At 08:30 am in the morning, your guide will pick you up from your Chengdu hotel lobby and drive around 20 minutes to Panda Breeding and Research Center to see those adorable pandas from babies to adults. You will have an option of holding a cute panda for photos with an advanced reservation and a donation (RMB$2,000) to the base for its research projects which you are encouraged to do as it is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to hold a baby panda bear in your arms.
Next, visit Jinli Street, one of the oldest commercial streets in Chinese history. Established over 1,800 years ago during the early Qin and Han dynasties, Jinli Street still preserves many of the ancient architectural styled shops till today. Lunch will be served at a local restaurant. After lunch, make a short visit to the Brocade Museum, where you will learn about interesting brocade culture from ancient times.
After that, move onto Chengdu Renmin Park, the biggest and most impressive park in Chengdu founded 1,800 years ago. After the park visit, you will be transferred back to your hotel where this tour concludes.
Home to the iconic Panda, China's Sichuan province offers sumptuous cuisine and treasured regional culture. But go deeper into this ancient land, and you'll find legends of sacred mountains and rivers, interwoven with the ancient lore of China's cultivation culture. Let these secrets come to light as you cycle through wild countryside and get a feel for the real Sichuan.
This action-packed tour of Chengdu starts off with the first highlight - the Dujiangyan Panda Valley. The famous Panda centre offers refuge and doting for these magnificent, rare animals with rearing and breeding programmes. These giant pandas are the symbol of China, and the research centre provides education and raises awareness of the plight of these great creatures and their environment.
Our tour then moves on to discover the history of two ancient towns. Then it’s on to Mengding Mountain, famous for its tea culture where we take a walk in the Mengdingshan Royal Tea Gardens: a delight with its atmospheric pavilions and walking paths. China’s tea growing history can be traced back to the Western Han Dynasty over 2,000 years ago. Reputed to be the birthplace of Chinese tea cultivation, tea trees planted at Mengding by a herdsman are believed to be the very beginning of China's tea history.
We next visit UNESCO Heritage listed Mount Emei, one of the Four Sacred Buddhist Mountains of China and traditionally regarded as a place of enlightenment. The unsurpassed views are one of the great spectacles of Mount Emei and is yet another high point of the tour in all senses of the word! The ride then follows the river to the town of many temples, Leshan. Our last day of the tour takes us on a walk through bamboo forests and to Huang Long Xi, a picturesque town where many Chinese movies have been filmed.
Bicycle toursAdventure
Tour Type
Small Group TourSmall group tours usually have 8-12 participants and maximum up to 18 travelers
Discover the best of China from Shanghai on this 22-day Essentials tour. Enjoy the view over Shanghai from a rooftop bar and explore the lush scenery of Yangshuo by bike and bamboo raft. See giant pandas and other rare species in Chengdu, marvel at the fascinating Terracotta Army in Xi'an and opt to visit the Shaolin Temple. Walk along the Great Wall and camp beside a deserted section, discover the highlights of Beijing independently, learn Mandarin with several included lessons and hike to the top of Jiuyao Mountain in Hangzhou.
You could travel for a lifetime in China, and there would still be more to explore – but this 12-day trip through the country’s highlights does a pretty good job of narrowing it down. Tick an ancient Wonder of the World off your bucket list at the Great Wall, witness the Terracotta Warriors in Xi-an and watch baby pandas play in Chengdu. Sip tea in People’s Park, taste delicious street food with a local leader who knows all the best spots and cycle through the misty countryside of Yangshuo – home to stunning vistas, Moon Hill and karst mountains. Start in Beijing and end in Hong Kong for some thriving nightlife and you’ve got a pretty cool adventure.
Adventure
Tour Type
Small Group TourSmall group tours usually have 8-12 participants and maximum up to 18 travelers
Accommodation
Hotel, Sleeper Train, Guest House, Hostel
Age Range
18-35 yrs
Operated in
english
Destinations
Beijing, Hong Kong, Great Wall o
Beijing, Hong Kong, Great Wall of China, Xian, Chengdu, Yangshuo