11-Day Yangtze Cruise & Panda Family Tour

Meals: No Meal
Hotel: In Beijing

Arrive in Beijing, China's capital, and meet your local guide at the airport beside a YUNSKY signboard. Transfer to the hotel and use the rest of the day to settle in and recover from the journey.

Art in Beijing

Meals: Breakfast, A la carte Chinese lunch
Hotel: In Beijing

Begin at Tian'anmen Square, a vast city-center square closely connected with major events in modern Chinese history. Walk from the square to Forbidden City, the world's largest surviving complex of ancient wooden palace buildings. Spend more than 2 hours exploring its halls, gardens, imperial stories and historic art collections. An à la carte Chinese lunch is served at a local restaurant.

In the afternoon, visit Temple of Heaven, the major imperial complex where emperors prayed for favorable harvests. Continue to a quieter nearby neighborhood and walk for around 30 minutes through an authentic Hutong to observe everyday local life. Stop at a resident's home to learn Facial Makeup Painting for Beijing Opera.

Return to the hotel after the tour. Ask your guide for suggestions if you would like to see a Beijing night show or arrange another evening activity.

Good to know:
1. Besides facial makeup painting for Beijing Opera, activities also can be arranged In Hutong: Learn Chinese calligraphy and painting; Learn to make traditional handiworks like Chinese knot and Paper-cutting; See an acrobatic display by a Chinese yo-yo master, and learn to make dumplings/kites with a local family.

2. Besides walking through the Hutong, you may explore by bicycle or rickshaw. Share your preference when booking so the experience can be arranged accordingly.

Hutong activities

Meals: Breakfast, A la carte Chinese lunch
Hotel: In Beijing

Meet your guide in the hotel lobby in the morning, then drive about 2 hours from central Beijing to Mutianyu Great Wall,, a renowned section of the Great Wall first built during the Northern Qi in the mid-6th century. Cable-car and slideway access are available and included in the itinerary.

Enjoy an à la carte lunch at a restaurant near Mutianyu. On the drive back to Beijing, stop outside the Bird Nest and Water Cube for photographs of these venues built for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

Return to the hotel after the day's visits. If you would like to try a local specialty for dinner, ask your guide for a suggestion for a Peking Roast Duck Restaurant.

Good to know:
1. With less commercial and crowds, Mutianyu Great Wall is available to take cable car up and down, or get up by cable car and down by a sled to slide down, which is an exciting option when the weather is nice.

2. Need more time on the Wall, no worries, just tell us when you book this tour, we could arrange a picnic lunch for your family on the Wall.

3. In summer, swimming in the Water Cube is a great choice to cool down and have fun with your beloved children.

Mutianyu Great Wall

Meals: Breakfast, A la carte Chinese lunch
Hotel: In Chengdu

In the morning, check out from hotel and start to visit the last spots in Beijing — Summer Palace, the existing largest, best-preserved imperial garden in China. The Longevity Hill and Kunming Lake are regarded as the representative of Summer Palace. In the park, you could choose to take a boating trip on the lake, enjoying the beautiful royal garden view. Walk along the Long Corridor— the longest corridor in the world, admiring the extremely rich and prestigious paintings on the beams of the corridor.

Have an à la carte lunch at a local restaurant, then fly to Chengdu in the afternoon. Meet your guide at the airport on arrival and transfer to the hotel.

Sichuan Opera

Meals: Breakfast, Hotpot lunch
Hotel: In Chengdu

Leave the hotel early for the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding about 10 km from central Chengdu. The landscaped park is home to around 80 giant pandas as well as other rare animals, including red pandas and black-necked and white cranes.

The best time to visit Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding is the morning when the pandas are most active in the day. Depart from hotel early in the morning, and arrive at the center before 09:00 am, then you could have chance to see the pandas feeding at around 09:30 am. After the feeding time, you could choose to visit Panda Museum and watch a 20-minute video at Panda Theatre to learn about the research and breeding of the giant pandas. Then walk along the walkways to watch pandas or other rare animals. Besides, you could also choose to deliver a postcard or other panda souvenir from the Panda Post to yourself or your family and friends. The Panda Post is the only post office who has its own post code 610088 and post date mark.

Enjoy a Chinese lunch featuring traditional Sichuan Hotpot at a local restaurant.

In the afternoon, drive about 1.5 hours to Mt. Leshan , home to the world's tallest stone Buddha statue. Explore on foot for closer views, or choose a cruise of about 30 minutes for a broader view of the mountain and Giant Buddha.

