Cultural and Natural Heritage Exploration in China

Cultural and Natural Heritage Exploration on the Land of Abundance

8 days | 7 nights

Tour Type

Destinations

Tour Code

Tour Map

Highlights Itinerary Pricing Inclusions/Exclusions Important Info

Highlights

Itinerary

D1: Arrive in Chengdu

Upon your arrival in Chengdu, our CET reps will meet you, transfer you to your hotel, and check-in. We can walk around Hejiang Pavillion near the Jinjiang River if time permits. Enjoy our welcoming dinner followed by a tour introduction and instruction meeting, at the hotel or somewhere nearby.

Meals included:

D2: Chengdu – Dujiangyan City

Today we depart downtown Chengdu and head for one of the satellite cities of Chengdu named Dujiangyan. On route we will pay a visit to [Sichuan Cuisine Museum], as which name suggests, a facility dedicated to preserving and showcasing Sichuan-styled cuisine. We will participate in a cooking session allowing you to make your own Sichuan cuisine for lunch.
In the afternoon our tour continues to [Dujiangyan Irrigation Project], a UNESCO-listed world heritage. We will walk for about 3 hours along the Songpan-Maoxian ancient pass to enter the 2000-year-old project.

Meals included: Breakfast

Day 3: Dujiangyan - Mt. Qingcheng - Dujiangyan

Our tour continues in Dujiangyan area today. We will go to [Panda base] and take part in [a panda volunteer program]. We will walk into the enclosure of Panda with guidance of staff and [experience a half day work as Panda keeper].

In the afternoon, we will hike in [Mt.Qingcheng], a place considered the birthplace of Chinese Taoism. The hiking will take 3.5-4.5 hours. Hiking starts at 660m above sea level and finishes at 1220m.

Meals included: Breakfast

Day 4: Dujiangyan city - Pingle Town

The bus will take us from Dujiangyan city to Shi Fangtang Hotel for hiking, and visit [the local market] on the way. The hiking route for today is about 14km. We will hike to [Pingle old town]. This small ancient town was vital in the ancient southern silk route. You will find many relics from Ming and Qing Dynasties.

Meals included: Breakfast

Day 5: Pingle Town – E’mei City

Today we will take the bus to Jiaguan Town, the place where we will start our hiking(10km) to [Niunianping Tea Garden], then take the bus to Guoxi. Continue our hiking(13km) to Ming mountain. Hiking through fruit farms, tea plantations and cropland. We will be transferred to E’mei city by bus after hiking.

Meals included: Breakfast

Day 6: E’mei City – Leshan City

We will spend most of the day exploring the [Mountain Emei]. [Cable car] and [shuttle bus] will take us to Leidongping station where we begin our hiking to the top. Leidongping station sits at 2430m and the summit is about 3077m above sea level. After the mountain, take our bus to Leshan City.

Meals included: Breakfast

Day 7: Leshan – Chengdu

Today we pay our visit to [Leshan Grand Buddha Statue by boat], a UNESCO listed world heritage site. You can also hike around the statue. Drive to Chengdu afterward. A farewell dinner together with a tour conclusion party is arranged in your hotel.

Meals included: Breakfast

Day 8: Chengdu - Departure

Free at leisure until you are transferred to the airport for your flight to Shanghai.

Meals included: Breakfast

Pricing & Accommodation

US Dollar
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Inclusions / Exclusions

Inclusions:

Domestic flights in China
Admission fees: to scenic spots as specified in the itinerary
Meals: meals as specified in the itinerary
Local guides: experienced private English-speaking guide in each city
Transfers: safe and comfortable vehicles with drivers as specified
Accommodations: hotels based on double/twin occupancy unless requested

Exclusions:

Important Information

Price From

+ USD
Per Person

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What customers say about us?

We’re sure that our customers’ words talk louder than our own’s. We believe that hearing directly from those who've experienced our private China tours is the best way to understand what we’re doing. It's not just about seeing the sights and the tour itself; it's about the whole process, from planning to execution. We highly value all the feedbacks and make them to encourage us to constantly improve our services.

Richard and Sylvia
British

After looking at trip advisor, we picked 3 China based travel agencies who we thought might be able to plan a tour of the area around Beijing. One agency suggested factory tours from the outset whilst another was fairly insistent that we travel overnight by train, but Monica proved to be thoughtful and flexible.
We have friends in Beijing and so started and ended our trip with them.
She suggested a day trip to the Great Wall from Beijing plus a tour of Pingyao, Xi'an and Luoyang with 3 bullet train journeys and one plane flight.
We decided not to go with a couple of her suggestions, but she was comfortable with that and re-jigged the trips to suit.
The actual guides provided are generally contractors who can work for several agencies depending on the work available. But the choice of which guides to employ still falls on the travel agency (and availability).

We were also very happy with our guides "Nelson" in Pingyao/Taiyuan, "Grace" in Xi'an and "Frank" in Luoyang as well as the drivers. They all turned up flawlessly on time for every appointment, helped us order lunch and always seemed happy.

