Crossing through the land of the Great Wall

Today on your Great Wall of China holiday, you'll have a chance to discover Beijing by car with a driver and an English-speaking guide. You'll be picked up at your hotel around 8:30 in the morning. The first stop is Tian'anmen Square: the gateway to heavenly peace. This famous square is home to the buildings of parliament as well as the entrance to the Forbidden City and Mao Zhedong's Mausoleum and is most likely top of your list of must-see's in China. After a stop you'll visit the Temple of Heavenly Peace (entrance fee 35 Yuan, approximately £3.50) and the colourful Lama Temple (entrance fee approximately £2.50). These are Beijing's most important temples. You'll walk among red pagodas, monks and prayer houses with the scent of incense and sandalwood all around you. As you have a guide accompanying you, you can not only can ask him everything about Beijing, but you can also ask him any practical questions you may have. For instance, when you're visiting Tian'anmen around 12:30, you can ask your guide to give you tips on the best places to visit for lunch.

The Great Wall of China should be a part of every China holiday. A hike over the wall from Jinshanling is the most enjoyable way to get a sense of the vastness of the Great Wall of China. The 10km hike is quite strenuous; you'll be climbing and descending for about 4 hours over restored and original wall segments. Another less demanding alternative would be an excursion to the Great Wall of China at Mutianyu.

Recently the Simatai section of the Great Wall has been closed for renovation and is unavailable for clients to hike. The hike that we offer will still depart from Jinshanling and continue onto the point of closure at Simatai and then continue back to Jinshanling. Even with the closure of the Simatai section we still feel that the Jinshanling segment is the best place to experience the stunning landscapes in the mountainous area of the Luanping County.

Today you'll be awakened from your slumber before arriving in Xi'an where you'll continue your Great Wall of China holiday. We'll make reservations for you in a centrally located, comfortable hotel. You'll be greeted in the arrival hall and taken straight to your hotel. The transfer should take approximately 15 minutes. If you'd prefer not to travel by train, there are several daily flights to Xi'an.

On day five of this China holiday, you'll visit to one of China's most popular attractions (apart from the Great Wall). The Terracotta Army excavation site is located in a park about 40 minutes from the city of Xi'an. The site was discovered in 1974 by farmers. They found approximately 7000 clay soldiers, clay horses and clay chariots, which were commissioned by the then 14 year old king Zheng for his future royal tomb. A visit to the Warriors will take up approximately 2 hours, however including transport you'll be out half a day. At around 1pm you'll be back at your hotel in Xi'an and the rest of your day is free to spend as you please.

You're almost halfway through your China adventure holiday and today a driver will pick you up at your hotel around 7:30 in the morning. You’ll quickly leave the city and the morning rush hour behind you and the view from the car window will become greener. Around 9:30 you’ll have reached the country town of Huang Longxi. Located on the banks of the Ming River which is scattered with terraces, here you can visit the local market, temples and picturesque streets in town. At around 11:30 you’ll continue travelling through China into the countryside. You’ll eventually stop at a farm where you’ll have lunch with a farmer’s family. After lunch you’re free to help the farmer out on the land for a little while if you like. You’ll be accompanied by an English-speaking guide the entire trip. At around 18:00 you’ll be back at your hotel in Chengdu.

On the tenth day of you Great Wall of China holiday a bike tour and bamboo boat ride is on the agenda. We'll arrange a bike, a boat and an English-speaking guide for you. He will tell you more about life in the area and will bike and sail along with you. You'll travel in a small group today along with other Western travellers.

You'll start off the day with a bike ride along the Yulong River. The scenery here is every bit as beautiful as it is at the Li River and it features a dramatic array of karst mountains on the banks of the river. During your bike ride you'll leave the main roads and peddle over paths along the river, through farmland and rice paddies and you'll have the karst mountains as constant companions during your ride- this is sure to be a truly memorable China travel experience. You'll be able to stop for drinks or snacks in the small villages that you'll pass during your ride. After biking for a while, the bamboo raft will be waiting to take you down the river. Eventually, when you return to your hotel you can unwind with a beer or glass of wine on the terrace; a blissful way to end an active day of your China trip.

On the eleventh day of your Great Wall of China holiday, you’ll have the entire day to spend as you please; there's plenty to do in this area. You can rent a kayak from the hotel, spend another day on a bicycle to explore the area on your own, or you can even take Kung Fu lesson for an hour. Our friendly China travel specialists will gladly give you more options.

There's also a light show along the Li and Yulong Rivers in the evenings. The surrounding mountains are part of a magnificent light show that attracts about 1000 visitors each and every night. The show can be viewed daily from 20:00 - 21:00. Tickets are on sale on location for around £15.

At around 9am you'll be picked up and a transfer will take you north through Guilin to the next destination on your Great Wall of China holiday; the Longji rice terraces. The village Ping'an is located in the middle of this area and is only accessible by foot. You'll be awaited at the end of the drive and someone will join you on the 20 minute walk to the village. If you prefer not to carry your suitcase/ backpack during the walk, you can have your baggage carried for 30 Yuan. By lunchtime you'll reach the village of 800 inhabitants.

During this part of your China trip, you'll stay in a basic, well maintained guest house in the village. Electricity and warm water are available in the mornings and evenings. Your room will have its own private bathroom. The guest house has a large veranda where you can enjoy the view of the rice fields and mountains in the crisp clean air. In the afternoon you can walk through the village and visit the Two View Points. Along the way you're sure to encounter the Zhuang. This local minority introduced the terraced irrigation system that is used in this area about 5000 years ago.

Start off the day by enjoying the magical sunrise and the tranquility of the morning. The shrouds of mist surrounding the mountains will gradually pull away and, while you have your breakfast on the veranda, you'll see the sun climb into the sky. When time has come to move on, you'll take your baggage to the parking lot where a transfer will be waiting to take you to Guilin airport to continue towards the final destination on your Great Wall of China holiday.

You'll fly to the city of Canton, which lies near Hong Kong. This flight is much less expensive than flying directly into Hong Kong. A transfer will be waiting to take you to the Guangzhou (Canton) train station. Your train ride to Kowloon will take another 2 hours.
 

Our most popular hotel lies in the central district of Tsimshatsui on the southern point of Kowloon where you'll find the famous shopping street, Nathan Road. This is our standard hotel choice in the area unless you indicate that you'd like a room with a view of the impressive Hong Kong skyline from the luxurious Harbour View Hotel. In which case, simply let our friendly China travel specialists know and they'll check the availabilty of this for you. You'll spend two nights in Hong Kong and you'll have the day after arrival free to spend as you wish.Taxi cabs are everywhere and they offer excellent service. A ride within the centre of town shouldn't cost you any more than £3.

Please note: despite the large number of hotels in Hong Kong, there is a shortage of hotel rooms during the Christmas holidays and during the month of October (the month in which many conventions are held in Hong Kong). Prices for rooms are higher than normal during this period of time.