* Land prices are per person, double occupancy in luxury hotels. Prices include coach class China domestic airfare, most meals, all transfers, and Chinese visa processing. As of Jan 21, 2008, the Chinese authority has increased visa processing  fees for all US citizens by $80 US dollars, this fee will be added as extra  to your total land price.

* This tour is fully escorted* within mainland China by an English-speaking professional tour manager and is guided by an English-speaking local tour guide in each city.

* For international airfare, please contact your own travel agent or Access China Tours.

** The itinerary for this departure varies. Please contact us for details.

Day 1   Beijing

Arrive in Beijing today and you are transferred to your hotel . Meet your fellow travelers at the Evening Reception.
Grand Hyatt Beijing

Day 2   Beijing Begin your sightseeing with a walk on Tiananmen Square, the world's largest. Then move on to visit the Forbidden City, magnificent imperial palaces of the Ming and Qing dynasties. After lunch, explore some of Beijing's old 'Hutongs' - the traditional courtyard residences cut into blocks by narrow alleyways. Later, visit the elegant Yonghegong Lamasery belonging to the school of Tibetan Buddhism. Return to your hotel for some rest before heading to a local restaurant to enjoy a Peking Duck Banquet. Grand Hyatt Beijing   <B-L-D>

Day 3   Beijing

Visit the Temple of Heaven in the morning. See Chinese doing Taiji in the park and examine the beautiful structure of the Hall of Prayer. Stop by the lively Panjiayuan Market where antiques and other goods are sold.

Visit the enchanting Summer Palace, a huge imperial resort for the Qing emperors. In the evening, enjoy a classic Imperial Cuisine Dinner.
Grand Hyatt Beijing   <B-L-D>

Day 4   Beijing

Today's highlight is your excursion to the extraordinary Great Wall of China. Explore the Mutianyu section, where the Wall snakes up and down on ridges of green mountains.

Return to the hotel and the rest of the day is free to explore on your own.
Grand Hyatt Beijing   <B-L>

Day 5   Beijing g Xi'an

This morning, transfer to the airport and fly to Xi'an, an ancient capital of China. Meet and transfer to your hotel in downtown.

After refreshing in the hotel, go to visit the City Wall and Shaanxi History Museum, one of the best in China.

Enjoy a characteristic Dumpling Dinner at a local restaurant.
Hyatt Regency Xi'an  <B-D>

Day 6   Xi'an

The discovery of the 2,200-year-old Terracotta Warriors in 1974 once shocked the world. Inside the museum, three exhibition halls house the continuing excavation of an army of 7,000 terracotta soldiers and horses that guard the tomb of China's first emperor.

		Upon returning to the city, tour the Big Goose Pagoda and a market street in the city's southern district. After a delicious Local Cuisine Dinner, go to enjoy a colorful Tang Style Stage Show. Hyatt Regency Xi'an   <B-L-D> Day 7   Xi'an g Chengdu Transfer to airport and fly to Chengdu.  Upon arrival, take an excursion to the fascinating Sanxingdui Archaeological Museum.  Later tonight, go to a teahouse to mingle with the locals before enjoying a wonderful Sichuan Cuisine Dinner. Sofitel Wanda Chengdu   <B-L-D>
Day 8   Chengdu g Lhasa Visit Giant Panda Breeding Center for a closer look at this lovely bear and then tour the charming Qingyanggong Daoist Monastery. Transfer to airport and fly to Lhasa - capital of Tibet. Upon arrival, transfer to your hotel and balance of the day is free for adjusting to the high altitude. Brahmaputra Grand Hotel   <B-L-D> Day 9   Lhasa Begin your sightseeing with a visit to the magnificent Jokhang Monastery, a 1,300-year-old golden roofed shrine whose labyrinth of rooms contains a beautiful gold statue of the Buddha Sakyamuni. Coming out of the Jokhang, you are right in the center of fascinating Barkhor area, lined with the stalls of an outdoor market selling all kinds of goods and souvenirs. Move on to visit Sera Monastery, where you may also see young monks practicing debating skills in small animated groups. Visit a Tibetan family later in the day. Brahmaputra Grand Hotel   <B-L-D> Day 10   Lhasa Your visit to the monumental Potala Palace is a highlight of the tour in Tibet. The great 13-story palace encloses private quarters as well as countless prayer halls, chapels and shrines where monks chant and devotees offer their ceremonial scarves or yak butter lamps. In the afternoon, go to a village outside Lhasa and meet local residents. Brahmaputra Grand Hotel    <B-L>
Day 11   Lhasa g Kunming Travel to Kunming by airplain this morning and arrive by noon. In the afternoon, visit Yuantong Temple, northern Yunnan's major Buddhist site and an active place of pilgrimage.  Enjoy a Yunnan Local Cuisine Dinner for tonight followed by a fascinating Song & Dance Show. Green Lake Hotel Kunming   <B-L-D> Day 12   Kunming g Guilin Today's excursion takes you to the Stone Forest and Dadieshui Waterfall, about 100 kilometers east of Kunming.

