Essential China Tour

Depart with Cathay Pacific from London Heathrow or Manchester via Hong Kong. No matter which airport you choose, there will be no additional cost.

Alternative Airline – Emirates

Should you prefer, fly with Emirates via Dubai from London Heathrow, London Gatwick, London Stansted, Birmingham, Manchester, Newcastle, Edinburgh or Glasgow for a supplement, from £100 per person.

Arrive in the wonderful city of Beijing and transfer to the conveniently located Sunworld Dynasty Hotel, where we spend our first three nights. Previously known as Peking, China’s capital city is a historical treasure trove, boasting over 3,000 years of tumultuous history. However, it’s not only this city’s ancient monuments that attract visitors. Its imposing socialist monuments of the 1950s, along with the explosive growth of modern buildings and infrastructure, make Beijing an unmissable showcase of both old and new China. This evening, enjoy a welcome dinner with your Tour Manager and fellow travellers, to become acquainted and learn more about our adventure ahead.

Today, our sightseeing tour of Beijing begins in Tiananmen Square. Measuring around 440,000m2, it was here that Chairman Mao declared the founding of the People’s Republic of China. We continue to the nearby Forbidden City, the world’s largest palace complex and home to China’s best-preserved collection of ancient and ornate buildings. We have plenty of time to explore the Forbidden City, prior to lunch in a nearby restaurant. In the afternoon, we explore the Temple of Heaven Park – the site where, during the Ming and Qing dynasties, emperors prayed for a good harvest. This evening, we enjoy a classic imperial dish from Beijing: Peking Duck, served with plum or garlic sauce, scallions and pancakes.

Tour Highlight

China’s most iconic sight and greatest engineering triumph, The Great Wall, weaves its way through 4,000 miles of northern China’s landscapes. This morning, we travel northeast from the city to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall, famous for its Ming-era guard towers and the fantastic views of the surrounding mountains. We take a short cable car ride to the wall and have ample time to stroll along part of it, taking in the spectacular landscapes. Following our memorable visit and lunch, we return to Beijing to spend the afternoon exploring the halls, pavilions, temples, gardens and bridges of the Summer Palace, the former playground of the royal family as they escaped the suffocating heat of summer. We marvel at this masterpiece of traditional Chinese landscaping, designed according to the principles of feng shui.

We say farewell to Beijing and board our ‘bullet train’ to Xi’an, one of China’s most famous cities with a long and fascinating history. A considerable amount of its ancient city has managed to survive alongside its modern developments. We make a stop to explore the magnificent city walls, which date back to the Ming dynasty around 1370, and enjoy incredible views of Xi’an from our vantage point on top of the 12m-high wall. We reach the Sheraton Xian North City Hotel later, our home for the next two nights. One of the delicacies in Xi’an is its fantastic dumplings, which are similar to dim sum. This evening, enjoy sampling a selection of dumplings – each are handmade into a variety of shapes and with a selection of delicious fillings.

Tour Highlight

Discovered in 1974 by a group of farmers drilling a well, the Terracotta Army is one of the most famous and spectacular archaeological discoveries in the world. Today, we explore the pits containing the terracotta soldiers, which have stood guard since 246BC when Emperor Qin Shi Huang commissioned the work for his mausoleum. Each life-sized warrior has been crafted with individual facial features and clothing, and are arranged in battle formations alongside their horses and chariots. We also discover the equally fascinating Qin Shi Huang Emperor Tomb Artefact Exhibition Hall, which contains many artefacts, including a pair of bronze chariots and horses, which are displayed with some of the original weaponry. After lunch, we visit the Small Wild Goose Pagoda before returning to our hotel.

After breakfast, we make our way to the train station to board our high-speed train to Chengdu, in the Sichuan Province. Chengdu is renowned for its teahouse culture and its most famous inhabitants – the giant pandas. On arrival early afternoon, we transfer to the Sheraton Chengdu Lido Hotel, where we stay for the next two nights. Later, we take a gentle stroll through Wangjianglou Park, which is often filled with dancing, song and Tai Chi. The park is also home to some of the city’s favourite teahouses, where we stop to sample the local brews and perhaps mix with the locals over a game of Mahjong.

