25-Day Grand Tour of China: Beijing, Xi’an, Chengdu, Guilin & Shanghai

Arrive in Beijing and be met by your private guide in the airport arrivals hall, who handles your bags and walks you to a comfortable, air-conditioned vehicle. The transfer to your centrally located hotel passes ring-road towers and low hutong rooftops, giving a first sense of the sprawling capital. After settling in, step out for a welcome dinner at a neighbourhood restaurant chosen for its traditional Beijing flavours. Over steaming plates of dumplings and Peking-style specialities, your guide maps out the 25-day journey ahead, covering transport, local customs, and simple tips that make each city easier to enjoy. The meal doubles as a gentle lesson in table culture: how to share dishes, pour tea for others, and order like a local. A relaxed evening sets the tone for the weeks to come.

Start the day at a lively local morning market where vendors sell fresh produce, fragrant spices, and steaming street breakfasts. Absorb the energy of everyday Beijing life before heading to Tiananmen Square, the vast ceremonial heart of the city. Pass through into the Forbidden City, where 980 buildings once housed emperors for five centuries. Your guide brings the Ming and Qing dynasties to life with stories of court intrigue as you walk marble courtyards and gilded halls. In the afternoon, visit the Temple of Heaven, where emperors performed annual rites for good harvests beneath triple-eaved roofs of cobalt-blue tiles. End with a legendary Peking Duck dinner — the chef carves the bird tableside, crispy skin first, and wrapping each bite in thin pancakes becomes a hands-on ritual that tastes like the real Beijing.

Optional Excursions

Peking Duck Experience (Reservation Assistance)

Have a traditional Peking Duck meal at an established Beijing restaurant. Your guide can help with recommendations and reservations; you pay for the meal directly. A straightforward way to try the city's signature dish.

+$0.00

Advisor quoted

Drive about 90 minutes northeast of Beijing to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall, less crowded and beautifully restored. Hike along the ramparts at your own pace, climbing to watchtowers where panoramic views stretch across forested mountain ridges in every direction. The wall snakes dramatically over peaks, and standing atop it with the wind blowing feels like stepping back two thousand years. After a lunch of local mountain dishes, visit the Summer Palace, the largest and best-preserved imperial garden in China. Stroll beside Kunming Lake, cross the marble Bridge of Beautiful Views, and wander through pavilions and corridors adorned with thousands of colorful paintings. The combination of wall and garden captures two sides of China: military might and refined beauty.

Optional Excursions

Mutianyu VIP Experience

A premium way to see the Mutianyu Great Wall: priority access, a private shuttle, and a round-trip cable car over the mountains, followed by a complimentary tea break after you've walked the Wall.

+$150.00

Advisor quoted

Mutianyu Cable Car & Toboggan Upgrade

Upgrade your Mutianyu Great Wall experience with a cable car ride up and a toboggan slide descent. Reach the Great Wall comfortably, enjoy panoramic mountain views along the way, and end your visit with an exciting ride down the hillside.

+$20.00

Advisor quoted

Spend the morning in the Hutong district, the ancient alleyway neighborhood where old Beijing life still thrives. Visit a local family in their traditional courtyard home, sip tea together, and learn about daily routines, neighborhood gossip, and the changing face of the city. The family shares stories of growing up among the grey-brick lanes, and the exchange feels genuine and warm. After a hutong lunch, board a high-speed bullet train bound for Xi'an. The 5.5-hour journey covers 1,100 kilometers through the North China Plain and Qinling Mountains — watch the landscape shift from northern flatlands to western highlands through the train window. Arrive in Xi'an in the evening and transfer to your hotel, already sensing the ancient capital's gravitational pull.

Optional Excursions

Hutong Rickshaw Ride

Take a traditional rickshaw ride through Beijing’s hutongs. Relax as you travel along narrow alleys, admire courtyard homes, and experience the history, culture, and authentic charm of old Beijing’s traditional neighborhoods.

