---
title: "Lines Drawn on the Ground"
description: "10 days from the Terracotta Warriors to a circuit board market seeing China in order"
type: "tour"
route_id: "china-in-order-10-days"
total_days: 10
price: 3590
highlights: ["Beijing", "Xi'an", "Shanghai", "Shenzhen"]
url: "https://www.lyriktrip.com/en-GB/tours/china-in-order-10-days"
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---

# Lines Drawn on the Ground

10 days from the Terracotta Warriors to a circuit board market, seeing China in order

Four cities, one clock. The Forbidden City, the Great Wall, city wall bicycles and the Bund, with English-speaking guides city by city.

- Moderate. The longest walk is the Forbidden City morning, and Jingshan straight after is a short uphill on steps. At Mutianyu the chairlift takes you up. The Xi'an city wall is covered by bicycle, not on foot.

## Overview

Old China and new China is a lazy way to say it. What you actually see across these ten days is one country drawing lines and then living on both sides of them. Beijing gives you an axis you can stand on and a wall running along a ridge. Xi'an gives you an army in ranks and a rectangle you ride around. Shanghai puts two centuries on opposite banks of one river. Shenzhen stacks components, prototypes and finished machines floor by floor. Ten days is what the transit policy allows, counted in hours from your entry stamp, and every day here is built backward from that count. By the last one you'll find the country has arranged itself in your head.

— LyrikTrip travel designers

Every LyrikTrip journey begins with a conversation. On this one, send us your dates and your flights, both ends of them, because the policy check runs on your real tickets rather than on a plan. First reply within four hours; a clear price for your dates within one business day. If the rules do not fit your itinerary we will tell you that instead of quoting, and if they do, we will show you the hours we computed.

## Summary

- Route ID: china-in-order-10-days
- Duration: 10 days / 9 nights
- Starting price: $3,590
- Status: active
- Highlights: Beijing, Xi'an, Shanghai, Shenzhen
- Cover image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/j5Bvs8Az.webp

## Hero tags

- private
- From 1 guest
- Max: no fixed limit

## Highlight notes

- Four cities, one clock. The Forbidden City, the Great Wall, city wall bicycles and the Bund, with English-speaking guides city by city.
- 10 days from the Terracotta Warriors to a market of circuit boards. See China in order.

## Selling points

- Walk one axis through the Forbidden City, then cross the street and climb Jingshan to look straight back down it: from the hilltop pavilion the golden roofs fall into rank and you can see how the whole city was set out.
- Ride the chairlift up to Mutianyu and walk the restored towers along the ridge: the climb is done for you, and your guide reads the wall out loud, beacon towers, the pass below, and why the sightlines run where they run.
- Stand at the rail above an estimated eight thousand clay soldiers in formation, close enough to tell a general from a crossbowman by his armour and the knot of his hair.
- Ride a bicycle along the top of the Xi'an city wall, using the rental included with your ticket: the wall forms a complete rectangle around the old city, so whichever direction you set off in, you'll return to the same gate.
- End a Shanghai day on the Bund after dark with your guide beside you: the old waterfront buildings hold one bank, the Pudong towers hold the other, a treaty port and a global city looking straight at each other across the water.
- Walk Huaqiangbei in Shenzhen with a guide who explains the trade floor by floor: loose components downstairs, prototypes above them, finished machines above that, and the whole building is somebody's supply chain.
- Unpack twice in the first six days: three nights in Beijing, three in Xi'an, and all three moves held back to the second half of the trip.

## City highlights

- Beijing (3 days): Land, and start the clock
  - Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/6NxZ9tv4.webp
- Xi'an (3 days): Down the axis, then out of the city on it
  - Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/gRKVLNcJ.webp
- Shanghai (2 days): A pagoda in the morning, Shanghai by evening
  - Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/9mTK4rw2.webp
- Shenzhen (2 days): A district drawn on a map, then a working boat
  - Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/9e6cb149774c.jpg

## Experiences

Four cities, one clock. The Forbidden City, the Great Wall, city wall bicycles and the Bund, with English-speaking guides city by city.

