volume Tang Dynasty Records of the Western Regions, which talked about geography, language, history, religion, and other parts of the 138 countries and states there he had visited or heard about.

Next, you will go to the City Wall. Built in the Ming Dynasty, it has become one of the most popular destinations in Xi’an. The four gates of City Wall are Changle Gate, Yongning Gate, Anding Gate and Anyuan Gate. So, the four gates could be termed as “Changanyongan” in Chinese, which means that people in Xi’an wish for a peaceful and happy life forever. And riding bikes on the City Wall will be a fantastic experience on your trip. Don’t you wanna have a try? And I recommend you choose a tandem one if you come here with families or friends. 

City Wall

Big Wild Goose Pagoda

After breakfast, you will be transferred to the airport and take the estimated flight MU2335 11:10/14:25 to Lhasa. After arrival, your guide will meet you and accompany you to the hotel downtown in the northeast of the airport, 65 kilometers away. You need to take a private car for about 70 minutes to get there.

Tips: I recommend you take a good rest at the hotel after the flight. Because Lhasa has an altitude of 3650 meters, you need to drink a lot of water and have a good rest to avoid altitude sickness. Or if you have severe altitude sickness, please inform your guide timely to seek a medical service. 

After breakfast, you will visit Norbulingka off the Lhasa riverbank. Built in the middle times of the 18 Century, it is the place for Dalai Lama (the leader in Tibet) to conduct government affairs and carry out religious activities. Covering 3.6 million square meters, it boasts over 100 plants from around of the world. So, it is also known as a botanical garden. 

Next, you will go to the Drepung Monastery, one of the three great temples in Tibet, and the other two are Sera Monastery and Gandan Monastery. “Drepung” symbolizes a prosperous life in Tibetan. Before the founding of the People’s Republic of China on October 1, 1949, the Drepung Monastery is the largest Tibetan Buddhism Monastery with monks over 10,000, which is equivalent to the Peking University among Chinese universities!

After lunch, you will visit the Sera Monastery. There preserved over ten thousand golden Buddha statues, among which the most famous one is the Hayagriva King Kong Buddha Statue. It is the incarnation of Kwan-yin Bodhisattva to help people get through difficulties. Unlike the motherly-looking of Kwan-yin, this statue looks ferocious. But its looking is to show deep and sincere love to people. Almost all people who enter the Sera Monastery, no matter tourists or pilgrims, put their heads into the shrine where the Hayagriva King Kong Buddha Statue sits and touch the base of the statue to worship it with a wish of happiness. Why don’t you have a visit to the Sera Monastery? 

Norbulingka

Sera Monastery

Our first stop in Lhasa is the Potala Palace. It has been recognized as one of the cultural heritages in the world. It has a bearing on Songtsen Gampo, the 33rd leader of the Tibetan Tubo dynasty. He united Tibet and established the Tupo Kingdom during his reign. After getting married to Princess Wencheng, he exchanged a lot with the Tang Dynasty in culture, economy and other aspects, which strengthened the mutual exchanges between Tibet and the Han nationality. And I must tell you that the Potala Palace is the picture printed on the backside of the bill of RMB 50. Standing in front of the palace, Tou could take a selfie with a bill in hand. It is a good idea to take a selfie standing in front of the Potala Palace with a bill in hand. Let’s try it!

After lunch, we will visit the Jokhang Temple. Constructed in 601 in the Tang Dynasty, it is a group of Buddhism buildings. It covers 25,100 square meters with 4 floors. The 3rd floor is an observatory platform, which serves as a perfect location for people to enjoy the view of the Potala Palace. Besides, abundant treasures and relics are kept here and some witnessed the friendship between Tibetan and the Han nationality. At last, I must mention to you that you cannot take pictures while visiting the Jokhang Temple. 

Next, you will go to Baguo Street, the most prosperous commercial street in Lhasa with a history of over 1300 years. The “majiami pub” is a place that you cannot miss! It is said that this pub is the place where Tsangyang Gyatso (a famous Tibetan poet & politician) met and fell in love with an elegant lady “Majiami”. There are about 120 shops on both sides of Baguo Street, selling aprons, trappings, dried beef, etc. You could buy some gifts here for families and friends. 

