Tour Code: P-SHYNSCXPB-30D
Shanghai · Kunming · Dali · Lijiang · Shangri-La · Deqin · Xiangcheng · Litang · Kangding · Hailuogou · Mount Siguniang · Dujiangyan · Chengdu · Xi’an · Pingyao · Beijing
Begin beside the Huangpu River in Shanghai and follow a changing landscape west through Yunnan: Kunming’s limestone formations, Dali’s Bai villages and lake shores, Lijiang’s Naxi heritage, and the monasteries and highland lakes around Shangri-La. Workshops in tie-dye and silver craft bring the route into the hands of local makers, while time in old towns adds detail beyond the headline sights.
The journey’s defining passage runs from Deqin into western Sichuan. The Jinsha River valleys lead to Xiangcheng’s white houses and the Tibetan town of Litang, followed by Xinduqiao, Kangding, Hailuogou and the mountain scenery of Shuangqiao Valley. This is an active overland route with substantial driving, high elevations and several one-night stops. Three nights in Shangri-La provide a pause before the more demanding mountain stages.
After Mount Qingcheng and Dujiangyan, the route turns toward Chengdu’s pandas and teahouse city, Xi’an’s imperial archaeology, the merchant courtyards of Pingyao and Beijing’s palaces and Great Wall. Thirty days connect these regions without treating them as interchangeable stops: each has its own buildings, landscapes, food traditions and ways of life. The mountain stages and full transfer days are planned around your dates, with the option to add nights where you would like more time.
Arrive in Shanghai, where your driver meets you for a private transfer to your hotel. The rest of the day is free to settle in and recover from the flight.
There is no scheduled sightseeing today. Rest at the hotel or explore nearby at your own pace before two full days among Shanghai’s gardens, waterfront and historic neighbourhoods.
Accommodation: Shanghai
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Not included today
Start with the courtyards, rockeries and carefully framed views of Yu Garden. Its intimate spaces offer a different sense of scale from the modern city outside. Continue to City God Temple and the surrounding old-town streets, where temple traditions and a busy commercial district sit alongside one another. The programme then moves to Nanjing Road, with time to walk its pedestrian stretch and take in Shanghai’s retail bustle.
At the Bund, follow the Huangpu waterfront past the historic facades facing Pudong. Across the river, the Oriental Pearl Tower punctuates the skyline. Today’s view is from the riverfront; an ascent of the tower is not part of this day’s plan.
Oriental Pearl Tower is viewed from a distance; tower admission is not included.
Accommodation: Shanghai
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Spend a second day exploring Shanghai at street level. Wukang Road introduces tree-lined pavements and distinctive residential buildings, with time to notice doorways, balconies and the changing rhythm of the neighbourhood. Nearby Anfu Road adds independent shops, cafes and the everyday movement of a popular city street. Walking these areas gives a more personal impression of Shanghai than its skyline alone.
Continue to Xintiandi, where adapted shikumen buildings frame modern shopping and dining spaces. Tianzifang offers a different arrangement of narrow lanes, small shops and older residential fabric. Together, the four neighbourhoods reveal several ways Shanghai has reused its historic streets while remaining a working, contemporary city.
Accommodation: Shanghai
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
A private transfer takes you to the airport for your flight to Kunming. On arrival, continue to your hotel and settle into Yunnan’s provincial capital. The flight is the main commitment today, creating a clear transition from Shanghai’s coast to the landscapes and cultures of southwest China. The exact flight and transfer times will follow the services available for your chosen dates.
If you feel like going out after check-in, an optional self-guided evening can take in the Jinma Biji Archway, Kunming Old Town and Nanqiang Street Night Market. Browse the food stalls and choose a meal at your own pace. This evening outing remains optional and self-guided.
The optional evening outing is self-guided; food and personal purchases are at your own expense.