- The Forbidden City (Beijing): The palace from which the Ming and Qing courts governed the country, completed in 1420 and inhabited for five centuries. You walk a single axis: the ceremonial halls, the living quarters behind them, the imperial garden, then out through the north gate to Jingshan. Entry is by timed reservation, and the booking system does not work well with overseas mobile numbers, so your quote states in writing who books your slot and by when. The admission itself is included in the base price. Audio guides and guides hired inside the palace are not. Guests often find the site tiring, so the route is limited to that single line with places to sit, and no departure places this day on a Monday, when the palace is closed.
  - Subtitle: the palace from which the Ming and Qing courts governed the country, completed in 1420 and inhabited for five centuries.
  - Tags: Heritage
  - Host: Beijing, Beijing Lens — Imperial capital and Great Wall
  - Access: the palace from which the Ming and Qing courts ran the country, completed in 1420 and inhabited for five centuries. You walk one axis: the ceremonial halls, the living quarters behind them, the imperial garden, then out through the north gate to Jingshan. Entry is by timed reservation and the booking system sits poorly with overseas mobile numbers, so your quote states in writing who books your slot and by when. The admission itself is in the base price. Audio guides and guides hired inside the palace are not. Guests regularly find the site tiring, so the route is cut to that single line with places to sit, and no departure puts this day on a Monday, when the palace closes.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/7f313a6dab74.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/8a6cdb9ca2b9.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/de8d1138706b.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/cb45218f2b95.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/08a2b46a7206.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/43c9d4d18be6.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/49598606918a.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/17cfe569ced7.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/aff552490ca6.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/db0255c2930c.jpg
- Jingshan Park (Beijing): Jingshan Park offers one of the best classic views across the Forbidden City rooftops.
  - Subtitle: A hilltop view over imperial Beijing
  - Tags: Viewpoint
  - Host: Beijing, Beijing Lens — Imperial capital and Great Wall
  - Access: A short climb rewards travellers with a strong city overview.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/408fc381c4b4.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/7f313a6dab74.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/6a3ff539ffc8.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2c700baa4e73.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/00decb026e42.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/51ec43ea0513.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/9604ef61c628.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/7dc03e9310a1.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/964e96f11238.jpg
- Mutianyu Great Wall (Beijing): A well-restored Great Wall section with open views and easier walking conditions for first-time visitors.
  - Subtitle: A classic Great Wall section near Beijing
  - Tags: Great Wall
  - Host: Beijing, Beijing Lens — Imperial capital and Great Wall
  - Access: A refined Great Wall experience with flexible cable car or walking options.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/f6c07b2f8772.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/3a661e194c2f.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1b0f83ddd1e5.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/7207d6532c2f.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/e88879531691.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/926d916b9408.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/91465599744f.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/a720fb1678e6.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/608cdc21a04d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/9b968ec44131.jpg
- Tian'anmen Square (Beijing): Tian'anmen Square introduces the scale and symbolism of modern Chinese public space.
  - Subtitle: Beijing's monumental civic landmark
  - Tags: Landmark
  - Host: Beijing, Beijing Lens — Imperial capital and Great Wall
  - Access: A central orientation stop before or after the Forbidden City.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/b6a275c3e50d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/e544ca01550e.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/b85b763e11cd.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/a724165b0cc6.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/410246e2d66a.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/600867e7a2ef.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/cd9c3a758365.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/86b6ca981b8d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/50c2c4037905.jpg
- The National Museum of China (Beijing): the national collection, on the east side of Tian'anmen Square: bronzes, ceramics, Buddhist sculpture and calligraphy. Entry is by booking and the system doesn't accept overseas phone numbers, so we book it for you; the booking and any entry fee are included in your price. Your guide takes you through it in one line, roughly two hours, rather than trying to walk the whole building.
  - Subtitle: the national collection, on the east side of Tian'anmen Square: bronzes, ceramics, Buddhist sculpture and calligraphy.
  - Tags: Museum
  - Host: Beijing, Beijing Lens — Imperial capital and Great Wall
  - Access: the national collection, on the east side of Tian'anmen Square: bronzes, ceramics, Buddhist sculpture and calligraphy. Entry is by reservation and the system is unfriendly to overseas phone numbers, so we book it for you; the reservation and any entry fee are in your price. Your guide takes one line through it, roughly two hours, rather than trying to walk the building.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1cf05dc82e49.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/d076400ad86d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/55ab6f174707.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/dcce08639678.jpg
- The Temple of Heaven (Beijing): the complex where the emperor came to make the year's offering, three sets of buildings on one line: the Hall of Prayer, the Imperial Vault and the round altar. The design language is the point and it is legible once someone tells you: round belongs to heaven, square belongs to earth, and the plan repeats that pairing at every scale. Entrance ticket in your price.
  - Subtitle: the complex where the emperor came to make the year's offering, three sets of buildings on one line: the Hall of Prayer, the Imperial Vault and the round altar.
  - Tags: Heritage
  - Host: Beijing, Beijing Lens — Imperial capital and Great Wall
  - Access: the complex where the emperor came to make the year's offering, three sets of buildings on one line: the Hall of Prayer, the Imperial Vault and the round altar. The design language is the point and it is legible once someone tells you: round belongs to heaven, square belongs to earth, and the plan repeats that pairing at every scale. Entrance ticket in your price.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/db9b46f1b9cf.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/dc39cfe33b0d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/3894e4ef10e8.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/c545d9594e74.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/baf1840996ea.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1e34d302cd31.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2da63a8fc9a4.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/8f551e057a6d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/142abccd839a.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/95fb63a3bc8e.jpg
- Beijing to Xi'an by high-speed rail (Beijing to Xi'an): a booked seat on China's high-speed network rather than a transfer to sit through, with the North China plain going past the window at speed. Your driver runs you to the station and another meets the train at the far end. The leg is in your price; the seat class for your order is being finalised and is stated in writing in your quote.
  - Subtitle: a booked seat on China's high-speed network rather than a transfer to sit through, with the North China plain going past the window at speed.
  - Tags: Transport
  - Host: Guangzhou, Guangzhou Lens — Trade history and southern city life
  - Access: a booked seat on China's high-speed network rather than a transfer to sit through, with the North China plain going past the window at speed. Your driver runs you to the station and another meets the train at the far end. The leg is in your price; the seat class for your order is being finalized and is stated in writing in your quote.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/fb93d232554d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/657532699f1f.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/5612dfe51dad.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/a97eca2cd5ca.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/6e81560d7752.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2a591fe89642.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/ec5b8ff6b5da.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/94d9eb2b286b.jpg
- The Terracotta Warriors (Xi'an): the excavation halls outside Xi'an holding the underground army of Qin Shi Huang, China's first emperor, and one of the country's most significant archaeological finds. You look down into the pits at ranked columns of soldiers: individual faces, armour by rank, formations still legible after two millennia of burial. Your guide teaches you to read them: which are officers, which are archers, what the formation was for. Why it rewards a slow visit: the scale reads in one glance, the craftsmanship only up close.
  - Subtitle: the excavation halls outside Xi'an holding the underground army of Qin Shi
  - Tags: History
  - Host: Xi'an, Xi'an Lens — Warriors and ancient capital
  - Access: Why it rewards a slow visit: the scale reads in one glance, the craftsmanship only up close.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/de05241524fb.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/788c1d294602.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/70bc50b897e9.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/f58fac3efc36.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/dcbc4615cebd.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/a379bf924cf3.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/4cd4eb7405cc.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/3d63338ab682.jpg
- Xi'an City Wall by bicycle (Xi'an): one of the most complete surviving ancient city walls in China, still closed all the way around the old centre. The top is wide enough to ride two abreast, and bicycle rental for your riding slot is included in the base price. You set your own pace; the gates come with ramps, the surface is brick, and there is no traffic on it. This is the one place on the route where you move under your own power, and it is why the wall reads as a ring rather than as a monument.
  - Subtitle: one of the most complete surviving ancient city walls in China, still enclosing the old centre in its entirety.
  - Tags: Active
  - Host: Xi'an, Xi'an Lens — Warriors and ancient capital
  - Access: one of the most complete surviving ancient city walls in China, still enclosed all the way around the old centre. The top is wide enough for two people to ride side by side, and bicycle hire for your riding slot is included in the base price. You set your own pace; the gates have ramps, the surface is brick, and there is no traffic on it. This is the one place on the route where you move under your own steam, and it is why the wall reads as a ring rather than as a monument.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/daf832e303d0.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/8f7c7a922b33.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/f864b69ac4b1.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/b69829f31585.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/250856ce1d51.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1170df991f6f.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/6e33ef1383e4.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1984b49f3ab6.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/6c4bc5467067.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2a992375c8dd.jpg
- The Bell and Drum Tower square and the Muslim Quarter by night (Xi'an): an evening walk with your guide through the lit square between the two towers and into the food street beside it, where the stalls work in the open and your guide names what is on each one and what is in it. No ticketed venue is involved. The guide's time is in your price; anything you eat or buy is on your account.
  - Subtitle: an evening walk with your guide through the lit square between the two towers and into the food street beside it, where the stalls work in the open and your guide names what is on each one and what is in it.
  - Tags: City
  - Host: Xi'an, Xi'an Lens — Warriors and ancient capital
  - Access: an evening walk with your guide through the lit square between the two towers and into the food street beside it, where the stalls work in the open and your guide names what is on each one and what is in it. No ticketed venue is involved. The guide's time is in your price; anything you eat or buy is on your account.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/be17d6a5ce49.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/02e10943b0b8.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2be0c598ad8d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/dbd8efebe378.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/9197805a41b7.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/cc45951bdee2.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/68851d1cd2f1.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/48f8287e39ed.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/f47f5c72ef52.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/40f5c954821f.jpg
- The Giant Wild Goose Pagoda area (Xi'an): a brick pagoda standing over the district that grew up around it, with plazas, water and gardens laid out at its foot. You walk the grounds, which is where the life of the place actually is. The scenic-area entrance ticket is in your price; climbing the pagoda itself is separately ticketed and is not.
  - Subtitle: a brick pagoda standing over the district that grew up around it, with plazas, water and gardens laid out at its foot.
  - Tags: Heritage
  - Host: Xi'an, Xi'an Lens — Warriors and ancient capital
  - Access: a brick pagoda standing over the district that grew up around it, with plazas, water and gardens laid out at its foot. You walk the grounds, which is where the life of the place actually is. The scenic-area entrance ticket is included in your price; climbing the pagoda itself is separately ticketed and is not.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/eb70bbcc8abb.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2be95bfc5748.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/f1e0cd6ae0d1.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/94916373f524.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/4269d987bac0.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/542e4f255e79.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/7d1e365a232d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/18de0aedb419.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/4c55cd389e28.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2f0b6d04d98d.jpg
- Yu Garden and the Old City (Shanghai): A classical garden of pavilions, rockery, ponds and paths that never run straight, sitting inside the oldest quarter of Shanghai. It is the one place in the city that predates everything the skyline is famous for. A short, level visit — two hours, all of it flat — and it is the last thing on the trip, sized to fit before an afternoon flight. Admission is in your base price.
  - Subtitle: A classical garden of pavilions, rockeries, ponds and paths that never run straight in the oldest quarter of Shanghai, and the one place that predates everything its skyline is famous for.
  - Tags: Heritage
  - Host: Shanghai, Shanghai Lens — Skyline and riverfront culture
  - Access: a classical garden of pavilions, rockeries, ponds and paths that never run straight, set in the oldest quarter of Shanghai. Two hours, all of it flat. It is the one place in the city that predates everything the skyline is famous for.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/7c5e906b378e.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/07b39b023295.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/075884fd7738.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/3623b2d6ff22.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/c3f4af921585.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/7bc088a35094.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/b4ff42f10f39.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/8ab6fa3c88e9.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/793d4d9ec24d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/a1dac8269a5f.jpg
- The Shanghai Museum (Shanghai): bronzes, ceramics, painting and calligraphy, and the craft collections, in a museum that is built around objects rather than eras. Entry is by reservation and the system's English is limited, so we book it for you; the reservation and any entry fee are in your price.
  - Subtitle: bronzes, ceramics, painting and calligraphy, and the craft collections, in a museum that is built around objects rather than eras.
  - Tags: Museum
  - Host: Shanghai, Shanghai Lens — Skyline and riverfront culture
  - Access: bronzes, ceramics, painting and calligraphy, and the craft collections, in a museum that is built around objects rather than eras. Entry is by reservation and the system's English is limited, so we book it for you; the reservation and any entry fee are in your price.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/55ab6f174707.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/9a2f5fd0691a.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1c391e422dd6.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/3062838f53d8.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/a7c5cb28dd68.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/84e1f1bde38f.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/5fe4f8f934ce.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1ff4b8a733b8.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1c6a0e2a66d2.jpg
- The Bund and the Pudong skyline after dark (Shanghai): the row of trading-house and bank buildings on one bank of the Huangpu, the Pudong towers on the other, and a hundred years between them. Your guide is with you for the whole evening, which is also how we deal with the tea-house and language-practice approaches that work this waterfront: nobody has to decide alone whether a stranger's invitation is genuine.
  - Subtitle: the row of trading-house and bank buildings on one bank of the Huangpu, the Pudong towers on the other, and a hundred years between them.
  - Tags: City
  - Host: Shanghai, Shanghai Lens — Skyline and riverfront culture
  - Access: the row of trading-house and bank buildings on one bank of the Huangpu, the Pudong towers on the other, and a hundred years between them. Your guide is with you for the whole evening, which is also how we deal with the tea-house and language-practice approaches that work this waterfront: nobody has to decide alone whether a stranger's invitation is genuine.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/44b4c59711e7.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/819f854bed70.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/25f3fbf391b7.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/ab3be6b19c59.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/520402ec044f.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/eed1a59d8207.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/8851a6617c7b.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2e92d8293a47.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/b3c382b7f98f.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/d9f1a5421f27.jpg
- The former French Concession and Wukang Road (Shanghai): plane-tree streets, historic residences and small independent shops, walked rather than driven. It is the loose, low-rise counterweight to the skyline you looked at the night before, and about two hours on flat pavement. In the base price.
  - Subtitle: plane-tree streets, historic residences and small independent shops, walked rather than driven.
  - Tags: City
  - Host: Shanghai, Shanghai Lens — Skyline and riverfront culture
  - Access: plane-tree streets, historic residences and small independent shops, walked rather than driven. It is the loose, low-rise counterweight to the skyline you looked at the night before, and about two hours on flat pavement. In the base price.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/49e32f665d96.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/769ee0838cac.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/938a80844bdc.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/b1c8a477961a.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/738425c31d43.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/83e8eac2f0d6.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/099568dde47e.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/c0f1d5ac16ad.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/f93afc81ef60.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/7e7256ca585e.jpg
- The Huangpu River ferry (Shanghai): the crossing Shanghai takes to work, a short ride on a working commuter boat rather than a sightseeing cruise, with scooters parked on the deck around you. The ticket is in your price.
  - Subtitle: the crossing Shanghai takes to work, a short ride on a working commuter boat rather than a sightseeing cruise, with scooters parked on the deck around you.
  - Tags: Transport
  - Host: Shanghai, Shanghai Lens — Skyline and riverfront culture
  - Access: the crossing Shanghai takes to work, a short ride on a working commuter boat rather than a sightseeing cruise, with scooters parked on the deck around you. The ticket is in your price.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/77334b45911c.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/c5ed3afb6c7c.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/c1a4fff775c6.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/d92ca3ec34a5.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2c7586235380.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/cc4d28edce7d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/29527e0c5132.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/dde04b2f55e4.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/b511339a7702.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/35255aa13b0d.jpg
- Huaqiangbei (Shenzhen): one of the world's best-known electronics districts. You walk floors and streets where components, prototypes and finished devices sell side by side, and the supply chain behind the world's gadgets stops being an abstraction: it has counters, prices and business cards. Your guide keeps the logic straight while you browse.
  - Subtitle: one of the world's best-known electronics districts
  - Tags: Tech
  - Host: Shenzhen, Shenzhen Lens — Drones and future mobility
  - Access: Your guide keeps the logic straight while you browse.
  - Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/f3ad2afbd3b2.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/200120e470fb.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/968fce5767a5.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/403ff3a81a73.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/b0f4ce04c70d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/92c50a687090.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2c610df7011f.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/dd5d5cbe7e98.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2a799aaa4b8b.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/4576ade7ac05.jpg
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## Itinerary

