China14 days
China: Beijing to Shanghai via the Yangtze — 14 Days
Beijing to Shanghai across 14 days, visiting the Great Wall, Forbidden City, Terracotta Warriors, West Lake, and a three-night Yangtze River cruise through the Three Gorges.
This 14-day route moves east to west across China's historical heartland, beginning in Shanghai and ending in Beijing. The itinerary anchors on four major cities—Shanghai, Hangzhou, Xi'an, and Beijing—interspersed with three nights aboard a Yangtze River cruise and countryside cycling in Yangshuo. You will encounter sites of substantial archaeological and architectural significance: the Terracotta Army of Xi'an (6,000 individually sculpted warriors buried 2,000 years ago), the Forbidden City (built 1406–1420, the political center of Chinese government for over 500 years), and the Great Wall's Mutianyu section, a 22-tower span that runs 13 kilometers around Xi'an proper. Between monuments, the route includes time in rural Guangxi province, where limestone karst peaks define the landscape, and passages through UNESCO-designated West Lake near Hangzhou. Transportation between cities uses express rail and overnight sleepers; guides and drivers accompany each segment.
Highlights
- Walk through the Forbidden City, a UNESCO World Heritage site built as the ceremonial and political center of China for over 500 years
- Hike the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall, winding across mountain ridges near Beijing
- View the Terracotta Army in Xi'an: nearly 2,000 of the 6,000 total warriors, each individually sculpted with distinct costumes, heights, and facial expressions, arranged in battle formation across three open pits
- Cycle through Yangshuo's rural countryside in southern Guangxi, where limestone peaks rise directly from agricultural fields
- Cruise three nights through the Yangtze River's Three Gorges between Chongqing and Yichang, including excursions to Fengdu Ghost City and the Goddess Stream valley
- Tour West Lake in Hangzhou, a freshwater lake divided by three causeways into five sections and ringed with temples, pagodas, and gardens that have inspired Chinese poets and painters for centuries
- Visit Longjing Tea plantations in Hangzhou to see the source of China's most prized green tea and learn about over 1,200 years of tea culture
Day by day
1Arrival in ShanghaiShanghai Pudong International or Hongqiao airport · hotel in the city center · surrounding neighborhood · local restaurant
Your guide and driver will meet you at Shanghai Pudong International or Hongqiao airport and transfer you to your hotel in the city center. After you've settled in, look for a note in the hotel lobby or ask at reception for details about your 6 pm group meeting.
Shanghai is China's most populous city proper, home to over 24 million residents. Situated on the south edge of the Yangtze River estuary along the East China coast, it has become one of the world's preeminent global financial centers and transport hubs. The city's port is among the world's busiest for container traffic, reflecting its critical role in international commerce.
Your group meeting will cover essential trip details before an orientation walk through the surrounding neighborhood. The day concludes with an included dinner at a local restaurant, giving you a first taste of Shanghai's food culture and a chance to meet your fellow travelers.
2Shanghai: City God Temple, Yuyuan Garden, and the French ConcessionYuyuan Garden · City God's Temple · Shanghai French Concession · Shanghai to Hangzhou
After breakfast, you visit the City God's Temple, a folk temple that originated as the Jinshan God Temple in the early Ming dynasty and was repurposed as a City God Temple in 1403. The temple's popularity transformed its surroundings into a pedestrian district with shops, restaurants, tea houses, and annual temple fair events. Adjacent Yuyuan Garden (also called Yu Garden) was built in 1559, opened to the public in 1961, and declared a monument in 1982; it represents the most extensive ancient garden combining Ming and Qing architectural styles. Later, visit the Shanghai French Concession, a concession territory that existed from 1849 to 1943 and developed a distinct character blending Chinese and European cultures. The district became one of the Catholic centers in China. In the evening, board an express train to Hangzhou; your guide meets you at the station to transfer to your hotel.
3Hangzhou: West Lake and Longjing Tea PlantationsWest Lake · Longjing Tea plantations · Guilin to Yangshuo
After breakfast in Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang Province in eastern China and southern terminus of the Grand Canal, you visit West Lake. This freshwater lake is divided into five sections by three causeways and contains numerous temples, pagodas, gardens, and artificial islands. West Lake has influenced Chinese poets and painters throughout history for its natural beauty and historical significance; UNESCO designated it a World Heritage Site in 2011. You then visit Longjing Tea plantations to see the source of dragon well tea, regarded as China's preeminent green tea and cultivated for over 1,200 years. The tea culture and landscape offer insight into both agricultural practice and national heritage. In the evening, you fly to Guilin and drive approximately 1.5 hours to Yangshuo, where you check in to your hotel.
4Yangshuo: Countryside Cyclingcountryside surrounding Yangshuo
After breakfast, you cycle through the countryside surrounding Yangshuo, a resort town in southern Guangxi known for its dramatic karst mountain landscape. Each turn in the road presents another view characteristic of rural Chinese life, as limestone peaks rise directly from agricultural fields. The cycling route exposes you to daily rhythms and agricultural practices of the region.
5Yangshuo: Optional ActivitiesYangshuo
Today is largely unscheduled. Options available include a morning Tai Chi class with a local master, a cooking class, or a visit to a local farmers' market to observe regional produce and daily market life. Yangshuo is also known for rock climbing and caving. Your tour leader can help organize any activities you wish to pursue.
