China's Eastern Seaboard

The rest of the day is at leisure. Depending on the time of your arrival, we can arrange for a guided tour taking in some of the city highlights, or you may prefer to explore independently at your own pace.

Depart Beijing with your guide late morning and drive to the Great Wall of China at Mutianyu, taking the cable car to the top of the wall.

Once on top, you’ll be presented with spectacular views of the wall as it coils around the mountains and into the distant horizon. Spend 1-2 hours trekking on the wall, stopping to admire the view from the beacon towers that line its course.

In the afternoon, return to Beijing in time to catch the late afternoon train to Qingdao in eastern Shandong province (5 hours; first class carriage).

Arrive in Qingdao early this evening. You will be met on arrival at the station and transferred to the Castle Hotel, situated in the heart of Qingdao’s German Concession. Evening at leisure.

In the summer, Qingdao’s pleasant coastal climate offers a refreshing contrast to the sweltering heat of Beijing—temperatures in this coastal city rarely exceed 30 degrees Celsius—so find the time for a leisurely stroll along the beach to enjoy the sea breeze and the wonderful views.

End the day with a sampling of Qingdao’s local cuisine. There are lots of seafood restaurants in the German concession, a short taxi ride from your hotel, or, if you prefer a livelier atmosphere, on “Beer Street”. Seafood dumplings accompanied by the local brew, Tsingtao Beer, is the perfect way to end the day!

Start the tour with a visit to Mount Lao in Laoshan National Park, an hour’s drive east of Qingdao. Often referred to as the “cradle of Taoism”, Mount Lao is one of China’s holiest mountains, housing the famed temples of Supreme Peace and Supreme Purity. The scenery is stunning, too!

Spend a leisurely morning exploring the rugged mountains on foot. A cable car ride will take you to the high peaks where you’ll discover secluded Taoist temples and, on a clear day, wonderful views of the coastline.

In the afternoon, return to Qingdao via a scenic coastal route for a guided tour of the city’s major sights, including the pier and waterfront, May Fourth Square, the German quarter, and the Tsingtao brewery.

A former German and later Japanese colonial outpost, Qingdao is notable for its rich colonial heritage. Take the time to explore the quiet lanes of the German concession, with its century-old double-spired church and Bavarian-style red-roof homes, followed by a walk along the waterfront and promenade.

The rest of the afternoon is free to explore Qufu at your own pace. You’ll have a full-day tour covering the main sights tomorrow, so this afternoon is a good chance to get away from the crowded tourist spots and explore the cluttered lanes and market stalls of Qufu old town. Almost all of Qufu’s notable sights are contained within the old town walls, with the exception of Shou Qiu (Longevity Hill) and Shaohao Tomb, positioned a few kilometres east of the city.

Though it’s changed much over the years, Qufu’s historic centre still survives to this day, providing a fascinating insight into this early era of Chinese history, when China was divided into a multitude of independent kingdoms

Qufu is most famous as the hometown of Confucius, the renowned philosopher and educator, whose ideas have shaped the attitudes of China’s rulers and their subjects for thousands of years since his death in the 5th century BCE. Though largely ignored by his contemporaries, in the years after his death Confucius’ ideas would become firmly embedded in the Chinese psyche, influencing countless rulers from the earliest emperors of unified China to the country’s present-day rulers in the CPC.

You’ll have the chance to learn more about Confucius and his legacy today as you explore Qufu’s major sights – the Confucius Mansion and Ancestral Temple – on a guided tour. Originally constructed during the 5th-century BCE, the Temple and Mansion have been rebuilt and expanded numerous times in the 2,500 years since Confucius’ death, growing in scope with each successive renovation. The most recent structures, built under the Ming, are grand monuments that rival Beijing’s Forbidden City for sheer scale (the mansion alone contains over 450 rooms, and provides a stunning spectacle).

In the afternoon, continue to the Confucius Forest, a few kilometres to the north of Qufu. The Forest houses Confucius’ tomb as well as the graves of his successors in the Kong family. It’s a popular site of pilgrimage, and a wonderfully peaceful location for an afternoon stroll or bike ride.

Nanjing (“Southern Capital”) was the capital of the Republic of China during the years of Nationalist (Kuomintang) rule between 1911 and 1949. The city’s history extends much further back in time, however, to the 5th century BCE, when it formed one of the Seven Ancient Capitals of China.

Today, Nanjing is among China’s largest and most progressive cities, with a substantial student population, close ties with Taiwan, and a modern infrastructure. Your guide will show you the best that the city has to offer, from its major sights (the Presidential Palace, Sun Yat Sen mausoleum, and Nanjing Museum) to its beautiful parks (the former Imperial retreat of Xuanwu Hu) and lively old town and waterfront area (Fuzi Miao).

A bit of background reading into China’s early 20th-century history will go a long way to helping you appreciate Nanjing and its place in modern China’s history. Many of Nanjing’s most interesting historical monuments date from the era of Nationalist rule, and the history of the Nationalist and Communist movements and the relationships between their leaders is fascinating. You’ll have the chance to delve into this history in Nanjing’s former Presidential Palace and Modern History Museum.

After the tour, check into the Regalia Resort, or similar.

Best known for its classical Chinese gardens and picturesque canals, there are in fact two sides to Suzhou; the historic town, contained within a rectangular moat that feeds a network of narrow canals and waterways, and modern Suzhou, a metropolis of some six million and a major centre of industry.

The train will take you to the outskirts of the old town, where you’ll be met on arrival and transferred to Archi Garden, a boutique 4-room guesthouse set on the banks of the Pingjiang canal in the heart of old Suzhou.

The rest of the afternoon is at leisure to explore Suzhou independently. Old Suzhou’s condensed size and easy grid layout makes the town a pleasure to explore on foot. Canal boat tours are another great way to get around old Suzhou, with landing points near most of the major sights, including the gardens and museums.

Be sure to pay a visit to Suzhou’s most famous classical gardens, the Humble Administrator’s Garden and Lion Grove. Some of the smaller gardens, such as the Garden of the Master of the Nets and the well-hidden Couple’s Retreat Garden (Ou Yuan), offer a respite from the crowds during weekends and holidays, when the more prominent gardens can become very crowded.

In the evening, take a stroll along the canal on lively Pingjiang Lu (the street of your hotel). Beautifully lit at night, this canalside street is full of bars, shops and restaurants.

The rest of the afternoon is at leisure to explore Hangzhou. You can spend a pleasant few hours wandering the willow-lined banks of West Lake, with its pretty gardens and ancient walkways, before stopping for dinner at one of the many restaurants overlooking the lake.

Your tour starts with a visit to Leifeng Pagoda. Originally constructed in the 10th-century AD, though rebuilt many times since, this five-storey tower and observatory offers marvellous views of West Lake. From the Pagoda, continue to the Longjing Tea Plantation and Chinese Tea Museum, for a guided tour of the tea fields, followed by lunch.

In the afternoon, venture into the hills to explore Hangzhou’s most striking landmark, Lingyin Temple. Dating back to the early 4th-century, Lingyin is Hangzhou’s oldest and most impressive Buddhist temple, famed for its wall murals and standing wooden Buddha.

Return to central Hangzhou via the Six Harmonies Pagoda. This enormous pagoda, the largest in the city, was built in the 10th-century AD and for many years served as a lighthouse, visible from across the city, as well as a place of worship.

This evening your guide will arrange for a dinner of Zhejiang cuisine at a local restaurant.

Depending on the time of your flight from Shanghai, we can arrange for a guided tour of the city or a hotel day room, before you transfer to the airport for your international flight out.