Accommodation: Kunming
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Travel out of Kunming to the Stone Forest, where limestone pillars, narrow passages and open viewpoints create a landscape quite unlike the city. Follow the scenic paths to see how the formations change with your position: a cluster of vertical stone can become a line of sharp ridges, then open into a wider clearing. There is time on foot to appreciate the smaller textures as well as the broader views.
Return to Kunming for a walk around Green Lake Park, also known as Cuihu. Lakeside paths and city life provide a gentler finish after the excursion. You spend another night in Kunming before continuing toward Dali tomorrow.
Accommodation: Kunming
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Take the high-speed train from Kunming to Dali, then begin exploring the landscape between Cangshan Mountain and Erhai Lake. The Chongsheng Three Pagodas are the day’s principal landmark, their distinct silhouettes introducing the region’s long Buddhist history. Allow time to look at the setting as well as the buildings before moving into Dali Ancient Town.
Walk through the old town’s streets around Red Dragon Well, Foreigner Street and Wuhua Tower. These stops bring together stone lanes, familiar meeting places and the busy life of a town that still welcomes travellers from many directions. Tonight is the first of two nights in Dali, with a full day around Erhai still to come.
Accommodation: Dali
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Explore Xizhou Ancient Town and its Bai architectural traditions before trying a tie-dye activity. Folding, binding and dyeing cloth introduces a craft that is easy to recognise in finished fabric but more revealing when seen as a sequence of practical steps. Continue to the Erhai Ecological Corridor, choosing either a bicycle ride or a sightseeing vehicle for this part of the lakeside route.
The day also includes afternoon tea at Ideal State, the hillside development known for its white, Mediterranean-inspired buildings. A ferry trip to Jinsuo Island leads to the Dragon Palace cave, adding an underground landscape to the lake views. These stops span several parts of Erhai, making this one of the fuller days in Yunnan.
Cycling and the sightseeing vehicle are alternatives. An early start allows time for the lake circuit, ferry, cave and afternoon tea.
Accommodation: Dali
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Leave Dali for Xinhua Village in Heqing, where silverworking is an important part of village life. Visit local craftspeople and take part in the silver-making experience arranged for your visit. Watching and working with the material gives a different perspective from simply looking at finished objects in a shop; personal purchases remain a matter of choice.
Continue to Lijiang and explore the old town’s lanes and waterways. The route takes in Mu Mansion, Sifang Square and the Big Stone Bridge, then continues through Dayan Flower Lane toward the Giant Water Wheel. This first walk introduces the town’s layout before tomorrow’s visits to Baisha and Shuhe.
Personal purchases and any optional workshop upgrades are separate from the arranged experience.
Accommodation: Lijiang
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
With only local transfers today, there is more time to explore the settlements around Lijiang. Begin in Baisha Ancient Town, where village streets and traditional buildings provide the setting for the Baisha Murals. The painted scenes reward close attention to their figures and religious imagery, bringing another layer to the Naxi cultural history introduced in Lijiang yesterday.
Continue to Shuhe Ancient Town, walking its lanes and visiting the Ancient Tea Horse Road Museum. The museum helps place these towns within the wider networks through which goods, ideas and people once travelled. Return to Lijiang for a second night before the route climbs toward Shangri-La.
Accommodation: Lijiang
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Travel north toward Shangri-La, stopping at Upper Tiger Leaping Gorge to see the Jinsha River pressed between steep mountain walls. The proposed visit uses the gorge’s sightseeing escalator alongside the viewing paths, helping connect the different levels of the developed visitor area. It is a gorge visit rather than a multi-day trek, with the river and rock faces forming the central experience.
Continue through the changing highland landscape to Xiaozhongdian’s meadows. Their appearance follows the season, from green grassland to autumn colour; particular flowers are not guaranteed. Arrive in Shangri-La for the first of three nights, with time to settle in before the following days of local exploration.
Highland travel and walking should be paced to the individual. Meadow flowers and colours vary by season.
