China is a country that offers a wealth of unique and unforgettable experiences for travelers.
With 10 days to spare, you could explore 3 or 4 cities. In this article, we'll provide you with five of the best options for a 10-day itinerary in China, including popular combinations and off-the-beaten-path destinations.
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1. A Classic 10-Day China Itinerary for Couples and Families
For first-time visitors, we recommend visiting Beijing, Xi'an, Guilin, and Shanghai. These four cities offer the best opportunities to explore China's top attractions, rich culture, and stunning natural scenery:
- Days 1‒3: Beijing
- Days 4‒5: Xi'an
- Days 6‒8: Guilin
- Days 9‒10: Shanghai

In Beijing, explore the most authentically-restored section of the Great Wall — the Mutianyu Great Wall. For a special experience, pay a night visit to the Simatai section, which is the only part open at night. If you love hiking, we can also arrange a Great Wall hike for you — Jinshanling to Simatai is best for hiking.
If you're traveling with kids and want to give them some cultural experience, we can arrange a family tai chi exercise in the morning with a master or you could learn Chinese calligraphy together.
In Xi'an, visit the Terracotta Warriors and try to make your own clay warrior with local artisans. You'll learn about how the Terracotta Warriors were made 2,000 years ago and create your own unique warrior to take home as a souvenir. Enjoy a food tour of the Muslim Quarter and bike around the old city on the ancient city wall.
In Guilin, relax on a Li River Cruise and enjoy its stunning karst landscapes, and the Li River cruise is the best way to enjoy the spectacular limestone peaks. Go to Yangshuo, the tourism-magnet town near Guilin.
There you could go bamboo rafting, cycle around the village, and meet the local people. If you're celebrating a special occasion, we could arrange a romantic riverside candlelit dinner for you.
In Shanghai, enjoy an in-depth culture discovery tour of the Bund. Step into the Bund's old buildings, where you could touch and feel their charm and learn about the history behind them.
The rest of your time in Shanghai is flexible according to your preferences, whether it's shopping malls, spa treatments, or a visit to some of Shanghai's iconic skyscrapers…
Our tours are ready to be personalized. We can craft a trip based on your interests and needs. Just contact us.
China Highlights, Asia Highlights, and Global Highlights collaborate to provide families and couples with personalized and stress-free experiences in diverse destinations.


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Xi’an
During our trip around China, we spent three days in Xi'an. Thanks to our wonderful guide, Susan, who took us to visit the most beautiful places, explaining additional details about the dynasties. We especially enjoyed the Terracotta Warriors, where we had the chance to create one at a local workshop. Susan was very attentive; she tried to find a restaurant where everyone was happy with the food and found a pizza for our little son. She even made a gift for our daughter—a beautiful hairpin. Very positive experience! more
Dec 2023,
Kamilya1818
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Excellent Guide.
Jenny helped explain a lot of historical facts made us appreciate the Chinese civilisation a lot more. Want to know more after leaving. more
Nov 2023,
772lauw
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Great time with a wonderful guide!
Wonderful time with a great guide. Ken is very knowledgeable, most helpful, with near perfect English. We visited stunning locations and learned much from him. Nothing was too much trouble for Ken. We had a perfect stay. more
Nov 2023,
George123w2014
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Family tour
Thank you to our guide in Xi'an, Susan, for being very creative in preparing tours, for a beautiful handmade gift to our daughter, for your kindness and attention! more
Nov 2023,
Kamila
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Xi'an tour
Jenny is an excellent guide, so knowledgeable and easy to talk with. Her driver was also excellent. We spent 3 days together seeing the highlights of Xi'an and dining together. We hit a cold spell so she gave us two neck scarves, which was an unexpected treat. If you come to China, ask for Jenny. Highly recommended! more
Nov 2023,
CNN N
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Memorable Tour with Susan
Susan gave us a great tour of Xi’an. She has a genuine interest in Chinese culture and history and took us to sites and restaurants where locals go. She was flexible with plans and made some great recommendations and because of that, we did even more than we originally expected. Thank you to Susan for a wonderful experience. Xi’an was definitely one of the highlights of our tour and we will tell everyone about your beautiful and historically-rich city, Xi’an. more
Nov 2023,
grei
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Awesome Guide and Experience!
