12 Days Eastern China incl. Huangshan Tour

Day 1Arrive in Shanghai

Welcome to Shanghai! Our private English-speaking tour guide & driver will pick you up in time at Shanghai airport and transfer you to your hotel in downtown Shanghai. A paper board with the sign of YangtzeTour.com and your name will be held high by the guide at exit of the airport. The rest of day is free at your own leisure.

Day 2Shanghai ( B, L )

After breakfast, our tour guide will pick you up and drive to visit Yuyuan Garden. Yuyuan is the famous classical garden in Shanghai, built in 1577. The pavilions, halls, rockeries, ponds and cloisters all have unique characteristics.

After lunch at a nice local restaurant with the authentic Chinese food, you will take one hour cruising on Huangpu River. Then you visit the west side of the river that has many skyscrapers and the Bund that has many outstanding foreign buildings of the early 20th century. Afterwards, you will be transferred back to your hotel.

Day 3Shanghai - Huangshan ( B )

After breakfast at your hotel, you will drive to Pudong New District – Lujiazui, where there the futuristic, avant-garde building: Oriental Pearl Tower, Jinmao Building, Bank of China Tower, etc. You will have time to take the 88-storey Observation Deck of Jinmao Tower where you will have a spectacular view of the whole city.

After the tour, you will be escorted to the airport for your flight to Huangshan. In the airport of Tunxi, our local guide will meet you and escort you to your hotel.

Day 4Huangshan ( B )

After breakfast, you will be picked up and transferred to Huangshan Scenic Area, which is honored as “the No.1 Mountain under Heaven” and noted for the unique pines, grotesque rocks, dreamlike cloud sea and gurgling hot springs. You will take the cable car at Yungu Station to the top of the Mountain. After checking in the hotel on the top, you will visit the Brush Pen Peak, Lion Peak and Xihai Grand Canyon. At dusk, you will enjoy the sunset glowing at the Cloud Dispelling Pavilion. Stay overnight at the summit.

Day 5Huangshan – Suzhou ( L )

If weather permits, try to get up early in the morning to catch Huangshan’s magical sunrise. After that, you will take the cable car back to the foot of the mountain. Then you will be transferred to visit Hongcun Village, which is an 880-year-old ancient village with graceful scenery of mountains, lakes, rivers, bridges and houses. Walking on the Tunxi Old Street, you will see the age-old houses decorated with delicate wood and stone carvings, the time-honored shops selling brushes and ink for Chinese calligraphy, and small restaurants for delicious local snacks.

Then our tour guide will escort you to take overnight train to Suzhou.

Day 6Suzhou ( L )

In the morning, your tour guide & driver will meet you and transfer to visit the Tiger Hill, which is known as the No. 1 scenic spot in Suzhou, where you will be impressed by the “oriental leaning tower of Pisa” the Tiger Hill Tower, the sword-shaped pond, the time-honored Lu Yu Well and many aged cliff-side inscriptions.

Then you will head to the Humble Administrator’s Garden, which is the biggest classical landscape garden in Suzhou. As the “mother of Chinese garden”, it makes full use of the limited space, presenting a peaceful and quiet landscape with refreshing ponds, pavilions, ornamental perforated windows, cloisters, hills, ancient trees, green grass and colorful flowers. Afterwards, transferred to your hotel in downtown Suzhou.

Day 7Suzhou – Zhouzhuang – Suzhou ( B )

After breakfast, you will be transferred to visit Zhouzhuang, which is the No.1 Water Town in China. Surrounded by the river way, the town features clear water, elegantly crafted bridges, gurgling streams and classical buildings, as well as distinctive local traditions. Before dusk, you will return to the hotel in Suzhou.

Day 8Suzhou – Hangzhou ( B )

After breakfast, you will visit Lingering Garden, which boasts of artificial hills, clear ponds, plants, elegant halls and pavilions, zigzagging corridors and white walls. Then you head to visit the Lion Grove Garden, which is renowned for the exquisite artificial hills, resembling lions in all kinds of poses.

Then you will be escorted to Suzhou railway station to take a train to Hangzhou. At Hangzhou, our local tour guide & driver will meet you and transfer to the hotel in downtown Hangzhou.

Day 9Hangzhou – Beijing ( B, L )

After breakfast, you will visit the Six Harmonies Pagoda, which is a 59.89-meter-high (196 feet) octagonal pagoda with a history of 1,500 years. Then you head to visit Lingying Temple, which is one of the ten most famous Buddhist temples in the country. You will have time to take a boat on the famous West Lake.

In the afternoon, you will be escorted to take a flight to Beijing. In Beijing airport, our tour guide & driver will meet you and transfer to the hotel in downtown Beijing.

Day 10Beijing ( B, L )

After breakfast, our tour guide will pick you up at your hotel and drive to visit Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City in the morning. Tiananmen Square is the largest city square in the world and of great historical significance, where you could see the symbol of China – the ancient majestic Tiananmen Tower. Nearby the Square is the Forbidden City, which is the largest and best-preserved ancient imperial palaces group with 500 years history in the world.

After lunch at a Chinese-style restaurant, you will be transferred to visit Temple of Heaven, which is the largest ancient imperial worship architecture group in the world where the ancient Emperors held the grand sacrificial and prayed for peace and harvest. After today’s sightseeing, transferred back to your hotel.

After dinner, you are arranged to see the Kung Fu Show at Red Theatre or Liyuan Theatre. The show is great and breathtaking.

Day 11Beijing ( B, L, D )

After breakfast at your hotel, our tour guide will pick you up at your hotel and drive to visit Ming Tombs and its Sacred Way. Ming Tomes is the imperial mausoleum of the Ming Dynasty, where 13 emperors and their wives were buried. As the major road to the Ming Tombs, the Sacred Way was believed to be the route leading to heaven in ancient times.

After a Chinese lunch, head to Mutianyu Great Wall; less crowed with the most spectacular views. The wall is the most beautiful section of the all five sections of the Great Wall in Beijing. The day’s sightseeing will come to an end after taking pictures at the Bird’s Nest and Water Cube.

In the evening, you are arranged to have a Peking Roast Duck dinner in a Beijing featured Restaurant. Then transferred back to your hotel.

Day 12Depart from Beijing ( B )

After breakfast, you will be transferred to visit Summer Palace, which is the largest and most beautiful Chinese imperial garden. It is regarded as a museum of gardens in China. In the Summer Palace, there are many pavilions, vividly painted corridors, temples, among lakes and surrounded by hills.

In the afternoon, your private guide and driver will escort you to the airport in Beijing for departure on your own. Your pleasant trip ends.