Day 1 Depart
Board your trans-Pacific flight to Shanghai.

Day 2 Shanghai
Arrive in Shanghai today. Meet your guide and transfer to the deluxe Oriental Riverside Hotel or similar for three nights stay.

Day 3 Shanghai
Enjoy a full day guided tour of the city, visiting the Yu Garden, the Jade Buddha Temple and Shanghai Museum with China’s premier collection of sculpture, bronzes and painting. In the evening, attend a performance of the Shanghai Acrobatics. (B, L, D)

Day 4 Day trip to Suzhou
A day excursion takes you to Suzhou, which the Chinese describe as an “earthly paradise”. Spend the day exploring the canals, gardens and silk spinning and embroidery workshops of the place Marco Polo called “the Venice of the East” before returning to Shanghai this evening by train. (B, L)

Day 5 On the Yangtze
Enjoy some free time before departing on a late afternoon flight to Yichang where you board the luxurious cruise ship M/S East Queen and begin a three-night upstream cruise. The ship offers the finest facilities on the river and a full range of services and amenities. (B, D)

Day 6 On the Yangtze
From the comfort of your cabin or the observation deck, enjoy dramatic panoramas as they unfold around every turn and bend of the river as the ship passes through the longest of the gorges, Xiling. (B, L, D)

Day 7 On the Yangtze
Enjoy a small boat excursion up the fantastic Shennong Stream known as “the Little Three Gorges.” Daily shore excursions familiarize you with the timeless life of the river, now undergoing monumental change. (B, L, D)

Day 8 On the Yangtze
Pass through the last two of the famed Three Gorges, the Wu and Qutang, startling cuts through impossibly high cliffs. In the afternoon, we continue our cruise with a shore excursion to Shibaozhai or Wanxian. (B, L, D)

Day 9 Chongqing/Xian
Disembark in the port city of Chongqing in the morning, transfer to airport for your flight to Xian. Time permits, an city orientation tour will be arranged in Chongqing. Stay at Shangri-la Golden Flower Hotel for two nights. ( B, L)

Day 10 Xian
The highlights of today’s excursions are the Museum of Terra-Cotta Warriors and Horses, Hua Qing Hot Springs, the Neolithic Village of Banpo and the Grand Mosque. In the evening you will be treated to a colorful Tang Dynasty Dance and Music Dinner Show. (B, L, D)

Day 11 Xian/Beijing
In the morning, we visit the Shaanxi Provincial Museum, one of the best history museums in the nation and the ancient City Wall. Take an afternoon flight to Beijing, center of China’s political culture for over 500 years. Transfer to the Tianlun Dynasty Hotel for four nights. (B, L)

Day 12 Beijing
Today, we have a full day excursion to the magnificent Great Wall, the only man-made object visible from the moon with the naked eye. After a very traditional northern Chinese style lunch served at a local restaurant, we return to the city via the valley of Ming Tombs. This evening, you are invited to a Peking Duck banquet. (B, L, D)

Day 13 Beijing
After breakfast, you are off to see the sights, including the vast Tian An Men Square, and Ming treasures adorning the Imperial Palace in the once Forbidden City. In the afternoon, more Ming extravagances are evident as you tour the exquisite architecture and vivid embellishment of the Temple of Heaven and the Summer Palace. We end the day with the pleasure of an evening cultural performance of Beijing Opera. (B, L, D)

Day 14 Depart Beijing
Transfer to the airport for your homeward flight or extend your journey. (B)

2007 Departures and Prices
(Departures limited to 10 participants)

Land package price includes:

• Deluxe hotel accommodation double with daily American Breakfast
  
• Yangtze River cruises with daily shore excursions and all meal
  
• Domestic airfare coach class
  
• Round trip transfers in each city
  
• Comprehensive guided tours, visits and excursions in a private vehicle with your English-speaking guide
  
• Admission and entrance fees
  
• Lunch and dinner indicated by symbols L, D
  
• Evening cultural performances
  
• Applicable hotel taxes and domestic airport tax

Not included in the package price:

• Trans-pacific airfare.
  
• China Visa fee
• Other costs not stated as included
  
  M/S EAST QUEEN DECK PLAN
  

* This itinerary can be customised to meet your interest and schedule, please call us at 0845 838 5474 for any personal consultation.