2 Days Mini Group Xi’an Highlights Tour, No Shopping

It’s an honor to have you onboard our Terracotta Army group tour covering all highlights of Xi'an in just 2 days! Around 8:00 am, meet your guide at the hotel lobby, who will get you on a luxury car to meet your fellow travelers and to our first destination.

In an hour or so, we will arrive at the Terracotta Army Museum. Having buried in ashes for 2,200 years, this army of life-size pottery warriors, plus bronze weapons and chariots, crafted to serve the afterlife of the first emperor of China was finally unveiled in the last century. This is the find that once shocked the entire archaeological world. It’s one of the man-made wonders in human history, but nothing compares seeing it in person, especially the experience when you are taken back to the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC) by your guide’ engaging narrative. All the three excavated pits and the new exhibition hall to show the secret finds all await us to explore.After the tour, have lunch at your own expense at a food street outside the museum, and an adequate lunch costs about USD 5-7 per person. Your guide will give advice on which restaurant to choose. We need to remind you that the food street is touristy, so unlike other agencies that may take you to try the tourist-targeted, we leave the choice to you and recommend you eating in a renowned chain restaurant like the indigenous Weijia Cold Noodles. Time and efforts will be saved for you to meet more about Xi’an.

Continue back to downtown and visit the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda, which still keeps the Buddhist sutras a monk brought from India during the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907). It stands out as the tallest building in the cultural block Great Tang All Day Mall, and as we approach and leave, you will also see many girls and boys in traditional costumes which constitute a scene iconic of this street. Next on our itinerary is the ancient City Wall. The Wall, traced back to the Tang era and completed many centuries later, had the luck to survive turbulent vicissitudes to become the best-persevered of its genre. You will delve into the military culture of the remote past from the rigorous system of defense, and see how the ancient-style buildings on one side contrast with the modernity on another. If the weather allows, maybe enjoy a self-financed biking experience and your guide will be glad to help you at the rental points on the Wall. For dinner, you will want to snack through the nearby bustling Muslim Bazaar. Your guide will drop you off there or at the hotel if you have your own plan.  

You will visit some gems often under the radar to get your fix of Chinese history and culture today! This morning, first transfer to the Stele Forest and get immersed in the nationally-treasured ancient stone slabs carved with Chinese calligraphy and philosophies. Your guide will also illustrate to you the architectural aesthetics, as the museum is housed in a carefully-designed temple that once worshiped Confucius. Then, let’s go further back to prehistoric China at Banpo Museum, which is based on the site of a typical matrilineal clan village from the Neolithic era of 6,000 years ago. The life traces as well as daily-used tools and artifacts will provide insights to the dawn of Chinese civilization.At noon, we will take you to the Yongxingfang Food Street, literally “the lane of eternal prosperity”, and leave you a lunch break at your own expense. You might be interested to know that the food here covers local dishes and snacks from all over Shaanxi. Whether it’s the iconic Chinese Hamburger or Biang Biang Noodles or Steamed Sticky Rice Cake, it has it all!

We will then escape the secular hustle and bustle and take a tranquil stroll in the Great Mosque. Go on to admire the Bell Tower that sits at the heart of Xian. As the Ming-era (1368 - 1644) heritage and the most magnificent of its kind in China, it radiates a pride among the modern landscape that beckons you to capture. We will also visit the interior and climb the tower to discover Chinese aesthetics through architectural details. After the visit, you can either choose to be escorted back to your hotel or ask for insider advice from your guide on evening activities. Maybe linger awhile to see the Bell Tower lit all over in the evening. Take care!► Recommended Evening Activities: Enjoy Dumplings and Tang-Themed Dance Show
We couldn’t recommend it more that you should enjoy a Tang Dynasty Music and Dance Show with a dumplings banquet at the Tang Dynasty Palace! The music is live and orchestrated with traditional Chinese instruments, the dance choreographed to tell stories of and demonstrate the unparalleled prosperity of the Tang Empire. A group of up to more than 50 classical artists are invited to perform it. The show costs just a quarter of the price of any European theatres, so it’s a chance not to miss. If you need transportation and ticket booking service, your guide and driver are there to offer and you can just pay them in person. The dumplings banquet is between 18:00 to 19:30. The show time lasts from 19:30 to 20:30.