Dynasty China Tour

15 Days to Beijing, Xian, Kaifeng, Luoyang, Zhengzhou, Shaolin Temple, & Shanghai

There is a saying in China: “If you want to see China of 100 years ago, visit Shanghai; China of 500 years ago, go to Beijing; China of 2,000 years ago, come to Xi’an; and if you want to see China 3,000 – 5,000 years ago, you have to go to Henan Province.” To really get a good sense of China, you need to see China through out its changes in the dynasty, and this Itinerary will provide exactly just that. You will be able to experience China firsthand through the arts, culture, geography, history, economics, government and technology. This is a perfect tour for Educators, you would have opportunities to visit a Chinese classroom, and talk with the students there. In addition, we can provide you with background and educational materials to help bring China alive in the classroom! Each educators will also be able to earn 50 CPDU’s for their attendance in all the sightseeing and cultural exchange.

Day 1: International flight from U.S. to Beijing. Meals will be served in flight.

Day 2: Arrive in Beijing; your tour guide will pick you up at the gate. Once our car takes you to the hotel and check in, the rest of your evening is free.

Day 3: A full-day excursion: explore the Great Wall of China – one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. In the afternoon, visit the magnificent Temple of Heaven, the largest temple and altar complex in China, where the Emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasty worshipped Heaven and prayed for good harvests. In the evening, attend an amazing acrobatic show. (BLD)

Day 4: A city tours of Beijing to the center of the city -Tianan-Men Square – the largest open plaza in the world accommodating half a million people at one time. Explore the Forbidden City (Palace Museum), the former Imperial Palace for the 24 Emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasties. At night enjoy the Peking Duck Dinner. (BLD)

Day 5: Visit the 800 year-old Summer Palace with the largest garden in China. Here, the royal family of the Qing dynasty came to spend relaxing summers and handle government affairs. Visit Beijing Olympic Village, the Bird nest. Take photos and have fun. (Night Sleeper Train to Zhengzhou). (BLD)

Day 6: Zhengzhou – the capital of the Henan Province is a prime example of the changing face of China. Here you will see modern buildings and shopping malls contrasted against the background of an ancient civilization.

Visit a local high school or university for a cultural exchange in the morning. Tour their schools, make friends and exchange emails.

Visit The Henan National Museum, whose modern architecture resembles a Mayan Pyramid, it is the repository for 160,000 historic and prehistoric national treasures – including the world’s earliest musical instrument, an 8,000 year old, perfectly tuned bone flute. (BLD)

Day 7: Enjoy an excursion to Kaifeng, the ancient capital of seven dynasties. Kaifeng in the Song Dynasty, 1,000 years ago was the richest and most culturally diverse city in the world.

At noon, you can enjoy the traditional dishes of the Baozi banquet. This banquet features many different flavors of the local cuisine.
Kaifeng has a wealth of historical sites. We will visit the famous Dragon Pavilion, which was built on the ruins of the Song Palace. It is also called the small Forbidden City. You’ll visit the thirteen story high Iron Pagoda, made entirely of wood with a brick exterior. It is called “iron” because this pagoda has miraculously survived many earthquakes and floods for almost one thousand years! (bus back to Zhengzhou). (BLD)

Day 8: Today you will travel to the 1,500 year-old Shaolin Monastery, the birthplace of Kung Fu – the original form of all martial arts. This temple is situated at the western edge of the Song Shan Mountains. In the Thousand Buddha Hall, you can still see the footprints of the monks stamped into the floor – a reminder of the intensity of their practice. Here, you will be amazed by a live Kung Fu demonstration performed by the Grandmasters and monks. (Bus to Luoyang). (BLD)

Day 9: Luoyang is the ancient capital of the thirteen dynasties. We will see the most spectacular site in Luoyang called the Longmen Grotto. Carved from a solid rock mountain over 1,500 years ago, this site has over 2,345 caves and more than 100,000 statues of Buddha. Chinese noblemen sponsored the creation of most of these statues, ranging in height from miniature (1 inch high) to giant-size (57 feet).

At night, relax and enjoy the delicious delicacies of the Water Feast, a banquet handed down by the Tang Dynasty empress. (BLD)

Day 10: In the morning join morning exercise with the local people, where they dance, singing, and do qi gong together. In the morning take a look at the White Horse Temple, legend has it that a white horse carried the first Buddhist script from India to here, hence the name White Horse Temple. In the afternoon a visit to Guanlin Temple, built to commemorate the great general Guanyu of the State of Shu during the Three Kingdoms Period (Bullet Train to Xian). (BLD)

Day 11: Xi’an, which was also known as Changan, was a major ancient capital and has more than 3,000 years of history.

In Xi’an, you will visit the famous Museum of the Terra-Cotta Legion, built as a memorial to Qin Shihuang, the first emperor to unite China. The 8,000 men clay army of warriors and horsemen, complete with weapons, was ordered by the emperor as a young man, and took decades to complete. (BLD)

Day 12: Visit a local high school or university for a cultural exchange in the morning. Tour their schools, make friends and exchange emails.

Visit the Shanxi History Museum, where you will see a showcase of ancient civilizations of the Shan Xi province. Being one of the cities inside Shan Xi province, Xian City was the capital city in thirteen dynasties that in total lasted over 1100 years. Since this museum was opened to the public in 1991, its architectural buildings, internal apparatus, and exhibits have made it famous as a first-class museum in China. (BLD)

Day 13: In the morning walk on the well-preserved Xian city wall and get a bird’s eye view of the city. (Fly to Shanghai).
Shanghai, a modern bustling metropolis of thirteen million people in the southeast region, it is China’s center for industry and commerce. It is called the “Paris of the East,” because for many years the city was home to large numbers of Europeans, giving it an international flavor.

Visit The City God’s Temple (Cheng Huang Miao). This used to be the temple to a local deity, which the inhabitants believed would protect them in every city. The city deities were frequently real persons to whom the town owed something. Today, arts and crafts stores are in the temple. Walk along The Bund, Shanghai’s Wall Street, a place of feverish trading and an unabashed playground for Western business sophisticates. In the evening, take a cruise along the Huangpu River and enjoy the beautiful night view of Shanghai. (BLD)

Day 14: In the morning, you will visit the newly built Pu Dong area, modern China’s business center. you will visit the newly built Pu Dong area, modern China’s business center. On the way, enjoy some modern architecture, such as the Shanghai International Convention Center – China’s tallest building, and the third tallest building in the world. In the afternoon visit the Nanjing Road, your last chance to shop in China. (BLD)

Day 15: sadly we have to say goodbye to friends in China, but will always remember the wonderful memories. Board the International flight back home. (B)