SUMMER TOUR August 3-13 2009  FALL TOUR November 9-19 2009

 

   

 

Travel Itinerary: 

We land in Shanghai and witness the “Future Shock:” Soaring skyscrapers, elevated highways, bridges and a level of sophistication seen in very few countries. We will take a panoramic view over the river Hongpu and after dinner drive to our hotel.

Suzhou : In the morning we will depart to the garden city of Suzhou. We’ll be amazed by the canals in this “Venice” of China. We’ll visit a silk factory, where we’ll view the silk production process: from the silkworm to a fashion show. We’ll marvel at one of the local palaces, its architecture and beautiful gardens. In the evening we’ll be delighted to invite you to a show about Chinese culture which takes place in a most beautiful palace and garden.

Shanghai:After breakfast we will return to Shanghai. Upon arrival, we’ll tour the Jewish Quarter – a fascinating and unique story in itself. We’ll continue to the Yu-Yuan neighborhood, Shanghai’s “Chinatown” with its bustling shopping center and beautiful gardens. After that we’ll make our way to the Shanghai City Planning Museum, where we’ll see how this amazing ultramodern city will look in the year 2020.
In the evenings we recommend a cruise on the river from where the beauty of Shanghai by Night can be experienced from an entirely different and amazing vantage point, as well as one of China’s amazing acrobatic shows.

Beijing: The Forbidden City and Jingshan Park
Today we’ll visit the very heart of Beijing - the Forbidden City. Built in the 16th century, as the palace of China’s Ming Dynasty Emperors, it’s an impressive example of traditional Chinese architecture. We’ll traverse the entire length of the Forbidden City, as we view the many splendid palaces and vast courtyards. Used as the set for the film “The Last Emperor”, it was indeed forbidden to the Chinese masses until the onset of the revolution at the beginning of the 20th century. We’ll also visit one of the city’s parks from where we’ll be able to see the Forbidden City from a completely different vantage. In the evening we recommend seeing the spectacular Chinese Acrobatic Show

The Art of Cloisonné and Chinese Calligraphy is one of the specialties of this region, and we’ll watch how it’s made at a factory on our way from Beijing. We’ll continue from there to the Great Wall, located some two hours drive northwest of Beijing. This is the most identified site in all of China and tops the list of the man-made wonders of the world. Urban legend holds that it’s visible from space.

The Summer Palace & the Hutongs
This morning we’ll set out to tour the Summer Palace. We’ll view the palaces, gardens and lake where the emperors of China would relax and retreat, among them the Empress Dowager Cixi and her family. Today it’s one of the favorite relaxation spots for tourists and local residents, where they can get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. The gardens are spectacular and the lake is quite breathtaking. Along the lakeshore runs the world’s longest passage, built completely of wood and decorated with the most exquisite Chinese art, it runs for over a kilometer. We’ll sail on the lake, from where we’ll be able to view the Empress’ famous Marble Boat.
From the Summer Palace we’ll continue to tour Beijing’s old Hutong neighborhoods. These neighborhoods are slowly being destroyed by the Beijing Municipality as they make way for new, attractive public housing projects. It’s worthwhile to see them now as they will soon have disappeared from Bejing’s urban scene.
In the evening we recommend taking in the astonishing Kung Fu Show.
The Temple of Heaven  is the largest spiritual Daoist building in all of China. Here the emperors would communicate with Heaven, pleading for beneficence from the gods, successful crops, forgiveness for the people, and mainly to ensconce the mandate given to the Emperor by the gods. Design of the temple is based up Feng Shui.
In the morning we’ll join some of the city’s elders as they do their Tai Chi in the park. We’ll watch (and join with) people who only walk backwards, tree huggers, ballroom dancers, fan and sword exercises and card players. We might even join a Chinese choir! The park was declared an UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998. It’s the most impressive place in all of Beijing. We’ll also visit a pearl factory and watch the manufacturing process from the removal from the clam till its final appearance in a piece of jewelry or in cosmetic creams.
Of course, we’ll leave time for shopping – China has become an attractive and interesting world leader in this field as well.  