Good to know:
If hotpot is not to your taste, share your food preferences in advance and another popular local Chinese meal can be arranged.

Chengdu Research Base of Giant Pandas

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
On Board: Victoria cruise

Drive to the Sichuan Cuisine Museum. in the morning. Learn about the history of Sichuan cuisine, watch the cooking process and have a class to prepare your own Sichuan lunch.

In the afternoon, we walk around the Jinli Ancient Street, which is with elegant style of the architectures on both sides tells what Sichuan looks like during the Qing Dynasty. Then we move to the People's Park, where locals relax themselves by singing, dancing, playing cards or chess, ect. You could have a cup of tea at local tea house and enjoy the leisure time in the park.

Take the high-speed train to Chongqing in the late afternoon. Meet your Chongqing guide at the station, transfer to Chaotianmen Wharf and board the Victoria cruise, which sets sail from Chongqing at 21:00.

Cooking Class

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
On Board: Victoria cruise

[06:30-08:30] Early Bird Coffee and Tea; Practice Tai Chi on board and Buffet breakfast.

[09:00-13:30] Shore excursion—Fengdu “Jade Emperor” is aranged in the morning. Or take additional shore excursion to Fengdu Ghost City with extra cost. Buffet lunchis served on board.

[16:00-21:30] Late afternoon Captain's Welcome Reception with buffet dinner. In the evening, you can choose to take the additional Shore excursion—FengYan SanGuo “Romance of the Three Kingdoms” Show.

Fengdu Ghost City

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
On Board: Victoria cruise 

[06:30-08:30] Early Bird Coffee and Tea; Practice Tai Chi on board and Buffet breakfast.

[07:30-10:15] Activities on board as you like. Or take Additional Shore excursion to White Emperor City with extra cost.

[10:45-13:00] Sailing through Qutang Gorge & Scenic cruising of Wu Gorge, buffet lunch is served on board.

[15:15-21:45] Shore excursion to Goddess Stream. Evening enjoy Captain's Farewell Banquet and the Crew cabaret.

Excursion trip to White Emperor City, you would take the coach directly to Baidi Temple in 20 minutes' drive. You will have two hours for your White Emperor City visit to appreciate the rich historic story and mysterious land.

Qutang Gorge

Meals: Breakfast, A La Carte Lunch, Dinner box
Accommodation: In Shanghai

Visit the Three Gorge Dam in the morning for 2.5 – 3 hours. After the visit, meet the local guide and have lunch at a local restaurant before transferring to the railway station for the high-speed train to Shanghai, a journey of about 7.5 hours. Meet your Shanghai guide at the station and transfer to the hotel.

Three Gorge Dam

Meals: Breakfast, A La Carte Lunch
Hotel: In Shanghai

Today we start our day trip to the foot of The Oriental Pearl TV Tower to visit Shanghai City History Museum (The Former Shanghai Wax Museum), where you will know more about the history and development of Shanghai. Then take the elevator up to the 2nd ball of the TV tower, from which you will have a bird-eye view of Shanghai. Go on driving through Lujiazui, the finance & trade zone in Pudong of Shanghai, where you will find many skyscrapers. We will have a view of the modern skyline of Shanghai.

Then back to the Bund, admire the illuminated buildings lining the Huangpu River. From the Bund, you could see the landmark of Shanghai— the Oriental Pearl TV Tower as well as other high-rise buildings, just on the opposite of Huangpu River. Enjoy a local lunch in a local restaurant nearby the bund.

After lunch, we continue to visit Yuyuan Garden which is a Chinese classic garden in city downtown. Then continue to explore the Shanghai Old Street and Nanjing Road nearby which is the earliest commercial street in Shanghai. Drive back to the hotel, en route you can plan for the night Acrobatic Show, especially the ERA show, which is one of the most popular evening entertainments in Shanghai.

Good to know:
1. Revolving Restaurant Oriental Pearl Tower is at the top of the Tower, soaring at 267 meters above Shanghai's bustling streets. Enjoying a buffet lunch in this top revolving restaurant is an experience unlike any other, with its breathtaking views of the city in full vision beneath and all around you. If you like to try it, please tell us in advance. We could arrange it to suit your interest.

2. One more free leisure day in Shanghai sometimes is required by our previous customers. If you like to have one more day in Shanghai, just tell us, we will add it into our itinerary.

The Bund

Meals: Breakfast

Enjoy free time before the airport transfer for your return flight. A Maglev train ride to Pudong Airport can be arranged on request; otherwise, travel directly to the airport by road.

Service Ends