Classic China & Zhangiajie

Once you have arrived at Beijing Capital International Airport, you will be met and driven to your accommodation in downtown Beijing, with time to rest and settle in ahead of the tour. You might use the afternoon to stroll the streets near your accommodation or sample a few local snacks before sightseeing begins tomorrow.

Please note: A transfer surcharge applies for arrivals into Beijing Daxing Airport.

Please note: If arriving on a Sunday, a visit to Yu Garden in Shanghai on day 9 will not be possible as it is closed on Mondays. As there is only one full day allocated for sightseeing in Shanghai, the itinerary cannot be rearranged or swapped with other attractions.

After breakfast, we make our way to Tian'anmen Square, one of the world's most impressive public plazas and the site marking the founding of the People's Republic of China, at the very centre of Beijing.

From here, we continue into the Forbidden City (closed Mondays), the largest ancient palatial structure in the world and the best-preserved imperial palace in China. If tickets are unavailable during peak season, the Lama Temple and Confucius Temple are visited instead. Lunch is enjoyed at a local Chinese restaurant, followed by a tea ceremony at a tea store.

The afternoon leads into Dongjiaominxiang, Beijing's longest hutong, stretching around 1.55 kilometres from Chongwenmen inner street to the east side of Tian'anmen Square and made famous in the novel Midnight in Peiping; it is the only well-preserved block of early 20th-century Western architecture in central Beijing, often described as an open-air museum of the city's modern history.

We then visit the Shijia Hutong Museum (closed Mondays), Beijing's first museum dedicated to hutong culture, set inside a genuine two-section courtyard house, where a large miniature sand table recreates 130 old courtyard houses and recordings preserve more than 70 vanishing Beijing street sounds, from peddlers' cries to pigeon whistles and old workshop tools.

The day closes with a Peking duck dinner before the transfer back to our accommodation.

After breakfast, we head out to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall, a monument to human endeavour and Chinese engineering set against dramatic mountain scenery. Lunch follows at a local Chinese restaurant.

On the way back into the city, we drive past the Bird's Nest, Beijing's National Stadium, and the Water Cube, the National Aquatics Center. Dinner this evening is left for you to arrange independently.

Please note: The cable car at Mutianyu is not included.

Beijing - Xi'an. After breakfast, you have some free time before the transfer to Beijing West Railway Station, where we board a high-speed train to Xi'an, travelling in second-class seats. A packaged lunch will be provided during the train ride.

On arrival, we are met by a local guide at the railway station and transferred to our accommodation in downtown Xi'an.

This morning, we visit Xiaonanmen Morning Market, one of the clearest windows into Xi'an's everyday life, before continuing to the City Wall Ring Park, where local residents gather each morning to exercise and perform Qin opera, followed by a stroll along the ancient City Wall itself.

We then visit the Terracotta Warrior Museum, praised as the eighth wonder of the world and a fascinating insight into the ancient world, with an educational visit to a Terracotta Warrior Factory to see the production process, unchanged since the Qin dynasty. Lunch follows at a local Chinese restaurant.

After the museum, we transfer to the Tang Dynasty cultural block around the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, where Tang-style architecture, sculptures and parks recreate the glory of the ancient Tang capital, before returning to our accommodation.

You might instead choose to stay on to enjoy the night view of the Tang Dynasty Ever-Bright City, making your own way back afterwards; if the weather permits, this can include a fountain show.

Xian - Zhangjiajie. After breakfast, a private transfer takes us to the airport for a morning flight to Zhangjiajie, with a packaged breakfast provided depending on flight timing.

On arrival, we are met by a local guide and enjoy lunch at a local restaurant, before an afternoon visit to Tianmen Mountain, taking the world's longest cable car to the top for far-reaching views.

At the summit, the mountain's natural cavity, known as Heaven's Gate, has inspired countless tales and myths; in 2011, wingsuit flyer Jeb Corliss famously flew through the 100-foot-wide opening after jumping from a helicopter.

After breakfast, we drive to the Wulingyuan Scenic Area, where Zhangjiajie National Forest Park spreads across more than 26,000 hectares in Hunan province. The park is dominated by more than 3,000 narrow sandstone pillars and peaks, with ravines and gorges between them holding streams, pools and waterfalls, some 40 caves, and two large natural bridges.

A cable car carries us up to Tianzi Mountain, often shrouded in mist, where the landscape rises abruptly from the tree-covered ground below; its 21 square miles of terrain, located inside the Wulingyuan Scenic Area, inspired the alien landscape of Pandora in the film Avatar. Our guide points out the formation and best viewpoints of the mountain peaks from different angles as we walk. Lunch today is left for you to arrange independently.

We continue to Yuanjiajie, where peaks reminiscent of the film Avatar include the First Bridge Under Heaven, crossed on a circular path for views over the valley, and the peak commonly known as the Hallelujah Mountain. We then take the Bailong Elevator, the highest of its kind, back down the mountain. Dinner is enjoyed together at a local restaurant.

Zhangjiajie - Shanghai. After breakfast, we transfer to Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon to experience the world's longest and highest glass-bottomed bridge. The Coiling Dragon Cliff glass skywalk rests 1,400 metres above sea level and extends around 100 metres, with a width of 1.6 metres. Lunch today is left for you to arrange independently.

Depending on flight timing, an afternoon or evening flight carries us on to Shanghai, where a representative meets us and arranges the transfer to our accommodation on arrival.

After breakfast, we set out for a full day of sightseeing in Shanghai, beginning with the Yu Garden (closed Mondays), a well-restored Suzhou-style garden created during the Ming Dynasty and considered the most magnificent rockery of the period, offering a place of peace within the busy city.

We then visit the Jade Buddha Temple, one of the city's most renowned and active Buddhist monasteries, before a visit to a silk factory. Lunch follows at a local restaurant.

At your own expense, you can order a drink through a local delivery app and watch a drone complete the final stage of delivery to a designated kiosk, a practical look at how Shanghai is integrating low-altitude logistics into daily life. You can also step into the newly opened Yushu (Unitree) Robot Store, where robots demonstrate dance routines and Kung Fu moves, and a robotic dog performs a backflip on the floor.

Please note: If your tour commenced on Sunday, a visit to Yu Garden in Shanghai will not be possible as it is closed on Mondays. As there is only one full day allocated for sightseeing in Shanghai, the itinerary cannot be rearranged or swapped with other attractions.

After breakfast, you check out of your accommodation before 12 pm and make your own way to the airport for your departure flight, bringing the tour to a close.