11-Day China Classic: Beijing, Xi’an, Shanghai & Suzhou

Arrive at Beijing airport or railway station and continue by private transfer to your hotel in the city. After check-in, settle in before the late-afternoon sightseeing begins.

Visit Jingshan Park in the late afternoon. A short climb leads to the hilltop viewpoint directly north of the Forbidden City, where Beijing’s central axis, palace roofs, and modern skyline unfold in one broad panorama. Stay for the changing evening light before returning to your hotel.

Begin at the Meridian Gate and follow the ceremonial axis through the Forbidden City's Outer Court. Explore the Hall of Supreme Harmony, Hall of Central Harmony, and Hall of Preserving Harmony, then continue into the Inner Court and Imperial Garden while your guide explains court ritual, architecture, and daily life inside the palace.

After lunch, walk through Beihai Park to Qionghua Island, the White Dagoba, and the Nine-Dragon Screen. Continue into the lanes around Shichahai and Houhai, where courtyard homes, small workshops, and the lakeside show a quieter neighbourhood side of central Beijing before a roast-duck dinner.

Leave central Beijing for Mutianyu, a restored Great Wall section set among forested ridges. Ride the cable car to the ramparts, walk between watchtowers, and pause at open viewpoints where the wall curves across the mountains. The walking distance can be adjusted while retaining the main ridge experience.

Return to the city after a countryside lunch and continue to Qianmen. Walk the historic commercial street and ride the short heritage-style Dangdang tram, using the restored shopfronts and side lanes to understand how this gateway district connected imperial Beijing with merchants and travellers.

Start at Tian'anmen Square and continue into the National Museum of China. The museum's archaeological finds, bronzes, ceramics, sculpture, and historical displays provide a broad chronological introduction to Chinese civilisation before the route leaves the city centre.

After lunch, explore the Summer Palace along Kunming Lake. Walk part of the Long Corridor, study its painted beams and changing views, and continue toward the Marble Boat and lakeside pavilions. The gardens, water, and wooded hills provide a spacious contrast to the formal monuments of the morning.

Leave Beijing and travel to Xi’an by high-speed train. On arrival, meet your private transfer and continue to a centrally located hotel. Take time to settle in before beginning a relaxed first exploration of the old-city centre.

Walk around Bell and Drum Tower Square as the monuments become illuminated, then continue toward the Muslim Quarter. The lanes here are known for busy food stalls, local pastries, noodles, grilled dishes, and small shops. This is free-exploration time, so you can browse and taste what interests you instead of following a fixed dining schedule.

Travel east of Xi’an to the Qin Shi Huang Imperial Tomb Museum. Explore the principal archaeological displays and see ranks of life-size warriors, horses, and chariots created for China’s first emperor. Learn how the figures differ in rank and expression, how the pits were discovered, and why excavation and conservation continue decades after the first finds.

After the museum visit, take part in a clay-warrior workshop. Shape a small figure by hand and keep the finished piece as a personal reminder of the day.

Continue to Huaqing Palace at the foot of Mount Li. Walk through landscaped courtyards and historic bathing-pool areas while hearing stories associated with the Tang court and the palace’s long imperial history. The quieter garden setting provides a contrast to the scale of the morning’s archaeological site before you return to Xi’an.

Start on Xi’an’s Ming-era city wall, one of the best places to understand the rectangular plan of the old capital. Walk a substantial section of the ramparts, pausing at gates and watchtowers for views over both the historic centre and the modern city. Pause for a simple tea break near the wall and watch the daily rhythm of the surrounding neighbourhood.

Continue to Yongxingfang, where regional food stalls and cultural displays introduce flavours from across Shaanxi. Sample local specialities during the visit, then watch a short shadow-puppetry presentation in the cultural area.

In the afternoon, visit Xi’an Museum for a broader view of the city’s development and the dynasties that made it an imperial capital. Then continue toward Daci’en Temple and the Big Wild Goose Pagoda area before nightfall. As the evening lights come on, walk through Great Tang Everbright City, a broad pedestrian district where illuminated architecture, public performances, and Tang-inspired displays create a lively finish to the day.

Fly from Xi’an to Shanghai and meet your private transfer at the airport. After hotel check-in and a short rest, begin on the west bank of the Huangpu River. Walk along the Bund after dark, looking across the water to the illuminated towers of Pudong, including the Oriental Pearl Tower, while the historic waterfront buildings form a contrasting backdrop behind you.

Continue along Nanjing East Road, Shanghai’s busiest pedestrian shopping street, then make your way to Xintiandi. Restored shikumen lanes sit beside contemporary architecture, boutiques, and restaurants, showing how the city adapts older neighbourhood forms to modern life. The evening concludes in Xintiandi after the guided walk.

Begin at the Shanghai History Museum, where reconstructed shopfronts, vintage transport, photographs, and everyday objects trace the city’s change from a river settlement into an international metropolis.

Continue to Yu Garden, moving through rockeries, ponds, pavilions, and narrow passages designed to reveal a different composition at every turn. Outside the garden, explore the City God Temple area, where Taoist traditions sit alongside a lively market district. Browse traditional crafts and pause to taste Nanxiang soup dumplings and pear-syrup sweets.

After lunch, move into the former French Concession for a walking exploration of Wukang Road and Anfu Road. Look for Art Deco and Neoclassical details, shaded villa streets, and former residences associated with figures from modern Chinese history. Small galleries, bookshops, and cafés make it easy to pause and experience the neighbourhood rather than simply drive through it.

Return to the Bund in daylight to examine the waterfront’s mixture of Classical, Renaissance, Gothic, Baroque, and other European-influenced façades. From the promenade, compare the historic west bank with the contemporary Pudong skyline opposite.

Board a public ferry across the Huangpu River and continue to the Pudong Art Museum. Exhibitions change through the year, so the visit focuses on the current programme and the museum’s riverside architecture. Finish with a walk along Binjiang Road, where the Bund can be seen from the eastern bank as boats move along the river and the city lights begin to appear.

Travel from Shanghai to Suzhou by high-speed train and begin at Suzhou Museum, designed by I. M. Pei. Its architecture, courtyards, and collections introduce the artistic traditions of the Wu region before a short walk leads to the Humble Administrator's Garden.

Spend the afternoon among the garden's pavilions, rockeries, ponds, and carefully framed views, then continue to Pingjiang Road beside the canal. Around sunset, walk at Jinji Lake before finishing among Shantang Street's stone bridges, old houses, craft shops, and evening lanterns.

Begin the final morning at Lion Grove Garden, known for its labyrinth of limestone rockeries, narrow passages, and changing views across compact courtyards. The visit provides a final example of how Suzhou garden designers created the impression of mountains and distance within a limited urban space.

After the garden visit, return to Shanghai by high-speed train. A private transfer continues to the airport or railway station according to the confirmed onward schedule, with the timing planned to protect enough time for check-in and departure formalities.