Tour Details
DEPARTURE INFORMATION
Starts Mondays (Lianna) or Tuesdays (Jenna). March to November
12 days from $3995.00Arrive Beijing, China
Welcome to Beijing. You are met on arrival in Beijing, and transferred to your luxury hotel located in the heart of the massive city.
Beijing Sightseeing
Discover Beijing on today’s full day sightseeing tour. In the morning, visit Tiananmen Square, the largest square in the world, and explore the Forbidden City, the grandest palace complex in China. Twenty-four emperors lived within this 250-acre city, leaving treasures of overwhelming beauty inside. After a relaxing lunch, your tour continues with a visit to the Summer Palace, the imperial summer resort of the Qing Dynasty, and its splendid gardens. (B)
Beijing & The Great Wall
Today, drive outside the city of Beijing to visit the incredible Great Wall. Built during the 5th–3rd century BC, this impressive construction stretches 4,163 miles from the east coast into the Gobi Desert. Next, stroll along the “Avenue of Animals” to tour the Ming Tombs set beside the Sacred Way. (B)
Beijing to Xian
This morning, see “Old China” as you take a rickshaw ride through the narrow streets of the hutongs area in central Beijing. Explore their bustling courtyards and enjoy a cup of tea in the home of a local family. This afternoon fly to Xian, an ancient capital for more than 1,000 years, and a center of Chinese culture and history. Visit the Small Wild Goose Pagoda, a remarkable and scenic Buddhist monument dating back to 707 AD. (B)
Xian Sightseeing
This morning stand with the Terra Cotta Warriors, a subterranean army of more than 7,000 soldier and horse figures, discovered while excavating at the burial site of Emperor Qinshihuang.
This afternoon, explore Xian’s buried past at the Shaanxi Historical Museum. Housing over 113,000 cultural relics, this is one of the most extraordinary collections of ancient Chinese artifacts in the world. (B)
Xian to Chengdu
Today fly to Chengdu, capital of the Sichuan Province, and ancient embarkation point for the Southern Silk Road. Visit the Giant Panda Breeding Center, a research center and natural habitat home to more than 20 giant pandas. Scientists from around the world come here to study the habits and behaviors of the giant panda. Explore Jinli Old Street and People’s Park, where vendors sell local arts and crafts. Tonight you are at leisure, perhaps to sample the local spicy Sichuan cuisine, famous around the world. (B)
Chengdu to Embark on Yangtze River Cruise
This morning travel by express train to Chongqing, to start your Yangtze River cruise aboard the M/V Victoria Jenna or Lianna. This luxury ship has spacious cabins, with floor-to-ceiling windows, allowing you to take in the river magnificent views. Excellent Western and Chinese dining options are provided, along with delightful live entertainment, lectures and movies. (B,L,D)
If departing on a Monday, Victoria Lianna is used. If departing on a Tuesday, Victoria Jenna is used.
Yangtze River Cruise
Enjoy two magnificent days cruising along the Yangtze River, taking in the surrounding natural beauty, as well as learning about China’s ancient cultural history. View the spectacular grandeur of the soaring peaks and mountain walls that capture the flowing river waters. Float through the gorges and watch the amazing landscape that changes around each bend. Enjoy a sampan ride to sightsee and explore these breathtaking gorges up close. Visit Shibaozhai, known for its impressive wooden pagoda, which was built without any nails, and is appropriately named “The Pearl of the Yangtze.” It is considered one of the gems of Chinese architecture. (B,L,D)
Disembark Cruise & Shanghai
This morning disembark your cruise in the thriving metropolis of Yichang. View the grandeur of the Three Gorges as you survey the Gezhou Dam, the largest public works project in China since the Great Wall. This afternoon fly east to the coast and Shanghai, a modern city with a past rich past. This romantic city has been home to a plethora of colorful characters from intellectuals, revolutionaries, and European traders to the Communist elite. (B,L)
Shanghai Sightseeing
Today’s city tour starts with a visit to the Shanghai Museum, known for its collection of more than 123,000 extraordinary cultural artifacts. Next, explore the city’s Old Town - stroll the serene paths of the classical Yu Yuan Garden and tour the Jade Buddha Temple famous for its rare, white Burmese-jade Buddha statue. Explore the renowned “Bund,” Shanghai’s waterfront quay filled with historic buildings and shops overlooking the Huangpu River. (B)
Depart Shanghai
Today you are taken to the airport for your departing flight home or on to your next destination. (B)
The Waldorf Astoria Beijing, Beijing
Blending contemporary luxury, unequaled service and exotic Oriental charm, the Waldorf Astoria Beijing offers a timeless experience in the heart of Wangfujing. A dramatic copper building offers a refined sanctuary in the downtown business district of Beijing. This distinctive hotel boasts an ideal location near extensive shopping options and culturally significant Siheyuan - traditional courtyard residences. The Waldorf Astoria Beijing hotel's convenient accessibility to major banks and commercial offices makes it ideal for business travelers. Leisure guests will appreciate the hotel's proximity to exciting nightlife and dining options and a wealth of iconic attractions, including Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. This opulent hotel in Beijing offers 171 spacious and sumptuously decorated Guest Rooms and Suites, some featuring a courtyard view and furnished terraces. This magnificent Beijing hotel is the ideal venue for a successful conference, product launch or upscale wedding celebration. Experience fabulous leisure facilities at the Waldorf Astoria Beijing, including an inviting heated indoor swimming pool, a contemporary Fitness Center and a tranquil, luxury Spa, offering signature therapies that blend traditional Chinese philosophies with innovative techniques to deliver treatments that beautify, refine and revive.