### Lines Drawn on the Ground - 10 days

Journey

#### Beijing (3 days)

- Subtitle: Land, and start the clock
- Recommendation: Your driver meets the flight, whatever hour it lands, and the day asks nothing else of you. The stamp in your passport starts the only clock this trip runs on.
- Transport: High-speed rail
- Transport mode: train

Airport pickup · The window starts here · Beijing through the window · Evening

- Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/6NxZ9tv4.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/14h8ZnOb.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/17bdSgjF.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1bDq9gT4.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1cZHxWkg.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1vwu9mIQ.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1X29GyUB.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1xVI7jTc.webp
##### Day 1: Land, and start the clock

- (transport) — your driver and vehicle are waiting for the flight number on your confirmation, and the journey into the city is yours to sleep through.
- (sight) — the permitted stay runs continuously from your entry stamp, ten times twenty-four hours. We compute your window from your actual landing time to the planned crossing on day ten before you pay, and as designed this plan leaves roughly a full day of margin inside it.
- (sight) — ring roads first, then poplar rows and the lit shopfronts of an ordinary street. The country you flew this far for shows up before you have opened a bag.
- (note) — nothing is scheduled. Your guide is reachable, and dinner near the hotel is recommended and booked for you if you want it, on your account.
- (accommodation) Novotel Beijing Peace — Hotel stay in Beijing.

##### Day 2: One axis, and the hill that reads it

- (sight) — your booking is arranged in advance by us, so you walk straight in at your appointed time. Inside, one axis: the ceremonial halls where the court conducted its business, the residential quarters behind them, the imperial garden at the far end, then out through the north gate. Stand in the centre of the main courtyard and look back through the gates you entered by, one inside another, aligned all the way out to the square.
- (sight) — the palace is large and guests often say it exhausts them, so the route sticks to that one line and stops at the seats we know.
- (sight) — across the street from the north gate, a short climb up steps to the pavilion on top. From up there the palace is a field of golden roofs in rank, and the axis you just walked runs straight out of it, north and south, through the whole city. Looking down at the roofs you'll find you have been walking on a line all morning without being told.

