China Golden Triangle & Yangtze River Cruise

/5 935 Latest reviews

Tour Code: ODY-CN-440

Destination:Beijing, Xi'an, Yangtze Cruise, Shanghai

Duration

12 Days

Tour Type

Private & Bespoke

Tour Style

Classic

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About This Trip

Experience major highlights in China on this 12-day tour package. With visits to the Golden Triangle cities, you can enter the magnificent Forbidden City and hike on the world-known Great Wall in Beijing, explore the significant archaeological find - the underground Terracotta Warriors of Xi'an, and experience the old and new of Shanghai. Besides, revel in a cruise on the Yangtze River and witness the majesty of the Three Gorges Dam.

Itinerary Summary

DAY PLACE HIGHLIGHTS
1 - 4 Beijing Forbidden City, Jinshanling Great Wall, Jingshan Park, Temple of Heaven
5 Xi'an Terracotta Warriors, Ancient City Wall, Muslim Street
6 - 9 Yangtze River Cruise Yangtze River Cruise, Three Gorges Dam, Shennv Stream Boat Tour, Wu Gorge, Shibaozhai
10 - 12 Shanghai The Bund, Yu Garden, Fuxing Park, Free Day
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Itinerary

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Day 1: Arrival, Beijing

Upon your arrival at the Beijing Capital International Airport, your personal guide will meet you and escort you to your hotel. It usually takes around one hour and the guide will give you a brief introduction to Beijing on the road. The rest of the day is yours to relax and recover from jet lag.

Beijing

Day 2: Beijing

Start your city exploring from Tiananmen Square, the political center and the spiritual heart of China, where you can see the Great Monument to the People's Heroes and the Mausoleum of Mao Zedong.

Afterward, proceed to the 600-year old Forbidden City to appreciate the magnificent complex of traditional architectures and hear the stories of royal families. When getting out from the north gate the emperor's huge courtyard, you will walk to Jingshan Park easily. From the top of Coal Hill in the park, you can get a great panoramic view of the Forbidden City and the old quarter of Beijing.

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Beijing

Day 3: Beijing

Today's journey is to the Great Wall, which you can't miss when you are in China. To avoid the crowds and get a better view, you will drive a little further, about 2.5 hours, to see Jinshanling Great Wall. It is one of the best-preserved sections of the Great Wall and keeps a lot of original features. According to your energy, you can do circular hiking on it for around three to four hours.

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Beijing

Day 4: Beijing - Xi'an

This morning, the visit to a morning food market and the Temple of Heaven will give you a deeper understanding of local people's life. After having breakfast at the hotel, you may like to stint yourself a little to try some local snacks at the market. While at the Temple of Heaven, you can see the locals doing various morning excises and join some of them to play Tai Chi.

In the afternoon, take a high-speed train to Xi'an. Arrive after 5 to 6 hours, and then be greeted and escorted to the hotel.

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Xi'an

Day 5: Xi'an

The legendary Terracotta Warriors are the reason for 99% visitors coming to Xi'an. Today, you will spend two to three hours there marveling at this great wonder. After that, drive about one hour back to the downtown, visit the Ancient City Wall and try a cycling tour on it. Finally, end the day journey at Muslim Street, a narrow bazaar street linked with various shops and restaurants.

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Xi'an

Day 6: Xi'an - Chongqing - Yangtze River

After breakfast, board a high-speed train for about 5 hours to arrive in Chongqing. Be met and escorted to embark the ship for Yangtze River cruise. If time permits, have a detour to Chongqing Zoo to see the cute pandas. The ship usually departs from Chongqing at 9:30 pm and passengers are required to get on board between 5:00 pm and 8:00 pm.

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Yangtze River Cruise

Day 7: Yangtze River

Have a relaxing morning and enjoy the scenery on both sides of Yangtze River; or take an optional land tour to Fengdu Ghost City at your own expense. In the afternoon, join a short trip provided by the cruise company to visit Shibaozhai, a historical red pavilion hanging on a solitary hill to serve as a path to the top of the hill where you can get a great view of the surrounded area. At night, be treated with a welcome banquet and party.

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Yangtze River Cruise

Day 8: Yangtze River

Go on with another the leisurely morning on the board. If you are interested in Chinese history especially, the optional tour to the White King Town will be a good choice. In the afternoon, attend the tour to Shennv Stream. Take a wooden flat bottom boat to reach the depth of the valley, relish in the stunning scenery and catch the chance to see the original life of the locals.

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Yangtze River Cruise

Day 9: Yangtze River - Yichang - Shanghai

The Three Gorges Dam is a must-see wonder of engineering in modern time. Finish the tour to the dam at around 10:30 am and disembark the ship at 12:00 noon. Your private tour guide in Yichang will pick you up. Before heading to the airport, you will have a glimpse of the city at Riverside Park and a local market. Arrive in Shanghai at night by air and be transferred to the hotel.