Tour Highlight

With over 80% of the world’s giant panda population found in Sichuan Province, it’s little surprise to find the area taking the lead in conservation projects to save this endangered species. The panda is the national symbol of China, and today we visit the Giant Panda Breeding Research Institute, which is home to around 120 giant and 76 red pandas. The project allows us to see these loveable and rare creatures, at close quarters in a near-natural habitat setting. Following lunch we return to our hotel to relax and freshen up. Later in the afternoon, we explore the bustling stalls and shops of the Wide and Narrow Alleys, two ancient streets restored in Ming and Qing architectural styles. We enjoy dinner in one of the local restaurants serving traditional dishes, cooked with distinctive Sichuan flavours. Later, we recommend venturing to the Sichuan Opera for a one-of-a-kind cultural performance, including acrobats, dancers, puppets and the amazing ‘face-changing’ mask spectacle.

Following breakfast, we travel to Guilin by train. Upon arrival, our waiting coach will take us to the Grand Bravo Hotel, ideally situated in central Guilin, where we spend the next two nights. This evening, there is an opportunity to take an optional Lakes and Rivers cruise to discover Guilin’s stunning landscapes by night.

We Recommend - Evening Lakes and Rivers Cruise

Discover the beautiful city of Guilin and its stunning landscapes by night with the Guilin night cruise.

Tour Highlight

The countryside through which the Li River flows is a photographer’s dream. Today we enjoy a cruise towards Yangshuo, with lunch on board. We glide serenely between verdant hills, enjoying iconic scenes of wallowing water buffalo and farmers tending their crops against a backdrop of limestone peaks. Arriving in Yangshuo, we briefly explore the town before discovering the stunning countryside that surrounds it. Later we return to Guilin.

After breakfast, we take a flight to Shanghai and transfer to the Shanghai Hengshan Garden Hotel for our final three nights in China. Shanghai is China’s most glamourous and prosperous city, where Chinese and Western cultures run side by side. We head out on a walking tour this afternoon to explore the enchanting former French Concession area, which to this day is still a beautiful residential and shopping district, renowned for its European architecture, buzzy cafes and tree-lined streets.

Tour Highlight

We embark on a full-day tour to Suzhou, a city famed for its culture and elegance, and home to many artists and scholars, drawn to the city by its UNESCO-listed classical gardens. Our first stop is to explore one of China’s most famous gardens – the Humble Administrator’s Garden, with its bamboo islands, many ponds, humpback bridges and beautiful pavilions. Enjoy a relaxing cruise along the ancient canals of the old city before lunch. In the afternoon, visit the Master of the Nets Garden, which is relatively small, but gives the impression of being much larger thanks to its ingenious use of space. Suzhou is also renowned for its high-quality silk, having provided beautiful textiles for the imperial families of the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Our final stop of the day provides us with an insight into the silk production process and the chance to see some stunning examples, before we return to Shanghai.

Today, we discover the sights of Shanghai, beginning with a visit to Yuyuan Gardens. Built during the Ming dynasty and taking 18 years to complete, the gardens survived wars and rebellions and today are a fine example of traditionally-styled Chinese Gardens. We continue to the charming Old Town, which is the original centre of the city and retains many of its original temples, alleyways and buildings. Following lunch, our sightseeing ends with a walk along the Bund, on the banks of the Huangpu River. The Bund perfectly encapsulates the diversity of Shanghai, with the grandiose Art Deco architecture of the city’s former banks and trading houses on one side of the river, and the futuristic skyline of Pudong on the other.  After some time to relax and freshen up, we indulge in a delicious farewell meal this evening and have a chance to reflect on our incredible journey together.

Enjoy a leisurely morning until it’s time to depart for the airport. Our flights to the UK operate via Hong Kong. Alternatively, if choosing Emirates, you will fly to the UK via Dubai.

After 15 wonderful days exploring China, we arrive at our chosen UK airport, bringing an end to our incredible holiday.