##### Day 3: The wall, and the way up

- (transport) — the drive north out of the city takes a good part of the morning, which is exactly why nothing else shares this day. Your vehicle stays with you from door to door.
- (sight) — an open seat on a cable, a few minutes, and the climb is over. You step off onto a restored stretch of wall with watchtowers running away along the ridge in both directions.
- (sight) — your guide reads the wall out loud, the beacon towers, the pass below, why the towers stand where they stand and what each one could see. Look along the ridge with the towers stepping down it one after another: that is the fifteen seconds worth filming.
- (sight) — the descent is on foot unless you add the downward ride, which is not included in your price. Your guide will tell you the cost on the day, or it will be confirmed in writing on your order before you travel.

#### Xi'an (3 days)

- Subtitle: Down the axis, then out of the city on it
- Recommendation: The square, the museum on it, and the temple at the southern end of the same line. This is the fullest day on the plan, and it ends on a train.
- Transport: Flight
- Transport mode: airplane

Tian'anmen Square · The National Museum of China · The Temple of Heaven · High-speed rail to Xi'an

- Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/gRKVLNcJ.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2IrwPATt.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2SYFFac8.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/2z6MDkku.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/34qxDxFA.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/3DF4Fowd.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/3G0oTlIq.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/56RpQD9k.webp
##### Day 4: Down the axis, then out of the city on it

- (sight) — you cross the ceremonial centre of modern China on foot. Screening comes first and takes its own half hour to an hour, so it sits in the day's budget separately; your guide walks you to the nearest screening entrance rather than around the long side.
- (sight) — on the east side of the same square, and booked in advance by us because the reservation system struggles with foreign phone numbers. Your guide takes you through it in a single line in about two hours: bronzes, ceramics, sculpture, calligraphy, in that order, so the objects unfold as a sequence rather than a jumble.
- (sight) — further south on the same axis. Three buildings on one line, and one idea repeated at every scale: round belongs to heaven, square belongs to earth. Stand at the centre of the round altar with nothing above you and say something out loud.
- (transport) — your driver takes you to the station and your Xi'an guide meets the train. The North China plain runs past the window at speed, and the city you get off in was a capital a thousand years before the one you left this morning.
- (accommodation) Somerset Xindicheng Xi'an — Hotel stay in Xian.

##### Day 5: Eight thousand of them, in ranks

- (sight) — the buried army made for China's first emperor, an estimated eight thousand figures, standing in the excavation halls where farmers found them. From the rail above the front rank the formation reads as one mass; then your guide points and it comes apart, a general by his armour, a crossbowman by his stance, an infantryman by the knot of his hair.
- (sight) — In the newer excavation areas the clay still carries traces of its original colour. Everyone pictures this army grey. It was not. Standing over the front rank you'll notice you have dropped your voice.
- (sight) — visitor numbers here run high in season, so your guide sets when you go in and which hall you start from, rather than following the crowd's order. The shuttle inside the site is not included in your price.

##### Day 6: Ride the rectangle

- (sight) — one of the most complete surviving city walls in China, and the top is wide enough to ride two abreast. The rental comes with your climb-up ticket. The wall encloses a rectangle around the old city, so you cannot get lost: set off either way and the wall brings you back to the gate you started from.
- (sight) — over your left shoulder the old grid of low roofs and lanes, over your right the newer city with its lights coming on. You are riding along the line that separates them, which is also the line that made them.
- (sight) — down off the wall and into the lit square between the two towers, then the food street beside it. Nothing here is ticketed. Your guide walks it with you and names what is on each stall and what is inside it; whatever you eat or buy is on your account.

#### Shanghai (2 days)

- Subtitle: A pagoda in the morning, Shanghai by evening
- Recommendation: The lightest day of the ten, and it is placed here on purpose. One walk, one flight, nothing chased.
- Transport: Flight
- Transport mode: airplane

The Giant Wild Goose Pagoda area · Fly to Shanghai · Evening

- Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/9mTK4rw2.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/13x1KtnS.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1Q9afrZn.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1Riqjj0n.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1VrlDwIi.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1vYpI6NZ.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/3PEjxTGx.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/4EbDdFHb.webp
##### Day 7: A pagoda in the morning, Shanghai by evening

- (sight) — a brick pagoda standing above the district that grew up around it, with plazas, water and gardens at its foot. You walk the grounds rather than the tower: climbing it is separately ticketed and not included in your price, and the ground is where the city actually uses the place — morning exercise, prams, people sitting.
- (transport) — your driver drives you to the airport and a Shanghai driver meets the flight. The flight number, times and cabin class for your order are written into your quote.
- (note) — nothing is scheduled. Check in and stop; the city keeps until tomorrow.
- (accommodation) Bellagio by MGM Shanghai on the Bund — Hotel stay in Shanghai.

##### Day 8: The garden, the bronzes, the two banks

- (sight) — pavilions, rockeries, ponds and a path that never runs straight, tucked inside the oldest quarter of the city. The garden is not large, but nothing in it lets you see the far wall, which is the trick it is built on. Flat the whole way.
- (sight) — booked in advance by us, as the reservation system's English is limited. Inside, the collections are arranged by what an object is rather than when it was made: bronzes, ceramics, painting and calligraphy, craft. Two hours, and your guide picks the route.
- (sight) — The old bank and trading buildings line one side of the river, the Pudong towers the other, and they face each other across the water, a century apart. Stand at the rail on the old side and turn once, slowly: that is the whole step from treaty port to global city, in one turn of the head.
- (sight) — The whole evening along the seafront is guided. People approach visitors here with invitations to practice English or to sit down for a cup of tea; the answer is no, and your guide is beside you to give it.

#### Shenzhen (2 days)

- Subtitle: A district drawn on a map, then a working boat
- Recommendation: A morning under plane trees, a river crossing with commuters, an afternoon flight south. The last move of the trip happens today.
- Transport: Private vehicle
- Transport mode: car

The former French Concession and Wukang Road · The Huangpu River ferry · Fly to Shenzhen

- Images: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/9e6cb149774c.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/8AH70UD0.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/h4WopDz7.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/j3OhqX9B.webp, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/0540e86e5dd0.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/09971fb8ed55.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/0cb198f8a49d.jpg, https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/1dabf6d8d82e.jpg
##### Day 9: A district drawn on a map, then a working boat

- (sight) — This is the name, the history. For a stretch of the last century this district was administered apart from the Chinese city around it, and the street plan still shows it: plane trees meeting overhead, low walls, residences set back, small shops that opened one at a time. Walk two blocks and look up at the branches closing over the road, then look east at the towers over the rooftops.
- (transport) — you cross on the boat Shanghai takes to work, standing at the rail among commuters and their parked scooters, not on a sightseeing deck. The crossing is short and the far bank arrives fast, which is the point: this is transport, and you are using it.
- (transport) — The afternoon flight south, driver at both ends. Flight number, times and cabin class for your order are written into your quote. You land in a city that did not look like this within living memory.
- (accommodation) Kempinski Hotel Shenzhen — Hotel stay in Shenzhen.

##### Day 10: The last line

- (sight) — your guide walks through the district floor by floor, loose components at the bottom, prototype boards above, finished machines above that, and explains how the sourcing trade actually runs through it. Stand at a components counter and look at the reels of parts stacked behind the seller: something in your pocket came out of a building like this one.
- (sight) — Your vehicle and guide are with you throughout the day in Shenzhen. What fills the remaining hours is written into your quote before you travel, and nothing is added on the day.
- (sight) — we hold at least four hours of buffer ahead of your planned crossing and schedule nothing self-arranged after Huaqiangbei. Your driver takes you to the port and your guide walks you to the immigration hall. The crossing itself, and everything on the Hong Kong side, is on your own ticket and your own account.
- (sight) — ten days ago an officer put a stamp in your passport and started a clock. You walk out of the country under your own feet, on time, on the line. Somewhere in that hall you'll find the ten days have arranged themselves into an order you could explain to anyone.