Jokhang Temple

Potala Palace

This morning, you will take a private car for about 4.5 hours to Shigatse, which is in the west of Lhasa, 274 kilometers away. Located in the northwest of the Qinghai-Tibet, it covers 182, 000 square meters. And it is the place where Mount Qomolangma is located. Mount Qomolangma is the world’s highest mountain with an altitude of 8848.86 meters! On the way to Shigatse, you will pass through the Yamdrok Lake southwest of Lhasa, 109 kilometers away. And you will get there for about 2 hours. It is one of the 3 famous lakes in Tibet, and the other 2 are Namtso Lake and Mansarover Lake. With an altitude of 4,441 meters, it covers 638 square meters, which is 70 times as big as the acreage of the West Lake in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province. I would like to share with you that Yamdork Lake means “Jade Lake” in Tibetan. 

After lunch, you will be driven to Karola Glacier 86 kilometers southwest of Yamdork Lake, and you will get there for about 1 hour and 40 minutes. It is the only place nearest to the road in Tibet. The location that you will enjoy the landscape has an altitude of 5,400 meters. Let’s enjoy the marvelous scenery of the Karola Glacier together! Then, you will be transferred to Gyantse to visit the Palcho Monastery, which is the best-preserved and magnificent building in Tibet. It was built in 1414 and lasted for a decade. The most famous attraction in Baiju Temple is the Baiju Pagoda. It is a pagoda constructed by nearly 100 Buddhist halls that overlapped each other. So it is recognized as a museum of Buddha statues. After visiting, you will be driven to Shigatse, and be helped to check in the hotel.

Yamdrok Lake

Karola Glacier

This morning, you will visit the Tashilunpo Monastery, which is the Here, I would like to introduce the Zhashinanjie Hall for you, which is the largest building in the Taishilunpo Monastery. There is a Miling pagoda decorated with shining jewelry inside of this hall. There are many Buddha statues engraved on the pagoda, and 5 sandalwood boxes are placed inside of it, which are remains of 5 Panchens from the 5th to the 9th generation. And murals that describe the life of the 5 Penchans are printed on the wall of the Zhashinanjie Hall. Visiting here will help you know more about the religions in Tibet. After lunch, you will back to Lhasa, and you could have a good rest to ease yourself. 

Tashilunpo Monastery

Tashilunpo Monastery

After breakfast, you will leave Lhasa for Kunming taking the estimated flight TV9877 12:20/14:40. Kunming is known as a “spring city” for its lovely weather with a temperate climate. After arrival, you will take the arranged private car to the hotel down, 32 kilometers south of the airport. And it will take you about 40 minutes to get there. It is a good idea no matter take a rest or stroll around in this beautiful city!

After breakfast, we will drive about 46 minutes to the Stone Forest east of Kunming, 48 kilometers away. Located in the Shilin Yi nationality county, it has a history of 82 years since set up in 1931. About 300 million years ago, this area is a boundless ocean. After geographical evolution for about billions of years, various types of Karst landform formed, which is the Stone Forest that we see today. Today, we are going to visit the Long Lake, Ashima, Stone Folding Screen, Sword Pool, and others in the Stone Forest. The Long Lake with an average depth of 24 meters is supplied by underground water, which makes it lucid. Surrounded by mountains with an altitude of 1907 meters, the Long Lake looks like a slender lady. Because it hides among the lush mountains, people call it “Cang (the Chinese meaning of “hide”) Lake”. The character “Cang” has a similar pronunciation with “Chang (the Chinese meaning of “Long”)”, so this lake is called the “Long Lake”. Why not have a visit to Long Lake? 

After lunch, you will be driven back to the Kunming downtown. This afternoon, your destination will be the Kunming Dounan Flower Market. Covering 680,000 square meters, it has been the largest flower market in Asia. Flowers in this market are exported to 46 countries and regions. Statistics show that the cash flow in the Dounan Flower Market reaches 10 million daily. There sell carnation, lily, babysbreath, violet, and other flowers. Flowers always bring people a sense of happiness. While wandering around in the paradise of flowers, why don’t you buy a bunch of flower for you? After that, you will be transferred to the hotel. 

Kunming Dounan Flower Market

Stone Forest

After breakfast, you will take the estimated train D8688 08:55/11:02 to Dali, where you are going to visit the Three Pagodas and Chongsheng Temple 1.5 kilometers northwest of the Dali Old Town. The biggest pagoda here is the Qianxun Pagoda 300 meters in front of the Chongsheng Temple. There is an inscription on the screen wall of the Chongsheng Temple, that is “yongzhenshanchuan”, blessing a peaceful and happy life for people in Dali. Here, I would like to share with you stories of the Yutong Guanyin Hall in the Chongsheng Temple. It covers 8,100 square meters with a height of 29.99 meters. Entering this hall, you will see a Guanyin statute with 8.6-meter tall wearing a warm smile, showing great kindness to the people. 

