Start in: Kunming
End in: Beijing
Special Experience: Cruise on Erhai and trek to the Tiger Leaping Gorge, Yangtze River Cruise
China Yunnan and Yangtze River Tour
Day-by-Day Itinerary
Day 1 Beijing/Kunming
Accommodations: Golden Dragon 
Transfer via: China domestic flight arranged by us
Today you will take the flight from Beijing to Kunming. Upon your arrival at Kunming, "the Spring and Flower City", our local guide will meet you and escort you to your hotel. The rest of the day is free at your own leisure.
Accommodations: Golden Dragon
Sightseeing: Stone Forest
Today, you will enjoy a full day trip to the Stone Forest which is about 90km to the south of Kunming.
- Stone Forest: a 270-million-year-old limestone karst formation of tightly bundled gray rocky outcrops, a natural wonder acknowledged as "World Karst Landscape Museum", the Stone Forest shows a variety of unique shapes, such as sword, mushrooms, tower, pillar and castle, representing the greatest miracle that nature can present to human beings.
Accommodations: Golden Dragon
Meals: B
Sightseeing: West Hill and Dragon Gate,The Grand View Park (Daguan Park)
After breakfast, you will have a half-day city tour including the West Hill and Dragon Gate, and Grand View Park. Enjoy a free afternoon to explore this city by yourself.
- West Hill and Dragon Gate: located by the Dian Lake, known as "Sleeping Beauty," it is a natural forest park in Kunming with a series of winding steps, tunnels, and statue-filled grottoes leading to the top. After taking the cable car up to the Cablecar Station, you can walk along the path in the mountain, and stop now and then to enjoy the beauty of the scenery: blue skies, green water with slow sailing fishing boats and so on.
- The Grand View Park (Daguan Park): located by the Dian Lake, which features a Buddhist temple and the early Qing-dynasty Grand View Tower, the Grand View Tower is famous for its inscriptions by the 18-century poet Sun Ranweng.
Accommodations: Asia Star hotel Dali
Meals: B
Sightseeing: Erhai Lake,Xizhou Bai Minority Village,Three Pagodas,Dali Ancient Town
Transfer via: China domestic flight arranged by us
After breakfast, be transferred to the airport and take the morning flight to Dali. Upon your arrival, be met and transferred to the city by our local guide. The visit today in this lovely city includes cruise on Erhai, Xizhou Bai Minority Village, Three Pagodas and the Dali Ancient Town.
- Erhai Lake: shaped like a human ear this lake covers over 250 square kilometers. With its vast pool of water shining under the sun like a sheet of vivid green and the snow mantles of the Cang Mountain reflecting quiveringly in it, it is known poetically as "Silver Cang Mountain and Jade-like Erhai".
- Xizhou Bai Minority Village: a photogenic village 20km north of Dali, where Bai minority people are living and where you will can get some ideas of the Bais' flair for architecture and elegant living.
- Three Pagodas: at the foot of the Zhonghe Peak of the Cang Mountain, part of Chongshen Monastery, they are an emblem of the city's venerated history. The tallest of the trio, which is 69.13 metres tall, was built in 836 AD, while two smaller ones were built during a later period. No visit to Dali is complete without a call at these three pagodas.
- Dali Ancient Town: first established in 1382 AD, with a moat surrounding it. This old town has a typical layout like a chessboard, old-timey roofed buildings with dark blue tiles and the white and gray tall walls.
Accommodations: Jiannanchun Hotel
Meals: B
Sightseeing: Lijiang Ancient Town,Lion Hill,Heqing Village & Xinhua Village
In the morning, drive to Lijiang (3-hour drive). Along the way, you will stop by the Heqing County and pay a visit to Heqing Villages
- Lijiang Ancient Town: also called Dayan Town, built in the late Song dynasty and the early Yuan dynasty with a history of more than 800 years. This ancient town consists of clean streams flowing freely through the road network, the colorful cobbled streets, age-old swaying willow trees, age-old buildings and stone bridges. There are over 22 different ethnic minorities making Lijiang their home. Now and then you may see local folks in their own tradtional dress. Strolling around this charming ancient town, you will be attracted by the unique atmosphere and surprised by its ancient yet simple sense of "Harmony of Heaven and Man."
