Classic Yangtze River Cruise

Upon arrival, your guide will wait for you in the arrival hall and greet you with a warm handshake. Then you will be escorted to the hotel. After checking in, you can take a stroll around Chongqing (in southwestern China) or just stay in your room to have a good rest.

You will explore Ciqikou Ancient Town after your breakfast at the hotel. Facing the Jialing River on the east side, Ciqikou Ancient Town was a bustling port town decades ago. With its highly developed transportation, Ciqikou Ancient Town now becomes an ideal destination of entertainment and sightseeing. In this quaint town, the buildings are of the styles of Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1636-1912) dynasties. And you will see many Chinese traditional art crafts. In the past, Ciqikou Ancient Town was called Longyin Town, which means “the town in which a dragon hides” in Chinese. In traditional Chinese culture, only the emperor could be compared to dragon. Legend has it that Zhu Yunwen, the second emperor of the Ming Dynasty, had lived here as a hermit after his throne had been usurped by his uncle. For this reason, this town was called Longyin Town.       

After lunch, you will head to Hongya Dong, a tourist area located near the Jialing River. Covering about 46,000 square meters, Hongya Dong consists of old-fashioned streets and stilt houses clusters. The stilt house is a kind of traditional residence peculiar to certain ethnic minorities in southern China. This type of wooden buildings on the stilts of various heights are usually built against mountains or beside rivers. The space of the stilt house is smartly utilized, with its ground floor built for storage of sundries and its upper floors serving as living space. Such design can not only prevent its residents from animal attacks but keep the living space dry and airy.

In the afternoon, your guide will escort you to Chaotianmen Port, where you will start your Yangtze River cruise tour at 9 p.m. Traveling 6,387 kilometers in total, the Yangtze River is the third-longest river in the world, only after the Nile and the Mississippi. In the following three days, you will explore the attractions along the Yangtze River.

Ciqikou Ancient Town

Chaotianmen Port

You can take part in the morning exercise -Tai Chi, on the deck after getting up. Here you will follow the Taiji master to learn how to play Taiji, a traditional Chinese martial art. The seasoned Taiji master will teach you some movements of this mysterious martial art. You can show these movements to your friends and families when you come back home, they will surely be amazed.

After breakfast, you will have a shore excursion to Fengdu Jade Emperor Scenic Area, also known as Heaven Mountain scenic area. It is located on the north bank of the Yangtze River. There is a huge statue of Jade Emperor’s head on the mountain top. Seen from above, the Fengdu Jade Emperor Scenic Area looks like a giant sitting on a mountain with a pagoda in his left hand. Fengdu Jade Emperor, together with Fengdu Ghost City constitutes the Chinese version of “heaven” and “hell”. According to legends of Taoism, the heaven is ruled by the Jade Emperor and the hell is ruled by the King of Hell. There are many exquisite halls in this area and they are just like the halls in heaven. Come and feel the beauty of “heaven”.  

After buffet lunch, you can immerse yourself in the charming landscape. In the evening, a Captain’s Welcome Reception will be held for you. The Captain, together with his crew, will give you a warm welcome. Your dinner will be a nice buffet. After that, you can go back to your room to have a good rest.

Fengdu Jade Emperor Scenic Area

Fengdu Jade Emperor Scenic Area

After your Taiji morning exercise and buffet breakfast, you will pass through Qutang Gorge, stretching from Baidi Mountain in the west to Daxi County in the east. Qutang Gorge extends only 8 kilometers. It is the shortest yet most breathtaking one among Three Gorges, which is evidenced by its most towering peak of as high as 1,500 meters and its narrowest watercourse of less than 100 meters. There is a mysterious cave in a 200-meter-high cliff at the entrance of Qutang Gorge. Legend has it that a cave of gold was hidden in the cliff by an embattled warlord of the early Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220). After knowing that, Countless treasure seekers wanted to get the gold in the cave. However, the sheer height of the cliff had held them at bay until 1998, when a joint research team from England and China conquered this seemingly inaccessible cliff with modern equipment. To their surprise, not a tiny gram of gold was found in this cave veiled in mystery. Instead, the team found some scattered human bones, some rusty weapons as well as a hieroglyphics-covered mural. These relics can date back to 2,300 years ago.   

Then you will cruise through Wu Gorge, the longest one of the Three Gorges, boasting a length of 46 kilometers. Due to limited sunlight exposure and high humidity, Wu Gorge is always filled with clouds. Sometimes clouds in Wu Gorge are like waterfalls hanging on the mountainsides. Occasionally, a sea of clouds will come into being. At that moment, you are suggested to take some pictures and post them on your Facebook, and you will 100% get numerous likes from your friends.    

After your buffet lunch, you will take a small boat to Goddess Stream. Situated in the west mouth of Wu Gorge, Goddess Stream extends more than 15 kilometers. Thanks to its rugged landscape, the downstream part of Goddess Stream remains unspoiled. You can admire the charming landscape here when the ship passes this stream. There is a legendary story about the magnificent Goddess Stream circulating among people living in the nearby village. Long before, a goddess named Yao Ji usually sneaked out of heaven and bathed in this stream. One day, when Yao Ji came here as usual, she was surprised that the stream was unusually torrential and found a man struggling helplessly in the water. She saved the man and learned from him that the human world was being scourged by an apocalyptic flood. Without hesitation, Yao Ji decided to offer her helping hand. After several days’ flood control, she found that the twelve evil dragons were the masterminds behind the disaster. Facing such a bad situation, Yao Ji called on her sisters to fight against the twelve evil dragons and soon put them under control. Since then, this area has never suffered from the flood. Later, in commemoration of Yao Ji, people called the stream Goddess Stream.

In the evening, a Captain’s Farewell Banquet will be held on the ship. It is a good chance for you to experience Chinese-style banquet and make new friends.   

Qutang Gorge

Wu Gorge

After breakfast, the ship will stop at the port, where your guide will be waiting for you, and then escort you to visit the Three Gorges Dam Site. Located in the lower part of the Three Gorges, the Three Gorges Dam Site is the largest hydropower station throughout Chinese history. In 2018, the Three Gorges Dam hydropower station generated over 100 billion kilowatt-hours, impressing the whole world with a new record. Besides, since its completion, the Three Gorges Dam Site has been playing an essential role in flood and draught control for its  water-holding capacity.

After visiting the Three Gorges Dam Site, you will be transferred to Yichang Sanxia Airport. Your guide will see you off. Look forward to your next wonderful China tour with China Tour Star!

Three Gorges Dam Site

Three Gorges Dam Site

Author: Yuxin Zhou

Proofreader: Yan Liu