After lunch, you will take a ship to visit Erhai Lake. Stretching 40 kilometers from north to south, it is the second-largest lake in Yunnan, and the largest one is the Dianchi Lake. Erhai Lake is a multi-functional lake in water supply, agricultural irrigation, power generation, climate regulation, fishery, and tourism. The most famous landscape in Erhai Lake is the “Erhai Moon”. There is a folk tale about the “Erhai Moon”. It is said that there was a princess in the heavenly palace who admired life in the folk world. She went down to a fishing village beside Erhai Lake and married a fisherman. To help villagers live a better life, the princess sank her mirror to the bottom of the lake, so that the fishermen caught more fish.  However, the princess was forced back home by her father in the sky. Before leaving, she left her mirror at Erhai Lake to bless people living here.  Since then, the mirror turned into a golden moon. The "Erhai Moon" serves as an attraction that you cannot miss for thousands of years. I hope you will have a pleasing time in Ethan Lake.

Erhai Lake

Erhai Lake

After breakfast, you will visit the Xizhou Ancient Town, which is located 18 kilometers north of the Dali Ancient Town. It is a town with lots of people of Bai nationality lived in. After arrival, the first thing you will see is two ficus hookeriana corners ("daqingshu" in Chinese) in the front of the Town. It is known among people of the Bai nationality that "daqingshu" is a symbol showing the thriving and prosperity of their village. The "daqingshu", together with the opera stage creates an entertaining community for villages. While visiting, you could ask villagers more stories about "daqingshu". 

After lunch, you will take a private car to Lijiang 138 kilometers north of the Xizhou Ancient Town. And it will take you about 1 hour and 50 minutes. After arrival, you will visit the Lijiang Ancient Town, also known as Dayan Town. It is located in Yungui the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau with coverage of 7.279 square kilometers. Here, I would like to introduce you the Sandro Festival, which is a festival with a history of over 1000 years always celebrated by the people of the Naxi nationality on the July, 8th Chinese lunar calendar. On that day, people of Naxi nationality come to the Sanduo Temple to worship the Sanduo God who protected the life of the local people in Chinese legend. And people worship the Sanduo God with roasted lamb. Also, people celebrate this festival by singing, dancing, and horse racing. Besides, you will visit Lion Hill in the Lijiang Ancient Town, which is a hill that looks like a nestling lion. The Lion Hill serves as a perfect location to enjoy the whole scenery of the Lijiang Ancient Town. 

Lion Hill

Xizhou Ancient Town

After breakfast, you will visit the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain 29 kilometers north of the Lijiang Ancient Town. You will get there by private car for about 45 minutes. With a length of 75 meters, it is the snow mountain nearest to the equator in the northern hemisphere. There are 13 peaks stretching endlessly with snow covered all year round, which looks like a dragon running and prancing. So, it is named the “Jade Dragon Snow Mountain”. 

Firstly, you will visit the Blue-Moon Valley on the east foot of the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. It is famous for the blue & clear lake, and the magnificent snow mountain. It is said that the Blue-Moon Valley is the prototype of the blue-moon valley in the book Lost Horizon written by James Hilton, a British writer. Why not take a picture of this marvelous scenery and share it on your social media? I believe lots of people will admire your trip to the Blue-Moon Valley!

Next, you will visit the Spruce Meadow taking the cable car. It is a meadow in Shanzidou Peak with an altitude of 3240 meters. It looks like a green carpet at the foot of the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. Besides, it is said that this meadow is the place where young people died for love in the legend of Naxi Nationality. Today, young people gather here signing and dancing to covey a warm welcome for guests from afar!

After lunch, you will visit Baisha Murals in Baisha Town, which is 10 kilometers north of the Lijiang Ancient Town. Integrating the cultures of Han, Tibetan, and Naxi nationalities, paintings in Baisha Murals describe the stories of Confucianism, Taoism, and Tibetan Buddhism. With its unique painting style and the precious historical & cultural nature, the Baisha Mural always attracts lots of visitors from home and abroad. 

The last destination of your journey in Lijiang is the Shuhe Ancient Town, which is one of the habitations for people of Naxi Nationality. And it has witnessed the process from the agricultural civilization to the commercial civilization of the local people. Besides, it serves as a fair for people of the Naxi nationality to buy farm tools before the coming of the Bangbang Festival, a traditional festival of the Naxi Nationality. There also sell flowers, bonsai, playthings for children, and groceries. 

