13-Day China & Tibet Tour: Beijing, Lhasa & Shanghai

Arrive in Beijing, the starting city of this 13-day China and Tibet tour through Beijing, Xi'an, Lhasa, Chengdu, and Shanghai. Your private guide meets you at the airport and escorts you to the hotel for check-in. Spend the rest of the day recovering from the long-haul flight or take a short walk nearby to settle in before Forbidden City and hutong sightseeing tomorrow.

Start at Tiananmen Square, then enter the Forbidden City, the former Ming and Qing imperial palace complex once reserved for the court. Walk the main halls and courtyards with your guide. In the afternoon, take a rickshaw through hutong neighborhoods where traditional courtyard life continues, then stroll the Houhai lakeside area. An optional kung fu show may be arranged in the evening at additional cost.

Gallery: Forbidden CityBeijing Hutongs

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Travel to the Mutianyu Great Wall, a photogenic section of the historic northern frontier defenses. Climb the restored ramparts or take a cable car up for ridge views among the forested peaks. Continue to the Sacred Way, once linked with imperial tomb processions, and hear the stories behind the stone statues from your guide before returning to Beijing for overnight.

Gallery: Mutianyu Great WallSacred Way

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Visit the Temple of Heaven, the Ming and Qing imperial complex used for ceremonies to heaven, and walk the park grounds with local morning visitors. Afterward, board a high-speed train to Xi'an. Your local guide meets you at the railway station and escorts you to the hotel. Spend the rest of the day at leisure before Terracotta Warriors sightseeing tomorrow.

Gallery: Temple of HeavenHigh-speed train

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Visit the Terracotta Warriors, life-size clay soldiers, horses, and chariots commissioned for Qin Shi Huang's mausoleum and first uncovered by local farmers digging a well. Return to the city in the afternoon and explore the Ancient City Wall by bike or on foot for views over the inner city. An optional Tang Dynasty music and dance show may be arranged in the evening at additional cost.

Gallery: Terracotta WarriorsXi'an City Wall

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Leave Xi'an and fly to Lhasa, the capital of Tibet on the high plateau often called the Roof of the World. Upon arrival, your local guide meets you and transfers you to the hotel. Use the rest of the day to rest, drink water, and adapt to the altitude before Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple, and Barkhor Street sightseeing tomorrow. Avoid heavy activity on this first evening.

Visit the Potala Palace, the former winter residence of the Dalai Lamas, with fortress-like walls, palaces, Buddha statues, thangkas, and Tibetan scriptures. Continue to Jokhang Temple, a major pilgrimage center where devotees gather, then walk Barkhor Street clockwise with local pilgrims in a traditional circuit. Move at a steady pace suited to the altitude, take short rests as needed, and overnight again in Lhasa.

Gallery: Potala PalaceJokhang Temple

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Begin at Norbulingka, the former summer residence of the Dalai Lamas with palaces set in park grounds used for seasonal court life. Continue to Drepung Monastery, historically among the largest Tibetan monasteries and once home to thousands of monks. Finish at Sera Monastery, known for lively Buddhist debate sessions with distinctive hand-slapping gestures, then return to your Lhasa hotel for overnight before the flight to Chengdu.

Gallery: NorbulingkaSera Monastery

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Enjoy free time in Lhasa until your transfer to the airport for the flight to Chengdu. Upon arrival, your local guide meets you and helps you check into the hotel. Rest after the altitude change from the plateau, drink water, and take a short walk nearby if you feel ready, before the giant panda base, Wenshu Temple, and Jinli Old Street program tomorrow.

Visit the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in the morning when the animals are often most active, watching them eat bamboo, climb, and play. Continue to Wenshu Temple for temple architecture and a slower Chengdu pace, then stroll Jinli Old Street for Sichuan snacks and local souvenirs. An optional Sichuan opera show with music, dance, and acrobatics may be arranged in the evening at additional cost.

Gallery: Giant pandasJinli Old Street

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Before flying to Shanghai, visit the Chengdu Museum for curated displays on the city's history and regional culture. After the museum, your guide escorts you to the airport for the flight to Shanghai. On arrival, transfer to your hotel for two nights before Shanghai Museum, Yu Garden, The Bund, and Former French Concession sightseeing tomorrow, closing the western China sector of the tour.

Begin at the Shanghai Museum for collections of ancient Chinese art. Continue to Yu Garden, a 16th-century classical private garden, and the nearby Yuyuan shopping lanes. Walk The Bund to compare colonial-era waterfront buildings with the modern towers across the Huangpu River, then stroll the Former French Concession for 19th-century streetscapes. An optional acrobatics show may be arranged in the evening at additional cost.

Gallery: The BundYu Garden

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Enjoy free time at the hotel or nearby until your pickup from the lobby for the airport transfer. This closes the 13-day China and Tibet tour covering Beijing, Xi'an, Lhasa's Potala Palace and monasteries, Chengdu's giant pandas, and Shanghai's waterfront. Confirm terminal details and boarding timing so luggage and travel documents are ready for your homebound or onward flight check-in.