Shangri-La Hotel, Xi'an
This new 397-room hotel is located in Xi'an's prestigious Gao Xin hi-tech development zone, on the doorstep to the city's finest shopping and entertainment. The hotel's facilities include a business center and fully-equipped health club with indoor swimming pool, Jacuzzi, steam, and sauna rooms. Services include laundry service, beauty salon, gift & retail shops, and complimentary shoe shine. There are a tempting array of dining options, including a lobby lounge and specialty and Chinese restaurants. In-room dining is also available around the clock. The Shangri-La's spacious guest rooms and suites feature floor-to-ceiling windows with stunning views of the city or the gardens, along with internet access, 24-hour room service, coffee/tea facilities, a mini bar and electronic safe.
Shangri-La Hotel, Chengdu
Located in the city's cosmopolitan Jinjiang District, Shangri-La Hotel, Chengdu enjoys spectacular views of the Jinjiang River. The features and services at the hotel are extensive and modern. The hotel has a full-service business center, gift shop, hair salon, and laundry and valet service. There is a fitness center, indoor pool, sauna, steam bath, game room and a newly opened Chi, The Spa offering a variety of services to sooth your mind and body. The hotel consists of 593 luxurious and spacious guestrooms, each including amenities such as international direct dial phone, in-room safe, rainforest showerhead, mini bar, coffee/tea maker, internet access and a plasma TV.
Victoria Jenna, Yangtze River Cruise
Your home for three lovely nights, the Victoria Jenna had her inaugural sailing September 2009 following her sister ship, the Victoria Anna, in setting a new standard of cruise ship design for Yangtze River cruising. This luxury vessel is constructed with a blend of both modern and elegant architecture. Victoria Cruises is the only American-managed cruise line on the Yangtze River. It has international multi-lingual cruise directors and offers an array of shipboard amenities including a lounge, panoramic observation deck, outdoor Jacuzzi, fitness center, and beauty salon. The Victoria Jenna takes luxury cruising on the Yangtze to a whole new level with its generous cabin space, floor-to-ceiling windows, and private balconies opening up to breathtaking views, allowing you to absorb the natural beauty of the Three Gorges from the comfort of your cabin. She also boasts elegant atriums with sparkling chandeliers and gleaming woods, with an overall décor of American and European influences with Asian accents. All cruises feature excellent cuisine, with both Western and Chinese specialties; interesting lectures on Chinese history and culture; live entertainment featuring traditional performing arts; Tai Qi, acupuncture and Chinese medicine lectures; introductory Mandarin lessons; international TV programming including HBO and BBC; in-house daily movies; internet access and online services; and on-board health and therapeutic services.
Victoria Lianna, Yangtze River Cruise
Formally known as the Victoria Queen, the newly rebuilt Victoria Lianna offers graceful public areas, with high ceilings carved with delicate craft and detail. Personal onboard service and programs which focus on the Yangtze’s unique destination – its scenery, natural history and culture – greatly enhance the cruising experience. Traveling in sophisticated style, passengers will have on-board internet access, international cable television in living quarters, and international phone service available aboard the ship. Well-appointed, cozy standard cabins and beautifully furnished suites boast authentic Shanghainese cotton bed spreads and pillow cases, and private balconies for viewing the scenery of the gorges. The elegant ambiance and signature Victoria hospitality aboard the Victoria Lianna is Yangtze River cruising at its finest.Well-appointed, cozy standard cabins and beautifully furnished
The Peninsula Shanghai, Shanghai
The Peninsula Shanghai hotel's 235 gloriously comfortable guestrooms and suites represent the return of classic luxury to Shanghai. The city's most spacious, they have it all, from Art Deco elegance to breathtaking Huangpu River and skyline views, plus the newest Peninsula room technology. Every room features a 46-inch plasma TV, Nespresso coffee machine, iPod docking station, free local and international calls and Wi-Fi access. A 2015 Travel+Leisure World's Best Hotel