Meals:  Breakfast and lunch

Accommodation: Handpicked five-star properties such as Hilton Beijing Wangfujing, Wyndham Beijing North Hotel, Regent Beijing, or similar.

Begin your exploration of Beijing at Tiananmen Square, one of the largest public squares in the world and a powerful introduction to the city’s modern and imperial history. Continue through Tiananmen Gate into the Forbidden City, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the vast palace complex that served the Ming and Qing emperors for nearly five centuries.

After lunch, walk up Jingshan Park, once an imperial garden, for one of Beijing’s most memorable views: the golden roofs of the Forbidden City spread below, with the modern city extending beyond.

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Tiananmen Square: One of the largest city squares in the world and the spiritual heart of China, where the national flag is raised at sunrise every day.

The Forbidden City (Closed on Monday):  Located in the center of Beijing, this was the imperial palace of the Ming and Qing dynasties for some 600 years. It remains the grandest intact palace complex in China.

Jingshan Park: A former imperial garden crowning the artificial hill just north of the Forbidden City. A climb of about 400 stone steps leads to Wanchun Pavilion, which offers the finest panoramic view of the palace's full sweep and Beijing's historic old quarters.

Meals: Breakfast and lunch

Accommodation: Handpicked five-star properties such as Hilton Beijing Wangfujing, Wyndham Beijing North Hotel, Regent Beijing, or similar.

Visit the Temple of Heaven, a UNESCO World Heritage Site where Ming and Qing emperors once performed ceremonies for good harvests. Its refined wooden halls and carefully ordered landscape offer a different perspective on imperial Beijing, while the surrounding park is often alive with local daily life, from tai chi and calligraphy to music among the ancient cypresses.

Later, travel to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall, approximately two hours from central Beijing and known for its restored watchtowers and quieter atmosphere. Ride the included round-trip cable car into the mountains, then take time to walk the Wall, where watchtowers follow the ridgelines above forested valleys. A chairlift ascent and toboggan descent may be requested when booking at an additional cost.

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--The Temple of Heaven: A UNESCO World Heritage Site, this sacred complex is where emperors performed intricate annual rituals to ensure a good harvest for the whole nation.

--Mutianyu Cable Car (round way): A round-trip cable car is included. If you prefer, a chairlift ascent and toboggan descent may be requested at the time of booking for an additional charge, subject to availability.

--Great Wall (Mutianyu Section): Mutianyu is a well-preserved and scenic section of the Great Wall, set among forested mountains north of Beijing. Its closely spaced watchtowers follow the ridgeline above the valleys, creating some of the Wall’s most memorable views. A round-trip cable car is included, giving you time to walk the Wall at your own pace.

Transfer via: High-speed rail from Beijing to Xi’an (about 4.5–6 hours)

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Handpicked five-star properties such as Sofitel Xi’an on Renmin Square, Sheraton Xi’an Hotel, Xi’an Tianlang Times Hotel, or similar.

After breakfast, transfer to the railway station for your journey to Xi’an, one of China’s great ancient capitals. On arrival, continue to your hotel. The evening is free to settle in or explore nearby at your own pace.

Meals:  Breakfast and lunch

Accommodation: Handpicked five-star properties such as Sofitel Xi’an on Renmin Square, Sheraton Xi’an Hotel, Xi’an Tianlang Times Hotel, or similar.

Travel outside Xi’an to the Emperor Qin Shi Huang’s Mausoleum Site Museum, home to the Terracotta Warriors. Created more than 2,200 years ago to guard China’s first emperor in the afterlife, the vast underground army remains one of the country’s most extraordinary archaeological discoveries.

Explore the principal excavation halls, where thousands of individually modeled soldiers, horses and chariots reveal both the scale and sophistication of the Qin dynasty.

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Terracotta Warriors: A UNESCO World Heritage Site discovered in 1974, the Terracotta Army is an extraordinary funerary army created for China’s first emperor, Qin Shi Huang. Thousands of life-size pottery warriors, horses and chariots stand in battle formation across three excavated pits, offering a remarkable glimpse into the ambition and artistry of the Qin dynasty more than 2,200 years ago.

Transfer via: High-speed rail from Xi’an to Chengdu  (about 3.5–4.5 hours)

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Handpicked five-star properties such as Grand Hyatt Chengdu, Tibet Hotel Chengdu, or similar.

This morning, take a relaxed walk along Xi’an’s Ancient City Wall, one of the largest and best-preserved Ming-era fortifications in China. Continue to the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda, built during the Tang dynasty to house Buddhist scriptures brought from India by the monk Xuanzang.