Accommodation: Shangri-La
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Visit Songzanlin Monastery, whose assembly halls and surrounding buildings rise above the landscape outside Shangri-La. The visit introduces a living Tibetan Buddhist institution, with attention to its architecture, devotional spaces and the customs that shape a respectful visit. Take the steps and courtyards at a measured pace rather than treating the monastery as a quick viewpoint.
Later, walk through Dukezong Ancient Town, a former stopping place on regional trading routes. Continue to the giant prayer wheel, where you can observe the practice of turning it and participate respectfully where permitted. Another night in Shangri-La keeps the day focused on local places before tomorrow’s excursion to the lakes and forests of Pudacuo.
Follow local guidance on photography and conduct in religious spaces.
Accommodation: Shangri-La
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Make a return excursion to Pudacuo National Park for a day among highland lakes, forest and wetlands. Explore the accessible lakeside paths at Shudu Lake and the open sections of the Bita Lake area, following the park’s current visitor circuit. Walking beside the water changes the pace after the monastery and old town, with mountain slopes, reflected light and vegetation drawing attention to the landscape’s quieter details.
Continue to the Hongpo Pass stop for prayer flags and highland views. The mountain scenery varies with the weather, giving the route a different character from day to day. Return to Shangri-La for a third night before travelling onward to Deqin.
Some Pudacuo areas are closed to visitors; the visit follows the open routes and does not promise the full Bita Lake circuit.
Accommodation: Shangri-La
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
The road toward Deqin brings together river valleys, Tibetan religious heritage and increasingly dramatic mountain scenery. Stop at the horseshoe bend of the Jinsha River to see the water curve around the land below, then visit Dongzhulin Monastery. The contrast between a broad natural view and the details of the monastery gives the journey more texture than a single long transfer.
Continue through the Baima Snow Mountain area toward Wunongding, a viewpoint facing the Meili range. Watch how cloud and light reveal or conceal the peaks, without relying on a particular colour or a guaranteed clear summit. Stay in Deqin after this substantial mountain travel day.
Meili mountain visibility depends on weather. The chance to see first light on the peaks comes early tomorrow morning.
Accommodation: Deqin
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
An early start offers a chance to see the first sunlight touch the Meili peaks, weather permitting. After breakfast, leave Deqin and continue via Derong toward Xiangcheng. Much of the day belongs to the road, following the Jinsha River gorge and dry valleys that contrast with the higher mountain country. Exposed slopes, cultivated pockets and settlements reveal how people live within this varied landscape.
In Xiangcheng, look closely at the distinctive white Tibetan houses that give the surrounding villages their character. Their pale walls stand out against fields and hills, introducing a different architectural tradition from the towns visited earlier in Yunnan. Settle in for the night before tomorrow’s onward drive to Litang.
Sunrise colours and clear mountain views cannot be guaranteed. A substantial overland travel day follows the morning viewpoint.
Accommodation: Xiangcheng
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Travel from Xiangcheng toward Litang through a succession of mountain landscapes and passes. The high-elevation setting shapes both the drive and the pace of the visits after arrival, so this is a day for measured movement and a realistic timetable. The planned town walk centres on Letong Ancient Town and the Tibetan residential area often described as the Thousand-Household Village.
The programme also includes the memorial hall associated with the poet Tsangyang Gyatso and a visit to Ganden Thubchen Choekhorling Monastery. Together, these stops introduce local religious life, remembered cultural figures and the streets of Litang itself. Remain in Litang overnight before following the road east toward Kangding.
The transfer and all listed visits must fit a workable arrival timetable. Litang’s high elevation requires advance suitability review; this itinerary does not assume acclimatisation is guaranteed.
Accommodation: Litang
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Continue east from Litang through the landscapes associated with the Sichuan–Tibet highway: Kazila Mountain, the Eighteen Turns of the Heavenly Road and the Gaoersi Mountain area form part of this changing highland corridor. Around Xinduqiao, attention turns to the relationship between villages, fields, trees and the surrounding slopes. The journey follows the practical road route rather than requiring a stop at every pass.
