Day01: Arrival in Shanghai

Flight Information:

Welcome to China. Upon arrival, our local guide will take you to your downtown hotel. The rest of the day is on your own to explore the city.

Day02: Shanghai (B+L)

Sightseeing: Shanghai Museum, Oriental Pearl TV Tower, The Bund, Nanjing Road

Today you will start the day with a trip to visit the Shanghai Museum, which is a veritable treasure house of ancient Chinese art and houses 120,000 precious relics. Afterward, you will also pay a visit to Oriental Pearl TV Tower. The tower becomes Shanghai's new landmark and a big magnet for tourists with its unique design composed of balls and columns.

In the late afternoon, you will visit the picturesque Bund. Extending for 1.5 km on the shore of the Huangpu River, the Bund is a symbol of China’s prosperous future and Shanghai’s international past. Then you will stroll along the Nanjing Road, which is considered as one of the World's Seven Great Roads in the 1930s and always mentioned in travel guides as a must see of China tour.

Day03: Shanghai (B+L)

Sightseeing: Yu Yuan garden, Jade Buddha Temple, Shanghai Xin Tian Di

Special Experience: Enjoy a wonderful Acrobatic Show.

In the morning, you visit the Yu Yuan Garden. A former private garden, called work of art, designs with different styles of the traditional Chinese horticulture art. After lunch continue to inspect the Jade Buddha Temple, which is renowned for a 2m-tall Buddha carved from a single piece of white jade, brought to China by a Burmese monk in 1822. Then you will stroll along Shanghai Xin Tian Di, which has become an urban tourist attraction that holds the historical and cultural legacies of the city. In the evening, you will take a flight to Huangshan and transfer to the hotel.

In the evening you will enjoy a wonderful Acrobatic Show, one of China's oldest performing arts, acrobatics have absorbed features of opera dance and martial art, making it a truly unique art form.

Day04: Shanghai – Yichang (B+L+D)

Flight Information: FM9365 13:40/15:35

The morning is at your leisure before you board your flight to Yichang and transfer to the dock to get on the ship.

--Yichang:Lying on the northern bank of the Yangtze River, Yichang covers an area of about 21,000 square kilometers (8,108 square miles). It is an ancient city and its history can be traced back for 4,000 years. During what is known as its Spring and Autumn Periods (770 BC-476 BC), Yichang was regarded as a city of great strategic importance. Many famous battles took place here, such as the Changbanpo Battle and the Yiling Battle during the Three Kingdoms Period (220-280). Relics of these battles can still be found in the area. Another interesting aspect of Yichang is that several eminent persons were born here in ancient times, such as the concubine Wang Zhaojun during the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC - 24 AD) and the patriotic poet Qu Yuan in the Warring States Period (476 BC - 221 BC).

Accommodations: On the ship

Day 05 Yangtze River Cruise

Sightseeing: Three Gorges Dam.

On this day you will have a shore excursion to visit the world-renown Three Gorges Dam, the largest dam in the world.

--Three Gorges Dam, the largest water conservancy project ever undertaken by man and it has been a dream for several generations of Chinese people. The construction of the dam formally began in 1994. The body of the dam was completed in 2003, and the whole construction will be competed in 2009. It will be 2,335 meters long, 185 meters high, 18 meters wide on the top and 130 meters wide at the bottom. The tourists can get access to the top of the dam and enjoy different kinds of photo opportunities.

Accommodations: On the ship

Day 6 Yangtze River Cruise

Sightseeing: Shennong Stream.

On this day you will have an excursion to Shennong Stream, where you will drift along the river on a traditional sampan and be astounded by the natural Scenery that surrounds you, or have an excursion to the Lesser Three Gorges, where three smaller gorges will give visitors a sense of awe as the natural scenic wonders unfold in front of you. The ship company will decide which excursion you will take.

--Shennong Stream is another tributary of the Yangtze River, and its fast-flowing, crystal clear water runs southwards through deep gorges. The stream races past large and small karst caves, flocks of swallows, sheer cliffs, deep gorges, waterfalls, three-colored springs, rapids, the ancient plank path, a suspended coffin in the cliff, groups of ancient tombs and marvelous karst formations.