Blue Moon Valley

Shuhe Ancient Town

This morning you could enjoy a nice time on your own! After that, you will take the estimated flight MF8636 13:30/15:15 to Guilin, the world-famous tourist city known for its breathtaking natural landscapes! After arrival, you will be transferred to the Longsheng Hotel 81 kilometers north of the Guilin Liangjiang International Airport. And we will take a private car to get there, which will take us about 70 minutes. 

This morning, you will enjoy an authentic Guilin breakfast, maybe beef rice noodles! After that, the guide will accompany you to visit the Longji Rice Terrace in Longji Mountain in the southeast of Longsheng County. We could go there entering from Ping’an Village, in which Zhuang nationality live. In Ping’an Village, the most breathtaking landscape is “Seven Stars Accompany the Moon”. The “stars” is not stars in the sky but 8 terraces in seven hills and a mountain, which looks like a moon-shaped terrace accompanied by seven twinkling stars. It’s the landscape that you cannot miss! In addition, there are shops for costume rental and furnishing selling. I believe  a picture of you in a traditional ethnic costume will look great! 

After lunch, you will back to the Guilin Hotel, and you can arrange your time on your own.

Longji Rice Terrace

Ping'an Village

After breakfast, you will be picked you up at the hotel to the southeast Mopan Mountain pier, 24 kilometers away from Guilin downtown. And we will get there in about 40 minutes. Today, we will arrange a 4 hours’ cruise on the Li River, and you will get to Yangshuo County in southern Guilin with 83 kilometers. Li River is the highlight of the breathtaking landscape in Guilin for its natural beauties with lush mountains and green waters. Here, I would like to introduce you the Reflection of Yellow Cloth! This scenery is printed on the back of paper money of RMB 20. Try to find this breathtaking scenery while cruising! It will get a lot of “likes” if you take a short video of it while cruising on the Li River. Today, you will have lunch on board. 

After getting ashore, you will be in Yangshuo. The guide will accompany you to visit Yangshuo West Street, a pedestrian street that extends 800 meters. There are many foreigners in West Street, which makes it become China’s largest foreign language corner. And servants here could speak English fluently! I recommend you to taste the beer fish, a famous local specialty that cooks carp growing in the Li River. Other popular local snacks include osmanthus cakes, osmanthus wine, etc. Also, there are small shops selling souvenirs on both sides of the street, and you can go into them and buy some for families and friends. Then, you will back to the hotel. You can enjoy time by yourself. After visiting, the guide will help you check in the hotel, and you could enjoy time on your own in the remaining time. 

Option: This evening, you could watch Impression Sanjie Liu. It is performed by over 600 professional actors in colored nationality costumes of Zhuang, Yao and Miao, displaying the beautiful natural landscape and traditional folk customs in Guilin. This performance lasts for 1 hour, and you’d better enter it 10 minutes in advance. 

Li River

Yangshuo West Street

After breakfast, you will check out in the hotel in Yangshuo. Today, we will back to Guilin taking a private car. First, we will arrive in Elephant Trunk Hill 216 kilometers northeast of Yangshuo, which will take you for about  2 hours and 40 minutes. It looks like an elephant drinking from the Li River with its trunk stretching. Today, the Elephant Trunk Hill has become a symbol of Guilin, and has been the logo of many local products! 

And then, you will visit the Reed Flute Cave, a famous attraction featured by caves and natural beauties of mountains and rivers. There are fabulous landscapes in the Reed Flute Cave, including Shiling Morning Glow, Crystal Palace, Double Pillar Optimus, etc. And I think the most typical one is the Crystal Palace, which is the widest area of the Reed Flute Cave. And the widest part of it is 93 meters, which is equal to the height of about 31 floors. With a crystal lantern hanging upper on its lift side, it looks like the crystal palace of the Dragon King of the East China Sea in Chinese legend. Walking into the Crystal Palace, maybe you will be curious about why it is so flat and empty without stalactites. There are 2 reasons. Firstly, the water from the underground lake corroded rocks along with the rock stratum, leaving a flat rock stratum to form the Crystal Palace. Secondly, the rocks on the ceiling of the cave are huge and cracks are narrow, which makes water cannot permeate. So, there is a small number of stalactites in the Crystal Palace. The Reed Flute Cave is waiting for your visit!

After lunch, you need to take the estimated train D1826 15:20/21:31 to Chengdu, which is one of the most popular tourist cities in your China tours with Yangtze River cruise. Chengdu, the capital city of Sichuan Province, covers 14,335 square meters with permanent residents of over 20 million. Boasting abundant natural resources, developed agriculture, and a benign climate, it was renowned as the Land of Abundance since ancient times. You will have a stay in Chengdu for 3 days, I hope you have a pleasant time here! 