We have been travelling through China since the 10th of November. Prior to departing Shanghai, our guide in Xi’an made contact with me to let us know she would meet us at the arrival gate as we took the train from Shanghai, this made me feel super comfortable as we arrived into a completely new city. She let me know the instructions on where to meet her when we get off the train, when we arrived we were greeted by our guide Jenny at the gate.We were then taken to our car, met our driver for the duration of our stay Mr Chu!After arriving at our hotel Jenny helped us checkin and then we dropped our bags off to explore the main square of Xi’an and find some dinner as we arrived in the evening.The next day Jenny met us with our driver Mr. Chu at the hotel reception and took us to visit the Terra-cotta Warriors and Horses followed by Big Wild Goose Pagoda in the afternoon, Jenny’s knowledge and explanation of both these activities were amazing and we learned so much from her. Later that evening she recommended a traditional Chinese show and dumpling banquet which we thoroughly enjoyed.The second day Jenny took us to the Xi’an City Wall where we were able to ride a bike along the top, we then went to a local house and made dumplings for lunch before she accompanied us to the train station where we were sad to say our goodbyes but very thankful for our time with Jenny and Mr. Chu.We are coming to an end of trip, returning to home to New Zealand. If you need a guide who has a great command of the English language, friendly and knowledgeable then please request Jenny as your tour guide through China Highlights! more
Nov 2023,
John M
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Wonderful Experience in Xi’an with Mervyn
Mervyn was a wonderful tour guide for our trip to Xi’an! She showed us the amazing food that the city offers and the important history this city contains. Both my father enjoyed trying the fresh pomegranate juice and the Muslim food court. She helped make our trip enjoyable and simple! Thank you Mervyn :) more
Nov 2023,
Angelica Moreno
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Great Fun Tour with Mervyn!
Mervyn was a wonderful tour guide for our trip to Xi’an! She showed us the amazing food that the city offers and the important history this city contains. She helped make our trip enjoyable and simple! Thank you Mervyn :) more
Nov 2023,
Angelica M
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Fantastic 3 days in Xian
I had a fantastic time visiting Xian over 3 days with Ken, I got to see so many sights in a short space of time, the highlight being the Terra cotta warriors. Ken was an amazing guide and explained each place really well with loads of much detail and was so helpful with any questions I had. Ken brought me to some amazing hidden restaurants I would not be able to try otherwise, I loved all the food we tried. I would recommend Ken to anyone thinking of going to Xian more
Nov 2023,
David
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My husband and I completed the 8 day…
My husband and I completed the 8 day tour with Mervin (xi’an), and Qi (shanghai). Their knowledge and assistance with transportation, translation, and history of China made this trip extremely relaxing. The drivers were all very friendly and professional. more
Nov 2023,
US
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A Truly Amazing Experience
An amazing experience. Given China Highlights’ reputation, I had high hopes for the logistics of the tour. The reality, however, far exceeded my expectations. From arrival to departure, and all points in between, the tour was executed with precision. I stood in awe, gazing at the terracotta warriors; my wife and I strolled along the city wall. The warmth and friendliness of the locals were exceeded only by the knowledge, experience and genuine humanity of our guide, Jenny. China is amazing. While the historic sights are world attractions, I found its people to be the greatest treasure. Thank you China Highlights. Thank you Jenny. more
Nov 2023,
Mark W
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Wonderful time in Xi'an with a great guide
Visiting best museums, tourist attractions areas and historical sites with excellent guidance by Mervyn. She arranged everything in advance for our family so we spent very unforgettable time in Xi'an in three days.If you want to discover more about chinese history i would highly recommend Xi'an tour and my tour guide Mervyn to anyone visiting china. more
Nov 2023,
burge c
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Wow! Did not know China’s historical depth and culture.