## Daily plan

### Day 1 — Land, and start the clock

Your driver meets the flight, whatever hour it lands, and the day asks nothing else of you. The stamp in your passport starts the only clock this trip runs on.

- Airport pickup: your driver and vehicle are waiting for the flight number on your confirmation, and the run into the city is yours to sleep through.
- The window starts here: the permitted stay runs continuously from your entry stamp, ten times twenty-four hours. We compute your window from your actual landing time to the planned crossing on day ten before you pay, and as designed this plan leaves roughly a full day of margin inside it.
- Beijing through the window: ring roads first, then poplar rows and the lit shopfronts of an ordinary street. The country you flew this far for shows up before you have opened a bag.
- Evening: Nothing is scheduled. Your guide is reachable, and dinner near the hotel is recommended and booked for you if you want it, on your account.
- Stay: Beijing
- Meals: None included today

### Day 2 — One axis, and the hill that reads it

The palace in the morning, then the hill built to look down on it. Today is the day the shape of the city stops being abstract.

- The Forbidden City: your named reservation is booked ahead by us, so you walk in on your slot. Inside, one axis: the ceremonial halls where the court did its business, the living quarters behind them, the imperial garden at the end, then out through the north gate. Stand in the middle of the main courtyard and look back through the gates you came in by, one inside another, lined up all the way out to the square.
- Pace: the palace is large and guests often say it wears them out, so the route holds to that one line and stops at the seats we know about.
- Jingshan Park: across the street from the north gate, a short climb up the steps to the pavilion on top. From up there, the palace is a field of golden roofs in rank, and the axis you just walked runs straight out of it, north and south, through the whole city. Looking down at the roofs, you'll find you have been walking on a line all morning without being told.
- Stay: Beijing
- Meals: Breakfast at the hotel

### Day 3 — The wall, and the way up

A chairlift carries you up to the ridge, and the towers take care of the rest. Nothing else is planned for today, and that's exactly the design.

- Drive out to Mutianyu: the run north out of the city takes a good part of the morning, which is exactly why nothing else shares this day. Your vehicle stays with you from door to door.
- Chairlift up: an open seat on a cable, a few minutes, and the climbing is over. You step off onto a restored stretch of wall with watchtowers running away along the ridge in both directions.
- Walk the towers: your guide reads the wall out loud, the beacon towers, the pass below, why the towers stand where they stand and what each one could see. Look along the ridge with the towers stepping down it one after another: that is the fifteen seconds worth filming.
- Coming down: the descent is on foot unless you add the downward ride, which is not included in your price. Your guide will inform you of the cost on the day, or it will be added to your order in writing before you travel.
- Stay: Beijing
- Meals: Breakfast at the hotel

### Day 4 — Down the axis, then out of the city on it

The square, the museum on it, and the temple at the southern end of the same line. This is the fullest day on the plan, and it ends on a train.

- Tiananmen Square: you cross the ceremonial centre of modern China on foot. Screening comes first and takes its own half hour to an hour, so it sits in the day's budget separately; your guide walks you to the nearest screening entrance rather than around the long side.
- The National Museum of China: on the east side of the same square, and booked ahead by us because the reservation system fights foreign phone numbers. Your guide takes one line through it in about two hours: bronzes, ceramics, sculpture, calligraphy, in that order, so the objects arrive as a sequence rather than a heap.
- The Temple of Heaven: further south on the same axis. Three buildings on one line, and one idea repeated at every scale: round belongs to heaven, square belongs to earth. Stand at the centre of the round altar with nothing above you and say something out loud.
- High-speed rail to Xi'an: your driver takes you to the station and your Xi'an guide meets the train. The North China plain runs past the window at speed, and the city you get off in was a capital a thousand years before the one you left this morning.
- Stay: Xi'an
- Meals: Breakfast at the hotel

### Day 5 — Eight thousand of them, in ranks

One site, one whole day, no second stop. Today you find out what the ranks look like from three feet away.

- The Terracotta Warriors: the buried army made for China's first emperor, an estimated eight thousand figures, standing in the excavation halls where farmers found them. From the rail above the front rank the formation reads as one mass; then your guide points and it comes apart, a general by his armor, a crossbowman by his stance, an infantryman by the knot of his hair.
- Paint: in the newer excavation areas the clay still carries traces of its original color. Everyone pictures this army gray. It was not. Standing over the front rank you'll notice you have dropped your voice.
- The hour: Visitor numbers here run high in season, so your guide decides when you go in and which hall you start from, rather than following the crowd's order. The shuttle inside the site is not included in your price.
- Stay: Xi'an
- Meals: Breakfast at the hotel

### Day 6 — Ride the rectangle

A bicycle on top of a city wall in the afternoon, a lit square and a food street after dark. Today the old city stops being a museum and turns back into a place people live in.

- Xi'an City Wall by bicycle: one of the most complete surviving city walls in China, and the top is wide enough to ride two abreast. The rental comes with your climb-up ticket. The wall closes a rectangle around the old city, so you cannot get lost: set off either way and the wall brings you back to the gate you started from.
- Two cities, one wall: over your left shoulder the old grid of low roofs and lanes, over your right the newer city with its lights coming on. You are riding along the line that separates them, which is also the line that made them.
- The Bell and Drum Tower square and the Muslim Quarter by night: down off the wall and into the lit square between the two towers, then the food street beside it. Nothing here is ticketed. Your guide walks it with you and names what is on each stall and what is inside it; whatever you eat or buy is on your account.
- Stay: Xi'an
- Meals: Breakfast at the hotel

### Day 7 — A pagoda in the morning, Shanghai by evening

The lightest day of the ten, and it is placed here on purpose. One walk, one flight, nothing chased.

- The Giant Wild Goose Pagoda area: a brick pagoda standing above the district that grew up around it, with plazas, water and gardens at its foot. You walk the grounds rather than the tower: climbing it is separately ticketed and not included in your price, and the ground is where the city actually uses the place, for morning exercise, prams, and people sitting.
- Fly to Shanghai: your driver runs you to the airport and a Shanghai driver meets the flight. The flight number, times and cabin class for your order are written into your quote.
- Evening: nothing is scheduled. Check in and stop; the city keeps until tomorrow.
- Stay: Shanghai
- Meals: Breakfast at the hotel

### Day 8 — The garden, the bronzes, the two banks

A garden that hides its own size, a museum arranged by object, and a river with a century on each side. The last of the three arrives after dark.

- Yu Garden and the old city: pavilions, rockeries, ponds and a path that never runs straight, set in the oldest quarter of the city. The garden is not large, but nothing in it lets you see the far wall, which is the trick on which it is built. Flat the whole way.
- The Shanghai Museum: booked ahead by us, because the reservation system's English does not go far. Inside, the collections are arranged by what a thing is rather than when it was made: bronzes, ceramics, painting and calligraphy, craft. Two hours, and your guide picks the line.
- The Bund after dark: the old bank and trading buildings hold one bank of the river, the Pudong towers hold the other, and they face each other across the water about a century apart. Stand at the rail on the old side and turn once, slowly: that is the whole step from treaty port to global city, in one turn of the head.
- Your guide stays: The whole evening on the waterfront is guided. People approach visitors here with invitations to practise English or to sit down for tea; the answer is no, and your guide is beside you to give it.
- Stay: Shanghai
- Meals: Breakfast at the hotel

### Day 9 — A district drawn on a map, then a working boat

A morning under plane trees, a river crossing with commuters, an afternoon flight south. The last move of the trip happens today.