 

 

 COMPREHENSIVE TOUR OF CHINA:

 

 

 

SUMMER TOUR August18-27 2009     WINTER TOUR December 3-16 2009 

 

      

 

   

 

   

 

 

Travel Itinerary: 

We land in Shanghai and depart immediately to the city of Suzhou. In the evening we’ll be delighted to invite you to a show about Chinese culture which takes place in a most beautiful palace and garden.

Visit Suzhou – the “Venice” of China. We’ll be amazed by the canals as we make our way to a silk factory, where we’ll view the silk production process: from the silkworm to a fashion show.
The hour’s drive from Suzhou to Shanghai is a journey from an ancient culture to “Future Shock:” soaring skyscrapers, elevated highways, bridges and a level of sophistication seen in very few countries.
After arrival and dinner, we’ll stroll along the Bund, Shanghai’s world famous riverside promenade. We recommend a cruise on the river from where the beauty of Shanghai by Night can be experienced from an entirely different and amazing vantage point.

Tour of Shanghai we’ll acquaint ourselves with its varying characteristics. We’ll tour the Jewish Quarter – a fascinating and unique story in itself. From there we’ll continue to the Yu-Yuan neighborhood, Shanghai’s “Chinatown” with its bustling shopping center and beautiful gardens. We’ll ascend to the top of one of the skyscrapers for a bird’s-eye view of the city. After that we’ll make our way to the Shanghai City Planning Museum, where we’ll see how this amazing ultramodern city will look in the year 2020

Travel to  Lijiang, a city in Yunan province, which lies at the foot of the high Tibetan plains, and which was declared by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.  Stroll through the city’s alleyways, see how the river runs through the city’s neighborhoods, and take in a dance show by a local Naxi minority troupe

Tour the Tiger Leaping Gorge. This is the deepest canyon in the world ever cut by a river. The canyon runs about 16 kilometers, stretching between two mountainside villages. We’ll take an easy hike to the gorge. Here we’ll view the glorious first bend of the Yangtze River, the fourth longest river in the world, which runs from high in the Himalayan Mountains along a 6,000 kilometer route through central China. 

 Visit a captivating natural phenomena in the world, a forest of rocks and lakes, incomparable scenery and charming local minority peoples. The Large Stone Forest, in which rocks grow from the water, is surrounded by exquisite gardens and service by colorful-clothed people. Afterwards, we’ll also visit some breathtaking Karst caves in the area, and then head for Kunming.

A morning flight will bring us to Beijing, capital of China. Immediately after arrival, we’ll head out to visit the Summer Palace. We’ll view the palaces, gardens and lake where the emperors of China would relax and retreat.

walking tour of central Beijing. We’ll stroll through Tiananmen Square and see the Mausoleum where Chairman Mao is buried, the Chinese parliament, and one of the old Hutong neighborhoods

We’ll make an early departure for the greatest wall in the world. The Great Wall of China is the largest construction project ever undertaken by man – measuring over 7,000 kilometers. Large sections of the wall were built between the 7th and 4th centuries BCE, over 2500 years ago. For hundreds of years, according to security needs arising from political conflicts in different ages, some sections of the Great Wall of China were added and strengthened while other sections were neglected. The Great Wall is made up of three primary components: passes, signal- and watch towers, and defensive walls. Walking along the Great Wall will enable us to sense the historical dimension of the visit.
Later on, we’ll visit a Chinese health center and enjoy an invigorating reflexology treatment. Afterwards we’ll return to Beijing

 

 

 

(We offer Cell phone rental:

Global Cellular Rental Tel. 800-931-9773 

Mention Unlimited Flights & Tours and the phone rental is FREE 

Insurance (optional) – 1.00 per day

Incoming calls - .29 per minute           

Outgoing calls within China -.29 per minute

Outgoing to U.S.A.-.99 per minute

 

VISA TO CHINA IS REQUIRED

to download visa form click on the site below

http://www.china-embassy.org/chn/hzqz/zgqz/P020070611087242661716.pdf