Later, board a high-speed train to Chengdu. On arrival, transfer to your hotel and enjoy an evening at leisure in Sichuan’s capital.

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--Ancient City Wall: One of the largest and best-preserved Ming-era fortifications in China, Xi’an’s ancient city wall extends for 13.74 kilometers (8.5 miles). Walk or cycle along its broad ramparts, passing historic watchtowers and looking out over the ancient moat. From the top, the city’s traditional neighborhoods and modern skyline reveal Xi’an’s striking blend of past and present.

--Grand Wild Goose Pagoda: Built in 652 during the Tang dynasty within the Da Ci’en Temple complex, this landmark pagoda was created to house Buddhist scriptures brought from India by the monk Xuanzang. A lasting symbol of Xi’an’s Tang-era heritage, it remains an important Buddhist site and a fine example of traditional Chinese brick pagoda architecture.

Meals: Breakfast and Sichuan Hot Pot lunch

Accommodation: Handpicked five-star properties such as Grand Hyatt Chengdu, Tibet Hotel Chengdu, or similar.

Visit the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in the morning, when the pandas are often out feeding. Observe giant pandas in naturalistic settings, and look out for red pandas as you learn about the Base’s conservation work.

Enjoy a Sichuan hot pot lunch, one of the region’s defining food traditions, before continuing to Wenshu Temple, one of Chengdu’s most important Buddhist monasteries. Explore its peaceful halls and gardens, then pause for tea at the courtyard teahouse, where Chengdu’s unhurried social culture is part of the experience.

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Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding:  A world-renowned center for giant panda conservation, research, and breeding. Observe giant pandas and red pandas in naturalistic settings while learning about its work to protect and care for rare native species.

Wenshu Temple:  One of Chengdu’s most important Buddhist monasteries, Wenshu Temple traces its origins to the Sui dynasty, while much of the present complex dates from Qing-dynasty reconstruction. Highlights include the White Jade Buddha and the Thousand Buddha Pagoda. Incense drifts through its peaceful halls, and the traditional courtyard teahouse offers a relaxed glimpse of Chengdu’s everyday life.

Teahouse Experience:  Pause for tea at Wenshu Temple’s courtyard teahouse, a relaxed introduction to Chengdu’s enduring tea culture and its unhurried social rhythms.

Transfer via: Domestic flight from Chengdu to Nanjing  (about 2 hours 15 minutes)

Meals: Breakfast and lunch

Accommodation: Handpicked five-star properties such as InterContinental Nanjing, Jinling Hotel Nanjing, or similar selected five-star properties.

Enjoy a relaxed morning in Chengdu before transferring to the airport for your flight to Nanjing. On arrival, transfer to your hotel. The remainder of the evening is free.

Meals:  Breakfast and lunch

Accommodation: Handpicked five-star properties such as InterContinental Nanjing, Jinling Hotel Nanjing (City Center), The Yihe Mansions, Shangri-La Nanjing, The Ritz-Carlton Nanjing, or similar

Discover Nanjing, one of China’s Four Great Ancient Capitals. Visit Ming Xiaoling Tomb, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the mausoleum of the Ming dynasty’s Hongwu Emperor.

Continue to the Xuanwumen section of the Nanjing City Wall, part of one of the world’s longest surviving historic urban fortifications. Its broad ramparts contrast with Xuanwu Lake and contemporary urban life.

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Ming Xiaoling Tomb:  The mausoleum of the Hongwu Emperor, founder of the Ming dynasty, set at the southern foot of Purple Mountain. Its Spirit Way is lined with 12 pairs of stone guardian animals, creating one of Nanjing’s most distinctive historic landscapes.

Nanjing City Wall:  Begun in 1366, Nanjing’s Ming-era city wall took 28 years to complete. The capital-city section once extended for 35.267 kilometers (21.9 miles), with more than 25 kilometers still surviving today. Built to follow the city’s natural terrain rather than a regular grid, it remains the world’s longest surviving masonry city wall.

Transfer via: High-speed rail from Nanjing to Suzhou (about 1–2 hours)

Meals:  Breakfast

Accommodation: Handpicked five-star properties such as Suzhou Marriott Hotel, Pan Pacific Suzhou, or similar

After breakfast, travel by high-speed rail to Suzhou, a city long celebrated for its gardens, canals and refined Jiangnan culture. After checking in, visit the Humble Administrator’s Garden, Suzhou’s largest classical garden and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Its ponds, pavilions, bridges and carefully framed views offer a gentle introduction to the aesthetic traditions that shaped the gardens of eastern China.

