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11 |
Trek |
DAYS |
Voir les photos
Holiday Overview
Holiday Overview
Highlights
- Including highlights of Beijing's scenic spot
- Experience a authentic Great Wall hiking
- Cycling along the Xi'an Ancient City Wall
- Horse riding experience around Lashi Lake
- Rafting experience at the First Bend of the Yangtze River at Shigu town
Our incredible 11 days off the beaten track trip will offer participants a wonderful experience of some of the finest cultural heritage sties and spectacular landscapes China beholds. Due to an ancient history and deeply rich culture, Beijing has a wide range of exciting things to offer and we have developed a tour that will allow you to experience many of its incredible highlights including the amazing Forbidden City. Most importantly, you will also experience a magnificent section of the Great Wall at Gubeikou and a stunning backdrop of mountainous landscapes.
After the Great Wall, our journey then continues in the beautiful city of Xi’an, famous for its old city walls and its impressive bell tower. Xi’an acts as a perfect platform to visit the amazing Terracotta Army (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) that includes more than 6,000 individually crafted soldiers of stunning detail. For lovers of wildlife, Chengdu will also not disappoint as we take a ride to see pandas at the Chengdu Panda Breeding Centre.
The last station is Yunnan area. Yunnan, a land of natural beauty and mystery, located in the most southwest of China, has a vast territory, magnificent mountains and rivers, abundant natural resources and diverse cultures. Yunnan is a home to 26 ethnic minorities which give a rich color to the land. They contributed with their colorful costumes, their traditional songs and dances to the attractive life.
Brief Itinerary
- Arrive in Beijing
- Beijing Highlights (BLD)
- Jiankou-Mutianyu Great Wall hike –Beijing (BL）
- Beijing-Xi’an (BL, by train)
- Xi’an –Chengdu (BL, by train)
- Chengdu (BL)
- Chengdu-Dali(BL, by air)
- Dali-Shaxi-Lijiang (BL)
- Lijiang and horse riding trip(BL)
- Lijiang-Tiger Leaping Gorge—Shigu-Lijiang (BL)
- Lijiang/ Home (B)
Map & Itinerary
Map & Itinerary
Holiday Itinerary
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ARRIVE IN BEIJING
You will be met at Beijing International Airport by our driver (cannot speak English) and transferred to a hotel in central Beijing. Today you will have an opportunity to rest and recover from the long flight.
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Accommodation 4 star hotel in Beijing
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Meals /
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BEIJING CITY TOUR (BLD)
This morning, we will first go to visit Summer Palace. Summer Palace located in a northwestern suburb of Beijing; it is an immense park containing some Chinese traditional architecture and arts. It was built and served as a royal garden during the Qing Dynasty. It exhibits the quintessence of the Chinese classical landscape gardening. The halls, the pavilions, the corridors, the pagodas, the bridges and the water were elaborately arranged. The long Corridor is one of the most exquisite structures in the garden. It is over 700 meters long and decorated with thousands of Chinese traditional paintings.
In the afternoon, we will continue to visit Tian’anmen Square, the largest public square in the world, then follow in the footsteps of emperors, court ministers and eunuchs and head south to the magnificent and colorful Forbidden City. Forbidden City Beijing, also called Imperial Palace Museum, is located in the very heart of Beijing. It remained the residence of the emperors for nearly five hundred years, from the 15th century to the early 20th century, and was the actual and symbolic seat of imperial power. Popularly known as the Forbidden City, it was built in the Ming Dynasty between the 4th and the 18th years of the Yongle period (1406 - 1420 AD). Many of the buildings of the Palace have been repaired and rebuilt, but their basic form and layout remain in their original state. Hike to Jingshan Park, where gives a nice panoramic view of the Forbidden City at the top of Coal Hill.
In the late afternoon, enjoy a Hutong rickshaw tour. As the Forbidden City is the symbol of China's royal family, the Hutongs in Beijing show the real life of the common people. When you visit Hutong by rickshaw, you could really taste the life of common people in Beijing. Lotus Market, located in Houhai area, famous for old hutong and modern bars.
