Day 1 West Coast - Beijing
Board your transpacific flight to Beijing.
Day 2 Beijing
Upon arrival in Beijing, you will be greeted and escorted to the Capital Hotel (or similar).
Day 3 Beijing (AB,L,SD)
After breakfast, visit Tiananmen Square and the Imperial Palace in the Forbidden City, home of Chinese emperors for more than 500 years. After lunch, visit the Summer Palace, taking a leisure stroll while admiring the thousands of ancient murals along the Long Corridor and a boat ride on Kunming Lake (weather permitting). Enjoy a fabulous welcome banquet featuring the famous Beijing Duck in the evening.
Day 4 Beijing (AB,L)
The highlight today is an excursion to the Great Wall. Enjoy the dramatic vistas and marvel at the Wall as it climbs and descends steep ridges and narrow valleys. Next, visit a cloisonné factory on the way to lunch. After lunch, visit the Ming Tombs starting with a stroll along the Sacred Way, which is guarded by stone statues. Then tour the Chang Ling Exhibition Museum. En route back to the city, drive around the intriguing architecture of the main Olympic venues: the National Stadium, nicknamed the “Bird’s Nest”, because of its unique design, and the National Aquatics Center, known as the “Water Cube”.
Day 5 Beijing - Xi'an (AB)
After breakfast, fly to the ancient capital city of Xi’an. This afternoon, you’ll enjoy a tour of the ancient City Wall, built during 1374-1378 A.D., one of China’s most historical and the best preserved city wall remains from the later stage of the Middle Ages. Continue to visit the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, the symbol of Xi’an, it was once used for the safekeeping of scriptures and Buddha’s statues that were brought back from India by Monk Xuanzang of the Tang Dynasty. Then visit to the Bell Tower which stands in the city center, engulfed in Xi’an’s most congested traffic center. Overnight at the Grand New World Hotel (or similar).
Day 6 Xi'an (AB,L,SD)
Today's highlight is a visit to the Terra-Cotta Warriors and Horses Museum, home to an army of more than 6,000 life-size statues excavated from the tomb of the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty. After lunch, visit the Shaanxi Provincial Museum, renowned for its collection of Han and Tang dynasty antiquities. A briefing will be given by an expert regarding the history, routes and stories of the ancient Silk Road - for Xi’an is the starting point of this age-old, strategic transportation channel. In the evening, enjoy a special dumpling dinner and cultural show at the Tang Dynasty Theatre recreating the music, costumes and dances of that era.
Day 7 Xi'an - Dunhuang (AB,L,D)
In the morning, visit the Grand Mosque and the Muslim quarter. Take an afternoon flight to Dunhuang and transfer to the Dunhuang Hotel (or similar).
Day 8 Dunhuang (AB,L,D)
Excursion to the Mogao Grottoes, the world's richest treasure trove of Buddhist manuscripts and art. Begun in 386 A.D. and added to over the next 9 centuries, the grottoes total over 45,000 square meters and boast over 2,000 murals and sculptures. Continue to Crescent Moon Lake and the impressive Singing Sand Dunes, where the oasis meets the desert. Enjoy a camel ride into the dunes.
Day 9 Dunhuang - Turpan (AB,L,D)
Visit White Horse Pagoda, then drive from Dunhuang to Liuyuan, passing sections of the Han Great Wall and several beacon tower ruins along the way. Board the overnight train to Turpan.
Day 10 Turpan (AB,L,D)
This morning you'll arrive in Turpan, the lowest place in China. Sightseeing features Gaochang, the ancient walled capital of the Uyghurs, which flourished between the 7th and 14th centuries. And the Flaming Mountains, named for their vibrant color. You'll also visit Grape Valley, in lush contrast to the desert surrounding it, and the amazing 2,000-year-old Karez Irrigation Tunnels, which brought water from melting snow on the mountains to this parched city. Attend a music and dance performance in the evening. Overnight at the Turpan Oasis Hotel (or similar).
Day 11 Turpan - Urumqi (AB,L,D)
This morning's tour includes Suliman's Minaret and a local village. You'll also visit the ruins of Jiaohe City, where large fragments of actual streets and buildings remain. Drive to Urumqi after lunch. Enjoy the beautiful scenery en route. Overnight at the Xinjiang Grand Hotel (or similar).
Day 12 Urumqi (AB,L,D)
After breakfast, enjoy an excursion to Heavenly Lake, nestled in the Tianshan Mountain range. Return to Urumqi after lunch and take a city tour, which gives you a glimpse of the major sights of this northwestern city. Populated by Han people and thirteen ethnic minorities, Urumqi is quite different from the usual Chinese street scene. Here you can see nomadic Khazakhs, a Middle-Eastern bazaar, a jade-carving center and more.
Day 13 Urumqi - Shanghai (AB,L)
Today's full-day excursion takes you to the pasture by the Southern Mountains where you will visit local herds. Take an evening flight to Shanghai and transfer to the Salvo Hotel Shanghai (or similar).
Day 14 Shanghai (AB,L,D)
This morning visit to the Bund, the famous promenade along the Huangpu River, and the Jade Buddha Temple, renowned for its huge statue of the Buddha carved from a single piece of white jade. In the afternoon, visit the Yu Garden, famous for its rock gardens, pavilions, halls and ponds, and Old Shanghai Bazaar, with shops filled with all manner of interesting curios. Enjoy a spectacular Acrobatic Show in the evening.
Day 15 Shanghai - West Coast (AB)
After breakfast, transfer to the airport for your homeward-bound flight. Arrive in U.S.A. on the same day.
