China Family Adventure Itinerary: Culture, History & Giant Pandas
Trip Overview
A vibrant and emotional journey filled with cultural and historical enrichment, where you’ll experience authentic anecdotes firsthand. This is the ideal family itinerary to discover China’s warm and welcoming side while getting up close with Giant Pandas, visiting iconic tourist destinations across the country.
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Benefit 1
Covers 7 core cities (Beijing, Xi'an, etc.), including world heritage sites like the Forbidden City and Terracotta Army, plus in-depth experiences such as panda volunteer programs and terraced villages, blending history with original ecology.
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Benefit 2
Features 4-5 star hotels, seamless transportation (high-speed trains, private cars), age-friendly activities (Tai Chi, dumpling making), and English-speaking guides to ensure comfort and hassle-free family travel.
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Benefit 3
All-inclusive price covers transportation, tickets, accommodation, meals, and special experiences with no mandatory shopping. The 10-20 person small group ensures high-quality service without extra planning.
China Family Adventure Itinerary: Culture, History & Giant Pandas
Trip Overview
A vibrant and emotional journey filled with cultural and historical enrichment, where you’ll experience authentic anecdotes firsthand. This is the ideal family itinerary to discover China’s warm and welcoming side while getting up close with Giant Pandas, visiting iconic tourist destinations across the country.
Daily Itinerary
Day 1: Beijing – Temple of Heaven, Tai Chi Experience, Rickshaw Ride & Peking Duck Tasting
Arrival at Beijing Capital Airport. Since hotel check-in is at 14:00, we’ll start the morning by exploring the city’s heart: take a leisurely rickshaw (tricycle) ride through the hutongs (traditional alleyways) and visit a typical Beijing family. Lunch is included at the hotel.
Next, we’ll visit the Temple of Heaven – a magnificent complex where Ming Dynasty emperors offered sacrifices for good harvests. Before the tour, a Tai Chi master will lead a simple introductory class to this ancient art.
Dinner features Beijing’s signature dish, “Peking Duck,” at the prestigious Dadong Restaurant.
Day 2: Beijing – Great Wall, Summer Palace & Chinese Acrobatics Show
Buffet breakfast at the hotel.
Morning: Visit the Great Wall (Mutianyu Section). Enjoy a cable car ride up and down (thrill-seekers are recommended to take the chairlift up and descend via the incredible Great Wall toboggan). Lunch included.
Afternoon: Explore the Summer Palace, located 12 km from downtown Beijing. Built exclusively for emperors and their families to relax, it’s a masterpiece of Chinese landscape garden design.
Evening: Attend a spectacular Chinese Acrobatics Show.
Day 3: Beijing – Luoyang – Tiananmen Square & Forbidden City
Buffet breakfast at the hotel.
Today, we’ll visit Tiananmen Square – the world’s largest public square, witness to numerous political and historical events. Walk across the square to explore the Forbidden City, the largest, most intact ancient imperial palace in the world. It served as the residence of emperors from the early 15th century until 1911. We’ll stroll through the ancient imperial palaces of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Lunch included.
Afternoon: Transfer to Beijing West Railway Station to take a high-speed train to Luoyang (680 km, approx. 4 hours).
Day 4: Luoyang – Xi’an – Shaolin Temple & Longmen Grottoes
Buffet breakfast at the hotel.
Morning: Travel by coach to the Shaolin Temple (83 km, 1.5 hours) – the birthplace of Chinese Kung Fu. Watch an exciting martial arts performance. Lunch included.
Afternoon: Visit the Longmen Grottoes (Dragon Gate Grottoes), a UNESCO World Heritage Site. With over 1,300 caves, 40 small pagodas, and 100,000 Buddha statues of all sizes (the largest reaching 17 meters tall), it’s a masterpiece of Buddhist art.
After the tour, transfer to Luoyang Railway Station to take a high-speed train to Xi’an (380 km, 1.5 hours). Xi’an, an ancient capital with 3,000 years of history, is the only walled capital in China and the starting point of the famous “Silk Road.”
Day 5: Xi’an – Terracotta Army, Small Wild Goose Pagoda & Great Mosque
Buffet breakfast at the hotel.
