| Day 1, Mon: Depart Hometown |
| Depart hometown via selected air carrier. |
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| Day 2, Tue: Arrive Beijing |
Arrive Beijing. Meet and transfer to the hotel.
HOTEL: BEIJING INTERNATIONAL or similar |
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| Day 3, Wed: Beijing Meals (B,L) |
| Full-day sightseeing: Tai Chi and morning exercises, Temple of Heaven, Museum of China Ancient Architecture & History of Beijing (UNESCO), Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City (UNESCO), Summer Palace (UNESCO). |
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| Day 4, Thu: Beijing Meals (B,L) |
| Full-day sightseeing: Badaling Great Wall (UNESCO) and Changling of Ming Tombs with (Sacred Way or Shaolin Kungfu training school) and the Olympic Sites (the Bird's Nest and the Water Cube) if time permits. |
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| Day 5, Fri: Beijing/Xian Meals (B,L) |
Fly to Xian. Transfer to hotel. Afternoon sightseeing: the Grand Mosque, Muslim Street and Bell Tower.
HOTEL: JIAN GUO or similar |
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| Day 6, Sat: Xian Meals (B,L,SD) |
| Full-day sightseeing: the Terra-cotta Museum (UNESCO), the City Wall, and the Ceramics & Pottery Center, popular Dumpling Dinner & Tang Dynasty Show. |
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| Day 7, Sun: Xian/Dunhuang Meals (B) |
Fly to Dunhuang. Transfer to hotel. The rest of the day at leisure.
HOTEL: SILK ROAD or similar
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| Day 8, Mon: Dunhuang Meals: (B,L,D) |
| Full day Sightseeing: Mogao Grottoes, Sounding Dune and Crescent Lake with Camel ride. If time permits, a visit to the village nearby. |
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| Day 9, Tue: Dunhuang/Liuyuan/Turpan Meals: (B,L,D) |
Travel by train to Yumen Pass, back to Dunhuang and visit the Dunhuang Museum. After dinner transfer to Liuyuan station for overnight train to Turpan.
OVERNIGHT TRAIN (soft berth with 4 in a cabin)
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| Day 10, Wed: Arrive Turpan Meals: (B,L,D) |
Upon arrival, meet and transfer to Hotel for breakfast. After freshen up at the hotel, visit the Grape Valley, the Karez Irrigation System and the Jiaohe Ancient Ruins at sunset. Dinner and Uygur minority dancing and singing performance at the hotel.
HOTEL: HUOZHOU or similar |
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| Day 11, Thu: Turpan/Urumqi Meals: (B,L,D) |
Sightseeing: the Emin Minerat, Bezklik Thousand Buddha Caves and the Flaming Mountain. Lunch at a Uygur family. Travel to Urumqi.
HOTEL: MIRAGE or similar
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| Day 12, Fri: Urumqi Meals: (B,L,D) |
| Full-day excursion to the Heavenly Lake with a cruise, then visit a Kazakh family at a pasture nearby. Return to the city and visit the Xinjiang Museum. |
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| Day 13, Sat: Urumqi/Kashgar Meals: (B,L,D) |
Fly to Kashgar. Upon arrival, meet at airport and visit the Kashgari Tomb and the Id Kah Mosque.
HOTEL: TIANYUAN INTERNATIONAL or similar
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| Day 14, Sun: Kashgar/Urumqi Meals: (B,L,D) |
Visit the Sunday Bazaar and the Kashgar old town including a home visit to a Uygur family. Evening flight to Urumqi.
HOTEL: MIRAGE or similar |
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| Day 15, Mon: Urumqi/Shanghai Meals: (B) |
Fly to Shanghai. Rest of day at leisure.
HOTEL: OCEAN or similar
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| Day 16, Tue: Shanghai Meals: (B,L) |
| Full-day sightseeing: The Old Town, classical Yu Garden (UNESCO), the Shanghai Museum, the Bund Area and Xintiandi, a well-known boutique area. |
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| Day 17, Wed: Depart Shanghai/Hometown Meals (B) |
| Departure transfer to airport for homeward flight. |
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| Suggested PRE or POST-TOUR: 4 days Hong Kong or Tokyo. Additional nights in Beijing or Shanghai (see FLEXIBLE CITY MODULES). |
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