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Day
1
Beijing Arrival
Transfer via: International flight –on your own arrangement
Upon arrival at Beijing Capital Airport, you will be met and transferred to your hotel. Free at leisure the rest of the day.
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Day
2
Beijing / Hulunbuir (B, L, D)
Transfer via: Flight on our arrangement
Sightseeing: Hulun Lake, Baerhu Grassland, Manzhouli City Museum, Sino-Russian Border
Get up early this morning and transfer to the airport for a two and a half hour flight north to Manzhouli, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. The city sits at 50 degrees latitude right on the border between China and Russia. When you arrive in, you will be met by local guide and begin your exploration with a drive through the grasslands to huge Hulun Lake. Next visit the nearby Baerhu Grassland and see Mongolian nomads herding their livestock. Take a stroll on the lakeshore and enjoy a special lunch featuring fresh fish caught from the pristine lake.
After lunch you will be transferred to the city and check into your hotel. Visit the Manzhouli City Museum to learn the history of this young city which evolved from a Tsarist Russian outpost to China's largest inland trading port. Next, go to the Sino-Russian Border for a glimpse of the rail trade along the Trans-Siberian railroad and the bustling markets set up by vendors from both countries. Later in the afternoon, take a walking tour of the city center and enjoy an Evening Dinner Show.
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Day
3
Hulunbuir (B, L, D)
Transfer via: Private Vehicle on our arrangement
Sightseeing: Honenor Lake, Hailaer Forest Park, Yimin River
Travel by private vehicle to Hailaer through the vast Inner Mongolian grasslands. Stop by Honenor Lake for a scenic view of water, grasslands and hills. Continue the pleasant journey and arrive in Hailaer for lunch.
In the afternoon, visit a Japanese Tunnel built during their occupation in the Second World War, the Hailaer Forest Park for an endemic local species of pine tree "Zhangzisong", and the very interesting Museum of Ewenke Ethnic Culture.
Continue, we travel south through the huge grasslands for about an hour and arrive at Bayanhushuo Yurt Camp. Here the meandering Yimin River runs through the undulating meadows with lush trees and bushes dotting the river banks, an ideal location for an overnight in nature.
You will sleep in traditional style Mongolian Yurts (Ghers), dwellings of nomadic Mongols. Enjoy Mongolian dance and music by bonfires after dinner under the stars at the camp.
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Day
4
Hulunbuir (B,L)
Transfer via: Private Vehicle on our arrangement
Sightseeing: Bayanhushuo Grassland
Get up early to enjoy the sunrise. The Bayanhushuo Grassland is covered with verdant grass and colorful flowers. Beside the Yimin River, the Bayan Huxu Aobao Mountain towers in the distance. Join the other tourists and local Mongolians for a traditional Aobao Ceremony in which mother nature is praised and prayers for peace and good rains are offered. Immerse yourself in this primordial setting and enjoy a full array of activities such as horse riding, archery, hiking along the river, and visiting families of herdsmen.
In the afternoon, back to Hailaer City, have a walking tour of the city center and markets. Free at leisure the rest of the day.
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Day
5
Hulunbuir / Harbin (B, L)
Transfer via: Flight on our arrangement
Sightseeing: St. Sophia Church, Bomb-Shelters-Turned-Markets
After breakfast, you will be transferred to the airport and fly to Harbin, capital of Heilongjiang Province in Manchuria. Situated on the Songhua River, Harbin has unique examples of buildings influenced by the architectural styles of Tsarist Russia, featuring onion domes and spires. Upon arrival, you will be met and then transferred to your hotel.
Take a walking tour in Daoli District that has the best examples of Russian-European style architecture with spires, cupolas, and scalloped turrets. The St. Sophia Church is the most impressive and imposing structure amongst them. Thirteen buildings in this district have special cultural preservation status. You also explore some of Harbin's fascinating Bomb-Shelters-Turned-Markets. These bomb shelters were built during the cold war era when China's relation with the Soviet Union rapidly deteriorated. Unknown to the rest of the West, in 1969 China and the Soviet Union tottered on the brink of a nuclear war.