A detour to Yuzixi adds a broad mountain viewpoint, with views toward the Gongga range in suitable conditions. Continue through the Zheduo Mountain area toward Kangding. The scenic stops and viewpoint make this a full road day, allowing time to appreciate the landscape outside the vehicle as well as from the road.
The mountain-road route and Yuzixi visit follow road and access conditions. Clear views of Gongga are weather-dependent.
Accommodation: Kangding
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Begin in Kangding with a visit to Paoma Mountain, a place closely associated with the city’s celebrated folk-song tradition. Its slopes provide another perspective on the town before the journey continues toward Luding. At Luding Iron Chain Bridge, the structure itself and its historical setting bring a different subject into the route after several days focused on Tibetan settlements and highland scenery.
Continue to Moxi Ancient Town at the approach to Hailuogou. Walk its streets and notice the mix of local traditions and buildings in this mountain gateway. The arranged mountain hot-spring experience is placed this evening, giving you time to unwind while leaving tomorrow for the glacier excursion and onward drive. Spend the night in the Hailuogou or Moxi area.
Accommodation: Hailuogou / Moxi
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Enter Hailuogou by the park shuttle and continue via Ganheba, with the cable car to Camp No. 4 planned when it is operating. From the open viewing areas, look across the glacier-carved valley toward the glacier and Great Icefall. The appearance of the ice and the visibility of the surrounding mountains change with weather and season, making the actual landscape more varied than a fixed photograph suggests.
Return downhill using the scenic-area transport, then continue by private vehicle to Lushan in Sichuan for the night. This is a full sightseeing and travel day. The hot-spring experience is arranged on the previous evening so that today’s timing can focus on the park and onward road journey.
The visit follows the open viewing areas and the cable car’s operating status. Glacier appearance and mountain visibility vary with conditions.
Accommodation: Lushan, Sichuan
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Leave Lushan early for the mountain drive to Mount Siguniang via the Baoxing–Jiajinshan route. An early departure protects time for Shuangqiao Valley, a major scenic excursion that deserves more than a brief roadside stop. On arrival, use the park shuttle to reach the upper valley, then make scenic stops and short walks on the return journey.
Inside Shuangqiao, the changing views bring together mountain faces, forest, open meadow and highland water. Walking at the stops is paced to the conditions and the available return services. Stay in the Mount Siguniang area after the visit, placing you on the onward route toward Qingcheng rather than adding a return drive to Lushan.
An early start is essential for this full travel and sightseeing day. Valley visits follow admission windows and the last return shuttles.
Accommodation: Mount Siguniang area
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Leave the Mount Siguniang area early for Mount Qingcheng, where wooded paths and Taoist buildings replace the open highland scenery. The mountain circuit starts at the main gate, crosses Moon City Lake by boat and uses the cable car uphill. From Shangqing Palace, continue toward Laojun Pavilion for views over the surrounding hills when conditions allow.
The descent follows the Nine Turns Trail and visits Tianshi Cave and Wudongtian (Fifth Grotto-Heaven) before returning to the gate. Continue to Dujiangyan for the night, with an evening walk beside the illuminated river scenery often called the Blue Tears. The mountain circuit and evening visit make this a full day after the transfer, with a substantial amount of walking.
An early departure supports the mountain programme. Boat and cable-car use, trails and evening illumination follow operating and weather conditions.
Accommodation: Dujiangyan
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Return to Dujiangyan in daylight to explore the historic irrigation system. Seeing how the river channels, structures and surrounding terrain work together gives context to a place that is more than an isolated monument. The visit follows last night’s waterside scenery with a closer look at the engineering and its continuing role in the region.
Continue to Chengdu, where the programme takes in Kuanzhai Alleys, Wuhou Shrine and Jinli Ancient Street. The alleys introduce a familiar form of Sichuan courtyard streetscape; Wuhou Shrine adds the history and cultural memory of the Three Kingdoms period. Jinli finishes the day among pedestrian lanes, local food stalls and shops.