+$15.00

Advisor quoted

Visit the Terracotta Warriors Museum, one of the most significant archaeological discoveries of the 20th century. This 2,200-year-old underground army was built to guard Emperor Qin Shi Huang in the afterlife. Walk into Pit 1 and face rows of life-size soldiers, each with a unique face, expression, and hairstyle — over 6,000 figures stand in formation before you. Continue to Pits 2 and 3 to see cavalry, archers, and officers in different formations. The Bronze Chariot Hall displays two half-scale chariots pulled by four horses, their intricate detail astonishing for an era before modern tools. Your guide explains how farmers stumbled upon the site in 1974 while digging a well, changing history overnight. Leave with a deep sense of awe at the ambition and craftsmanship of ancient China.

Optional Excursions

Dumpling Feast & Tang Dynasty Music and Dance Show

Enjoy a traditional dumpling feast featuring a variety of handmade dumplings while watching a captivating Tang Dynasty music and dance performance. Experience Xi’an’s culinary heritage and the elegance of ancient Tang culture through delicious flavors, graceful dances, and traditional melodies.

+$76.00

Advisor quoted

Cycle or walk along the top of the Ancient City Wall, one of the best-preserved fortifications in China, its brick ramparts about 12 metres high and 14 kilometres around. From the parapet you see tiled old-city rooftops on one side and glass towers of the new district on the other. Visit the Little Wild Goose Pagoda, built in 709 AD during the Tang Dynasty to house Buddhist scriptures brought from India, and wander its quiet grounds. Then step into the lively Muslim Quarter, where Hui vendors grill cumin lamb skewers, stretch hand-pulled noodles, and stack persimmon cakes into pyramids; your guide helps you choose what to taste. In the evening, take seats at a Tang Dynasty Dance Show, where colourful costumes, live instruments, and ancient melodies recreate the Silk Road era in a performance that feels both grand and intimate.

Optional Excursions

Xi'an City Wall Bike Ride

If you find yourself with some extra time, a bike ride along the Ancient City Wall is an exhilarating way to enhance your Xi'an experience. This activity allows you to pedal around one of the best-preserved city walls in China, offering a unique and active exploration of its expansive ramparts.

+$7.00

Advisor quoted

Fly from Xi'an to Yichang, a green city on the banks of the Yangtze, on a morning flight of about two hours. Meet your cruise director on the quay and board the river ship, then settle into your cabin with a private balcony over the water. Attend a welcome briefing and safety drill before a buffet lunch on the observation deck, watching the docks slide past as the ship eases upstream. As you enter the head of the Three Gorges region, the flat floodplain gives way to rolling hills and the first steep gorge walls. Spend the afternoon getting to know the ship, its lounge, library, and sun deck, or simply read on your balcony as villages and ferries drift by. In the evening, join the captain's welcome dinner and toast the days ahead; after dark the ship glides quietly through gorge water while stars come out overhead.

Cruise toward the Three Gorges Dam, the world's largest hydroelectric project, and watch the ship enter its five-stage lock: gates close behind you and the water slowly lifts the whole vessel about 40 metres, an engineering sight that feels like floating up a staircase of water. Continue through Xiling Gorge, the longest of the Three Gorges, where pale limestone cliffs rise straight from the river and the channel bends into a narrow, dramatic cut. On board, attend short talks on the region's history, its river ecology, and the millions of people relocated when the dam was built, then ask your guide the questions the sheer scale raises. The afternoon brings more gorge scenery and time to shoot the cliffs from the bow. Evening settles into a quiet sunset over the water and a multi-course dinner of local Hubei specialities.

Transfer to a smaller boat to explore Shennong Stream, a Yangtze tributary that winds through a narrow valley of towering cliffs. From the deck you can spot hanging coffins perched on ledges hundreds of metres up, an old burial custom of the local people, and watch for monkeys clambering along the rocks above the water. Listen to the boatmen raise traditional work songs that echo off the canyon walls as they pole you upstream. Return to the main ship and cruise the scenic Wu Gorge, famed for its twelve peaks that often stand wrapped in mist; the Goddess Peak rises tallest, and local lore says she watches over the passing boats. The gorge is quiet apart from the engine's hum and an occasional river bird. Settle in for afternoon tea on deck, then an evening cultural demonstration rounds out a day of river-country wonder.

