China Tour from Toronto

Today, please find your own way to the airport for your flight to Beijing. As there is no direct flight from Toronto to Beijing, you will need to make a connecting flight based on the latest flight schedule. Please confirm your flight time with your private travel consultant in advance.

After a 14-hour flight, you will land at Beijing’s airport, where your expert local guide and driver will pick you up outside the customs and transfer you to the hotel. During the rest of the day, have a good rest to restore energy for the upcoming tour in Beijing.

Accommodation: Hotel New Otani Chang Fu Gong

After breakfast, let’s officially start your China tours from Toronto with a visit to the majestic Tiananmen Square and then the Forbidden City - the imperial palace complex of the Ming and Qing periods (1368 – 1911) - at its north end. While at the Forbidden City, apart from marveling at its grand architecture, you will also listen to astounding and meaningful historical facts from your guide. Take the aesthetic criterion of the eras for women, for example. Unlike the society we live in today that emphasizes good look and slender figure, a woman was prized as beauty only if she got “three-inch lotus” feet no more than 13.3 – 16.6 cm (0.44 – 0.53 feet) in length – that’s not much wider than an iPhone! This was a result of “foot-binding”, a custom practiced from the late Song Dynasty (960 - 1127) until 1912, that girls between 5 and 8 were expected have their feet contorted by breaking bones and binding with cloth; they would remain at three-inch long at the time they stopped to grow and then were treasured, hence the name. Imagine the grounds you are walking used to be trod by this size of feet! Our ticket to the Forbidden City also contains the permit to visit its Treasure Gallery.

Thereafter, you will enjoy an a la carte welcome lunch at a well-known restaurant, where you can taste authentic Peking Roast Duck. After lunch, continue to visit Yonghe Temple, a lamasery and monastery for Tibetan Buddhists, and Temple of Heaven, the altar complex for Ming and Qing emperors to worship Heaven. Enjoy a culture-enriched evening: you will not only experience a live show of Peking Opera, but also come earlier with us to watch the artists painting lianpu, character-telling facial designs.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte welcome lunch

You can’t really say you’ve been to China without seeing the Great Wall yourself. This morning, we will ascend the Mutianyu Great Wall, the most beautiful segment. A round-trip cable car up and down is arranged to save your energy. Moreover, we will serve a bottle of red wine to toast this unique moment. Lunch is not arranged today, because the restaurants nearby do not reach our standard. We suggest that you have a big breakfast and pack some snacks for lunch. If you really want to eat at nearby restaurants, your guide is also glad to assist.

On our way downtown, stop shortly at the Bird's Nest, the National Stadium, and take some photos. A ride via rickshaw to tour Hutongs, Beijing’s historical residential alleys, awaits, which is followed by a family visit in one of the courtyard houses in a Hutong.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast

Today's itinerary starts with Panda House in Beijing Zoo. Then visit Summer Palace, originally a lakeside resort for emperors to escape from summer heat and now the best preserved imperial garden in the world.

After lunch, you will be transferred to the airport to fly to Xi'an. Upon arrival, your local guide will greet you at the arrival hall and escort you to the hotel for check-in. During the rest of the day, you can either have a good rest or warm yourself up by exploring around.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch
Accommodation: Crowne Plaza Xi'an

In the morning, we will explore the mysterious Terracotta Army of thousands of lifelike terracotta warriors, funeral objects of Emperor Qin Shi Huang (259 – 210 BC). The emperor has shocked the world with many “firsts”: he’s not only the first emperor of imperial China, the first to build a mausoleum in a scale unimaginable with terracotta soldiers protecting it, but he also started an era when soldiers could write letter home: the earliest letter home in China was unearthed from a tomb of 2,300 years old, revealing that they would be rewarded for a contribution made but daily expenses and clothing of Qin soldiers were afforded by their family. Now that you are before his underground bodyguards with a guide by your side, take the chance to learn more about this legendary figure.

To learn about the discovery of the Army, we will then pay a visit to the family of Mr. Yang, a farmer known for unearthing the first terracotta warrior. A special gift is also prepared for you: you will have fun crafting a mini clay solider in a workshop and take it home. Drive back downtown.

In the afternoon, proceed to visit Giant Wild Goose Pagoda, a landmark in Xi'an. This evening, enjoy a fascinating Tang Dynasty Music and Dance Show and Dumpling Dinner.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Dumpling dinner

Tip:
Guests coming in January, February, March and December need to arrange the dinner and evening activity on their own for this day, since the theater is usually not open at those times.

