15 Days China Metropolises Tour with Gardening Appreciating & Silk Factory Visit

Day 1  Tuesday 21-September-10    Beijing Arrival

Transfer via: by air-own arrangement 
Program: Arrive in Beijing, be met and transferred to hotel, free at the rest of the day

Accommodations: Crowne Plaza Beijing*****
Tel: 010-59119999, Fax: 010-65132513

Day 2  Wednesday 22-September-10   Meal(s) (B, L)   Beijing

Program: Full day tour for The Forbidden City, the Tian'anmen Square, the Summer Palace

-The Forbidden City: The largest imperial palace in China during the Ming and Qing dynasties with a history of around 600 years.
-The Tian'anmen Square: The largest city square in the world.
-The Summer Palace: The largest and best-preserved royal garden in China with a history of over 800 years.

Accommodations: Crowne Plaza Beijing*****

Day 3  Thursday 23-September-10   Meal(s) (B, L)   Beijing

Program: Full day tour for Mutianyu Great Wall with round-way cable car, take an exterior visit for both of the National Swimming Center (The Water Cube), Beijing National Stadium (Bird's Nest)

-Mutianyu Great Wall: This less-crowded section of the Great Wall is a pleasant drive 90km NE of Beijing. A cable car takes you to a good section (avoiding a very steep climb), where you can walk along the wall, through the watch towers and enjoy superb views as it snakes across the hills and mountains.
-National Swimming Center (The Water Cube): The National Swimming Center, known as 'The Water Cube', was one of the most dramatic and exciting venues to feature sporting events for the Beijing Olympics in 2008.
-Beijing National Stadium (Bird's Nest): The Beijing National Stadium, also known as the bird's nest was the main track and field stadium for the 2008 Summer Olympics and host to the Opening and Closing ceremonies.

Accommodations: Crowne Plaza Beijing*****

Day 4  Friday 24-September-10   Meal(s) (B, L)   Beijing to Xian

Transfer via: by air CA1203 (07:20-09:10) (arranged by us) 
Program: Be transferred to airport (Beijing), arrival Xi'an, be met and transfer to the hotel, then visit the Terra-cotta Warriors and Horses, Big Wild Goose Pagoda

-The Terra-cotta Warriors and Horses: The greatest archaeological findings of the century: the army of terra-cotta warriors and the bronze chariots entombed in vast underground vaults at emperor Qin's tomb.
-Big Wild Goose Pagoda: It is a well-preserved ancient building and a holy place for Buddhists.

Accommodations: Hyatt Regency Hotel Xian*****
Tel: 029-87691234, Fax: 029-87696799

Day 5  Saturday 25-September-10   Meal(s) (B)   Xian to Shanghai

Transfer via: by air MU2153 (09:00-11:00) (arranged by us) 
Program: Be transferred to airport (Xi'an), Arrive in Shanghai, be met and transferred to hotel, then visit Yu Garden, Jade Buddha Temple, Shanghai Museum, Shanghai World Financial Center 100F

-Yu Garden: It's reputed to be the most beautiful garden south of the Yangtze River. Built beside the Temple of the City God and covering only fives acres, it follows the Suzhou garden design of a world in microcosm.
-Jade Buddha Temple: The Jade Buddha Temple is one of the few temples in downtown Shanghai. If you're lucky, you can watch the monks serving a ceremony in a side room.
-Shanghai Museum: The biggest museum in China, with a collection of over 120,000 pieces of Chinese art & cultural relics. It is especially famous for its treasures of bronzes, ceramics, paintings and calligraphy.
-The Shanghai World Financial Center is a supertall skyscraper in Shanghai, China. It is a mixed use skyscraper which consists of offices, hotels, conference rooms, observation decks, and shopping malls on the ground floors.

Accommodations: Jinjiang Hotel Shanghai*****
Tel: 021-32189888, Fax: 021-62530929

Day 6  Sunday 26-September-10   Meal(s) (B)   Shanghai

Program: Our guide and driver will escort you from Hotel to EXPO sites, and then transfer you back to the hotel at late afternoon. (The three days admission tickets are already including.)

Accommodations: Jinjiang Hotel Shanghai*****

Day 7  Monday 27-September-10   Meal(s) (B)   Shanghai

Program: Our guide and driver will escort you from Hotel to EXPO sites, and then transfer you back to the hotel at late afternoon. (The three days admission tickets are already including.)