- Lion Hill: the name is derived from its resemblance of a lion playing a ball. The mountain is best known for its vast and green pines and cypresses planted mostly in Ming Dynasty with over 500 years old. From the Tower of Eternity (Wangoulou) on the top of the mountain, you can enjoy a bird's eye view of the ancient town and the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain far away.
- Heqing Village & Xinhua Village: long history of handicraft craftsmanship, you will be visiting gold-making, silver-making, etc., workshops and you will have time to do some shopping if you wish.
Accommodations: Jiannanchun Hotel
Meals: B
Sightseeing: Jade Dragon Snow Mountain,Black Dragon Pool Park,Baisha Mural Paintings
Today, you will enjoy a full day trip to the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, the Baisha Mural Paintings and the Black Dragon Pool Park.
- Jade Dragon Snow Mountain: it is so called because it looks like a flying jade dragon from afar. The mountain consists of 13 peaks and sprawls 35 km from north to south. Its glacier is the closest to the equator in the Northern Hemisphere. By taking the cable car up to a certain height, you can enjoy the expansive mountains views and snowy scenery.
- Black Dragon Pool Park: where you can see the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain from afar and the reflection of the mountain in the pool in a clear day. This park is the source of the water system of the Old Lijiang Town as the clean spring from Jade Dragon Snow Mountain gathers here.
- Baisha Mural Paintings: located in Baisha Township, 8km north of Lijiang, there are altogether 53 groups of mural paintings in different temples with fine and smooth lines, bright colors,vivid patterns and harmonious composition. Painted from the early days of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) to the early Qing Dynasty (1644-1911),these mural paintings are an artistic representation of the different religious cultures such as Buddhism, Lamaism, Daoism and the Naxi Dongba religion.
Accommodations: Jiannanchun Hotel
Meals: B
Sightseeing: Shigu Village,Tiger Leaping Gorge,First Bend of the Yangtze River
After breakfast, you will have a full day trip to Tiger Leaping Gorge, First Bend of the Yangtze River, and Iron Chain Bridge in the Shigu (Stone Drum) Town. Get back to Lijiang County afterwards.
- Shigu Village: The hypsography is very rugged in Shigu Village, Which is located on the opposite of the First Bend on the Yangtze River.
- Tiger Leaping Gorge: This gorge is located 92 km north of Lijiang County, between peaks of over 3,000 meters above the Jinsha River (upper course of Yangtze River). The legend goes that tigers often leap to the other side of the river by a huge rock lying in the middle of the river at the entrance of the Gorge, hence the name. This 17-kilometer-long Gorge is honored as the deepest and one of the most marvelous gorges on the earth.
- First Bend of the Yangtze River: formed by the Yangtze River rushing down from the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau with a sharp turn of 45 degrees at Shigu (Stone Drum) Town before the river continues running on to northeast.
Accommodations: Holiday Inn Yangtze
Meals: B
Transfer via: China domestic flight arranged by us
Free in the day until our local guide escorts you to the airport for your flight to Kunming and then transfer to your next destination-Chongqing. Upon your arrival at Chongqing, the largest city in Southwest China, our local guide will meet you and escort you to your hotel. The rest of the day is free at your own leisure.
Accommodations: On the Cruise
Meals: B
Sightseeing: Dazu Rock Carvings,Baoding Grottoes,Beishan Grottoes
Today, you will enjoy a full day tour to view Dazu Rock Carvings in Dazu County(about 2.5-hour-drive) and pay a visit to the two major sites--the Beishan (North Mountain) Grottoes and Baoding Grottoes. After the tour, drive back to Chongqing for the preboard of your cruise. Departs Chongqing at 22:00.