Sail through Qutang Gorge, the shortest but most dramatic of the Three Gorges. The river narrows to just 100 meters wide with cliffs soaring 1,000 meters on each side — the scale is impressive. Visit a shore excursion to a local village or historical site along the riverbank, gaining insight into riverside life that has changed little for centuries. Enjoy the captain's farewell dinner on board, a multi-course feast celebrating the journey. Swap stories with fellow travelers and raise a glass to the gorges left behind. After dinner, stand on the top deck and watch the last gorge scenery slip past under starlight, knowing this stretch of river is unlike anywhere else on Earth.

Disembark the cruise ship in Chongqing and head to Ciqikou Old Town, a 1,000-year-old trading post where narrow stone-paved streets wind between tea houses, silk shops, and stalls piled with dried chillies and Sichuan peppercorns. Climb the old lanes past courtyards where locals still brew gongfu tea, and taste snacks such as spicy monkey beans and crisp twisted dough. Your guide explains how the town grew from a Ming-era river port into a maze of merchant guilds and warehouses. Then drive to Chengdu across the Sichuan basin, a four- to five-hour journey past terraced rice paddies, white farmhouses, and hilltop villages. Arrive early in the evening and check into your hotel, with time for an easy stroll nearby. Chengdu waits for tomorrow: giant pandas, lantern-lit old streets, and the fiery, numbing flavours of Sichuan cooking.

Optional Excursions

Sichuan Opera Face Changing Experience at Shufeng Yayun

Experience one of Chengdu’s most iconic cultural performances at Shufeng Yayun Sichuan Opera Theater. Enjoy the famous Sichuan face-changing performance, traditional opera, folk music, and other local artistic shows while experiencing Chengdu’s classic tea house culture. Different seating options are available with different prices. The listed price is based on the standard seat; premium or VIP seating upgrades can be arranged upon request with an additional cost.

+$26.00

Advisor quoted

Chengdu Hot Pot Restaurant Reservation Service

Enjoy an authentic Chengdu hot pot experience without worrying about long waiting times. Your guide will help recommend suitable local hot pot restaurants and arrange advance reservations based on your preferred spice level, dining style, and group size. Perfect for first-time visitors who want to experience Chengdu’s famous hot pot culture.

+$0.00

Advisor quoted

Visit the Chengdu Giant Panda Breeding Research Base early, when the pandas are most active and the light is soft. Watch them tumble down banks, climb trunks, and strip bamboo with surprising dexterity, and learn about breeding programmes and conservation work directly from the keepers. Stroll Jinli Old Street afterwards, a restored Qing-dynasty lane lined with wooden storefronts, red lanterns, and Sichuan street food; try mapo tofu and dan dan noodles, with your guide pointing out the stalls locals actually favour. In the afternoon, fly to Dali (about 1.5 hours), landing in the mild, sunlit highland climate of Yunnan province. Transfer to your hotel near Dali Old Quarter. From the window you can make out the green shoulder of Cangshan Mountain, and the quiet Bai-minority culture of the old town is set for tomorrow.

Optional Excursions

Panda Keeper Volunteer Experience

Get closer to China’s beloved giant pandas through an educational volunteer experience at Chengdu Panda Base. Learn about panda conservation, join a guided introduction to panda protection, prepare panda food (subject to daily operation arrangements), and discover how keepers care for these adorable animals. Participants will receive a special souvenir or certificate as a memorable reminder of this unique wildlife experience.

+$110.00

Advisor quoted

Visit Xizhou Village Market, where Bai farmers bring fresh produce, herbs, rose pastries, and homemade cheeses to stone-paved stalls. Explore the Yan Family House, a well-preserved Bai residence dating to the Qing Dynasty, laid out around carved wooden screens, painted courtyards, and an ancestral hall that reflects the family's merchant past. Cruise Erhai Lake by private boat, the nineteen peaks of Cangshan mirrored in clear water, while your guide explains how the lake shapes life in the valley. Try your hand at tie-dye with a local Bai artisan, folding, binding, and dipping a length of cotton in indigo to make a pattern that is uniquely yours. End the day wandering Dali Old Quarter, browsing craft shops and quiet cafes along cobbled streets lit by paper lanterns as evening falls.

