Explore the trace of China's civilisation in three contradictory cities. Discover the awesome mausoleum of China's first emperor at in Xi'an City. In Beijing, visit Chinese's ancient architectural masterpieces at the Forbidden City, Summer Palace and the Great Wall. Then take on the trip to look into the future of China in the futuristic Shanghai.

Minimum 2 persons (single traveller is subject to surcharge)

Trip Schedule: 2008
Apr:  19-28, 26 Apr - 5 May
May: 3-12, 10-19, 17-26, 24 May - 2 Jun, 31 May - 9 Jun
Jun:  7-16, 14-23, 21-30, 28 Jun - 7 Jul
Jul:   5-14, 12-21
Aug: No Operation - 2008 Olympic Games
Sep: 13-22, 20-29, 27 Sep - 6 Oct
Oct:  4-13, 11-20, 18-27, 25 Oct - 3 Nov
Nov: 1-10, 8-17, 22 Nov - 1 Dec, 29 Nov - 8 Dec
Dec: 6-15, 13-22, 20-29, 27 Dec - 5Jan 09

Trip Schedule 2009:
Jan:  3-12, 10-19, 17-26, 31 Jan - 9 Feb
Feb:  7-16, 14-23, 21 Feb - 2 Mar, 28 Feb - 9 Mar
Mar:  7-16, 14-23, 21-20

• Package includes:
  • 4 night accommodation with buffet breakfast at 5 star hotel in Beijing : Chang An Grand Hotel or similar
  • 2 night accommodation with buffet breakfast at 4 star hotel in Xi'an: Xian Aurum International Hotel or similar
  • 3 night accommodation with buffet breakfast at 4 star hotel in Shanghai: Shanghai Galaxy Hotel or similar
  • Tours with lunch and dinner in Beijing, Xi'an & Shanghai as listed including Peking Duck Dinner & Cultural Show in Beijing and Dumpling dinner & Tang Dynasty Show in Xian
  • Professional English speaking tour guide service in each city
  • Round trip airport/hotel transfers in each city
  • Domestic airfare Beijing / Xian / Shanghai with airport tax.

  Note: Additional fuel tax of RMB260 (as of 15 Jan 08) and domestic airport tax is not included in the price of this program and must be charged separately from the package rate.  However, It is subject to change if fuel surcharge is increased and the company reserves the right to revise the package price accordingly.

• Package excludes:
  • Arrival & Dept International flights
  • International Airport Tax out of Shanghai
  • Personal expenses
  • Gratuities to guides, drivers & porters
  • Chinese visa
  

  Note: 

•  A single traveler will be charged 37 US dollars for a round trip transfer from the airport to the hotel on an arrival flight.  

• Travelers who arrive and/or depart on a day other than the day stated in the schedule mentioned above will be charged 15 US dollars for a transfer (per person/ per way) from the airport to the hotel and vice versa.

• The reservation of at least 14 days prior to your arrival date is required. An additional USD 30 per person will be charged for late booking.

• All visitors to China and Tibet, including those of Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau, need to apply for a visa at the Chinese Embassy or consulate in or near your country. Passports must be valid for at least six months before your travel to china. Visa application should be lodged at least 3 weeks before your entry.
  
  Hotel used in the program:
  Beijing - Chang An Grand Hotel or similar
  Xi'an - King Dynasty Hotel or similar
  Shanghai - Shanghai Galaxy Hotel or similar

Beijing
Forbidden City
Covering an area of 720,000 square metres with more than 9,000 rooms, this is the Palace Museum. It is also known as the Purple Forbidden City. It is the largest and most well preserved imperial residence in China today. Under Ming Emperor Yongle, construction began in 1406. It took 14 years to build the Forbidden City. The first ruler who actually lived here was Ming Emperor Zhudi. For five centuries thereafter, it continued to be the residence of 23 successive emperors until 1911 when Qing Emperor Puyi was forced to abdicate the throne. In 1987, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization recognized the Forbidden City as a world cultural legacy.

The Great Wall
The Great Wall, symbolizing China's ancient civilization, is one of the world's most renowned projects. It is a distance of 75 kilometres northwest of Beijing. Its highest point at Badaling is some 800 metres above sea level.  

Construction of the Wall first began during the period of the Warring States (476 - 221 BC). Formerly, walls were built at strategic points by different kingdoms to protect their northern territories. In 221 BC after the first Emperor of the Qin Dynasty unified China, he decided to have the walls linked up and extended. 