Accommodation: Chengdu
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Visit Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding to observe pandas in their managed habitats. Allow time to move between the viewing areas and appreciate the animals without making the visit depend on a particular moment of activity. The rest of the Chengdu programme takes in Chunxi Road and Taikoo Li, whose shopping streets and contemporary architecture offer a contrast with yesterday’s historic places.
A private transfer takes you to the railway station for your high-speed train to Xi’an. Sightseeing is coordinated with an afternoon or evening departure that allows time for the panda base, Chunxi Road and Taikoo Li. On arrival, your local driver meets you for the transfer to your hotel, the first of three nights in the ancient capital.
Panda activity varies. A compatible train departure is needed to retain the panda base, Chunxi Road and Taikoo Li in this day.
Accommodation: Xi’an
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Travel out of Xi’an to the Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum, where the excavated pits reveal the scale and detail of Qin Shi Huang’s funerary army. Continue to Lishan Garden, the archaeological park around the First Qin Emperor’s mausoleum, to explore another part of the same imperial complex. Huaqing Palace adds a separate chapter of royal history and garden architecture to the excursion.
Back in the city, explore the Muslim Quarter and the area around the Bell and Drum Towers. Food stalls, busy lanes and the towers’ silhouettes provide a lively end to a day centred on archaeology. This is a full programme, with the order and length of visits needing a realistic local schedule.
An early start leaves time for the Terracotta Warriors, mausoleum park and Huaqing Palace before returning to the city.
Accommodation: Xi’an
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
The proposed day begins with a full circuit of Xi’an’s Ancient City Wall by bicycle. Riding the broad ramparts reveals the city’s historic outline and changing views on either side, with gates, towers and modern streets providing points of reference along the way. The cycling plan should match each traveller’s ability, the weather and the operator’s access rules.
Continue to Da Ci’en Temple and the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda to explore a major setting for Xi’an’s Buddhist heritage. The itinerary includes the temple and pagoda site; climbing inside the pagoda is not specified. In the evening, walk through Datang Everbright City, where illuminated streets and Tang-inspired architecture create a contemporary interpretation of the ancient capital.
Full-circuit cycling follows individual suitability and operating conditions. Pagoda ascent is not included unless expressly listed in your proposal.
Accommodation: Xi’an
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Take the high-speed train from Xi’an to Pingyao, then enter the old city’s network of streets and courtyards. The Confucian Temple and Town God Temple introduce two different strands of civic and religious life, their buildings offering a quieter counterpoint to the commercial streets nearby. With two nights here, the visit continues beyond a single walk through the centre.
Explore South Street and the Ming and Qing commercial streets, noticing shopfronts and the spaces once used by merchant businesses. There is time to look for local Shanxi food as you walk. The day also includes the old city’s evening light show, subject to the programme operating on your travel date.
The evening light show depends on the current schedule and conditions; it is not guaranteed on every date.
Accommodation: Pingyao
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Spend a full day examining the institutions behind Pingyao’s merchant history. At Rishengchang Exchange Shop, the story moves beyond buying and selling to the movement of money across long distances. Continue to Xietongqing Bank for a closer look at the merchant houses’ financial operations, including the underground vault area on the visitor route. The buildings and displays help explain how trust and practical security supported trade.
The old Escort Agency halls reveal another side of commerce: protecting people and goods on the road. At Pingyao County Yamen, attention turns to local administration and the spaces in which official business took place. Together, these visits give the old streets a fuller meaning before your onward journey to Beijing.
Accommodation: Pingyao
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Take an early high-speed train from Pingyao to Beijing for the final stage of the journey. After meeting your local team, visit Temple of Heaven Park while its daytime visiting hours allow time to appreciate the landscape and architecture of imperial ritual.
Continue to Qianmen Street, the historic commercial district south of the old city centre. Later, explore Shichahai and its lakeside hutongs, where narrow lanes open onto water and lively gathering places. Finish at your hotel for the first of three nights in Beijing.