This morning, we will first have a leisurely walk around City Wall Park, where locals do morning exercises, making it a great place to experience local life. Then, we will arrange for you to do Tai Chi with a master. Next, ascend Xi'an City Wall, a moated fortification used to defend what was the ancient capital of China. You can either wander or ride a rental bike (at your own expense) on the wall.

Around noon, explore Muslim Quarter, where you can not only experience local Muslim lifestyle, but also taste authentic local snacks. Continue to visit Great Mosque and round off today’s trip with a visit to Shaanxi History Museum.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Local lunch

This morning, fly to Guilin and head to your local hotel for check-in on arrival. This afternoon, appreciate Guilin’s iconic karst wonders of Reed Flute Cave and Elephant Trunk Hill.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast
Accommodation: Sheraton Guilin Hotel

After breakfast, your spectacular 4.5-hour cruise on Li River from Guilin to Yangshuo begins.

Off the ship in Yangshuo, we will head to its pastoral countryside. Whether to take a stroll or ride a bike through the spellbinding landscape, it’s your choice. Your rural tour will culminate in a family visit at a villager’s house.

Tip:
It’s likely you might find today’s box lunch too simple, in which case you might wish to have a hearty breakfast and prepare some snacks in advance.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, lunch on board

Take a morning flight to Chengdu. Meet up with your local guide, who will take you to the hotel for check-in.

The first stop of your tour in Chengdu is Jinsha Site Museum, a window to learn about the lost Shu civilization that flourished on this land thousands of years ago. The next is People’s Park, the perfect place to experience the famous slow-paced lifestyle of Chengdu people. You will join them by having some tea. What sets People’s Park apart is that it’s the first park ever built in this city. The teahouse in it was born along with it, in 1911. It’s also popular for a “Matchmaking Corner”, where parents are searching for suitable life partners for their children; they do this by posting valid personal profiles, blue-colored for sons and pink-colored for daughters – an interesting home-made culture to learn about!

Meals: Western buffet breakfast

Enjoy an adorable morning today, as you will watch giant pandas chewing bamboo and rolling around at Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding.

Around noontime, let’s hang around Wide and Narrow Alley, Chengdu’s historical area to appreciate traditional buildings and widely-loved Sichuan cuisine. This afternoon, you will be driven to catch a bullet train to Chongqing. Meet up your local guide at Chongqing’s railway station to embark on a five-star Yangtze cruise ship. A buffet dinner and a warm reception from your capital are in store.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Dinner
Cruises: Century Glory

Do some Tai Chi before breakfast, and prepare to take an onshore trip through the infernal region of Chinese folklore, Fengdu Ghost City. Spend the afternoon onboard as you like. There are appealing vistas from deck and cultural activities to engage yourself in.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

The cruise through the Three Gorges on the Yangtze River, whose landscape was often sung by Chinese poetry, officially kicks off this morning. You will pass Qutang and Wu gorges around noontime. While at Wu Gorge, go for a side onshore trip to witness the beauty of Shennv Stream.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

After breakfast, check out of the ship and go on to explore the Three Gorges Dam, the largest hydro-electric project in the world. Then, you will be transferred to the Three Gorges Tourist Center in Yichang. Your local guide will take you from there to the railway station for a 7.5-hour bullet train ride to Shanghai. Meet your local guide at Shanghai’s train station and then transfer to the hotel.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast
Accommodation: Radisson Blu Hotel Shanghai New World

The first stop of your tour in Shanghai is Shanghai Museum, followed by the famous Yu Garden and its nearby Yuyuan Bazaar. Yu Garden, an old landmark of Shanghai, offers insight of what is a typical southern Chinese classical garden, while its bazaar, home to many time-honored shops as well as boutiques, is a lively must-visit to experience local culture. Unlike others of its kind, Yuyuan Bazaar, a gem situated in a metropolis, is dominated by tourists from other cities or countries, and also loved by locals.

At noon, we will arrange an a la carte farewell lunch at a local restaurant.

In the afternoon, enjoy a panorama of the city at Duo Yun Bookstore on the 52nd floor of Shanghai Tower. Then, take a leisurely walk along the Bund, where you can see over fifty western-style buildings from the colonial period of Shanghai. Moreover, we will arrange a cruise on the Huangpu River for you.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, A la carte farewell lunch

After breakfast at the hotel, please find your own way to Pudong International Airport (PVG), where international flights usually take off, for your flight back home. We recommend you take a taxi to PVG, which costs about CNY 200. You can make a connection in Vancouver, as there is no direct flight from Shanghai to Toronto. You will return home in about 14 hours. Wish you have had a pleasant tour with us in China!

Meals: Western buffet breakfast