Accommodations: On the ship

Day 7 Yangtze River Cruise

Sightseeing: Fengdu Ghost City, or Shibaozhai.

Shore excursion to Fengdu Ghost City, a fantastic temple, where the devil is punished, and the good are rewarded, or Shibaozhai, an ancient 12 storey wood tower built into the cliff. The cruise line will choose which spot will be the excursion destination.

--Fengdu is where the devil lives, according to Chinese legend. They say that spirits go to heaven, and evil goes to Fengdu. The town is overlooked by Ming Shan Hill, home of Tianzi, the King of the Dead. The whole place has an eerie feel to it with deserted streets, tower blocks, empty shops and banks. The only people here are those who make a living from visiting cruise boats.

-- Shibaozhai architecture consists of three parts: the gate, the pagoda and the temple on the top. A nine story red wooden pagoda with upturned eaves 50m high, dates back to the Qing Dynasty. Stairs to the top give a magnificent view over the river.

Accommodations: On the ship.

Day 8 Yangtze River Cruise -Chongqing -Xian

Sightseeing: Ciqikou Ancient Town, Panda Room in Chongqing Zoo.

Flight Information: MU2262 16:55/18:00

Disembarks at Chongqing at 9 a.m. and have some tours around the city. Firstly, you will take stroll along the Ciqikou Ancient Town, with a history of more than 1700 years. While visiting, you will find the local residents dedicated to their traditional way of life, unaffected by modern influences to be found in the larger towns and cities.

After lunch, you will visit Panda Room in Chongqing Zoo.Here you can see Giant pandas, Lesser pandas, Golden hair monkeys, South China Tigers and some other national protected animals.

Drive to the dock for the Yangtze River Cruise.

After dinner, take flight to Xian and transfer to the downtown hotel.

Day 09: Xian (B+L)

Sightseeing: the Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum, Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Bell Tower

Special Experience: With a savory dumpling dinner and the Tang Dynasty show Opera.

Today you will visit what has been called the 8th Wonder of the World the Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum. It is one of the most important archaeological excavations and culture findings in the 20th century. After lunch, you will drive back to downtown city to visit the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. The Big Wild Goose Pagoda is one of symbols in Xian and a remarkable milestone of the Chinese architecture.

Afterward, you will head to visit Bell Tower. Originally built in 1348, the Bell Tower in Xian is situated in the very heart of the city and is the most well-preserved and best-known one in China.

Complete the day with a savory dumpling dinner and the Tang Dynasty show both located at Shaanxi Grand Opera Theatre.

Day 10: Xian - Beijing (B+L)

Sightseeing: the Provincial History Museum, City Wall

Flight Information:MU2129 16:35/18:05

Starting the day early, you visit the Shaanxi Provincial History Museum, which houses a large collection of historic and cultural artifacts unearthed in Shaanxi Province. Later you mount the City Wall. It was restored in the Ming dynasty and is considered as the largest and most intact Ming Dynasty castle in the world. From there you can have a good view of Xian.

In the mid-afternoon, you will take a flight to Beijing and transfer to the hotel. The evening is on your own to explore the city.

Day 11: Beijing (B+L+D)

Sightseeing: Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven.

Special Experience: Enjoy Beijing's most famous dish Peking Roast Duck as dinner.

Today you will visit the Tiananmen Square which is considered as the largest square of the world. Subsequently, you visit the Forbidden City, the most complete imperial palace in China. And later you will also pay a visit to the Temple of Heaven. Temple of Heaven was built in the year 1420 and symbolized the meaning that the emperor can contact with the sky through it.

Tonight, enjoy a Peking Duck Dinner in a famous restaurant.

Today you will start the day with a trip to the Summer Palace, which has a history of over 800 years. All the man-made hills, halls, pavilions and temples, including Kunming Lake and Longevity Hill, blend together harmoniously in spite of their individual styles.

After lunch, you will also pay a visit to the Lama Temple. It is a typical Tibetan Monastery in Beijing and reveals various architectural styles from Han, Mongolia, Manchuria and Tibet, and the impressive 60-foot Maitreya Buddha, carved form a single sandalwood tree.

Day 14: Beijing-Departure (B)

Flight Information:

The morning is at your leisure before boarding your flight back home.

Service ends.