An early train is needed for the full afternoon programme. The sightseeing order prioritises Temple of Heaven Park’s opening hours.
Accommodation: Beijing
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Begin at Tiananmen Square, then explore the Forbidden City, also known as the Palace Museum. Its sequence of gates, courtyards and halls makes the scale of the former imperial complex tangible as you move through it. The visit should be paced for the distance on foot rather than treated as a list of buildings to rush past.
Continue to Jingshan Park for a view back over the palace rooftops and the capital’s central axis. Later, walk Nanluoguxiang and the surrounding hutong setting, shifting from ceremonial spaces to a lively neighbourhood street. Reservations and the Palace Museum’s opening calendar determine the final order of Beijing’s sightseeing days.
Tiananmen Square and Palace Museum access require arrangements for the actual travel dates; the Beijing day order may need adjustment around closure days.
Accommodation: Beijing
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Travel to Mutianyu for a walk on the Great Wall. The restored battlements follow the mountain contours, with watchtowers marking the route and views changing as you gain or lose height. The wall includes steep steps and uneven sections, so the walking distance should suit your party rather than follow a fixed target. A cable car, chairlift or toboggan can be discussed separately if you would prefer assisted access.
Return toward the city and visit Olympic Green for a different expression of Beijing’s architecture. See the Bird’s Nest National Stadium and Water Cube National Aquatics Center from outside, taking in their forms and the surrounding public spaces before your final night in Beijing.
Bird’s Nest and Water Cube are exterior visits. Great Wall cable car, chairlift or toboggan use is not assumed.
Accommodation: Beijing
Hotel: Handpicked boutique hotel (Local 4-Star Standard or above)
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Enjoy your final hotel breakfast before your private airport transfer, arranged around your confirmed departure flight. There is no scheduled sightseeing today.
Your journey ends in Beijing after 29 nights, having connected Shanghai’s waterfront, Yunnan’s old towns, the mountain roads of western Sichuan and the historic cities of northern China.
Accommodation: No overnight stay
Your journey concludes in Beijing.
Meals: Hotel breakfast included
Handpicked boutique hotels at local 4-star standard or above: Shanghai 3 nights, Kunming 2, Dali 2, Lijiang 2, Shangri-La 3, Deqin 1, Xiangcheng 1, Litang 1, Kangding 1, Hailuogou / Moxi 1, Lushan 1, Mount Siguniang 1, Dujiangyan 1, Chengdu 1, Xi’an 3, Pingyao 2 and Beijing 3.
Breakfast at your hotels on Days 2–30. Lunches and dinners are left open for you to choose.
The listed Shanghai–Kunming flight and high-speed rail journeys from Kunming to Dali, Chengdu to Xi’an, Xi’an to Pingyao and Pingyao to Beijing. Private vehicles cover the arranged road journeys and local transfers. Flight and train class, schedules and any connections are detailed in your final proposal; scheduled services are shared.
Private local English-speaking guides for the scheduled sightseeing, with regional teams coordinating the handovers along the route.
Main admission tickets for the sights listed in the agreed itinerary, including the principal gardens, temples, museums, old-town sites, mountain scenic areas and the Great Wall. Access follows reservation requirements and operating conditions. Optional activities, separately ticketed extras and unlisted interior admissions are not added automatically.
Bai tie-dye and Xinhua silver craft, afternoon tea at Ideal State, your selected Erhai corridor activity, Jinsuo Island ferry and Dragon Palace visit, the Tiger Leaping Gorge escalator, a Hailuogou-area hot-spring visit, the listed park shuttles and mountain transport, and Xi’an city-wall cycling. Optional upgrades, extra materials and personal purchases are separate.
International flights to and from China, visa fees and other personal entry-related expenses.
Lunches and dinners throughout the route, allowing you to choose according to your tastes and appetite. Other food and drinks not expressly listed are also excluded.
Your own travel insurance and any additional cover appropriate to your circumstances and the mountain activities in the route.