- Dazu Rock Carvings: The steep hillsides of the Dazu area contain an exceptional series of rock carvings dating from the 9th to the 13th century. They are remarkable for their aesthetic quality, their rich diversity of subject matter, both secular and religious, and the light that they shed on everyday life in China during this period. They provide outstanding evidence of the harmonious synthesis of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism. In 1999, Dazu Rock Carvings, mainly consisting of Beishan and Baoding Grottoes, was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- Baoding Grottoes: constructed from 1179 AD to 1249 AD by Tantric monk Zhao Zhifeng, the subjects of carvings here are mainly illustrations of Buddhist sutras, aiming at a representation of familiar and secular life in content. The depicting style of these grottoes is quite different from other grottoes, and the thousands of statues here never repeat each other in subject matter.
- Beishan Grottoes: smaller than Baoding Grottoes, with nearly ten thousand statues, mainly donated by common folks on subjects that fall in 51 categories and mainly about esoteric Buddhism. Carvings here are famed for the refined and meticulous depicting, showing clearly the development and change of grotto art as well as the beliefs of common Chinese from the 9th to mid 13th century.
Accommodations: On the Cruise
Meals: B,L,D
Sightseeing: Wan County(Wanxian),Fengdu Ghost City
Shore excursion to Fengdu Ghost City or Wan County(Wanxian).
- Wan County(Wanxian): founded about 1,900 years ago, received its present name during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644AD) and became a foreign Treaty Port in 1902, the city is known as the Gateway to East of Sichuan Province.
- Fengdu Ghost City: constructed on the Mingshan Hill by the river bank, it is so called because of the legend which goes that about 1,700 years ago, two officials, Yin and Wang (the combination of their surnames means "Ghost King ") became Taoists here and eventually Immortals. Now with fantastic temples of underworld demons and gods, it shows the Chinese ghost culture and is a place for punishing the devil and awarding the good.
Accommodations: On the Cruise
Meals: B,L,D
Sightseeing: Shennong Stream
Shore excursion to Shennong Stream by smaller vessels(10:30-13:00).
- Shennong Stream: a small tributary of the Yangtze River is 60 kilometers long and is famous for its picturesque scenery. Shennong Stream is beautiful and ancient. When you take a sampan drifting along it, which is not without risk yet exhilarating and a challenge to battle with the nature. You will be attracted and surprised by its crystal clear steam flowing swiftly from north to south through deep gorges, steep ridges and peaks, thick vegetation and wild flowers, flying birds and a plank road built along a cliff and ancient hanging coffins. Sweet love songs will be presented to you by the local ethnic people.
Accommodations: On the Cruise
Meals: B,L,D
Sightseeing: Three Gorges
Shore excursion to Three Gorges Dam site (08:00-10:30).
- Three Gorges: spanning the Yangtze at Sandouping, Yichang, Hubei province, China. Construction began in 1994, and the 'Three Gorges Dam' is now the largest hydroelectric dam in the world. The Dam will be 2,335 meters long, 18 meters wide, and its bottom will be 130 meters wide after completion in 2009. When completed, the water level will rise to 135 meters above sea level. The reservoir began filling on June 1, 2003, and it will occupy the present position of the scenic Three Gorges area, between the cities of Yichang, Hubei, and Fuling, Chongqing Municipality.
Meals: B
Transfer via: China domestic flight arranged by us
Shore excursion to Three Gorges Dam site this morning (08:00-10:00). Disembark the ship in Yichang at 11:30AM. Our local guide escorts you to the airport for your onward flight to to Beijing.
China domestic flights as specified in the itinerary 
Accommodations for 12 nights, including
8 nights at four star or higher hotels, 4 nights at five star yangtze cruise ship
17 meals, including 11 full breakfasts, 3 lunches and 3 dinners
Round-trip transfers---between airports, hotels and scenic spots in each city by private air-conditioned motor coaches with experienced drivers
A local English-speaking guide in each city
Entrance fees to scenic spots listed in the itinerary
Luggage transfers between airports and hotels
China Life Tourist Accident/Casualty insurance
Government taxes and service charges except tips for tour guides and drivers
Featured Bird "Gull with red aw" in Yunnan
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- Bruce Alan Wallce,USA
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