- The former French Concession and Wukang Road: the name is the history. For a stretch of the last century this district was administered apart from the Chinese city around it, and the street plan still shows it: plane trees meeting overhead, low walls, residences set back, small shops that opened one at a time. Walk two blocks and look up at the branches closing over the road, then look east at the towers over the rooftops.
- The Huangpu River ferry: you cross on the boat Shanghai takes to work, standing at the rail among commuters and their parked scooters, not on a sightseeing deck. The crossing is short and the far bank arrives fast, which is the point: this is transport, and you are using it.
- Fly to Shenzhen: the afternoon flight south, driver at both ends. Flight number, times and cabin class for your order are written into your quote. You land in a city that did not look like this within living memory.
- Stay: Shenzhen
- Meals: Breakfast at the hotel

### Day 10 — The last line

A market where the machines get made, and then a border you cross on foot. Today has one fixed hour in it and everything else is arranged around that hour.

- Huaqiangbei: your guide reads the district floor by floor, loose components at the bottom, prototype boards above, finished machines above that, and explains how the sourcing trade actually runs through it. Stand at a components counter and look at the reels of parts stacked behind the seller: something in your pocket came out of a building like this one.
- The rest of the day: your vehicle and guide are with you in Shenzhen all day. What fills the remaining hours is written into your quote before you travel, and nothing is added on the day.
- To the exit port: we hold at least four hours of buffer ahead of your planned crossing and schedule nothing self-arranged after Huaqiangbei. Your driver takes you to the port and your guide walks you to the immigration hall. The crossing itself, and everything on the Hong Kong side, is on your own ticket and your own account.
- Crossing out: ten days ago an officer put a stamp in your passport and started a clock. You walk out of the country under your own feet, on time, on the line. Somewhere in that hall you'll find the ten days have arranged themselves into an order you could explain to anyone.
- Stay: Trip ends
- Meals: Breakfast at the hotel

## Hotels

### Shanghai Royal Garden Hotel (Shanghai International Resort)

- City: Shanghai
- Description: Shanghai Royal Garden Hotel: a luxury garden hotel near Pudong Airport and Disneyland, with free shuttle service to both.
- Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/a07e8f886100.jpg

### Atour Hotel (Beijing West Railway Station South Square)

- City: Beijing
- Description: Upscale local hotel near Beijing West Railway Station South Square.
- Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/dHqyz391.webp

### Sheraton Xi'an North City Hotel

- City: Xi'an
- Description: Sheraton Xi'an North City: five-star luxury five minutes from the Daming Palace, with an indoor pool and wellness centre.
- Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/k01OUBYw.jpg

### Beijing Marriott Hotel Northeast

- City: Beijing
- Description: International luxury hotel in Beijing, ideal for business trips and city breaks.
- Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/bWOFYezP.jpg

### Pullman Shanghai Zhongganghui Hotel

- City: Shanghai
- Description: Pullman Shanghai Zhongganghui Hotel, in Dapuqiao near Tianzifang, steps from Metro Line 9 and the Expo site.
- Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/5xOD9FRB.webp

### Futian Shangri-La, Shenzhen

- City: Shenzhen
- Description: Located in Futian CBD, close to major landmarks and metro lines. Featuring 500+ elegant rooms and suites with exclusive Horizon Club services.
- Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/lNzYq6FP.webp

### Shangri-La Hotel

- City: Xi'an
- Description: Shangri-La Hotel Xi'an: five-star luxury near the Terracotta Warriors, 35 minutes from the airport.
- Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/ldYT8r2G.webp

### DoubleTree by Hilton Beijing East Third Ring Road

- City: Beijing
- Description: International upscale hotel in Beijing, suitable for business and leisure stays.
- Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/kkFJOiOe.webp

### Atour S Hotel Shanghai Hongqiao Centre Aegean

- City: Shanghai
- Description: Atour S Hotel in Hongqiao: steps from Aegean Place and Metro Line 10, six km from the National Exhibition and Convention Centre.
- Image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/ciHY2Qvs.webp

## Included / Excluded

### What's Included

- Airport pickup: Day one: pickup at Beijing arrival airport and private transfer to the hotel
- Private vehicle: Air-conditioned private vehicle for all listed touring in Beijing, Xi'an, Shanghai and Shenzhen, including the full-day Mutianyu round trip; hotel and station or airport transfers at both ends of all three intercity legs
- Intercity transport: Three legs: day four Beijing to Xi'an by high-speed rail, day seven Xi'an to Shanghai by air, day nine Shanghai to Shenzhen by air. The class of each leg for your order is stated in writing in your quote
- Departure-day ground service: Day ten: private vehicle in Shenzhen all day, then transfer to the departure port with assistance through to the immigration hall
- Hotels: 9 nights at your chosen level, four-star, five-star or quality boutique, breakfast included: Beijing 3, Xi'an 3, Shanghai 2, Shenzhen 1
- Guide: Licensed English-speaking guide on every touring day in every city, including the day-eight evening on the Bund and the day-six evening walk in Xi'an
- Tickets & experiences, Beijing: Tian'anmen Square · the Forbidden City including its entrance ticket plus the named-ticket reservation booked by us · Jingshan Park including its entrance ticket · Mutianyu Great Wall including the park entrance ticket plus one upward chairlift ride · the Temple of Heaven including its entrance ticket · the National Museum of China including any entry fee plus the entry reservation booked by us
- Tickets & experiences, Xi'an: The Terracotta Warriors with the site entrance ticket · the Xi'an City Wall with the wall entrance ticket and the bicycle rental on the wall top · the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda area with the scenic-area entrance ticket · an evening guided walk of the Bell and Drum Tower square and the Muslim Quarter, guide accompanied, no ticketed venue
- Tickets & experiences, Shanghai: Yu Garden and the old city including the Yu Garden entrance ticket · the Shanghai Museum including any entry fee plus the entry reservation booked by us · the Bund and the Pudong skyline in the evening with the guide accompanying · a walk of the former French Concession and Wukang Road · the Huangpu River ferry crossing including its ticket
- Tickets & experiences, Shenzhen: Huaqiangbei, accompanied by a guide, with the guide explaining how the sourcing trade operates there
- Meals: 9 hotel breakfasts, day two through day ten
- Insurance: Travel accident insurance

### Not Included

- International flights: The flight into Beijing and the flight out of Hong Kong; any third-place connection on the inbound leg is likewise on your own ticket
- The cross-border leg: The ticket or shuttle fare from the Shenzhen exit port into Hong Kong. The carrier and issuing party are being finalised: see Special Notes
- Everything in Hong Kong: No service inside Hong Kong is included. That means ground transport, accommodation, meals and admissions. The plan ends at the mainland exit port
- Entry permissions: Eligibility to enter Hong Kong, and any visa or permit required for it, is your own responsibility and cost. A Chinese visa and its fees, for any guest not covered by the transit policy, are likewise not included.
- Meals: All lunches and dinners over the ten days. Your guide recommends and books on request; the bill is on your account
- In-venue transport: Three items are included and named: one upward chairlift ride at Mutianyu, the bicycle rental on the Xi'an city wall, and the Huangpu River ferry ticket. Inside any scenic area on this plan, no other shuttle bus or electric cart is included, and neither is any cable car, chairlift or toboggan. That includes the downward ride at Mutianyu and the shuttle inside the Terracotta Warriors site.
- Separately ticketed halls and towers: Climbing a pagoda or a tower, and paid special exhibitions inside a museum
- Spending inside the venue: All spending inside a venue or market, including purchases at Huaqiangbei, food and drink in the Muslim Quarter, and souvenirs anywhere
- The Shenzhen robotaxi ride: Not included in the base price and not a guaranteed item: see Special Notes
- Optional add-ons: None on this route at present. Any add-on introduced later is priced separately when you choose it and is never added into the base plan
- Personal: Gratuities, single or extra-room difference, laundry and communications, personal spending
- Consequences of delay: Rebooking fees, extra nights and any cost arising from a missed exit deadline

### Special Notes

This route runs on a policy with a clock in it, so several things here follow rules rather than preferences. Told straight.