Xi’an is an incredible historical city. Our guide Mervyn from China Highlights was extremely knowledgeable, informative and helpful. Very attentive to our needs and went above and beyond to take care of us. Exceptional service and care from the heart. more
Nov 2023,
Tony S
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Xian - Thank you Ken for making this our most memorable and favoured place to visit
Ken our tour guide really made Xian our most favoured and memorable stop in China . Not only is Xian filled with extra-ordinary history it has wonderful diversity with culture old and new . Ken's genuine care and responsibility to us whilst visiting Xian was truly felt with close planning with our driver and Carol Wang encompassing flexibility , which made our trip smooth and comfortable from time of pick up to our departure. Ken has a wonderful and welcoming nature to him . His knowledge of Chinese history is deep and profound , his patience and professionalism to explain things has made a mark on our family as he would reflect the gold standard for tour guides. We are truly grateful to Ken and China highlights team and would recommend this to people visiting Xian! more
Nov 2023,
Marian C
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1 day Xi'an tour
Despite my schedule only allowing for 1 day in Xi'an, Mervyn my guide was able to give me a fantastic experience in visiting both the Terracotta Warriors and making time for the old city too since she's hugely knowledgeable and great company. Great visit all round. more
Nov 2023,
Voyager816706
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Amazing experience in Xian
Xian was just amazing. We had a great tour guide, Jenny. Jenny spoke excellent English. Not only was she friendly, she was flexible too. She was able to reschedule our visit to the Terracotta warriors to the following day due to my hubby not feeling too well. She also helped get flu medicine for him. Very knowledgeable in Qin Dynasty history, she certainly made our trip very enjoyable. more
Nov 2023,
Dell
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Special thanks to Susan
This is my 2nd time in Xi An, My friend arranged a private tour through China highlight, it definitelymakes a huge difference with a tourguide! China highlight arranges all the tour guides and drivers for four cities for us, so convenient, saved us lot of time . Susan is our tour guide in Xi An, she is very responsible and took great care of us, she is knowledgeable about Xi An’s history, shared many fun stories, very impressive, obviously she loves n so good at what she does! We had great time in Xi An, the Xi A food is very delicious, Susan took us to the restaurant seems all were very popular among locals. Thank you so much, Susan, without you, our trip won’t be as funn efficient. more
Nov 2023,
Venture216019
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Must see in China - Terracota Warriors
Terracota Warriors were in our bucket list and it did not disappoint. Our guide in Xian was Ken, a very knowledgeable person with perfect English. I have been using China Highlights for the last ten years and will continue to do so for future travels. more
Oct 2023,
Copan
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Ken was the best guide in Xi’an!
Ken in Xi’an was the best guide we had during our stay in China. He was super knowledgeable and curious, added a bunch of extra tips and information that really helped us understand what we were seeing and meant we made the most of our free time as well as the time with him. Not to mention his English is perfect! We had the most wonderful time thanks to him!! more
Oct 2023,
Inspire03097093187
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2. A 10-Day China Itinerary with Pandas
If pandas are a must-see for you, and you want to get the most out of your 10-day first China trip, you should check out this itinerary:
- Days 1‒3: Beijing
- Days 4‒5: Xi'an
- Days 6‒7: Chengdu
- Days 8‒9: Guilin
- Day 10: Shanghai

This itinerary is more varied and adds a trip to Chengdu to see pandas.
We can arrange a Panda Keeper Program to let you observe them closer. In the program, you will clean the panda enclosures, see them being fed, and make their favorite cakes.
If you want to experience the laid-back lifestyle of Chengdu, go to People's Park, where you can relax in a teahouse, see local people dancing and singing, and explore its interesting "marriage market".
If you are interested in this itinerary, check out our 12-Day Beijing–Xi'an–Chengdu–Guilin/Yangshuo–Shanghai Tour.
3. A 10-Day China Itinerary with Holy Tibet
If you have a passion to see Tibet on your first trip to China, then this itinerary is recommended for you. This itinerary covers China's top cities (Beijing and Shanghai) and the heart of Tibet — Lhasa:
- Days 1‒3: Beijing
- Days 4‒8: Lhasa
- Day 9‒10: Shanghai
In this itinerary, besides visiting the top famous cities, you would go to Tibet. The four days in Tibet will allow you to visit its essential highlights.
There, you could visit the famous Potala Palace, the emblem of Tibet. Go to Barkhor Street, where you can watch pilgrims doing their prostrating obeisances. And appreciate a different way of life in a Tibetan folk house.
If you want to explore more unique places in Tibet, you may need 2 or 3 weeks. See our 2-Week China Itineraries for Couples and Families and How to Plan a 3-Week Itinerary in China (Best 3 Options & Costs).
4. 10 Days in China, including Hong Kong, for Families
If you want a more relaxed pace of travel, you could consider this combination. This itinerary is especially suitable for families with kids:
- Days 1‒4: Beijing
- Days 5‒8: Guilin
- Days 9‒10: Hong Kong

All these three destinations are kid-friendly. It not only covers the cultural experience like visiting China's top attractions — the Forbidden City and the Great Wall in Beijing, but the itinerary also offers more opportunities to enjoy the outdoors with children in Guilin.
Hong Kong, an international transit hub, besides having many kid-friendly attractions, can also facilitate greater flight choices.