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Humble Administrator's Garden:  Suzhou’s largest classical garden, admired for its water-centered layout, elegant pavilions, and carefully framed views. Ponds, pathways, and planted spaces create a peaceful sequence of scenes that reflects the artistry of Ming-dynasty garden design.

Transfer via: High-speed rail from Suzhou to Shanghai (about 30 minutes)

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: Handpicked five-star properties such as Hyatt on the Bund, Renaissance Shanghai Zhongshan Park Hotel, The Kunlun Jing An, or similar.

Spend the morning in Tongli Water Town, where narrow lanes, stone bridges, canals and historic residences reflect the rhythm of traditional Jiangnan life. Explore Tongli on foot and by a short traditional boat ride along its canals.

Later, return to Suzhou railway station and travel to Shanghai. On arrival, transfer to your hotel and enjoy the evening at leisure.

After the tour, proceed to Suzhou Railway Station for your train to Shanghai. Once arrival, be picked up to your hotel for check-in.

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--Tongli Town:  A historic canal town known for its stone bridges, traditional residences, and quiet waterways. Its lanes and waterside architecture offer an evocative glimpse of Jiangnan’s commercial and cultural past.

--Boat Cruise in Tongli Town:  A short traditional boat ride is included, offering a close-up view of Tongli’s waterways, stone bridges, and historic lanes.

Meals: Breakfast, lunch and farewell dinner

Accommodation: Handpicked five-star properties such as Hyatt on the Bund, Renaissance Shanghai Zhongshan Park Hotel, The Kunlun Jing An, or similar.

Begin with a walk along the Bund, where early twentieth-century banks, trading houses and hotels face the modern skyline of Pudong across the Huangpu River. Continue to Yu Garden, a classical Ming dynasty garden of pavilions, rockeries, ponds and covered walkways set within Shanghai’s Old City.

After lunch, cross to Pudong and ascend Shanghai Tower for sweeping views over the Huangpu River, the Bund and the city beyond. The day brings together Shanghai’s historic trading past, classical garden traditions and contemporary ambition.

This evening, gather for a farewell dinner featuring Shanghai cuisine, a relaxed opportunity to reflect on the journey and share memorable moments.

If you’re interested in a more immersive cultural experience, contact us about incorporating a hands-on silk art workshop into your itinerary.

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The Bund: Shanghai’s historic waterfront along the western bank of the Huangpu River, known for its early twentieth-century architecture. Across the river, Pudong’s modern skyline creates one of the city’s most memorable contrasts.

Yu Garden: A celebrated Ming-dynasty garden where pavilions, ornamental rockeries, ponds, and secluded courtyards reflect the refined traditions of Jiangnan landscape design.

Shanghai Tower:  Rising 632 meters above Pudong, China's tallest building offers panoramic views of the Huangpu River, the Bund, and Shanghai's skyline from its observation deck.

Transfer via: International flights not included; departure transfer included.

Meals: Breakfast

Accommodation: None

Enjoy a leisurely morning before your included departure transfer to the airport for your onward flight. Thank you for traveling with us. We wish you a pleasant journey home and hope to welcome you on another Nomad adventure soon.

12 nights in carefully selected accommodations, in the listed properties or similar, including distinctive stays where noted, based on double occupancy.

Meals as listed in the itinerary, with complimentary bottled drinking water provided daily

All transportation and transfers as outlined in the itinerary, including intercity travel by high-speed rail in second-class seating, and domestic flights in economy class. First-class rail seating may be requested at an additional cost, subject to availability at the time of ticketing.

Professional English-speaking guides

Nomad Signature Moments: Entrance fees and scheduled activities as specified in the itinerary, including:

- Visits to Tian’anmen Square, the Forbidden City, Jingshan Park, and the Temple of Heaven in Beijing.

- Mutianyu Great Wall with a round-trip cable car.

- Visits to the Terracotta Warriors, Xi’an Ancient City Wall, and Giant Wild Goose Pagoda.

- A visit to the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, a Sichuan hot pot lunch, Wenshu Temple, and a traditional teahouse experience.

- Visits to Ming Xiaoling Tomb and the Xuanwumen section of Nanjing City Wall.

- Visits to the Humble Administrator’s Garden and Tongli Water Town, including a short traditional canal boat ride.

- Visits to the Bund, Yu Garden, and Shanghai Tower.

International flights and airport taxes

Visa fees, if applicable

Meals not specified in the itinerary

Optional add-ons unless purchased

Personal expenses such as souvenirs, snacks and alcoholic beverages, and any costs not listed as included

Travel insurance, highly recommended

Gratuities for guides and drivers