Optional outings, independently arranged visits, separately charged performances, special exhibitions, workshop upgrades or extra materials, and services not expressly included in the agreed proposal. The Day 4 Kunming evening is self-guided. Great Wall lifts or toboggan, Giant Wild Goose Pagoda ascent and unlisted tower or stadium interiors are not assumed to be included.
Shopping, personal craft purchases, laundry, minibar charges and gratuities for guides, drivers or other service staff.
The tour starts from US$7,954 per person, based on two adults sharing one room in a local 4-star hotel during the low season. Final pricing depends on travel dates, group size, hotels, itinerary adjustments and availability. Parties of four or more can often receive a better per-person price. This is a private tour arranged for your own party.
The trip includes 29 nights in handpicked boutique hotels at local 4-star standard or above, with 29 breakfasts on Days 2–30. Lunches and dinners are at your own expense. Hotel selections and any requested upgrades are detailed in the proposal for your travel dates.
Its defining section is the overland journey from Yunnan into western Sichuan. After Kunming, Dali, Lijiang and Shangri-La, the route continues through Deqin, Xiangcheng, Litang and Kangding, then visits Hailuogou and Mount Siguniang before reaching Chengdu. Shanghai, Xi’an, Pingyao and Beijing provide the city and historical chapters around this mountain journey.
The route starts in Shanghai and finishes in Beijing. The itinerary has 30 days and 29 nights, with no hotel night on the departure day. A domestic flight connects Shanghai and Kunming; later stages combine road travel with high-speed rail.
It is an active, wide-ranging itinerary. Several mountain stages involve substantial driving and one-night stops, while visits to old towns, monasteries, mountain viewpoints and the Great Wall require time on foot. The Dali lake circuit, western Sichuan stages and some city transfer days are especially full. Extra nights can be discussed if you would prefer more space between visits.
Yes. This is an active journey with long road days, regular walking and a sustained high-altitude section, including a night in Litang at about 4,014 metres. Three nights in Shangri-La provide a pause before later mountain stages, but do not guarantee acclimatisation. Consider the route with your pace and altitude needs in mind. If you have concerns about altitude or an existing medical condition, discuss the trip with a qualified travel-health professional before booking.
The proposed route uses a flight from Shanghai to Kunming, high-speed rail from Kunming to Dali, and road travel through Yunnan and western Sichuan. High-speed trains then connect Chengdu, Xi’an, Pingyao and Beijing. Exact services, travel class and the practical mountain-road sequence must be matched to the travel dates.
No. Meili, Gongga and the other mountain views depend on cloud and weather. Hailuogou’s open visitor areas, cable car and glacier-viewing route must be checked for the trip dates. Meadow flowers, hot-spring arrangements, scenic boats and evening light displays also follow seasonal or operating conditions.
This itinerary does not include Jade Dragon Snow Mountain or the Tibet Autonomous Region. It visits Lijiang’s old towns, then Tibetan cultural areas in Yunnan and western Sichuan, including Shangri-La, Deqin, Xiangcheng and Litang.
Scheduled flights and trains are shared public services, as are public scenic-area shuttles, cable cars and the ferry to Jinsuo Island. The word private does not imply a chartered flight, train, boat or exclusive access to a scenic area.
The Kunming evening outing on Day 4 is optional and self-guided. On the Erhai Ecological Corridor, cycling and the sightseeing vehicle are alternatives. The Oriental Pearl Tower is viewed from a distance, while the Bird’s Nest and Water Cube are exterior visits. Climbing the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda or using a lift or toboggan at Mutianyu is not included unless expressly listed in your proposal.
Yes. The itinerary can be used as the starting point for a private journey shaped around your dates and interests. Discuss walking distances, extra nights, hotel preferences and the more demanding mountain stages before the programme is finalised. Any change should preserve the places you want to see and be reflected in the agreed schedule and quotation.
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30-Day China Private Tour: Yunnan, Western Sichuan & Ancient Capitals
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