This evening you could choose to go to watch a Chinese opera performance. Peking Opera has a history of about 200 years, now it becomes more and more popular as it is a combination of stylized acting, singing, acrobatics and colorful costumes. There are four main types in Peking Opera: Sheng, Dan, Jing and Chou. They have different characters, costumes and show their inner world by performance.
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Accommodation 4 star hotel
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Meals Breakfast、lunch and dinner
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BEIJING-JIANKOU-MUTIANYU-BEIJING (BL)
Your last trekking day is again great for photography! The Jiankou section of the Wall is known to be one of most beautiful part of the Wild Wall near Beijing, loved by photographers. After a half-hour climb upwards, through a gentle wooded area, we will clamber out onto a portion of the Wall not visited by tourists.
After a simple breakfast, hike eastwards to Mutianyu Great Wall. The hike itself is quiet and beautiful - in about four hours of passing deserted sections of the Wall in its original state, we will get to the well-known restored section of the Wall - Mutianyu. What a difference between the tourist section and the original Wild Wall we have just seen!
After a late lunch, drive to back to Beijing. Free in the evening
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Accommodation 4 star hotel
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Distance Beijing-Jiankou 93km/2hrs driving; Jiankou –Mutianyu 10km/4-5hrs hiking;
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Meals Breakfast and lunch
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BEIJING-XI’AN (BL, by train)
In the early morning, after breakfast, we will go to see the local people doing their morning exercises. Then we will visit the Temple of Heaven. Temple of Heaven was the venue for the Ming and Qing emperors to offer sacrifices to the Heaven and pray for harvest. This temple was built in the 18th year during the reign of the Ming Emperor Yongle in 1420.
At the end of visit, transfer to Beijing West Railway station, take a high speed train to Xi’an. Upon arrival, transfer to the hotel and have a rest.
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Accommodation 4 star hotel in Xi'an
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Meals Breakfast and lunch
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XI’AN CITY TOUR-CHENGDU (BL, by train)
After breakfast, we will drive to visit the magnificent Qin Terra-cotta Army, one of the greatest archaeological discoveries in the world: a life-size clay soldier poised for battle. Qin's tomb was built in about 2500 years ago and was filled with more than 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots and 520 horses as well as models of palaces, pavilions, fine vessels, precious stones and rarities. UNESCO listed it in 1987 as one of the world cultural heritages. In the afternoon, drive back to Xian city. We will go to visit the Ancient City Wall, which represents one of the oldest and best preserved Chinese city walls. Bicycle or sightseeing car will be arranged on the wall to go around.
Continue to visit the Great Mosque, and Muslim Quarter.
In late afternoon, transfer to Xi’an North Railway station, take a high speed train to Chengdu.
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Accommodation Mercure Chengdu
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Meals Breakfast and lunch
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CHEGNDU (BLD)
In the morning, we will go to the Chengdu Research center of Panda Breeding to have a real chance to get intimate interaction with lovely panda. It has been created and imitated the natural habitat in order that they might have the best possible environment for rearing and breeding. We will spend the whole morning visiting different panda rooms. Here, we can explore the daily life of the cute pandas, eating bamboo at their active time (from 9 o’clock to 11 o’clock), and other rare and endangered wild animals including with black-necked cranes, white storks etc.
In the afternoon, take a 1.5hrs drive visit Leshan Giant Buddha, the looming Leshan Giant Buddha is a Tang dynasty (618-907 AD) relic that is the largest carved stone Buddha in the world at 71 meters. The Buddha, build in AD 713 by a Chinese monk named Haitong to calm the river waters, was crafted from a cliff face. It seems that so much stone from the carving process fell into the river below that it did indeed calm the area’s waters. While often crowded with tourists and battling the effects of pollution, Leshan is nevertheless an exquisite UNESCO world heritage site that is not to be missed for its impressive size and beautiful surrounding area.
After visit, drive back to the downtown.
After dinner, attend the Sichuan Opera—a dazzling show performed with local instruments, hand shadows, candle storytelling, fire spitting, and face changing. Wandering around the local market and bar street Jinli, take local delicacies yourselves and enjoy the leisure life with local people.
