Compare China Express by G Adventures vs China Trip - Amazing Huangshan (Yellow Mountain) by Travel China Guide

Day 1 Beijing

Arrive at any time.

Is Beijing top of your must-see list? Booking pre-trip accommodations will let you do Beijing your way before meeting up with the group.

Day 2 Beijing

Enjoy an included visit to the Great Wall.

Head out of town to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall. Spend time wandering around, taking photos, and picking up souvenirs.

Day 3 Beijing/Xi'an

Take the Beijing metro to visit the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square. Later, board a fast train to Xi'an.

Due to restrictions in China after the pandemic, the maximum daily capacity in the Forbidden City has been reduced from 80,000 to 30,000. This significant decrease in daily tickets has had a great impact on availability for both individuals and group tours to secure tickets, especially during he summer season. Our local team works very hard to secure tickets for each group. However, on the off chance we are unable to secure tickets to the Forbidden City, we will visit the Summer Palace and the Temple of Heaven, places of similar architecture and importance.

Day 4 Xi'an

Visit one of China’s greatest archaeological treasures—the Terracotta Warriors. After, the day is yours to explore as you wish.

Train is our main mode of transport in China and it's a great way to travel. We aim to get the best sleeping berths available on each train journey. However, train tickets availability is limited during peak travel times, including summer vacations and Chinese national holidays. As such, it is possible that the group may be separated into different carriages or assigned top sleeping berths.

Day 5 Xi'an/Shanghai

Say goodbye to Xi'an this morning and hop on the fast train to the bustling city of Shanghai.

Day 6 Shanghai

Take the train to Suzhou today for a day exploring in the city. Visit Suzhou's famed Master of the Nets Garden, one of the most beautiful in China and recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Admire the impressive Tiger Hill Pagoda and its surrounding landscape.

Day 7 Shanghai

After an orientation walk along Shanghai's famous Bund, you are free to explore the delights of this modern Chinese city. In the evening, head to the theatre for an intense acrobatic performance that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Day 8 Shanghai

Depart at any time.

We highly recommend post-accommodation to fully experience all Shanghai has to offer.

Day 1: Arrival in Beijing

Accommodation: The Great Wall Hotel Beijing  - the former Sheraton

Your exciting escorted China tour begins when your international flight lands at Beijing Capital Airport. Our experienced guide will be waiting for you before your arrival and will welcome you with a warm greeting. On the way to the hotel, a brief introduction of this capital will be presented and the rest of the day will be left for you to make your initial contact with this charming city.

Day 2: Beijing

Meals: Breakfast and Lunch

This morning, you will set off to visit Tiananmen Square with other members of your group. As the symbol of our country, Tiananmen Square occupies an irreplaceable place in the hearts of Chinese people. A few more steps will bring you to the next destination - the Forbidden City, where you can discover the past life of the emperors by visiting the places of their daily living and seeing the articles they used every day.

Around noon, we will transfer you to a carefully picked restaurant for an a la carte-style welcome lunch (valued at CNY150.00 per person and included in our price). The famous Peking Roast Duck is also served in this restaurant.

In the afternoon, you will go ahead and explore the Temple of Heaven. It is now a popular park not only for sightseeing but also for the recreational activities of the local residents. Tonight, you are invited to enjoy a Chinese Kung Fu Show at the Red Theater.

Day 3: Beijing

Meals: Breakfast

Climbing the Great Wall is a life-long dream for most travelers. Today, your dream will come true as we take you in the morning to visit this magnificent human achievement. The Great Wall stretches for tens of thousands of miles from east to west. We'll visit the most famous section at Mutianyu. A round-trip cable car is arranged to save your energy for a better experience.

Normally, the restaurants near tourist spots are only for tourists and have low quality food. This is why we do not arrange lunch for you today. We recommend you have a big breakfast at the hotel and have some fast food for lunch by yourself. Our guide will show you some restaurants.

On the way back we'll pass by the Bird's Nest stadium, a main venue of the 2008 Olympic Games. We will stop there briefly so you can take pictures. Today's tour will be concluded after you spend some free time at a well-known local market.

Day 4: Beijing - Xi'an

Meals: Breakfast and Lunch

Accommodation: Sheraton Hotel

Today you are scheduled to visit the Summer Palace after breakfast. Different from other historical sites, the Summer Palace is a big, beautiful garden occupying an area of more than two hundred hectares. It is pleasant to walk around the lake and interact with the local people who are doing morning exercises in the park. The following arrangement will be a rickshaw journey through Hutongs. Nowadays, the original style and features of these ancient alleys are still well maintained even after hundreds of years. Here will have a chance to learn the Chinese paper cutting, which is one kind of traditional folk arts in China.

For lunch today, you will order the dishes of your choice at a fancy restaurant with an a la carte menu (valued at CNY150.00 per person and included in our price).

Then our guide will see you off at the airport for your flight to Xi'an. There will be another professional guide waiting for you on your arrival and you will be driven to the hotel.

Day 5: Xi'an

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

After a good night's rest, we'll start our Xi'an journey by visiting the Terracotta Army, which is another amazing site and worth your time to see. The astonishing lifelike figures and remarkable army formation in the museum will bring you back to a time of 2,200 years ago.

