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Day 1, BEIJING: Arrival day.
Day 2, BEIJING - GREAT WALL: A day at the Great Wall with a 3-5 hour hike along one of the less visited sections.
Day 3, BEIJING - XI’AN: Visit Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. Overnight train to Xi’an.
Day 4, XI’AN: Morning arrival and guided tour of the Terracotta Warriors. Afternoon at leisure to explore this ancient city. Perhaps visit the Great Mosque or the Muslim markets.
Day 5, XI’AN - TAI’AN: A free morning for more sightseeing before boarding the overnight train to Tai’an.
Day 6, TAI’AN - FARM STAY: Get a glimpse of life for some of the billion farmers in China. Although things are changing fast elsewhere, the way of life here remains simple. You can only be amazed at the generous hospitality shown by our hosts. (LD)
Day 7, TAI'AN: After breakfast return to Tai’an where there’s the opportunity to climb Tai Shan, one of China’s holiest mountains. Overnight train to Nanjing. (B)
Day 8, NANJING: Morning arrival and transfer to the hotel. Free day to discover some of Nanjing’s incredible past.
Day 9, NANJING: Option to take bicycles to the mausoleum of revolutionary leader Dr Sun Yat Sen and continue via the Ming city walls to Lake Xuanwu.
Day 10, HANGZHOU: We take a local train for the short ride to Hangzhou, a lovely lakeside city. Free afternoon for sightseeing; the stunning Feilai Feng temple complex is certainly worth a visit.
Day 11, HANGZHOU: Option to follow the classic ‘Nine creeks and eighteen gullies’ route by bike through the famous tea plantations of Longjing. Relax by the lakeside in the afternoon or take your bike and explore further afield.
Day 12, SHANGHAI: Another short local train journey brings us to Shanghai. Opportunity to take a river cruise.
Day 13, SHANGHAI: A full free day to explore this bustling city. In the evening we see the famed Shanghai acrobats.
Day 14, SHANGHAI - LONGSHENG: A morning flight to Guilin and transfer to Longsheng, the ‘Dragon’s Backbone rice terraces’. The scenery in this area is outstanding with rice terraces cascading down the hillside and stretching in all directions. We stay in small wooden guesthouses as guests of a local family.
Days 15-16, LONGSHENG: We trek along the ridge to another picturesque village and stay there for the night. On day 16 we return to our start point by another scenic route.
Days 17-19, YANGSHUO: Transfer to Yangshuo for three days of exploring the amazing karst scenery and enjoying as many activities as you feel able to manage. Most people hire a bike and head off on the back routes past spectacular steep-sided mountains, quiet streams and green paddy fields. There’s plenty of opportunity for picking up gifts and many options for you to learn something about Chinese culture. Try cooking, calligraphy or Tai’chi. In the late afternoon of day 19 we catch an overnight train to Shenzhen.
Day 20, SHENZHEN - HONG KONG: Arrive at the border. Complete formalities before a train journey through the New Territories to Kowloon. The afternoon is free for you to explore the markets of Kowloon or perhaps take a trip up Victoria Peak for views back down over the harbour.
Day 21, HONG KONG: Tour ends
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You love the sometimes tough but ultimately rewarding nature of adventure travel and you want to spend more time enjoying every experience rather than wasting time on travel arrangements.