5. 10 Days on the Silk Road — Explore West China
If you have been to first-tier cities like Beijing and Shanghai and want an off-the-beaten-track route this time, you could consider exploring the Silk Road:
- Days 1‒2: Lanzhou
- Day 3: Xiahe
- Days 4‒5: Zhangye
- Day 6: Dunhuang
- Days 7‒10: Xinjiang (Turpan & Urumqi)
In this itinerary, you will explore deeper into West China to see its ancient caves, and various landscapes, and learn about its minority culture.
In Lanzhou, you could visit the Bingling Temple Grottoes, which can only be accessed by boat. In Xiahe, the less-visited destination along the Silk Road, you could enjoy the stunning grassland view. In Zhangye, you would enjoy its unique danxia ('red-cloud') landforms.
In Dunhuang, you could see a section of the Great Wall built in the Han Dynasty era (206 BC – 220 AD), which is as old as today's extant Great Wall gets, and visit the most famous Mogao Caves.
For something a bit special, we could arrange a practical experience for gaining greater insight into the celebrated Buddhist cave art: recreating a Mogao mural on a mud slab with your own hands.
In Xinjiang, you could see the pure mountain views and learn about Uyghur culture and the architectural features of West China by visiting its old towns and bazaars.
Costs for 10 Days in China
For a private tour in China, the average cost per day is about US$220–350 per person, including flights/trains within China, 4- or 5-star hotels, lunches, attractions, guides, and private transport.
Thus, a 10-day tour for two people would cost about US$4,500–7,000. A tour for a family of four may cost US$8,000–10,000 (kids under 10 get 30–50% off). These prices do not include international flights.
China Highlights, Asia Highlights, and Global Highlights collaborate to provide families and couples with personalized and stress-free experiences in diverse destinations.


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Exploring Chengdu
Two days with her guidance made my all dreams to come true (voluntairing experience in Research base of Giant Panda Breeding, meeting Leshan Giant Budha, strolling in Wuhpu Shrine and Jinli Ancient street, admiring Sichuan Opera, diving into local tea culture In People's park and of course tasting Sichuan hot pot dinner and other local food) in relaxed and joyful mode. Helen is really fond of pandas and all what she is doing. I was admiring her profesional skills in each step even in smallest ones. more
Dec 2023,
Inspirator
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Albee was great in booking our tour to
Albee was great in booking our tour to Indonesia Malaysia and Singapore.She was very friendly and responded to my request to change itinerary few times to fit our needs. more
Dec 2023,
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Olivia Tian, a sunshine tour guide!
In October, my friend Amy booked a tour with Chinahighlights, Olivia Tian was our guide in Beijing, she is such a sweet n happy person to be around, not only she gave us the best guide service, also very accommodating, alter the plan as per our interest, took us to very local shopping n food district. Above all, she takes awesome pics, very patient!! Thank you so much for such pleasant 5 days in BJ, look forward to see you when we are back in China, Olivia!! more
Dec 2023,
Venture216019
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One whole of a good experience !
Kevin was always making flexible arrangements for us making sure we meet our needs. Kevin also walked us to our desired restaurant daily making sure all are well before he left. Kudos to the whole team. Highly recommend ? more
Dec 2023,
Cornelius C
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Excellent tour of Suzhou, Hangzhou and Shanghai
I should mention the three bilingual guides, all passionate about their location and very accomodating. Tim in Hangzhou was exceptional as was Kenny in Shanghai.All three drivers were very good too.All in all a great tour. Thoroughly recommended. more
Dec 2023,
Deepak
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China is Amazing Wonders that do not stop coming at you.Great country
Great job,Loved every minute of it,Ethan did an amazing job,True Ambassador of China,Just like the Chinese people,Friendly, dignified and hardworking,Very happy.China Highlights exceeded expectations and then some,I will never even think of travelling with another company. more
Dec 2023,
Philip Sardar /Maps10321171537
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13 day tour with China
Helen who set the tourist standard for us. She was super informative and consistently looked out for the best phot spots using her camera and ours. She always gave us a "smile countdown" and positioned us. She took candid shots which we later discovered as most precious. We did a private tour and also found the drivers to be very capable. more
Dec 2023,
Can vi
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The tour was perfectly organised
The tour was perfectly organised, the guides, Massimo, Giorgio, Helen and Luca were prepared and always ready to help and adapt themselves to our requests more
Dec 2023,
Jonathan
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The tour was perfectly organised
We had 2 tours with Helen in Chengdu and thoroughly enjoyed our tours with her.Helen was friendly, bubbly and knowledgeable.It was fun to be with her. China Highlight had arranged 5 tours for us during our stay. The company is reputable and had fulfilled all our request. more
