The wonders of the mighty Yangtze River await you. As you board your flight to Beijing, prepare to encounter the marvelous sights and sounds of China.
Touch down at Beijing, China's vibrant capital city. Meet your guide at the airport and relax with a convenient transfer to your hotel. Your first day in China gives you the opportunity to relax and acclimate yourself to the new environment.
Get a taste of Beijing's rich history and culture on our sightseeing tour of this fascinating city, a microcosm of China's radical economic growth yet also its oldest traditions. View famous Tiananmen Square, which takes its name from its Gate of Heavenly Peace, and pass Chairman Mao's Memorial Hall on your way to the Forbidden City, a vast 15th century palace complex that was home to China's Ming and Qing Emperors for over 500 years. Next, marvel at the entrancing Summer Palace, a garden of lakeside hills, marble bridges and temples that served as a summer retreat for China's rulers. Photo stops at two of the city's newest attractions – the superb Bird's Nest stadium and Water Cube Aquatics Centre– stadia built for the 2008 Olympics – round off your sightseeing.
Today, soak up Xi'an's star attraction — the incredible Terracotta Warriors. Discovered in 1974, this gigantic legion of 6,000 soldier and horses was sculpted by hand 2,200 years ago to guard China's first emperor in the afterlife. Marvel at the individual expressions of each life-size warrior, noting details such as the finely carved studs on their shoes, and imagine the real soldier each was modeled on. After lunch, visit Xian's colossal City Wall, built in the Ming Dynasty, and Big Wild Goose Pagoda, a 65-meter high Buddhist temple. This evening, enjoy an Imperial Dumpling Banquet dinner and Tang Dynasty Show.
This morning, cruise downstream and enjoy a shore excursion to the beautiful Shibaozhai temple, a 12-storey red wooden pagoda rising from the northern bank of the Yangtze. Explore this extraordinary 18th-century building and soak up the stirring views over the river and hills as you climb higher up its floors. An alternative excursion may be arranged to the 'ghost city' of Fengdu.
Today, sail through the awe-inspiring Three Gorges, the most beautiful stretch of the Yangtze. Relish the views as you glide through the narrow Qutang Gorgeand 25-mile Wu Gorge, passing wooded peaks and sheer rock faces. Along the way, leave your vessel to cruise along the enchanting Daning River Small Gorges or Small Gorges of Shennong Stream in a small boat, bobbing past cave-dotted cliffs. Then, re-board your ship to traverse the Xiling Gorge and impressive Three Gorges Dam locks.
Shanghai is China's economic powerhouse and its most cosmopolitan and contemporary city. Yet its space-age skyscrapers, busy shopping avenues and colonial architecture still co-exist with a more traditional China of temples and gardens. Today, experience the best of this pulsating city, with a visit to the elegant waterfront Bundand Nanjing Roadshopping district. The colorful City God Temple Bazaar completes your day tour before you retire to dinner and the soaring spectacle of the Chinese Acrobatics Show.
Reflecting on your many remarkable experiences, you board your homebound flight to the USA.