Elephant Trunk Hill

Reed Flute Cave

This morning, you will go to the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, where you will see lovely pandas! It serves as a good time to see the giant pandas in the morning when they always have meals or play with each other. Built in 1987, it is the world’s largest research base of giant panda breeding. And on July 12, 2006, it was recognized as a World Cultural Heritage by UNESCO. While visiting, you will see a panda eating bamboos satisfyingly. In the outdoors, it always takes 14 hours for giant pandas to have mean, and their favorite belongs to the bamboo. And an adult giant panda will eat 40-kilogram food! While pandas in our research base are much happier, as their meals are prepared by the professional dietitian. Nice meals of a giant panda in this base include milk, eggs, seasonal fresh fruits, and the bamboos! 

After lunch, you will go to the People’s Park. It is a typical park with Chinese characteristics, which is always crowded with locals. But the People’s Park in Chengdu attracts many travelers from cities both in China and beyond. In the People’s Park, Heming Tea House is a special recommendation for you! It is a good idea for you to spend time in this tea house, which is the most crowded, lively, hustling, and bustling place in this park. Covered bowl tea serves as the specialty here! You could come here and enjoy a pleasant tea-tasting time! Also, this park is an outdoor KTV. Well-prepared dancing and singing performances, elder people’s bands with drummers, together with saxophone and accordion players create the most vivid life in the People’s Park, showing the improved life quality of the Chinese people. Watching this, you will be amazed by the energy and vitality of the elderly. Besides, there is a matchmaking corner, where parents of both sides meet each other and manage to arrange a blind date for their children. The matchmaking corner is the most bustling place in the People’s Park with lots of middle-aged parents weave their way through the milling crowds. The People’s Park deserves your visit! Let’s explore the slow-paced lifestyle in Chengdu! 

Next, we will visit the Kuanzhai Alley, which is known as one of the most beautiful ten alleys in Chengdu. There are Kuan alley, Zhai alley, and Jing alley here. You must taste authentic local snacks in Kuanzhai Alley. And I would like to recommend Sichuan spicy wonton in red oil! A biting of it is enough to stir up your taste buds! If you try it, the mouth-watering wonton will be your new favorite! Also, Zhongshuijiao (dumplings in a spicy sauce), Dandan noodles, and Chengdu egg pancake are yummy snacks that you cannot miss! Besides, If you visit here with your boyfriend or girlfriend, you could go to the Western-Style Villa Square in the Jing alley, which is a popular place for dating! 

Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding

People's Park

After an authentic breakfast in Chengdu, we will visit the Leshan Giant Buddha, 149 kilometers south of the Chengdu downtown. The private car driver will transfer you there for about 2 hours. Generally, the Leshan Giant Buddha is the sitting cliff-stone statue of Maitreya Buddha with a height of 71 meters. Maybe you could guess how wide of its insteps? That’s 8.5 meters and could hold over 100 people to sit. It is often said that the Leshan Giant Buddha cannot be “washed feet”. That is because the Leshan Giant Buddha faces the Leshan city across the Min River, Qingyi River, and the Dadu River. And it has the same altitude as Leshan City, so it cannot be “washed feet” to protect the Leshan city from a flood. 

This afternoon, we will go to the Huanglongxi Ancient Town. It is has a history of about 2,100 years, and characterized by ancient streets, trees, temples, buildings, pier&wharf, and traditional folk customs. As a world-famous movie&television base, there are over 100 films shot here. In this ancient town, you will taste the local food of Tofu pudding, black sesame cake. Maybe you could enjoy the scenery of the countryside, which will make you satisfied and leave you an unforgettable memory! Don’t you have a try? Besides, there are tea houses in Huanglongxi Ancient Town on the river bank, or near the bamboo groves. The bamboo table, bamboo chairs, together with colorful umbrellas create an attractive view of the ancient town. Tasting a cup of tea is as important as having meals for people living in this town. Here also serves covered-bowl tea. Some tea houses make tea by jasmine, some make it by zhuyeqing, or other famous Sichuan tea leaves. Why don’t you taste a cup of tea here and find the difference between it and the covered-bowl tea in the People’s Park?