Visit the Three Pagodas, Dali's most recognisable landmark, first raised in the 9th century under the Kingdom of Nanzhao. The central Qianxun Pagoda stands 69 metres tall, flanked by two smaller octagonal towers, and on a calm morning all three are mirrored in a pond in the temple forecourt. Your guide walks you through the brickwork, the Buddhist relief carvings, and the story of how the pagodas have outlasted centuries of earthquakes. Explore the surrounding grounds and museum before you leave. In the afternoon, board a bullet train to Kunming, a two-hour ride over high bridges and through tunnels cut into the Yunnan plateau, the land climbing as you go. Arrive in the Spring City and check into your hotel; its mild climate and mix of ethnic groups set the stage for tomorrow's geological wonder.

Visit the Stone Forest, or Shilin, a karst landscape formed roughly 270 million years ago, where grey limestone pillars rise like petrified trees in a frozen woodland. Walk the winding paths between formations up to 30 metres high, each named for its shape, a leaning sword, a kneeling camel, two lovers set apart. Your guide retells the legend of Ashima, a Sani maiden who, the story goes, turned to stone for her love, and explains how the Sani people still mark her memory. Back in Kunming, share a traditional Across-the-Bridge Noodles dinner, a bowl of boiling chicken broth into which rice noodles and toppings are added one by one to cook at the table. If the timing allows, catch the optional Yunnan Impression show, an open-air night performance staged across the water and directed by Zhang Yimou, with around 100 ethnic-minority dancers and singers.

Optional Excursions

Dounan Flower Market Night Tour (Guide & Private Vehicle Included)

After dark, visit Dounan Flower Market, Asia's largest fresh-cut flower market. Walk the rows of blooms - roses, lilies and seasonal flowers - while vendors trade late into the night. Buy a bouquet or just see this side of Kunming after dark.

+$68.00

Advisor quoted

Board a bullet train to Guilin, a ride of about seven hours across some of China's most scenic rail country. Watch the land soften into karst through the window, conical green peaks springing straight out of flat rice paddies, small villages tucked among bamboo groves, and silver rivers bending around limestone valleys, while your guide notes the shift from inland plateau to the wet, subtropical Guangxi basin. Arrive in Guilin late afternoon and take it easy: rest at your hotel, walk the Li River waterfront as the sun drops, or sample osmanthus cakes and grilled fish on a snack street. It is a deliberately slow close to the rail pace, the classic Guilin-to-Yangshuo scenery that has inspired Chinese painters for a thousand years fills the days just ahead.

Take the celebrated Li River cruise from Guilin to Yangshuo, often called one of China's most beautiful journeys. For about four hours the boat threads an 80-kilometre stretch where karst peaks rise from the green water like brushstrokes on a scroll, water buffalo graze the banks, and fishermen on bamboo rafts drift past with cormorants perched on the rail. Keep your camera loose for the reach painted on the back of the 20-yuan note. Arrive in Yangshuo and browse its local markets, piled with pomelos, kumquats, and handmade bamboo crafts, your guide helping you bargain and taste as you move. In the evening, walk West Street, a lively lane of cafes, small bars, and souvenir shops where mountain-town life has met decades of travellers from around the world.

Optional Excursions

Impression Liu Sanjie (B1 Zone Premium VIP Seat)

Discover the magic of Impression Liu Sanjie, where the Li River, karst mountains, folk culture, and live performance merge beneath the night sky. As the river reflects the lights and performers move across the water, the entire landscape becomes part of the stage. Choosing B1 means stepping up to an individual black rattan chair and a higher position, giving you a broader, more comfortable view.