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Day
6
Harbin (B,L)
Sightseeing: Seven-Tiered Buddhist Pagoda. Heilongjiang Provincial Museum, Manchurian Tiger Park
After breakfast, visit the Seven-Tiered Buddhist Pagoda, built in 1924. When wind blows, the air resonates with the sound of wind chimes and makes for a peaceful retreat.
Then, we will tour Heilongjiang Provincial Museum, which has displays of archaeological finds of subarctic hunter-ethnic minorities in the region and exhibitions on dinosaurs.
Finally, take an excursion to the Manchurian Tiger Park located north of the city. The Manchurian (or Siberian) tiger is one of the rarest and most endangered species on earth with fewer than 1000 living in the wild. Here you get an up-close look at the magnificent tigers as you drive safari-style through the fenced-off fields. The goal of this park is to study, breed, release, and ultimately save the Manchurian tiger from extinction.
Afternoon is free for your own exploration of cosmopolitan Harbin.
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Day
7
Harbin / Shenyang (B, L)
Transfer via: Flight on our arrangement
Sightseeing: Liaoning Provincial Museum
Fly to Shenyang, the capital of Liaoning Province. Upon arrival, met by the guide and transferred to your hotel for check-in.
Begin your exploration in the afternoon by visiting Liaoning Provincial Museum, which, among other artifacts, displays ancient fragments of polished bone inscribed with characters and used for divination.
Later, take a walking tour in the downtown area and the ethnic Korean neighborhood to get a different slice of the diverse city.
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Day
8
Shenyang (B, L)
Sightseeing: Former Imperial Palace of the early Qing era, Shenyang Steam Locomotive Exhibition Park
Start the day with a visit to the Shenyang Imperial Palace of the early Qing era. Built in 1625 for Nurhachi, and inherited by his son Abahai (Huang Taiji), the palace in Shenyang is one of two royal complexes existing in China today. Though much smaller than the Forbidden City, the distinct architectural style of the palace is very charming and most halls are still in fine conditions. The East Tomb, surrounded by river and hills, is the resting place for Nurhachi and his wife Yahenala, but his son got a better grave at the North Tomb. The well preserved complex is decorated with pavilions, statues of camels, elephants, horses, and lions. Stop by the Pagoda of Buddhist Ashes, a thirteen-story, fifty meter high (164 feet) hollow brick structure built in 1044 AD during the Liao Dynasty. It has survived many earthquakes.
Then have a visit to the Shenyang Steam Locomotive Exhibition Park, where sixteen antiquated steam trains from America, Japan, Soviet, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Germany, and China are on display.
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Day
9
Shenyang / Dalian (B, L)
Transfer via: Flight on our arrangement
Sightseeing: Shiyunshan Manchu Village and Folk Museum
On your way to Shenyang Airport this morning, visit Shiyunshan Manchu Village and Folk Museum for a better understanding of Manchu history, culture and customs.
Fly to Dalian and arrive in early afternoon. Dalian is located on the southern tip of the Liaodong Peninsula, surrounded by ocean on three sides. It is one of Manchuria's best sightseeing and holiday deinasttions. Enjoy a walking tour of the city center and followed by dinner in a seafood restaurant.
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Day
10
Dalian (B,L)
Sightseeing: Bangchuidao Scenic Area, Xinghai Square
Today Dalian is most famous for its beaches, city squares, and fashion. Take a scenic drive along the coastal road. Bangchuidao Scenic Area is one of the more attractive beaches in Dalian. Dalian is a modern city, with a cosmopolitan attitude and atmosphere, embodied in the streets around Zhongshan Square that have a strong international flavor, dotted with Japanese and Russian buildings. The city squares are particularly charming in the evenings, when locals gather to watch street performances.
Then, we will move on to Bangchuidao Scenic Area.
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Day
11
Dalian / Departure (B)
Transfer via: Flight on your own arrangement
Free at leisure until your guide pick you up from your hotel lobby and then transfer you to airport to take the flight departure.