Morning: Visit the Terracotta Army of Emperor Qin Shi Huang (45 km, 1 hour by car) – one of the world’s most significant archaeological discoveries. Explore the life-sized clay warriors and horses that guarded the emperor’s mausoleum. Lunch is a special feast featuring a variety of Jiaozi (homemade Chinese dumplings) at one of Xi’an’s most famous restaurants.
Afternoon: Visit the Small Wild Goose Pagoda (external viewing only) and the Great Mosque, built in 742. Notable for its blend of Sino-Arabic architecture, the mosque reflects the profound influence of Arab culture in China. We’ll also wander through the Muslim Quarter, lined with antique stalls, souvenir shops, and street food vendors.
Day 6: Xi’an – Hanjia Village (Northern Chinese Village Experience) & High-Speed Train to Chengdu
Buffet breakfast at the hotel.
Morning: Travel to Hanjia Village, a typical northern Chinese village, to enjoy rural landscapes and learn about the locals’ life and traditions. After a pleasant walk, join an introductory workshop to make Jiaozi (Chinese dumplings) and savor authentic local cuisine.
After lunch, explore the original Huxian Farmer Paintings – renowned nationwide and internationally for their unique style. Alongside these paintings, we’ll admire various artistic works that offer insights into Chinese rural life through art.
Afternoon: Transfer to Xi’an North Railway Station to take a high-speed train to Chengdu (approx. 4 hours).
Arrival in Chengdu, transfer to the hotel, and free time to rest. Accommodation: Holiday Inn Chengdu Oriental Plaza 5* Hotel Website
Day 7: Chengdu – Dujiangyan Giant Panda Reserve (Volunteer Program)
Buffet breakfast at the hotel.
Morning: Travel by private car (approx. 2 hours) to the Dujiangyan Giant Panda Reserve, located outside Chengdu. Spend a special day interacting with our beloved Giant Pandas through the reserve’s volunteer program: wear official uniforms, collect bamboo, prepare panda meals, and feed them personally. Chat with experts to learn fascinating details about pandas, watch specialized documentaries, and assist with enclosure maintenance. Lunch included at the reserve’s restaurant.
Return to the hotel in Chengdu and rest. Accommodation: Holiday Inn Chengdu Oriental Plaza 5* Hotel Website
Day 8: Chengdu – Leshan Giant Buddha, Huanglongxi Ancient Town & Flight to Guilin
Buffet breakfast at the hotel.
Today, grab your cameras! We’ll visit the famous and imposing Leshan Giant Buddha – the world’s tallest stone-carved Buddha statue, constructed during the Tang Dynasty.
Lunch included at a local restaurant.
Prepare your cameras again for the afternoon trip to Huanglongxi Ancient Town – a village steeped in stories and legends, with charming corners to admire the area’s unique beauty.
Subsequently, transfer to Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport to take a flight to Guilin.
Day 9: Guilin – Longsheng Rice Terraces & Local Cuisine Tasting
Buffet breakfast at the hotel.
Excursion to the stunning Longsheng Rice Terraces (96 km, 2 hours and 15 minutes by car). Inhabited by various ethnic minorities, these terraced mountains go beyond conventional tourist routes, offering authentic views of rural China. Upon reaching the first small village, take a gentle guided walk with a local guide along stone paths, passing through a small village with wooden houses and handicraft shops. Lunch included.
Day 10: Guilin – Li River Cruise, Yangshuo & Reed Flute Cave
Buffet breakfast at the hotel.
Amidst countless mountains, enjoy a paradise of water and uniquely shaped peaks on a cruise along the legendary Li River (also known as the Lijiang River). Geological studies confirm this region was underwater 300 million years ago; continental plate movements lifted it to form a karst maze of hundreds of mountains, eroded by rain and wind into a variety of original shapes – often compared to those of Ha Long Bay in Vietnam.
It’s common to see water buffaloes along the riverbanks, as well as fishermen in bamboo rafts using cormorants (a type of bird) to catch fish.
Lunch included on the cruise.
Afternoon: Drive to Yangshuo West Street (Guilin to Yangshuo: 80 km, 1 hour and 20 minutes by car). With a history of over 1,400 years, it’s one of the oldest streets in the area, lined with numerous shops, restaurants, and bars. Walk through the town center to Yangshuo Park Pagoda Hill – those who wish can climb the hill for beautiful panoramic views (highly recommended). Meanwhile, others can relax in the park, enjoying the local atmosphere with impromptu musicians and amateur dance groups entertaining visitors with their melodies and choreographies.