Leshan Giant Buddha

Huanglongxi Ancient Town

After breakfast at the hotel, you will be transferred to the train station, and take the estimated train G8607 09:20/10:22 to Chongqing. After arrival, you will be transferred to the Ciqikou Ancient Town with a history of over 1,000 years. There are many attractions in Ciqikou Ancient Town, including the Ancient Wharf, Baolun Temple, Wenchang Temple, Baoshan Temple, etc. The Wenchang Temple is always crowded. People come here to worship the Wenchang Buddha with a wish for a promising future. If interested, you could come here to wish for a good future for yourself. Also, you will enjoy the beauty of Diaojiao Tower, a traditional building in areas south of the Chinese Yangtze River. In this ancient town, the great Sichuan opera, the stunning fire dragon dancing performance will be arranged. Enjoying them may make you more interested in the traditional culture in Chongqing, and I believe it will leave you a deep impression. I hope you enjoy your time in the Ciqikou Ancient Town. 

Then, you will head to the Chaotianmen Wharf 406 kilometers northeast of the Ciqikou Ancient Town. We will get there for about 5 hours. After arrival, the guide will help you with the formalities, and you will start your Yangtze River Cruise. You will have a 2 days Yangyze River Cruise tour on your own. You need to get on board before 8:30 pm, and the sailing will start at 9:00 pm. 

Tips: 

1. Prepare a sweater or cost if you come here in spring or autumn, a pair of sunglasses and sun cream if in summer, and a trench coat if in winter. 

2. Smoking is banned here. Or if necessary, please walk to the specified smoking area. 

3. Look after your personal belongings.

Ciqikou Ancient Town

Ciqikou Ancient Town

Today marks the beginning of your Yangtze River cruise! You could wake up naturally this morning, and have a self-help breakfast. This morning, you could join in the Taichi exercise. This conventional way of exercise will do good for your health and help you feel energetic. This morning, you could read on the deck or enjoy a coffee time, which will ease you and make you feel refreshed.

Today, you will have a Shore excursion of the Shibaozhai Pagoda. It is known as the “pearl of the Yangtze River”. It is 56 meters tall with 12 floors. Maybe you could guess why it is named “Shibaozhai Pagoda”! It is built along a boulder, a colored stone that Nvwa (a goddess in the Chinese ancient legend) left when mending the cracks in the sky after melting five-colored stones. And there is a temple on top of it, which had been built before the construction of the Shibaozhai Pagoda. But how people built this temple at the earliest time? It is said that people used conventional way of climbing, which is similar to today’s climbing sport. And people will still see the holes carved at that time. Visiting here, you may be amazed by the outstanding work of the ancient Chinese people. 

Next, you will visit the Fengdu “Ghost City” upstream of the Yangtze River. Spanning a history of 2000 years, the Fengdu “Ghost City” is a folk culture treasure house with the integration of Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. There are two areas in the Fengdu “Ghost City”, which are the Pingdu mountain landscape area, and the stone carving area. The Pingdu mountain covers 0.45 square meters with an altitude of 287.3 meters. There are inscriptions inscribed by Li Bai, Du Fu, Fan Chengda, and other Chinese famous poets. You could enjoy the great calligraphy of then and ask the guide the meaning of these inscriptions. And many attractions here deserve your visit, including Baoen Temple, Naihe Bridge, Liaoang Temple, etc. In addition, I recommend you to taste the spicy chicken here, which is the representative delicacy in the Fengdu “Ghost City”. This spicy food will leave you an unforgettable memory. And the fermented bean curd here will also be a particular recommendation for you, and you could buy some for your families! Today, you will have a self-help lunch. There is a notice that the Fengdu “Ghost City” is a paid attraction, and you need to pay some money to the shipping company for the paid items. Besides, the attractions that you will visit are according to your ship. 

In the evening, there will have a welcoming party prepared by the captain. Joining it will leave you an unforgettable experience of this Yangtze River cruise. 

Shibaozhai Pagoda

Fengdu "Ghost City"

After a buffet, you will do Taichi again today. You will sail through the Three Gorges, which are Qutang Gorge, Wu Gorge, and the Xiling Gorge. With a length of 8 kilometers, the Qutang Gorge is the shortest one and the most precipitous one among the Three Gorges. And there are steep cliffs, precipitous canyons, and narrow waterways. Stretching 46-kilometer, the Wu Gorge has breathtakingly beautiful scenery with winding water and green mountains. While sailing here, it seemed that you enter into a marvelous gallery, the natural scenery will enchant you a lot! And the scenery in the Wu Gorge is so marvelous that will indulge you a lot! After visiting the Wu Gorge, you will take a boat to visit the Shennv Stream (also known as the Goddess Stream). Located off the south of the Yangtze River, it stretches 15 kilometers with fast-flowing water. You could explore the beauty of the Shennv Stream in the deep valley, the beautiful natural landscape and indigenous inhabitants will surprise you! Then, you will visit the Xiling Gorge, which is the longest one among the Three Gorges with a length of 76 kilometers, which is known for winding waterways, grotesque rocks, and the rushing torrent. 

