12-Day China Highlights Tour: Shanghai to Beijing

Your China tour begins in Shanghai. On arrival, your guide greets you and transfers you by private car to your downtown hotel for check-in. The rest of the day is free after the transfer, with no fixed sightseeing schedule. Rest after your flight or take a short walk near the hotel to settle into the city before tomorrow’s Bund and Yu Garden sightseeing day.

Your guide leads a historic walk starting at the Bund, where you view Puxi’s waterfront buildings opposite the Pudong skyline across the Huangpu River. Continue to Yu Garden, a classical Ming Dynasty Jiangnan garden and one of Shanghai’s best-preserved private gardens in the old city area. Enjoy a local specialty dinner as listed on the itinerary, then return to your hotel for the night.

Gallery: The Bund ShanghaiYu Garden

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The morning is free for final Shanghai photos, with an optional visit to Jade Buddha Temple if you wish before leaving the city. In the afternoon, your tour leader takes you to the station for the high-speed train to Hangzhou. On arrival, join a guided walking tour of Hangzhou’s old streets and historical buildings before checking in to your hotel for the night.

Gallery: Jade Buddha Temple HallJade Buddha Temple Courtyard

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Begin at a local tea farmer’s home in Longjing Village for a tea-drinking experience among the tea hills. Continue to Lingyin Temple, a historic Buddhist Zen temple in Southeast China dating to the Eastern Jin Dynasty. In the afternoon, visit West Lake, a UNESCO World Heritage landscape with lakeside paths and classic Hangzhou scenery, then return to your hotel for the night.

Gallery: West Lake ShoreWest Lake Scenery

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In the morning, take the high-speed train from Hangzhou to Luoyang. On arrival, your tour leader meets you at the station and leads a guided walking introduction to this ancient capital city. The afternoon and evening are free to explore Luoyang’s old city lanes, courtyard houses, and Ming and Qing streetscapes at your own pace. Dinner is at your own arrangement.

Start at the Longmen Grottoes, a UNESCO World Heritage site along the Yi River with Buddhist cave carvings on both banks. Continue to Shaolin Temple at the foot of Mount Song in Dengfeng, known as a historic center of Chinese martial arts. Enjoy a Buddhist vegetarian group lunch, watch a kung fu performance, and stroll among the pagodas before returning to Luoyang.

Gallery: Longmen Grottoes

Take the high-speed train from Luoyang to Xi’an, a city with more than 2,500 years of history and a key Silk Road capital. On arrival, your tour leader guides an orientation of the old city, introducing the City Wall, Bell Tower, Drum Tower, and Muslim Quarter area so you can settle into Xi’an. Hotel check-in follows the orientation walk before tomorrow’s Terracotta Army visit.

Gallery: Xi’an City Wall RampartsXi’an City Wall Gate

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Visit the Museum of Qin Shi Huang’s Terracotta Army to see the clay soldiers and bronze chariots associated with China’s first emperor up close. Try making a mini warrior in a local workshop where offered on site during the visit. Later, walk the Muslim Quarter lanes to sample Xi’an snacks and street food before returning to your hotel for the evening.

Gallery: Terracotta Army PitTerracotta Army Figures

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In the morning, take the high-speed train from Xi’an to Beijing, arriving in the late afternoon after the journey. Your tour leader helps with the hotel transfer and check-in process on arrival. The rest of the day is free to explore Beijing at your own pace, with optional visits such as 798 Art District, Yonghe Temple, Jingshan Park, or Wangfujing Snack Street if you prefer.

Gallery: Yonghe TempleYonghe Temple Courtyard

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A private vehicle takes you to the Mutianyu Great Wall, a well-preserved and restored section of the Wall outside Beijing. Walk the Wall and watchtowers at your own pace, then enjoy lunch at a local restaurant in Mutianyu village nearby. Optional descent choices include the toboggan, cable car, or hiking down before returning to your Beijing hotel for free evening time.

Gallery: Mutianyu Great Wall RampartsMutianyu Great Wall Watchtowers

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Visit Tiananmen Square, including views of key square landmarks as listed on the day itinerary, then enter the Forbidden City for a guided walk through the imperial palace halls and courtyards. Later, walk Beijing hutongs and finish with a classic Peking duck dinner at a long-established restaurant as included on this day. Free evening time follows back at your hotel.

Gallery: Forbidden City Hall of Supreme HarmonyForbidden City Courtyard

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After breakfast, enjoy free time until your scheduled airport transfer from the hotel. According to your flight time, a private vehicle takes you to the airport for your onward journey, ending this 12-day China highlights tour from Shanghai through Hangzhou, Luoyang, and Xi’an to Beijing. Thank you for traveling this route with East Marvel, and have a pleasant flight home.