Later, embark on a new adventure with a visit to the spectacular Reed Flute Cave. A natural limestone cave formed by erosion, it houses a wonderful landscape of stalactites and stalagmites, along with countless legends. Its name derives from the type of reed that grows inside.
Day 11: Guilin – Flight to Shanghai & The Bund Tour
Buffet breakfast at the hotel.
Transfer to Guilin Liangjiang International Airport to take a flight to Shanghai (1,600 km, 2 hours).
Upon arrival in Shanghai, transfer to The Bund – a famous waterfront promenade regarded as the symbol of Shanghai for a century. Lined with iconic colonial-era buildings along the Huangpu River, it faces the Pudong district directly.
Day 12: Shanghai – Yu Garden, Jade Buddha Temple, M50 Art District & The Bund Stroll
Buffet breakfast at the hotel.
Start the day with a must-visit tour of Yu Garden, designed during the Ming Dynasty (1559–1577). A government official named Pan Yunduan built it so his aging parents, who were too old to travel to the capital, could experience such a garden. The name “Yu Garden” translates to “Garden of Health and Tranquility.”
In the same area as Yu Garden, wander through the Old Town – full of attractions, it’s easy to get lost while meandering through ancient alleyways (such as the one translated into Spanish as “la segunda vía Caballo del Este”).
Next, visit the Jade Buddha Temple, built in 1882. During the Qing Dynasty, a monk named Hui Gen embarked on a pilgrimage to Tibet. On his way back to China, he stopped in Myanmar, where a Chinese immigrant gave him five jade Buddha statues. With donations, Hui Gen built a temple to house the statues. However, the original temple was occupied in 1911, and the statues and temple were moved to their current location. The Jade Buddha Hall houses a seated Buddha statue weighing 3 tons and standing 1.95 meters tall. Another hall features a reclining Jade Buddha statue, depicting the Buddha’s nirvana.
Lunch included.
Afternoon: Visit the M50 Art District, originally known as the Shanghai Chunming Woolen Mill. Transformed in 2000, it has become a leading artistic hub in the city, where visitors love to wander for hours, admiring unique artworks displayed in converted factories turned galleries.
Later, return to The Bund to soak in the breathtaking views of modern Shanghai – a skyline of skyscrapers illuminated with exquisite lighting designs.
Day 13: Shanghai – Free Morning, Zhujiajiao Water Town & International Flight Preparation
Buffet breakfast at the hotel.
Morning: Free time for independent activities.
Afternoon: Visit Zhujiajiao Water Town (30 km, 40 minutes by car) – a beautiful typical southern Chinese town with ancient canals. Crossed by the Caogang River, it was once an important hub for local trade and goods transportation. Wander through the maze of lanes and bridges to admire the unique residences and boats of this perfectly preserved water town, offering a completely different perspective of China.
Day 14: Shanghai – International Return Flight
Buffet breakfast at the hotel.
Transfer to Shanghai Pudong International Airport at the appropriate time to board the international return flight.
End of our services.
Pricing Information
Standard Price (Per Person in Double Room):
$2,150 USD
- Guaranteed departure with a minimum of 10 passengers and a maximum of 20 passengers.
Single Supplement:
$650 USD
What’s Included:
- Economy class domestic flight tickets with taxes included
- High-speed train tickets (economy class)
- Group private transfers, assistance, and tours as specified in the itinerary
- Local Spanish-speaking guide in each city
- Entrance fees to all attractions mentioned in the itinerary
- Accommodation in the quoted hotels or similar (standard double rooms with breakfast):
- Beijing: 2 nights
- Luoyang: 1 night
- Xi’an: 2 nights
- Chengdu: 2 nights
- Guilin: 3 nights
- Shanghai: 3 nights
- Dujiangyan Giant Panda Reserve visit (including volunteer program)
- Li River cruise
- Chinese acrobatics show
- Great Wall cable car tickets
- Meals as specified in the itinerary (lunches and dinners)
What’s Not Included:
- Tips for guides, drivers, and hotel porters (to be paid directly at the destination)
- Beverages (not included in meals)
- All items not specified in “What’s Included”