- Bookings are not open yet: one thing has to be real first. The carrier and the issuing party for the crossing from the Shenzhen exit port into Hong Kong are being settled, and until they are named we take no orders and no deposits. The reason is structural: on this plan the exit is the one deadline that cannot slip, and an exit leg with no named carrier is not a sellable exit. Tell us your dates and we will write to you on the day it opens.
- The stay window is counted in hours: the permitted stay runs continuously from your entry stamp, ten times twenty-four hours. We compute each order from your actual arrival time on day one to the planned exit time on day ten. As designed this plan leaves roughly a full day of margin. An order whose computed stay exceeds the window is not sellable, whatever the printed day count says.
- Your full ticket, and the two ends of it: we read your complete international itinerary in writing, not just the arrival flight. The place your last inbound leg departs from must differ from the place your first outbound leg arrives at. This plan leaves for Hong Kong, so your last inbound leg must not depart from Hong Kong, and an itinerary that returns to its own origin, such as United States to mainland China to United States, does not qualify for this plan.
- Different ports, and no going back: Entry is Beijing, exit is the Shenzhen land port, and the two are not interchangeable. All four cities sit inside the areas the policy permits: Beijing municipality, Shaanxi province, Shanghai municipality, Guangdong province. Nothing outside those areas is scheduled, and once the party leaves the permitted area it does not re-enter, which is why day ten ends at the port.
- Day ten is the hard deadline: exit clearance on day ten is the one node that cannot slip. We hold at least four hours of buffer before your planned crossing and schedule nothing self-arranged after Huaqiangbei.
- The Hong Kong side is separate: being eligible to enter Hong Kong has nothing to do with the mainland transit policy. You confirm that eligibility in writing before payment, and everything inside Hong Kong is on your own account.
- Policy re-check at quoting: before payment on each order we re-check the policy as published for that departure date. An order that does not pass the re-check is not taken, and we say so rather than sell.
- Which visa route applies to non-UK passports: for any passport other than a US passport the applicable route is being settled in commercial review. Until it is, your quote states in writing which route your order runs on and the result of the check above. Guests connecting through a third place on the way in must not connect through Hong Kong on the inbound leg.
- No departures 1 to 7 October: visitor volume at the Terracotta Warriors site peaks in that week and capacity on the three intercity legs is at its tightest, against a plan whose exit cannot slip.
- Day two never falls on a Monday: the Forbidden City closes on Mondays. Where your requested departure date would put day two on a Monday, days two and three swap, so the Great Wall day moves to day two and the Forbidden City day to day three. Each remains a standalone day, and the swap is confirmed in writing before payment.
- November and December departures: the operating and weather-suspension rules for the upward chairlift at Mutianyu and for cycling on the Xi'an city wall are not yet confirmed with our ground partners for those months. Until they are, every quote for a November or December departure states in writing the operating terms of those two items and what replaces them if the operator suspends service.
- The Shenzhen robotaxi ride: this is the one thing on the ground here that we will not promise. Availability sits with the operator, not with us, so it is not in your price and it is not sold to you as part of this plan. On day ten we check operator availability for your date, and where it runs we arrange the ride and state its price in writing when you choose it. Where it does not run, the day continues with a Shenzhen alternative, which is stated in writing in your quote before you travel.
- Party size and intercity class: Until they are settled, every quote states both in writing for that order, and no order is taken without them.
- Confirmation and changes: The confirmation-time commitment and the change and refund terms are being finalised with our ground partners. Until they are settled, each quote states in writing its own confirmation deadline and its change and refund conditions. A date change on this plan touches rail and flight inventory and re-opens the whole entry-and-exit check above, because the exit date is fixed by the stay window.

## Is Ten Days Your Length?

Fewer than ten days?

### Fewer than ten days?

The first six days stand alone as a Beijing and Xi'an trip. The exit, however, is not a segment you can simply trim from the end: this itinerary requires you to depart from a different port than your point of entry and to continue to a third destination, so a shorter version is re-planned around a new exit rather than being cut short. Tell us your dates and the origin of your flights, and we will advise which option works best.

## Good to Know

- Group: Private, just your party. From 1 guest. No fixed maximum party size.
- Pace: Four cities in ten days with three moves: Beijing 3 nights, Xi'an 3, Shanghai 2, Shenzhen 1. The first six days sit still; the last four carry all three transfers and the exit. Day seven is the light day
- Effort: Moderate. The longest walk is the Forbidden City morning, and Jingshan straight after is a short uphill on steps. At Mutianyu the chairlift takes you up. The Xi'an city wall is covered by bicycle, not on foot.
- Ports: Arrive in Beijing; exit mainland China at the Shenzhen land port, heading to Hong Kong. Airport pickup on day one; on day ten your guide accompanies you to the immigration hall.
- Visas: This plan is designed backward from the 10-day visa-free transit policy, and it is checked order by order against your complete international itinerary and your actual arrival time. For UK, European and Canadian passports the applicable route is being settled in commercial review and is stated in writing in your quote
- Language: Licensed English-speaking guides throughout, city by city, including both evening walks
- On the Bund: Strangers approach visitors on the waterfront with invitations to practise English or to sit down for tea. Your guide is with you for the whole evening and the answer is no.
- Money inside markets: Nothing bought at Huaqiangbei, eaten in the Muslim Quarter or picked up as a souvenir is in your price. Your guide will tell you what a fair number looks like before you start
- Payment: When this route opens for booking: From 1 guest. A 10% deposit (minimum $399) locks your dates. The balance is due 14 days before departure. "Or similar" never means a quiet downgrade
- Season: Selling window October to December 2026. No departures October 1 to 7. For November and December departures, the operating terms for the Mutianyu chairlift and the Xi'an wall cycling are stated in writing in your quote.

## Your Private Concierge

- Name: Jason Hu
- Title: Private China Route Concierge
- Tagline: A bilingual planning desk for tailor-made China journeys.
- Bio: Our China team tailors the pacing, hotels and local hosts to suit each route style.
- Avatar image: https://cdn.lyriktrip.com/s/c0TBypRh.png

### Stats

- 20+ Years
- 300+ Trips designed
- 24/7 On-trip care

### The Conversation

Every LyrikTrip journey begins with a conversation. Tell us your dates and who's coming — and if this length isn't right for you, we'll say so and shape a shorter arc. First reply within four hours; a clear price for your dates within one business day.

- CTA: Start the conversation

### Step 01: Tell us what excites you

Not your dates and budget — your curiosity. Where have you always wanted to go? What do you want to feel? We start there.

- 24h: First concept delivered

### Step 02: We design it around you

Your specialist builds the itinerary from scratch — routes, hosts, hotels, and experiences you won't find anywhere else.

- 100%: Bespoke, never off-the-shelf

### Step 03: Lock it in with 10%

When the plan feels right, a 10% deposit holds your entire trip. Balance due 30 days before departure.