Accommodations: Jinjiang Hotel Shanghai*****

Day 8  Tuesday 28-September-10   Meal(s) (B)   Shanghai

Program: Our guide and driver will escort you from Hotel to EXPO sites, and then transfer you back to the hotel at late afternoon. (The three days admission tickets are already including.)

Accommodations: Jinjiang Hotel Shanghai*****

Day 9  Wednesday 29-September-10   Meal(s) (B, L)   Shanghai to Suzhou

Transfer via: by train for soft seat D5410 (08:52-09:33) (arranged by us) 
Program: Train station transfer (Shanghai), Arrive in Suzhou, be met and transferred to hotel, then visit Grand Canal, the Garden of Master-of-the-Net, Lingering Garden

-Grand Canal: The Grand Canal ranks alongside the Great Wall of China as the country's greatest engineering achievement and it is the longest man-made waterway in world. Cruising on the Canal, you can see the local people' life.
-The Garden of Master-of-the-Net: Garden of Master-of-the-Net is the best and most celebrated of all the Suzhou gardens. This combined Qing Dynasty residence and garden is also the smallest of the Suzhou gardens.
-Lingering Garden: Suzhou is famous for it's the Gardens. Lingering Garden is an elaborate succession of small gardens. Linging in the garden you would marvel this unique architecture art.

Accommodations: Garden Hotel Suzhou*****

Day 10 Thursday 30-September-10   Meal(s) (B, L)   Suzhou to Hangzhou

Transfer via: by express bus (arranged by us) 
Program: Visit Humble Ministration's Garden, Lion Grove, the No.1 Silk Factory, bus station transfer (Suzhou), Arrive in Hangzhou, and be met and transferred to hotel

-Humble Ministration's Garden: The garden is the best representative of Chinese classical gardens, constructed in the Ming dynasty. Focused on a central pond with pavilions, terraces, chambers, and towers located nearby, the garden is divided into three parts: the eastern, middle and western parts.
-Lion Grove: The Lion Grove is one of the four noted gardens in Suzhou. It was first built in 1342 in the Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368).This small garden is truly exquisite in design, the rocking imaginative. Entering the garden the tourist will find stones in various interesting shapes.
-The No.1 Silk Factory: Suzhou is also famous for its silk production. In the factory you can see how the silk is processed from the silk worm to the final woven cloth.

Accommodations: Grand Metro Park Hotel Hangzhou*****
Tel: 0571-87088088, Fax: 0571-87081588

Day 11  Friday 1-October-10   Meal(s) (B, L)   Hangzhou to Shanghai

Transfer via: by train for soft seat D5680 (18:24-19:42) (arranged by us) 
Program: Visit West Lake, Three Pools Mirroring the Moon, Lingyin Temple, Six Harmonies Pagoda, Dragon Well Tea Plantation, train station transfer (Hangzhou), Arrive in Shanghai, be met and transferred to hotel

-West Lake: Lying on the west edge of Hangzhou city, West Lake is the symbol of Hangzhou as well as one of the most beautiful sights in China.
-Lingyin Temple: Lingyin Temple is one of the ten most famous ancient Buddhist temples in China. It also houses various Buddhist literature and treasures.
-Six Harmonies Pagoda: It is a perfect symbol of brick-and-wood structure built in the ancient China. It was first built in 970 AD in the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127). The name "six harmonies" comes from the six Buddhist ordinances, meaning "harmonies of the heaven, earth, east, west, south and north".
-Dragon Well Tea Plantation: Dragon Well Tea is well known worldwide, the water of dragon well is sweet and nice. The green tea here enjoys very high reputation since Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 A.D) for its four special features: green color, fragrant aroma, sweet taste and smooth even appearance.

Accommodations: Jinjiang Hotel Shanghai*****
Tel: 021-32189888, Fax: 021-62530929

Day 12  Saturday 2-October-10   Meal(s) (B)   Shanghai to Hong Kong

Transfer via: by air HX237 (19:30-22:05) (arranged by us) 
Program: Be transferred to airport (Shanghai), Arrive in Hong Kong, be met and transferred to hotel, free at the rest of the day

Accommodations: Harbour Grand Kowloon *****

Day 13  Sunday 3-October-10   Meal(s) (B)   Hong Kong

Program: Free on your own.

Accommodations: Harbour Grand Kowloon *****

Day 14  Monday 4-October-10   Meal(s) (B)   Hong kong

Program: Free on your own

Accommodations: Harbour Grand Kowloon *****

Day 15  Tuesday 5-October-10   Meal(s) (B)   Hong Kong to Departure City

Transfer via: by air-own arrangement 
Program: Be transferred to airport (Hong Kong)

Service Ends!