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Shanghai

Day 10: Shanghai Highlights

As a microcosm of old Shanghai, the Bund will show you a spectacular international architecture and history exhibition. Your in-depth exploration of the Bund will start from the Broadway Mansion and end by the Previous Headquarters of HSBC. Your personal guide will tell you about the history behind these historic buildings. After it, continue to visit the Yu Garden and a silk workshop.

In the afternoon, take a relaxing walk from Fuxing Park, where can see the locals enjoy their leisure time, such as dancing, playing cards, playing Tai Chi and playing badminton. Later, continue to Bugaoli to see the traditional Stone Gate (Stone Arched Gates). Finally, stop at a food market and try some popular dim sum.

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Shanghai

Day 11: Shanghai

It is a free day for you to do further exploration on your own.

A recommended place is the People's Park, where you can even spend a full day to immerse yourself into the History Museum, Moca Shanghai and Shanghai Grand Theatre, or you may just walk around the park to have a glimpse of local people's leisure time and how the anxious parents try to find a spouse for their children who do not care whether to have a spouse at all. Alternatively, you can ask a taxi to the former French Concession and spend an afternoon at some cafe; or to A.P Plaza the biggest "fake market" in Pudong district.

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Shanghai

Day 12: Shanghai, Departure

Free time until be transferred to Shanghai Pudong International Airport for your flight back home.

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What Our Clients Say

"Great Customized Service", "Trip of A Lifetime", "Exceed All Expectations"

Richee Family Adventures

05 Aug 2025

Second Honeymoon My wife and I celebrated our 20th anniversary by spending a few weeks touring around Asia. We loved how Odynovo worked with us to craft a tour of what we wanted to see and how we wanted to see it. This was our first time traveling with a private tour guide, and it was truly amazing. they took care of all transportation, tickets, and everywhere we went we had someone who not only spoke our language, but was also very well-versed in the places we were visiting. We saw Beijing and then took a bullet train to Xi'an. In both cities we had tour guides who had done this "a thousand times," and as a result knew all the tricks on where to take the best pictures, what lines to stand in, where to eat, and what not to waste your time seeing. At one point our guide pulled out ponchos from her backpack when it started to rain, while another helped us haggle for a good price on a new suitcase. We were surprised by how much we loved China, and it is safe to say that is because of the quality of service we got from Odynovo. Oh, and the hotels were great, too! In our first hotel my wife fell in love with her breakfast soup that she had to have every morning, while in Xi'an we were right around the corner from the Muslim Night Market and were able to get to it in less than 5 minutes of walking.We are already looking to see what tours we will be doing next through Odynovo, as the service was amazing, the quality was remarkable, and the cost was very worth it for what we received.
Shannon V

05 Aug 2025

Fabulous! We had a fabulous experience with our guide and Odynovo walking the Great Wall of China, and all other sites in Beijing. We loved our Peking duck dinner. It was fabulous. Thank you, Sammie/Jing for a great experience.
domotic d

05 Aug 2025

Beijing Beauty It started off with a friendly face at the airport, with Roy, our tour guide.The week has been such a pleasure and a treat. From adventures to The Great Wall, Temple of Heaven and the Forbidden City, to local markets, delicious Beijing food and roof top tea houses.Roy and our driver, Mr. Zhou, were prompt in picking us up and driving us around safely.The knowledge and fact about history and Beijing that Roy knows and explains is amazing and the fact he could answer my weird and inquisitive history questionsnwoth ease was a treat.He made it so easy to enjoy ourselves and absorb all that was around us, he even takes great photos too! 😊Polite, kind and thoughtful and ever patient in letting us take our time with things that interested us.I would highly recommend this tour and Roy again and again.
Zarah B

05 Aug 2025

Amazing travel experience My name is Zarah M. Babangida a Nigerian and i visited Beijing with my colleagues from the office. During our 5 day stay in Beijing, Ms. Eva Ma, was our Tour guide and from the minute we came through the Arrival Gate of the Airport, we were embraced by her alluring smile and warm welcome. She remained consistent with her warmth, a kind and intelligent professional who exuded unique passion not just for her job as a tour guide but, even more so as a proud Chinese woman. Her outstanding insight and knowledge of the sweet Chinese history and heritage left us in awe. I couldn't be more proud and thankful that she was assigned to our group and she made our stay exciting, fun-filled effortless and knowledge packed. I absolutely commend her dedication to work which she depicted throughout our stay. I recommend her to every visiting tourist because to know Eva, is to love her. If it were up to me, i will increase her bonuses or upgrade her salary as i am sure most tourists would want or revisit for her sake first and then perhaps other reasons.Thank you Eva and keep the passion up🙌.

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