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Accommodation Mercure Chengdu
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Meals Breakfast、lunch and dinner
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CHEGNDU-DALI (LD, by air)
Take an early morning flight to Dali, upon arrival, our guide will lead you to visit Three Pagodas of Chongsheng Temple northwest of Dali, occupying a scenic location at the foot of Mt. Cang Shan facing Erhai Lake, built in the reign of Emperor Hongwu of Ming Dynasty, has a history of over 1,800 years. Known for its resilience, This architectural treasure. has survived several eras of severe earthquakes.
Then, we will go for a boat tour on Erhai Lake, watching queues of captive cormorants waiting on the edge of the boat for their turn to do the fishing. The whole lake area is full of interesting and beautiful sites. Lining its banks in the valley is the ancient city of Dali. You can watch the people live their daily lives in a traditional way. That is an interesting backdrop for the scenery. We'll head to Xizhou, an old quiet town which will give you a chance to experience the Bai minority's local market where traders and merchants gather to do the business.
Then extend your tour to the native's hand-made clothing process - tie-die cloth workshop, taste local snacks when your walk along the small streets. By visiting this small town, you gain a better understanding of the history of this ingenious people and an appreciation of a culture that has been important in Chinese history.
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Accommodation Landscape Hotel Dali
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Meals Lunch and dinner
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DALI / SHIBAO SHAN(2,487M) / SHAXI VILLAGE(2,106M)/ LIJIANG (BL)
In the morning we will make a 1.5-hour drive to Shibao Shan, a stone treasure mountain, which is famous for its red rock formations called Danxia landscape and the Buddhist grottoes that feature unique stone-carving nestled into the pine-forested mountain. Shizhong(Stone Bell) Temple, one of the three largest scenic spots of Shibao Shan, where the bodhisattva Guanyin and other Buddhist images are carved into the rocky mountainside, are over 1300 years old and evidence of the spread of Mahayana Buddhism into Yunnan from Tibet. The Buddhist grottoes contributed to Mount Shibao being known as the ‘Mogao Caves (莫高窟) of Yunnan’, in reference to the famous Buddhist frescoes in the desert of Dunhuang(敦煌) in northwest Gansu province. Walking in the mountain there are dense forests and flowing streams, which makes a beautiful picture.
Then walking 2 hours down from the mountain to Shaxi village, a historical village at the foot of Shibao Shan, nested in a valley. Shaxi village, World Monuments Fund has listed it as one of the 100 most endangered sites in the world. This area was once a bustling trade station on the Southern Silk Road (Tea and Horse Caravan Road), that linked China and Tibet with Southeast Asia, so the ancient remains, frescoes, art and graffiti on the mountains show a mixture of cultural influences from other parts of the world.
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Accommodation Ivy Garden Resort Hotel
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Distance 8km/2-3hrs hiking; Lanping/Shaxi 90km/1.5hrs driving;
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Meals Breakfast and lunch
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LIJIANG HIGHLIGHTS AND HORSEBACK RIDING TOUR IN LIJIANG(sea level: 2,416m)
In the morning drive to Black Dragon Pool Park (pinyin: Hēilóngtán), also named Jade Spring Park, shows visitors picturesque scenery with a large crystal pool, luxuriant trees, a tall mountain and historic buildings in graceful shapes. Located at the foot of Elephant Hill, a short walk north along Square Street of Lijiang Old Town in Yunnan Province, China, it was built in 1737 during the Qing Dynasty and offers a spectacular view on the region's tallest mountain, Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, over its white marble bridge. The park features several smaller temples and pavilions
Then we will drive 22 kilometers to Yuhu village, Yuhu is a simple village of Naxi minority with the former residence of Dr. Joseph Rock. Dr. Rock, an Austro-American botanist and explorer who lived here off and on from 1922-1949, is best remembered for the introduction of innumerable plant species to the West and his rigorous works on Naxi ethnology. Just steps away from Dr. Rock’s residence.
Tour to Baisha village and visit Baisha Frescoes, north of Lijiang Country finds the Liulidian Temple and Daobaoji Temple at Baisha village, housing 558 mural paintings on 12 walls that date back to the Ming Dynasty in 1385. Buddhism, Taoism and Lamaism manifest in integration in styles of the Han Chinese, the Tibetan, the Bai and the Naxi people on the murals, a proof of exchange on politics, economy, culture and religion between the mainland and the frontiers of China. They are now rated as key cultural relics under national protection.