6Transfer to the Yangtze River CruiseYangtze River · Guilin airport · Chongqing
After breakfast, your guide and driver transfer you to Guilin airport. You fly to Chongqing, where a guide and driver meet you at the airport and escort you to the pier. You board a three-night tourist-class cruise down the Yangtze River toward Yichang. The Yangtze has inspired poets, writers, and travelers for centuries. Your journey covers one of the world's most picturesque sections, traveling through the renowned Three Gorges.
7Yangtze River: Fengdu Ghost City and ShibaozhaiFengdu Ghost City · Shibaozhai · cruise ship
After breakfast aboard the cruise, a Tai Chi class prepares you for the day. You make an excursion to Fengdu Ghost City, a large complex of shrines, temples, and monasteries dedicated to the afterlife located on Ming Mountain. The complex synthesizes Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. After lunch, you visit Shibaozhai, a rocky hill approximately 200 meters high with steep sides and a red nine-story wooden pavilion on the riverside. The pavilion ranks among China's largest wooden temples. In the evening, enjoy a culture show performed by Chinese minority groups.
8Yangtze River: Qutang and Wu Gorges, Goddess StreamWu Gorge · Qutang Gorge · Shennv Valley · the Yangtze Cruise
After breakfast, your guide meets you aboard the cruise as the ship sails through Qutang Gorge and Wu Gorge, two of the Three Gorges. Both sections hold the highest scenic classification from China's National Tourism Administration. An excursion to Shennv Valley—known as the Goddess Stream—reveals why the valley earned its name: thousands of vertical cliffs rise dramatically, with hundreds-of-meter blue peaks creating narrow openings among towering rock formations that seem to block out the sky. The interplay of stone and water here defines the region's geological character. This evening, the captain hosts a farewell banquet aboard the ship. You remain accommodated on the Yangtze Cruise.
9Three Gorges Dam and Overnight Train to Xi'anHuangling Miao · Yichang Pier · Yichang train station
After breakfast, your guide meets you at Huangling Miao for a visit to the Three Gorges Dam, the world's largest hydroelectric project completed in 2009. This engineering landmark serves multiple purposes: flood control, power generation, tourism, ecological protection, south-north water transfer, and irrigation. The dam holds a 2014 world record for the volume of power it generates annually. Your Yangtze river journey concludes at Yichang Pier, where your driver collects you for the transfer to Yichang train station. Here you board an overnight soft-sleeper first-class train bound for Xi'an, allowing you to rest as the landscape transforms from river valleys to the plains of central China.
10Xi'an: Ancient City Wall and Historic Quarterancient City Wall · Xi'an train station · Bell & Drum Tower, Muslim quarter, and lively markets
Your guide and driver meet you at Xi'an train station and transfer you to your downtown hotel. You visit the ancient City Wall, the most significant and best-preserved wall extant in China, running 13 kilometers around the city. A walking tour follows, passing the Bell & Drum Tower, the Muslim quarter, and lively markets.
11Xi'an: Terracotta Warriors and Overnight Train to BeijingTerracotta Warriors · local village · train station to Beijing
After breakfast, your guide and driver take you by private bus to the Terracotta Warriors, an archaeological site discovered in 1976 by farmers digging a well, after remaining buried for 2,000 years. Three main pits are open for viewing. Just under 2,000 of the 6,000 total warriors—each individually sculpted from clay with distinct costume, height, and facial expression—stand in battle formation. The scale of the assembly is substantial. After lunch in a local village, you return to the train station for an overnight soft-sleeper first-class train to Beijing.
12Beijing: Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, and HutongTiananmen Square · Forbidden City · Beijing train station · hutongs
Your guide and driver meet you at Beijing train station. You travel to Tiananmen Square, one of the world's largest public squares, which houses the Monument of the People's Heroes and the Great Hall of the People. You then enter the Forbidden City, built from 1406 to 1420 as the ceremonial and political center of Chinese government for over 500 years. UNESCO designated it a World Heritage Site in 1987 and lists it as the most extensive collection of preserved ancient wooden structures in the world. Afterward, you stroll through hutongs, the alleys formed by lines of traditional courtyards, experiencing the local lifestyle of old Beijing.
13Beijing: Great Wall at MutianyuMutianyu section of the Great Wall
After breakfast, your guide and driver take you to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall, approximately two hours' drive north. This well-preserved section features 22 towers winding along mountain ridges in Huairou County on Beijing's suburban edge. You spend quality time exploring and learning the history of the Great Wall while taking in views across the surrounding landscape. Many travelers bring a picnic lunch to enjoy at the top during a rest break. You return to central Beijing in the late afternoon.
14Beijing: Departureyour hotel · the airport
Your tour concludes. Check out of your hotel or transfer to the airport for your onward destination.
Where you go
- 1Yuyuan Garden
- 2Yangshuo
- 3Terracotta Warriors
- 4Tiananmen Square
- 5Forbidden City
- 6hutongs
- 7Mutianyu Section of the Great Wall
Included
- Accommodation & breakfast
- Transport service from and to airport & tours
- Speaking English guide
- Entrance fee
- Local guide fee at particular tourism objects
- Meals & mineral water as a program
- Travel Insurance
Not included
- Air ticket
- Personal & other expenses
- Optional program