Today you will have a self-help lunch. At night, a Captain’s Farewell Banquet will be prepared for you and other travelers, at which the crews will present you with a wonderful performance. I hope you will enjoy the nice dinner time and the performance. 

Wu Gorge

Qutang Gorge

After a self-help breakfast, we will go to the Three Gorges Dam Site. After being opened to the public in1997, it has become a popular destination among travelers both in China and beyond. I recommend you to visit the Tianziling Park Zone, where you will enjoy a 360° bird’s eye view of the whole dam. Besides, you will have an additional shore excursion of Board sightseeing-ferry sailing through TGP Ship’s elevator. It must be a great experience on your trip because you could across the dam just within 40 minutes, much shorter than 3.5 hours before! And you need to pay for it to the shipping company if you would like to experience it. After that, your Yangtze River Cruise Tour will come to an end and you will go to the Yichang Three Center Cruise Terminal. 

Next, you will take the estimated train D354 14:46/22:21 to Shanghai. After arrival, you will be transferred to the hotel and be helped to check in. You could have a hot bath and a good rest to ease yourself in the remaining time. I hope you will enjoy your stay in Shanghai, the world-renowned fashionable city!

Three Gorges Dam Site

Three Gorges Dam Site

Good morning! Let’s guess what is the first destination of our tour! That is the Yu Garden (closed each Monday). It is a classical Chinese garden built in the Ming Dynasty. It was a private garden built by Pan Yunduan, a Sichuan government official, for his parents’ aged life. In Chinese, “Yu” means “happiness”, so the garden was named “Yu Garden”. However, it is a pity that Pan’s parents passed away earlier than the time when the garden was built. While visiting, it is a good recommendation for you to the Huijing Tower. Standing on the top floor of it, you will enjoy the whole scenery of the garden! Besides, there are many landscapes in Yu Garden that you cannot miss, and some of them have interesting stories. Are you ready to explore the stories about them? 

After that, you will go to Shanghai Old Street. It is a busy street that is always crowded with tourists all year round. Wandering here, you could taste small steamed buns, soup dumplings, qingtuan, which are authentic Shanghai specialty and for good reason. How yummy they are! I believe you will have your new favorite after tasting it! 

After lunch, we will head to the Shanghai Tower. It’s China’s 1st and world’s 2nd tallest building with a height of 632 meters. And it is a combination of business, office, hotel, entertainment, and sightseeing! I must recommend the Top of Shanghai Observatory on the 118th floor. Taking the world’s fastest elevator, you will up to this 546 meters high observatory within 55 seconds where you could have a bird’s-eye view of the charming Shanghai! And a photo here will look great on your Facebook or other social media platforms! Besides, you could go to the souvenir store - Shanghai Tower Collection, where serves products such as stationery, tourism items, clothing, food, and playthings. With the help of a shopping guide, people always find the gifts they want. Buy souvenirs for families or friends will be a good idea! 

Then, we will walk to Nanjing Road. It is a business road stretching 5.5 kilometers. And it has been one of the most popular destinations among foreigners. There are a lot of China’s time-honored stores selling silks, shoes, hats, artifacts, and other items with Chinese characteristics. You could buy some for your friends and families in your sweet hometown. 

Then, we will visit the Bund going along with the Nanjing East Road! There are 52 glorious buildings with different architectural styles on the Bund that survive the past century. Among these buildings, I would like to introduce the HSBC Building (today’s location of Shanghai Pudong Development Bank) at No. 20 to you. It is the largest building on the Bund. It must be mentioned that the 4 marble columns in the hall of the HSBC Building are made in Italy, and they had been preserved intact after shipping to China. It is said that there are only 6 of this kind of marble columns, and the other 2 are in Louvre in Paris. How treasurable they are! Rambling around in the Bund, you could fully enjoy the charming Huangpu River! And you could take terrific short videos there. If you share them on YouTube, you will get a lot of new followers! 

Option: In the Bund, you could feast your eyes on the beauty of the Huangpu River. And if interested, you could pay for a 1 hour Huangpu River Night Cruise. I believe you will be drowned in the breathtaking scenery of the Huangpu River! 

the Bund

Shanghai Tower

After breakfast, you will be driven to Suzhou 102 kilometers east of Shanghai. And it will take us about 1 hour and 40 minutes to get there. 