Then go on your cycling to Lashihai Lake. Lashihai Lake, a nature reserve rich in biodiversity. You will start your horse-riding around Lashihai Lake. With an area of 5,330 hectares, Lashihai Lake is about 9.3 km long from south to north and 8.2 km wide from east to west. It is the largest lake in Lijiang County. Surrounded by the mountains, the catchment of Lashihai is about 256.6 square meters.The Rivers of Meiquan and Keluokang are merged together into Lashihai. With good quality of water, which meets water quality requirement of Grade II. It is one of the reserved drinking water sources for the city of Lijiang. Drive back to Lijiang in the late afternoon.
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Accommodation Ivy Garden Resort Hotel
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Meals Breakfast and lunch
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LIJIANG /TIGER LEAPING GORGE-LIJIANG (BL)
After breakfast, take private bus to Tiger leaping gorge is a canyon on the Yangtze River – locally called the Golden Sands River – located 60 km north of Lijiang City. This gorge is formed by two mountains—the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain and the Haba Snow mountain, with the river flowing in between called the Golden Sand River. This gorge is about 3700m from the top of the mountain to the water surface, and about 15 km in length. It is said that once, in order to escape from the chasing of a hunter, the tiger has to leaping from this side to the other side of the river, the rock that the tiger used now is become the core of this gorge—the ‘tiger leaping stone’ also called the ‘upper tiger leaping gorge’, which is only 30 meters in between the two sides of the river. There we will do a short hike race to exercise the student team consciousness, after lunch, visit the upper tiger leaping gorge.
In the afternoon, drive to Shigu town, where you will have a rafting experience, then visit Shigu town, a military importance historically. You will witness the wonder of the First Bend of the Yangtze River with a big turn from the southward to the east. then our car will drive you to Lijiang Old Town.
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Accommodation Ivy Garden Resort Hotel
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Meals Breakfast and lunch
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LIJIANG/HOME(B)
Relax yourself in Lijiang Old Town in the morning. Lijiang, a well-preserved old city of ethnic minorities with brilliant culture, is a central town of the Lijiang Autonomous County of the Naxi Ethnic Minority in Yunnan Province. Located on the plateau which is 2,400 meters above the sea level and embraced by the tree-covered Lion Mountain in the west, Elephant and Golden Row Mountains in the north, vast fertile fields in the southeast and crystal clear water running through, the old Town looks like a big jade ink slab, therefore got the alias the Town of Big Ink Slab (Dayanzhen).
Picked up by our guide and driver at the appointed time, transfer to the airport, take a flight back home.
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Accommodation /
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Meals Breakfast
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Price Policy
Tour Price Policy
The tour cost includes
● Air-conditioned tour bus for land transfer service.
● Meals daily as listed in the itinerary.
● Service of English guide and experienced driver.
● Scenic spots admission fee; Nature Reserve Protection fee and/ or camping permit fee (inside nature reserve) if required.
● Accommodation: double-occupancy in 4 or 3 star hotel.
● 3 bottles of water for each person eachday.
● Trains：Beijing to Xi’an，Xi‘an to Chengdu
● Flights：Chengdu to Dali
The tour cost does not include
● Meals in your free time or on the train/plane, Personal travel insurance, tips to tour guide and driver, international flights and related airport taxes, excess baggage charged by Airlines; The medicine for the sickness or accident while on the way, single supplement cost for those who wants to accommodate on a single basis, supplementary trips and services not mentioned, visa costs, any expenses on personal nature not listed above, the extra cost due to the unforeseen events.
Cancellation and Refund Policy for Tours Reservation
| Cancellation in advance | Cancellation penalty |
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| More than 30 days | No Cancellation Fee |
| 30-10 days | 50% of the full payment |
| 9-0 days or no show | 100% of the full payment |
Holiday Information
Holiday Information
Necessities
Enough films and batteries, Sun-cream with the protection index of 40-60, sunglasses with a sun protection factor of 15, the lip creams and balms with SPF rating, towel, toothpaste, electric torch Snack foods.Cloth that you bring must be warm enough and can be removed easy enough according to the weather, including Jacket, hat, Cotton underwear, Socks, Long-sleeve Shirts, T-shirts and Pants (Shorts are not appropriate at any time while hiking), comfortable shoes, rain gear (long rain coat is better).