+$65.00

Advisor quoted

Bicycle Ride at a Slower Pace

Swap the scooter for a bicycle and slow down into rural life. Pedal along quiet village paths, passing rice fields, farmhouses, and local scenes. Feel the breeze, hear the countryside, and enjoy the simple rhythm of Yangshuo at a gentler pace.

+$11.00

Advisor quoted

Recreate the 20 RMB View: Snap Your Shot

Stand at the famous Yellow Cloth Shoal viewpoint near Xingping, where the winding Li River, towering karst peaks, and water reflections recreate the landscape featured on the back of China’s 20 RMB banknote. Hold up your note, find the perfect angle, and let your guide capture your own “20 RMB” photo to take home as a memorable Guilin keepsake.

+$0.00

Advisor quoted

Join a morning Tai Chi class with a local master in a riverside park as the sun comes up over the karst skyline. Move slowly through the forms, weight shifting, arms drawing wide arcs, and let the practice settle the body and clear the head before the day starts. Afterwards, explore the countryside by bicycle or on foot, riding quiet lanes between rice paddies, orchards, and small farm hamlets where water buffalo stand in the mud and life keeps a gentle pace. Your guide may stop at a village home or primary school so you see everyday rural Yangshuo close up and trade a few words with the family. The afternoon stays open to relax, paddle a short kayak on a side stream, or simply sit by the river. At dusk, watch a traditional cormorant-fisherman demonstration on the water, a scene little changed in centuries.

Return to Guilin by private vehicle. Visit the Reed Flute Cave, a long limestone cavern lit in coloured lamps, where stalactites and stalagmites built up over some 180,000 years take on shapes that guides have named and poets have inscribed for centuries. Cool air and slow-dripping water make the walk feel like another world. Afterwards see Ronghu Lake and the famous Sun and Moon Pagodas, twin towers, one gold and one silver, joined by an underwater passage you can walk between. Stroll on to the Ancient South Gate, a restored Ming Dynasty archway shaded by wide banyan trees, with stalls just inside. When night falls the pagodas light up in gold and silver and throw long reflections across the lake, a fitting last look at the karst country before you head east tomorrow.

Fly to Hangzhou, about two hours south, to the city Marco Polo praised as one of the finest in the world. Visit Lingyin Temple, one of China's largest and most revered Buddhist monasteries, founded in 326 AD, its courts shaded by ancient trees and its hillside grottoes carved with hundreds of calm-faced Buddhas dating to the 10th century; your guide singles out the key carvings and tells you who paid for them. Then drive into Longjing tea country to Meijiawu Tea Village, sit with a local farmer, taste the season's green tea, and learn how the leaves are pan-fired by hand in a hot iron wok, even taking your own turn at the pan. End the day at Chenghuang Pavilion, a hilltop terrace above West Lake and the Hangzhou skyline, best at sunset when the water turns gold.

Optional Excursions

Impression West Lake Show – VIP Seat

Upgrade to a VIP seat for the Impression West Lake show, with a better angle on the stage and the lake backdrop, and private transfer back to your hotel afterward.

+$98.00

Advisor quoted

Guantianxia - Kunyu Wanguo Quantu VR Exhibition

We pre-book your entry to Nanjing Museum's large VR show. You have about 30 minutes to roam the interactive VR zone and move through the world of the Ming-dynasty Kunyu Wanguo Quantu map, with 720-degree panoramic visuals and sound.

On request

Advisor quoted

Cruise West Lake, a UNESCO World Heritage site that has fed Chinese poetry and painting for a thousand years. From the boat you pass Leifeng Pagoda, broad beds of lotus, and the willow-lined causeways that make up the lake's celebrated scenes, low hills framing the water on three sides. Afterwards walk the Babao causeway at Yunqi, a bamboo-shaded path where sunlight filters through tall green stalks and the air smells of damp earth and moss, a quiet change from the open lake. Then drive to Suzhou, about three hours across the Jiangnan water-town country of canals, white-walled houses, and stone arch bridges mirrored in the flow; your guide explains how this flat, watery plain shaped the region's gardens and trade. Arrive and check into your hotel in China's classical garden city.