The area offers a unique landscape of stark limestone pillars sculpted by the elements. From a distance, these stone pillars indeed look like a dense forest. Paths and stairs wind along corridors, past rock pools to cliff balconies, for intriguing vistas. Also explore the villages of the ethnic Sani people.

Transfer to airport and fly to Guilin, one of China's most beautiful cities. Check in at the hotel upon arrival and evening is free.
Sheraton Hotel Guilin   <B-L>

Day 13   Guilin n Yangshuo

Today, you get on a motorboat for a 4-hour Li River Cruise. The cruise will give you a chance to savor the lovely views of the area's extraordinary limestone peaks.

Get off the boat in Yangshuo, a charming small town with its main street lined with small hotels, countless souvenir shops selling traditional ornaments, jewelry and paintings of peaks, and restaurants serving international foods.

Enjoy the Impressions Liusanjie cultural show on the Li River before returning to Guilin.
Sheraton Hotel Guilin   <B-L-D>

Day 14   Guilin g Chongqing

Fly to Chongqing this morning and take a city tour visiting the Three Gorges Museum, Ciqikou Old Town, and a local community.

Enjoy a delicious Local Cuisine Dinner before boarding the Victoria cruise ship in the evening.
Victoria Anna/Katarina   <B-L-D>

Day 15   Yangzi River Cruise

Victoria cruise ships offer the most enjoyable cruise experience on the Yangzi River. Your first port of call is Baidicheng. Visit the town's temples associated with the place's history and tour a local market. Victoria Anna/Katarina  <B-L-D> Day 16   Yangzi River Cruise The highlight of today's cruise is sailing through the extraordinary Three Gorges of the Yangzi, featuring towering peaks and sheer cliffs. The Qutang, Wu, and Xiling Gorges each having its own visual power, with cliff walls and dramatic vistas unfolding themselves as the ship passes through.

Discover the hidden charm in the Lesser Gorges by boating on the tributary Daning River. The ship later sails through Three Gorges Shiplocks.
Victoria Anna/Katarina   <B-L-D>

Day 17   Yichang g Shanghai

This morning, the cruise ship docks for an excursion to Three Gorges Dam, the world's largest hydroelectric project and the newest attraction on the Yangzi River today.

Cruise ends in Yichang and you are transferred to the airport for a flight to Shanghai. Check in at your luxury hotel upon arrival.
Four Seasons Shanghai   <B-L>

Day 18   Shanghai

Visit the marvelous Shanghai Museum. Its galleries contain world-class collections of ancient arts and artifacts. The Bronze Gallery is a must-see section.

Continue your exploration at the Bund, a waterfront promenade lined with a mile-long of European buildings. visit the small yet exquisite Yuyuan Garden and the old town area.

Enjoy a special dinner featuring the exquisite Shanghai Cuisine followed by an Acrobatic Performance at Shanghai Center.
Four Seasons Shanghai   <B-L-D>