Medicine
In addition to the normal medications for traveling, just like the Aspirin and medicine for diarrhea, siriasis，sunstroke and carsickness.
Currency to use
US$ is acceptable only in a very limited range, e.g. tips. However, for convenience, Chinese currency is the best choice. If you want to change US$ to Chinese currency in the tour, you can change it in the Hotel you stay or in the Bank of China. You could draw cash only from Bank of China in the big city, the ATM there doesn't always work properly and the bank is not easy to find. Please bring some cash at hand to use.
Food and drink
a) Eating is an important part of your China experience. Generally breakfasts are included in the itinerary and offered by hotels. China Highlights recommends local Chinese restaurants that are popular with local people for lunch. You can order dishes with the help of your guide. We usually leave dinner for your own choice — Western food can be found in most large cities.
b) We have tried to arrange various food in different cities. But you may still think the food is simple and not as delicious as in the big cities especially while trekking in the mountains and villages. If you have any priority of the food (eg. If you are vegetarian or you are allergic to MSG, peanut oil, fish and peanut, etc) please inform us early, we will try to alternate the food accordingly. At the same time please prepare some of your favorite snacks and substitution food in case of need.
c) Meals in the home stays will be different from the cities but clean, which leave you a good chance to experience the ethnic minority culture. We will pack a breakfast for you of cold cereal, milk, toast, fruit, and jam for the home stay. d) It is very important to drink a lot of water and eat enough fruit in your tour especially while trekking in the mountains and villages. You are advised not to drink tap water.
Accommodation
Hotels in China are bound by Government laws which mean that air conditioning is switched on nationally in May and the central heating in November (this may vary slightly depending on the region).
In some remote areas, sometimes shower maybe not available in the home stay. A married couple is not allowed to share a room in the Miao's home-stay due to the local customs.
Tipping
It is customary to tip service providers in the travel industry in Asia, depending on the service. Tipping is expected — though not compulsory — and shows an expression of satisfaction with the people who have assisted you on your tour. Recommendations for tipping drivers (3 USD per person per day as a guideline) and local guides (8 USD per person per day as a guideline) would depend on the quality and length of the service.
Vehicles
We use comfortable sedans or vans with air-conditioning. The comfort and safety of our customers is of utmost importance, so we ensure that all of the vehicles we use are well maintained and always very clean. Our drivers take pride in their vehicles.
Tourist insurance
It is a must before going, please provide us the confirmation of insurance company when sign up.
Customs
In some provinces with many minorities (like Guizhou, Guangxi, Tibet, Xinjiang and etc.), the customs and habits of local people are different from place to place. The local guide will inform you what should care. Respect the local customs and religions. The people are very kind and hospitable. You can feel free to talk with them. But there are some rulers you should go by!
a. Do not photo them without getting the permit, please show the respect to them!
b. Don't talk the sensitive topics like the political and the religion matters!
Conditions
When you sign up for the trekking tour, you acknowledge that there are risks involved in trekking in high altitude and confirm that you are fully aware of and accept these risks. It is customer's responsibility to determine whether the tour he/she choose is suited to his/her physical condition. Customers are responsible for the cost of any medicines or medical care they may require during the trip for any reason. Please make sure you have adequate personal medical insurance to meet any medical emergency which might arise. In some cases, if you need medical care during the tour, you may be required to pay for it at the time it is rendered and seek reimbursement from your insurer after you return home. Please check with your medical insurer for details. In the event of a medical emergency, we will make every effort to assist you in obtaining necessary care. Also, please tell us in writing if you suffer from any allergies or other physical conditions which might affect you during the tour (if you hasn't tell us in writing before going, you are supposed to be healthy enough to take the tour). Finally, please check with your doctor to find out what inoculation may be recommended for the areas you will be visiting. It is your responsibility to obtain all necessary inoculations. We reserve the right to decline to accept any person as a member of the tour, or to decline to retain any person, if such person's physical condition, mental well-being or behavior interferes with the operation of the tour. There will be no refund in such cases.