Optional Excursions

Hangzhou Local Morning Experience

Start your Hangzhou day like a local with a visit to a traditional morning market or neighborhood area. Experience the city’s authentic daily rhythm as locals shop for fresh ingredients, enjoy regional breakfast and gather in lively community spaces.

+$0.00

Advisor quoted

Visit the Humble Administrator's Garden, a UNESCO-listed classical garden laid out in the Ming Dynasty. Its designer borrowed from famous landscapes to build a world in miniature, moon gates framing a stand of bamboo, covered walkways bending toward hidden courts, and lotus ponds mirroring open pavilions so that each window becomes a painted picture. Walk the loop with your guide, who shows where scholars, painters, and officials once retired to write and drink tea. In the afternoon, cruise Suzhou's stretch of the Grand Canal, the longest artificial waterway on Earth, begun more than 2,500 years ago and once the freight spine linking Beijing and Hangzhou. Glide under old stone bridges and past waterside homes, picturing the grain boats, merchants, and imperial barges that once crowded the same route.

Optional Excursions

Traditional Suzhou Morning Tea

Kick‑off your day with authentic Suzhou morning tea at a historic local teahouse. Sip premium Biluochun tea together with tasty traditional pastries. Following this long‑standing local custom, you blend in with residents. It helps you experience Suzhou’s tea‑culture and start your journey in a laid‑back mood.

+$54.00

Advisor quoted

Transfer to Shanghai (2 hours), China's most cosmopolitan city. Visit Matchmaker's Corner, a famous park where parents once gathered to arrange marriages and where locals still come for morning exercises and chess. Explore the Shanghai Museum with its renowned collection of ancient bronze vessels, jade carvings, and ceramic fine works spanning 5,000 years. Optionally ascend Jin Mao Tower for a bird's-eye view of the Pudong skyline, or ride the Maglev Train at 430 km/h. In the evening, enjoy a Huangpu River cruise, watching the Bund's colonial facades glow on one side and Pudong's futuristic towers on the other. End with a Shanghainese dinner of xiaolongbao soup dumplings and braised pork.

Visit Yu Garden, a 400-year-old classical garden tucked inside Old Town. Rockeries, koi ponds, and zigzag bridges create a maze of intimate scenes around every corner. Explore Old Town and its lively bazaars selling silk fans, tea sets, and calligraphy brushes. Walk The Bund waterfront, Shanghai's most famous promenade, where Art Deco buildings from the 1920s stand shoulder to shoulder. Stroll Tianzifang, a warren of narrow alleys converted into art galleries, indie boutiques, and cozy cafés. In the evening, enjoy the impressive ERA Acrobatic Show, a high-energy performance combining Chinese acrobatics, aerial stunts, and motorcycle acts that pushes the boundaries of human skill.

Optional Excursions

World’s Largest Starbucks Reserve Roastery Experience

Visit the world’s largest Starbucks Reserve Roastery located on West Nanjing Road, Shanghai – bigger than the original Seattle flagship. This one-of-a-kind venue functions like an exclusive coffee museum, showcasing the full coffee roasting process, rare global coffee beans and exclusive limited-edition merchandise. Your experience includes one signature in-store coffee drink to enjoy while exploring this iconic landmark before wrapping up your Shanghai trip.

+$15.00

Advisor quoted

Take an easy morning for last-minute shopping or one more look around the city. Your guide can arrange a walk on the Nanjing Road pedestrian street, a wander down the plane-tree-lined French Concession, or any spot you meant to revisit, and will help sort refunds, timing, and a final meal. After 25 days and twelve cities, from the Great Wall above Beijing to the Bund in Shanghai, pause to gather what you have seen: the terracotta warriors at Xi'an, the karst peaks of the Li River, pandas in Chengdu, tea villages outside Hangzhou, and the many small exchanges with families, guides, and fellow travellers that made the trip personal rather than just scenic. Transfer to Shanghai airport with time to spare, carrying a full set of memories and a China you came to know slowly, not only through a window.