After arrival, the guide will accompany you to visit the Lingering Garden first. It is a classical garden built in the Ming Dynasty. And it is one of the Four Famous Gardens in China, and the other 3 are the Humble Administrator Garden in Suzhou, the Summer Palace in Beijing, and the Chengde Mountain Resort in Hebei Province. The Lingering Garden has 3 areas, which are buildings in the eastern area, mountain & river garden in the central area, rockery in the western area, and beautiful green scenery in the northern area. While visiting, you will be amazed by the Cloud-Crowned Peak, which is one of the famous Taihu stones in the Gardens in Suzhou. Besides, the guide may share with you stories about the Small Fairy Isle, the Celestial Hall of Five Peaks, and other landscapes that you cannot miss in the Lingering Garden. 

Next, let’s head to Tiger Hill in the Huqiu District in Suzhou. There is a legend about Tiger Hill. It is said in the Spring & Autumn Period (770BC-476BC), He Lv (the emperor of the State of Wu in the Spring & Autumn Period) was wounded in war and expired soon. After He Lv’s death, his son buried him in the Haiyong Hill. Then, three days later, there was a white tiger squatting on this hill. Since then, people call it Tiger Hill. There are many ancient historical relics, including the Tiger Hill Pagoda, Sword Testing Stone, Sword Pond, etc. And each of them deserves a visit! Besides, Tiger Hill abounds with Baiyun tea leaves, and it is a good choice for you to buy some for families in your hometown. 

After lunch, you will go to the Suzhou Silk Museum, which is specialized in silk. Covering 9,500 square meters, it has an exhibition area of 4,000 square meters. It has 6 exhibition halls, including the Ancient Silk Exhibition, the Modern Silk Exhibition, the Special Exhibition for Children, the Mulberry Yard, the Silk Weaving Machinery Exhibition, and the Silk Cultural Art Gallery named after Qian Xiaoping. I would like to recommend to you the Ancient Silk Exhibition Hall particularly. Silk is a product with Chinese characteristics, and the weaving skills have been recognized as intangible cultural heritages. Visiting the Suzhou Silk Museum, you will know about China’s 6000-year-old silk history from fabulous silk cultural relics, mulberry planting, silkworm breeding to finished garments! 

After that, you will go to Shantang Ancient Street. Stretching 3,600 meters, this commercial city is crowded with buildings of Ming and Qing dynasties. There are rivers and bridges on Shangtang Streer, which embodies the beauty of a water town in the south of the Yangtze River. In the eastern part of the Shangtang river, people built their dwellings near the water. While in the eastern part of it, the river is wide and lucid with trees and flowers on both sides. And it is a perfect choice to stroll around the bridges to enjoy the beautiful scenery of Shangtang Ancient Street. After visiting, you will return to the hotel in Shanghai by private car.

Tiger Hill

Suzhou Silk Museum

After breakfast, you will be transferred to the airport, and take the estimated flight HX237 11:55/ 14:45 to Kong Kong, the last stop of your Yangtze River Cruise tour from Beijing. Covering 1,106.66 square meters, it includes Hong Kong island, Jiulong, Xinjie, and other 259 islands. With a population of over 7 million, it is one of the most populous areas in the world. Also, it is a highly prosperous international metropolis like New York in the United States and London in Britain. Besides, Hong Kong is a premium experienced shopping center, where you could buy any things you want. I wish you have an unforgettable memory in this prosperous metropolis! Just enjoy it!

Good morning! Today, we will visit Victoria Peak. With a height of 554 meters, it is the highest peak in Hong Kong. You could take the peak tram up to Victoria Peak, where you will see Peak Tower. Going upstairs, you will see the Observatory Platform-Sky Terrace 428, in which you could be lucky to enjoy the whole view of Hong Kong. Besides, you could go to the plaza of Victoria Peak, dining, drinking coffee, shopping all will offer you a fantastic touring experience. 

Next, we will go to Repulse Bay south of Hong Kong. It is known as Oriental Hawaii, and people always come there to spend their holidays. You could have a barbecue because grills are prepared on the eastern side of the bay. The sunbath, the beach, and the seawater will give you a pleasant and satisfying traveling time! 

The last destination of your journey will be the Stanley Market, where you could buy souvenirs, including silk products, clothes, or calligraphy works, etc. Then, you will enjoy time on your own this afternoon. Because today is the last day of your China tour this time, I recommend you buy gifts for families and friends. Or you could wander around Hong Kong, and take great pictures of this international metropolis, I believe they will be your dearest memory!

Repulse Bay

Stanley Market

Today marks the end of your Yangtze River Cruise Tour. You will be transferred to the airport according to your flight. We are looking forward to meeting you again in China!

Author: Liu Na