- 10%: Deposit to secure everything

### Step 04: Travel. We handle the rest.

Your Trip Pack arrives before you fly. On the road, your concierge is one message away — for the expected and everything you didn't plan for.

- 24/7: Support throughout your journey

- Free cancellation up to 30 days
- English-speaking concierge
- Secure payment via Stripe

- CTA: Talk to Us

## Guest Reviews

- Overall rating: 4.9
- Total reviews: 523
- Count label: from 523 verified reviews

4.9 / 5

### Platforms

- google: 4.9 (312 reviews)
- tripadvisor: 5.0 (211 reviews)

- Filter tabs: All, Google, TripAdvisor
- Emily Carter (🇺🇸 Seattle, USA · 5★ · May 2026 · google): Perfect for couples - My partner and I had an amazing time in China. Everything was arranged for us — transfers, hotels, guides. No stress at all.
- Claire Brooks (🇬🇧 London, UK · 5★ · Apr 2026 · tripadvisor): Great for families - Traveled with my two kids and had zero issues. The team made sure the pace wasn't too rushed and included things the kids would enjoy. Communication was easy throughout. Will definitely use them again for our next Asia trip.
- Laura Bennett (🇨🇦 Toronto, Canada · 5★ · Mar 2026 · google): Alisa made the whole experience easy - Alisa was our point of contact throughout and she was brilliant — patient, knowledgeable, and always quick to reply. The trip itself was wonderful. Beijing and Guilin were highlights.
- Mark Henderson (🇺🇸 Denver, USA · 4★ · Feb 2026 · tripadvisor): Good service, minor hiccup but sorted quickly - Really good service. There was a small mix-up with one of our restaurant bookings but it got sorted quickly. The rest of the trip was seamless.
- Rebecca Miller (🇺🇸 Boston, USA · 5★ · Jan 2026 · google): Really listened to what we wanted - Really helpful team. They listened to what we wanted and delivered. Beijing and Xi'an were incredible.

## China Ready

We've solved the hard parts. Here's everything a first-time Western traveller needs to know before arriving.

### VPN & Internet Access

- Badge: Do this before you fly
- What's blocked: Google, Gmail, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, and most Western news sites are inaccessible in China without a VPN.
- Download before you leave: It's nearly impossible to download a VPN once inside China. Install and test at home. Recommended: Astrill (most reliable), Mullvad, ExpressVPN — subscribe to at least two in case one stops working.
- Hotel Wi-Fi tip: Some hotels block VPN connections on their Wi-Fi. Use your phone's mobile data as a hotspot if the VPN drops.
- Good news: WhatsApp works perfectly through a VPN, so your messaging stays unchanged. Apple iMessage and Signal also work.

### Paying in China

- Badge: Your concierge sets this up on Day 1
- China is cashless: Alipay and WeChat Pay are used for almost everything — restaurants, taxis, markets, tickets. Cash is rarely accepted in cities.
- International cards now work: Foreign Visa/Mastercard can now link directly to Alipay (set up in minutes, $5,000 single transaction limit). Your concierge walks you through the setup on your first morning.
- Carry some cash: We recommend ¥500–800 RMB in cash for the rare vendor that won't accept digital payment, and for small towns.
- Booking this trip: Your deposit and balance are charged via Stripe — the same trusted platform used by Airbnb and Booking.com. USD billing, no surprise conversion fees.

### Visa & Entry

- Badge: We handle the paperwork
- Do you need a visa?: Most US, UK, EU, Australian, Canadian, and New Zealand passport holders need a tourist (L) visa for stays over 10 days. We provide a visa invitation letter with every booking — it significantly speeds up approval.
- 240-hour visa-free transit: Citizens of 55+ countries (including USA, UK, most of EU, AUS, NZ, Canada) can enter China visa-free for up to 10 days if transiting through eligible ports. This covers our 12-day itinerary only if you have a confirmed onward flight.
- Processing time: Apply 4–6 weeks before departure. Standard processing: 4–7 business days. Express (3 days) and same-day options available at most Chinese consulates.
- What we provide: Visa invitation letter, hotel confirmation for all nights, suggested itinerary document — everything the consulate needs, formatted correctly.

### Safety & Practical Tips

- Badge: Our responsibility, always
- Is China safe?: China consistently ranks among the safest countries for foreign tourists. Violent crime against visitors is extremely rare. Cities have extensive CCTV coverage and a visible police presence.
- Emergency numbers: Police: 110. Ambulance: 120. Your concierge is your first call for any non-emergency situation — she has local contacts for every city on the itinerary.
- Health & medications: Bring a full supply of any prescription medication. International pharmacies exist in major cities but may not carry your brand. Travel insurance is required — we can recommend policies that cover China specifically.
- Language: English fluency outside hotels and tourist sites is limited. Your guides all speak English. We provide a printed pocket card with essential Chinese phrases and emergency contacts for every traveller.

## Before You Book

Everything worth knowing before you book.

### Do I really not need a visa for this?

If you are a US passport holder whose flights fit the rules, yes: this plan is designed backward from the 10-day visa-free transit policy. The rules are not soft, so we check them on your real tickets before anything is charged: your complete international itinerary in writing, entry at Beijing and exit at the Shenzhen land port, an onward flight to a third place, and a stay computed in hours from your actual landing time. We also re-check the policy as published for your departure date. For UK, European and Canadian passports the applicable route is being settled in commercial review and your quote states in writing which route your order runs on. If your itinerary does not qualify we say so rather than sell you the trip.

### What if my inbound flight is delayed and eats hours off the window?

The window starts at your entry stamp, so a delay moves the whole ten days rather than shortening the last day only. That is why the plan is built with roughly a full day of margin inside the window, and why we compute your hours from your actual arrival time rather than from a schedule. What we cannot promise is a delay of any size: airlines and immigration halls are not ours. If a long delay compresses your window, the day-ten content is cut from the Shenzhen end and the crossing time stays where it is, because the crossing is the one thing that cannot move. What you still get in that case is the same guide, the same vehicle and an exit with its four-hour buffer intact.

### Four cities in ten days with three moves. Is that too fast?

It is the tightest plan we run on this window, and we would rather say that than have you find out on day seven. Here is how it is arranged: the first six days do not move at all, three nights in Beijing and three in Xi'an, so the two heaviest sites each get a whole day to themselves. All three transfers sit in the last four days, and day seven is deliberately light, one morning walk and an afternoon flight. If that still reads as too fast, we run a three-city version of this same window that trades one city for two calmer days. Tell us which you want and we will lay both against your dates.

### Can we ride in a driverless taxi in Shenzhen?

Sometimes, and we will not pretend it is ours to promise. These vehicles run on a commercial operator's routes and the operator decides day by day what is running, so the ride is not in your price and it is not part of what this plan sells you. On day ten we check availability for your date; where it runs, we arrange it and state its price in writing when you choose it. Where it does not, the day continues with a Shenzhen alternative that is written into your quote before you travel. Either way day ten keeps what it is built on: your vehicle and guide all day, Huaqiangbei read floor by floor, and four hours of buffer before the crossing.

### Is the crossing into Hong Kong included?

No, and that is also why this route is not open for booking yet. The plan ends at the mainland exit port: your driver takes you there and your guide walks you to the immigration hall, with at least four hours of buffer held ahead of your planned crossing. The ticket for the crossing itself, everything on the Hong Kong side and your eligibility to enter Hong Kong are yours. We are settling the carrier and the issuing party for that leg now, and until they are named in writing we take no orders and no deposits, because an exit leg with no named carrier is not a sellable exit on a plan whose exit cannot slip.