Dec 2023,
Silva
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We had 2 tours with Helen in Chengdu
We had 2 tours with Helen in Chengdu and thoroughly enjoyed our tours with her.Helen was friendly, bubbly and knowledgeable.It was fun to be with her. China Highlight had arranged 5 tours for us during our stay. The company is reputable and had fulfilled all our request. more
Dec 2023,
Sooi
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Wonderful times with the pandas
The tour was amazing and we loved the pandas we got so many wonderful pictures and our guide Helen was great. She is super knowledgeable and always ready to help more
Dec 2023,
Kavita
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Xi’an
During our trip around China, we spent three days in Xi'an. Thanks to our wonderful guide, Susan, who took us to visit the most beautiful places, explaining additional details about the dynasties. We especially enjoyed the Terracotta Warriors, where we had the chance to create one at a local workshop. Susan was very attentive; she tried to find a restaurant where everyone was happy with the food and found a pizza for our little son. She even made a gift for our daughter—a beautiful hairpin. Very positive experience! more
Dec 2023,
Kamilya1818
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Wonderful trip to Beijing and Xian
Had a great trip to bejing n xian. Our guide lily liu is so well versed in english and we have no worry here at all. We managed to dine in great halal restaurants though out our trip. Highly reccomended to all muslims travellers. more
Dec 2023,
Efen Reyes
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Great experience, highly recommended!
Additionally, she helped me with all my personal needs like getting a SIM card, finding an ATM, shopping, dining, checking in at the train station, hotel, suggested a couple additional very entertaining art events. Was also punctual and spoke good English. more
Nov 2023,
Wayne S.
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Chengdu and surrounding area tours
Our guide Helen was the complete package. She guided us every step with deep knowledge and energy. But, that's not all. She bought us snacks for the optional kungfu show. She helped us check into every hotel and inspected our room to ensure it was perfect. She translated at every need. She even bought a bamboo stick to help us ward off some aggressive monkeys. We had 4 lovely days with Helen and our excellent driver, Mr. Wu. Highly recommended! more
Nov 2023,
Chris
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Like a dream come true, but better
The experience itself was above and beyond what was described. The driver and vehicle was spotless and on time, the lantern festival and seats were like something from a wonderful dream. The lesson to make kratong and the dinner after were perfect. This whole experience has been a dream come true and I cannot recommend it enough. more
Nov 2023,
Diana B
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excellent communication
Bangkok guide Mr. Samart was great, and saw to all our needs. Mr. Chong in Chaing Mai was fun and very sweet. (5 Stars, Mr. Chong!) Finally, Nittaya is experienced, flexible to our needs, and took good care of us right to the flight out. more
Nov 2023,
Abigail Kamelhair
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We really enjoyed touring Chiang Mai
She met us at the airport and accompanied us on hiking tours, market visits, temple and pagoda tours, and our Thai cooking class, and then returned us safely to the airport where she helped us navigate the check-in process. more
Nov 2023,
Steve
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Excellent Siem Reap tour guide
He shared his vast knowledge about the Angkor temples, the Cambodian culture, the Khmer people, and the Khmer spirituality, in both historical and modern times. I appreciated how he connected Cambodia with other countries in Southeast Asia, as I had visited these countries prior to Sam's excellent tour. more
Nov 2023,
Baha
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Everything worked very well
Everything worked very well, for the second time I used Asia Highlights' service, and I'm already planning the third time, I have to praise the attention given by Sharon and Amir, who went beyond the professional service, during the trip, my wife Teresa had to carrying out a surgical procedure in India, and Sharon and Amir were tireless so that we could have peace of mind during that urgent moment. We would like to express our gratitude to these two professionals, and see you soon. more
Nov 2023,
William Roberto Guedes
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How to Travel Around China
Air travel and high-speed rail are the main modes of travel and also the most convenient options for intercity connections. Almost every major city is connected by high-speed rail and an airport.
When booking with us, let us know your travel preferences, and we will arrange the best travel routes for you, seamlessly booking the flight/train tickets you need.
Tour China with Us
Whether you're interested in history, culture, or natural beauty, there's something for everyone in China. Let's create your dream trip! All our tours can be customized. Just contact us.
- 11-Day Beijing, Xi'an, Guilin, and Shanghai — the TOP itinerary for first-timers
- 12-Day Panda Keeper and Classic Wonders — the above plus pandas
- 8-Day Beijing–Xi'an–Shanghai Highlights Tour — the classic Golden Triangle itinerary