There appear to be one or two 'scams' running with guides taking commission on purchases made. But having ordered an evening dance show + meal at our hotel "Grand New World" our guide in Xi'an certainly earned what ever commission she got by making sure that my meal contained no sugar or MSG/Soy Sauce.

Chinese drivers seem to learn to all drive at the Kamikaze school of motoring, but the drivers in Pingyao, Xi'an and Luoyang (Frank did his own driving) (also contracted but independently of the guides) did a good job of not frightening us too much.

Chinese cyclists and motor cyclists don't even follow the correct direction of flow and often drive on the wrong side of the road. Chinese drivers hoot constantly if they want to overtake and can't quite squeeze by!

Coffee in China generally doesn't seem very good (apart from at the large American chains).

The Tian yuan kui hostel in Pingyao is an interesting mixture of traditional and modern. The staff were extremely lovely and the food was tasty. The hundreds of recommendations on A3 sheets on the wall in English, French, Italian, Spanish and other languages were also testament to that.

The Grand New World hotel in Xi'an was a slice of America transported to China. Service was slightly variable. E.g. I had to go to 3 receptionists in order to find the one who was allowed to do checkouts. English from staff was variable though usually adequate.

The Peony Hotel in Luoyang was also like a slice of America. Our safe would not work as it had no batteries in it. We struggled with language problems for about half an hour to get 4 new batteries to fit into it and then to get the Chinese maintenance lady to fit them right way round.

The manager agreed a special picnic lunch for our train journey, but I ended up having to explain to francophone Chinese tour guide in French what we needed! But I guess episodes like this make a tour more interesting.

Many thanks to Monica for arranging this memorable holiday.

Date of experience: 01/09/2017-13/09/2017
Arty
Germany

We took the private Li River hiking tour from China Expedition Tours in October 2019. For us it was a very spontaneous decision. We contacted the company just 1 day before the trip but everything ended up being just perfect! They reacted quickly, everything was organized as promised incl. convenient payment method. So, in the morning our private English-speaking guide - Alex was expecting us at the lobby of our hotel. The driver was also waiting for us in the spacious and very clean car parked in front of the hotel.

The hiking itself was brilliant. Firstly, we visited the panoramic spots, where we really enjoyed the breathtaking views of Li River and mountains from above. Than the driver dropped us with Alex at one of the villages, where we started our journey along the river through ancient villages, local farms, wild nature and peacefulness. We went the paths you have absolutely no chance to find on your own as they were hidden in the woods and mountains. Alex was so helpful and informative! He showed us many interesting things (such as ancient paths, the cotton and mandarine fields, etc.) and explained a lot about local culture and way of life. He answered every single question we asked and was taking care of us on every stage of our journey. We made a stop for brunch and shared the food with each other on the peaceful riverbank. On late afternoon we arrived to designated place where the driver was already waiting for us to bring us back to our hotel. We asked Alex to give us advice, where to buy a tasteful tea from Guilin. He was glad to show us his favorite local tea store, where we could enjoy delicious teas and get the insights into tea culture of China.

Don't hesitate to book this hiking tour! it's worth every penny!!

We would like to thank China Expedition Tour and especially Alex from the bottom of our hearts for this unbelievable experience! We hope to be able to see him again in the future and take another tour with China Expedition Tour also in other cities of China.

Date of experience: 15/10/2019-15/10/2019
Yang G
Australia

We had the best time ever in Yang shuo and Guiling. All thanks to Alex Guan! He is so professional, kind, sense of humour, looked after me and my family so well! I'm planning to take groups of my friend and students to China soon, and hoping to let them have a great experience like I did. Will recommend Alex and his colleagues to ensure a well organised, considered, and enjoyable trip! Thanks so much Alex!

Date of experience: 2024-01-05
Maria Coco
Australia

Hi Alex
We just got home on wed but came home sick with laryngitis therefore late reply. We enjoyed ever part of the tour. The guides and drivers are so nice and polite. All hotels are clean. Thank you for the best holiday & will certainly be recommending your company to all our friends.

Cheers Maria, Mick, Irene & Bruno

Date of experience: 04/05/2017-16/05/2017
Derick Royaards Walker
the U. K

We heard of Alex through friends who had used him before. He organised an interesting two-week itinerary for us, combining traditional tourist attractions with some more individual activities. If you can, visit the Panda Breeding institute in Chengdu and the highlight of our tour was a home stay in an apartment with probably the finest rooftop views in Guilin. The three star hotels were all in perfect locations and far better facilities than we expected - apart from some of the breakfasts which can be an acquired taste. Our guides all spoke very good English and went out of their way to show us round street markets or recommend restaurants (A Sichuan Hotpot is a great experience). Using travel agents in another country can be a risk, but China Expedition Tours combined high levels of professionalism with great value for money. Many thanks to Alex and Team!

Date of experience: 07/05/2017-21/05/2017
Sarah & Gary
the U.S

Guilin is a perfect destination for a great time with my family. Nice van, perfect boat and friendly guide. We did enjoy our stay in Guilin with CET.

Date of experience: 29/03/2018-31/03/2018