8-Day Beijing, Xi’an and Shanghai Tour | Palaces, Warriors & Riverfronts

Your Beijing, Xi’an and Shanghai tour begins here. Meet your local team in Beijing and travel to the hotel by private vehicle. Keep the arrival day for checking in, resting and becoming familiar with the nearby streets, rather than adding a fixed sightseeing circuit. Your meeting point follows the confirmed flight or train, with luggage and any early-arrival needs discussed beforehand.

Begin with an introductory Tai Chi session at the Temple of Heaven, then follow the ceremonial axis through Tian’anmen Square and the Forbidden City. Look at how gateways and courts separate public ceremony from palace life. Jingshan adds a hillside view over the roofs, with lower gardens available if you prefer fewer steps. Finish around Shichahai for the evening.

Tiananmen Square Reservation for Foreigners & Visiting · Forbidden City Tickets · Jingshan Park Forbidden City View · Temple of Heaven Highlights · Shichahai Beijing

Leave early for Mutianyu, allowing roughly 1.5–2.5 hours on the road and 2–3 hours in the scenic area. Walk a manageable stretch between watchtowers before returning toward the Summer Palace. A compact lakeside route shows how water, painted corridors and distant hills frame the garden. Cableway travel and a lake boat are optional additions, confirmed separately.

Mutianyu Great Wall · Summer Palace Beijing

Try the brush and ink at a Xiushui Street calligraphy session, learning how stroke order shapes a character before making a small piece to keep. Continue to Beijing West for the second-class train to Xi’an North, provisionally around 4.5–6 hours. The local team meets your arrival and transfers you to the hotel; no further timed visit is planned.

Allow around three hours among the Terracotta Army’s excavation halls, examining armour, hairstyles and the organisation of the ranks. A figurine workshop introduces modern reproduction techniques before returning to the old city. Continue to the Bell Tower, Gao’s Courtyard and the Muslim Quarter, connecting defensive landmarks with domestic architecture and food traditions. Paper-cutting and shadow-puppet arrangements need a confirmed session.

Visit the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda precinct for its connection with Xuanzang and Buddhist translation, then walk a selected section of Xi’an City Wall. Pagoda ascent and bicycle rental are optional. Transfer to the airport for an economy-class flight to Shanghai, allowing roughly 2–3 hours in the air plus airport time. A Huangpu cruise may be added after an early arrival.

Giant Wild Goose Pagoda

Begin among Yu Garden’s rockeries and courtyards, then explore the surrounding old streets and Nanjing Road. Cross to Pudong for the Oriental Pearl’s booked viewing level, comparing the river’s working waterfront with its towers. Return to the Bund toward evening for a walk past historic façades. An ERA acrobatic performance is optional, with tickets and transfers agreed separately.

Yu Garden · Oriental Pearl Tower · The Bund

Keep the final free time for packing, rest or a short independent walk before your departure transfer in Shanghai. The pickup is planned around the actual flight or train, hotel location, road conditions and departure procedures. No extra timed attraction is inserted into this connection; additional guiding, nights or excursions require an agreed supplement. This completes your Beijing, Xi’an and Shanghai tour.