The Wall traverses mountains and gullies. It was extremely difficult to build along steep slopes under harsh conditions. Some of the slabs of rock were as long as two metres and weighed as much as one ton. All the rocks, bricks and lime had to be carried up the mountains at the cost of backbreaking labour. The earth and bricks were passed up from hand to hand or carried in baskets by donkeys and goats. The large slabs were moved up slopes by means of rolling rods and hoisting bars. According to rough calculation, the amount of bricks and rock used to build the Wall would have been enough to build a wall five metres high and one metre thick around the world.  

The Summer Palace
Emperor Yongle of the Ming Dynasty was aware that a peaceful northern frontier was of great importance to the Ming Palace, he chose this valley to build his tomb. All his successors followed his example and had their tombs built here, except one who was dethroned and buried in the western suburb. Out of the sixteen emperors, thirteen lie here with their empresses and concubines.

The summer Palace, located approximately twelve kilometers to the northwest of Beijing's city proper, was first built in 1750 and rebuilt in 1886. An outstanding example of imperial gardens in classical Chinese style, the Summer Palace spreads on an area of 2.9 million square metres, three fourths of which are water surfaces. Its major attractions are the Wanshou (longevity) Hill and the Kunming (Jade Spring) Lake. The garden is a showcase of pavilions in diversified, exotic designs which are strung together by a corridor more than seven hundred metres in length and a seemingly unending chain of balustrades of snow-white marble.  

Xian
The terracotta warriors of Emperor Qinshihuang
In March 1974, villagers of the Xiyang Village, while welling, stumbled on the tomb of Emperor Qinshihuang's Tombs. The big tombs are made up of thousands of terracotta figures of soldiers, horses and weapons. The Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses are the most significant archeological excavations of the 20th century. This is a sight not to be missed and apparently the highlight of the trip to Xian.

When Qin Shi Huang, who was the first Emperor of China, ascended the throne at the age of 13 in 246 BC, the young emperor had work begun on his mausoleum. It took 11 years to finish. Many treasures and artifacts were found with thousands of life size terracotta figures and horses.  

The museum features more than thousands pieces of terracotta figures of warriors, horses chariots and weapons.The discovery of the tombs has put Xian on the tourist map and become one of the 10 most famous places in China. It was listed by UNESCO in 1987 as the world cultural heritages.

Great Wild Goose Pagoda
Located in Daci’en Temple in the southern suburb of Xian, the Great Wild Goose Pagoda is regarded as the masterpiece excelling the Nature. The pagoda was built in 652 AD when a famous Chinese monk Xuanzang presented a memorial to the emperor to build the grand Dayan Tower to store the Buddhist scripture he fetched from India. It was also a sanctum where he worked on the translation of the Buddhist scripture.

Mounting the grand Dayan Tower, looking into the distance while leaning on the handrail, you can see the whole ancient city of too many beautiful things, which makes you relaxed, happy and reluctant to leave.

Xian’s City Gate
After the establishment of the Ming dynasty in the 14th century, Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang began to enlarge the wall built initially during the Tang dynasty (618 -907), creating the modern Xian City Wall. It is China’s best preserved ancient city wall and one of the largest ancient military defensive systems in the world.  

Shanghai
Pudong: Special Economic Zone
Pudong is bounded by the Huangpu river in the west and the East China Sea in the east. Located on the other side of the Bund, Pudong is the special Economic Zone. With a population of 1.5 million, Pudong has 13 residential districts and 28 townships under its jurisdiction. Its futuristic Oriental Pearl Tower, with a giddy height of 468 meters, stands as the world's third tallest TV tower. The tower’s observation floor is 263 meters high and 45 meters in diameter. It is the best place to get a bird's-eye view of Shanghai. It goes without saying that the skyscrapers and towers in Pudong have already come to symbolize Shanghai.

Shoppers’ paradise
Shanghai is a "paradise for shoppers". The famous 5-km-long Nanjing Road, known as China's No. 1 Street, is lined with more than 350 shops and department stores selling clothing, food and specialty goods. In the evening, the road is lit up with colourful neon signs. The newly-expanded Huaihai Road, Jingling Road East and Sichuan Road North are also busy commercial sections with hundreds of stores and shops selling all kinds of merchandise. For exotic shoppers, Yuyuan Bazaar offers all sorts of local products.