| DAY/ ACTIVITY |
DESCRIPTION (trip provided by Imperial Tours)  DOWNLOAD THE PDF |
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| FRIDAY, JULY 17 DISEMBARK SHIP IN TIANJIN; DRIVE TO BEIJING |
Upon arrival in Tianjin, you will be met at the dock by our China Host. The China Host will accompany you during the remainder of your stay in China (our China Host acts as a personal concierge to you throughout your stay in China, allowing you to make changes as you see fit … this may mean adding a site or taking out a site, changing a restaurant or booking a foot massage!). Upon arrival in Beijing, you will be taken to your hotel where you will have lunch. After lunch, you will be able to check into your rooms and given some time to rest prior to an afternoon of shopping (check-in guaranteed after 2pm). Dinner will be served at one of the city’s chicest restaurants. [Raffles Beijing Hotel, three (3) nights] (Breakfast on board; lunch, and dinner are provided in Beijing) |
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| SATURDAY, JULY 18 BEIJING • Temple of Heaven • Open-Air Market • Great Wall of China |
This morning we will visit the Temple of Heaven — a Confucianist complex spanning 670 acres — created for the exclusive use of the Emperor as a place to mediate affairs between God and man. Morning is a wonderful time to visit the Temple as you will see local Beijingers out doing their morning exercises. For shoppers, Beijing’s largest open-air market will come close to paradise. Here you will mingle with Beijingers, overseas and local art dealers as well as farmers who import goods from the countryside. This is your opportunity to buy a Ming dynasty set of the Confucianist classics for a song or else, and more likely, to buy from an astonishingly rich variety of Chinese and Tibetan cultural objects (at usually a tenth the price found in the U.S. and at often half the price found at local shops). For non-shoppers, this market can be thought of as China’s largest museum of modern cultural life, where you can see, talk to and photograph a wide range of local and regional Chinese going about their daily lives and business. (Please note that this market is open only on the weekends.) Later in the day, you will visit the Great Wall of China. Built to protect China from the incursions of predatory nomads, the utility and meaning of this fortification has been contested for centuries. The unprecedented scale and unexpected charm of the Great Wall may inspire you. The section that we most highly recommend is the furthest away, about 2.5 hours’ drive, but is generally considered one of the most beautiful sections of the Great Wall. Once there, you will be treated to a private banquet on the Wall itself (weather permitting). After lunch you will be given some time for a stroll along this most magnificent of sites.(Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are provided) |
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| SUNDAY, JULY 19 BEIJING • Tian’anmen Square • Forbidden City |
Whether by force of irony or expediency, China’s government has been located in the same area continuously for over six hundred years. You will walk back in time; strolling across Tian’anmen Square, one of the largest squares of the modern era, you will pass the Monument to the People’s Heroes — dedicated to the ravages of the hundred year long Opium War — and finally enter the ancient epicenter of Imperial Power, the Forbidden City. We continue the day with an intimate pedicab tour through Beijing’s traditional alleyways (or hutong). This is one of the rare chances that you will see Chinese people in their everyday setting. If you wish, you will have the opportunity to visit the home of a Chinese family and ask them questions about their way of life. Dinner tonight will be served at one of the city’s chicest restaurants. (Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are provided) |
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| MONDAY, JULY 20 BEIJING • Fly Home |
This morning you will be transferred, as a group, to the airport in time for your international flights home.(Breakfast provided) |
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Trip includes:
Not Included:
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Cancellation Charges
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