Before lunchtime, we will take you to a local family to see a typical Chinese house and learn the living habits of the local people. Meanwhile, the hospitable hostess will show you how to cook Chinese food and prepare a sumptuous a la carte lunch (valued at CNY120.00 per person and included in our price) so you can taste real home-made meals.

The program in the afternoon is to visit the Small Wild Goose Pagoda and Xi'an Museum. This evening, a delicious Dumpling Dinner awaits you, and the brilliant Tang Dynasty Music and Dance Show will make the time more enjoyable.

Friendly Tips

Clients visiting in Jan, Feb, Mar and Dec need to arrange the dinner and evening activity on their own for this day, since the theater is usually not open at that time.

Day 6: Xi'an – Shanghai

Meals: Breakfast and Lunch

Accommodation: Crowne Plaza Century Park Shanghai

A short ride from your hotel will get you to the City Wall Park, your first stop this morning. In the park, you will not only experience the local people's leisured life but also attend a Tai Chi practice and learn the skills from the master. After that, we will proceed to the ancient City Wall. If you cycle, a bike ride on the old wall is strongly recommended. The bike rental fee is at your own expense.

Take your time to enjoy an a la carte meal (valued at CNY120.00 per person and included in our price) arranged at a nice restaurant.

After lunch, a comfortable transfer will take you to Xi'an airport and our guide will help you board a flight to Shanghai. Be picked up and transferred to check in at the hotel when you arrive.

Day 7: Shanghai

Meals: Breakfast and Lunch

Shanghai is an attractive city that deserves a complete exploration. We will arrange Shanghai Museum as your first destination. This elegant museum and the fascinating exhibits in it tell you the history and remarkable changes of the city. Proceed to visit Yuyuan Garden afterwards and enjoy some free time at a traditional bazaar outside the garden.

At midday, we will take you to a nice restaurant offering local cuisine for an a la carte lunch (valued at CNY120.00 per person and included in our price).

In the afternoon, you will follow your guide to the Former French Concession, a well-known place gathering many old-fashioned architectures in European style remained from the colonial period. Finally, we will move on to the Bund area, where you will have a one hour cruise tour along the Huangpu River.

Day 8: Shanghai – Huangshan

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Huangshan International Hotel

In the morning, our guide will meet you at the hotel lobby and escort you to Shanghai Railway Station to take a 3-hour high-speed train to Huangshan North Station. Upon your arrival, our local guide will greet you and transfer you to Hongcun Ancient Village directly. There are, in total, 158 residential houses here which can be traced back to the Ming and Qing dynasties, of which nearly 140 are still in good condition. The picturesque village with its tranquil setting combining nature and people living harmoniously, earns Hongcun Village the title of 'The Village in a Chinese Painting'. After visit, we will drive you back to the hotel in downtown for check-in.

Day 9: Huangshan

Meals: Breakfast and Lunch

Accommodation: Beihai Hotel

Huangshan is definitely a must-visit place if you are a nature lover. Today you will be driven for around one hour so you can enjoy the beauty of the area around Huangshan Mountain. Then you will ascend the mountain by cable car and the stunning sceneries along the way will never let you down.

Mt. Huangshan offers delightful views in all four seasons. On reaching the end of the ride, you will walk to enjoy the view of some famous spots, including the Beginning-to-Believe Peak, the Peach Blossom Valley, the Lion Peak, the Flying-over Rock and the Bright Summit. The foot path is quite slippery on rainy days, so please make sure you wear a pair of sturdy shoes. With a height of 1,860 meters, the Bright Summit is the second highest peak of the mountain. It is so named because the land here is flat and wide with good sunlight. The views from the peaks of the top are amazing beyond expression and will leave you with an everlasting memory. You will lodge at the 4-star Beihai Hotel on the mountain this evening. Try to get a good sleep in preparation for further exploration tomorrow.

Day 10: Departure from Huangshan

Meals: Breakfast and Lunch

After breakfast at the hotel, you will visit the Cloud-Dispelling Pavilion and Xihai Grand Canyon. Walking northward for one kilometer from the Flying-Over Rock, you will reach the Cloud-Dispelling Pavilion, which is the best spot to get a fine view of the spectacular scenery. Then our guide will take you to admire Xihai Grand Canyon. Lunch will be served and after that you will descend the mountain by cable car.

Our guide will transfer you back to Huangshan city. Visit the Tunxi Old Street. With a history of hundreds of years, it is the best preserved commercial street lined with architectures in Huizhou style. You may spend the remaining time of the day wandering the street for shopping or photography. Dinner is on your own arrangement. Finally our guide and driver will see you off at the airport or the railway station according to your flight or train schedule.

Since there are not many flights connecting Huangshan with other cities, for your onward journey we have following suggestions. First, you can go back from Huangshan to Shanghai by either flight or an overnight soft sleeper train; second, you can fly from Huangshan to Guangzhou directly and then travel from Guangzhou to Hong Kong by a high speed train; third, if you book a round trip international flight, you can also fly back to Beijing from Huangshan. Usually most flights departing from Huangshan are late in the afternoon or in the evening, so you have enough time today. We hope these are helpful to you and our professional travel consultants are glad to assist you in making the best plan at any time.