Spend a morning at a leading research base to meet giant pandas in leafy enclosures designed for enrichment and care. Watch them munch bamboo, amble between climbing frames, and nap with enviable serenity.

Learn about conservation and research programs safeguarding these Sichuan icons, and keep an eye out for playful red pandas. Ethical viewing protocols ensure calm habitats and meaningful insight into species protection.

Join a Sichuan cooking class to master wok control, knife skills, and the balance of fiery málà flavors. Prepare classics like mapo tofu or gong bao chicken with fragrant chilies and numbing peppercorns.

Guided by local chefs, you’ll season, stir-fry, and plate dishes to savor on the spot, gaining insider tips on ingredients and wok-firing techniques. Optional experience at additional cost, bookable on tour.

• 11 Breakfast (B)
• 3 Lunch (L)
• 2 Dinner (D)

• Beijing: Time for some serious bucket list ticking! Visit the Sacred Way and the Great Wall (Mutianyu) to finally see what the fuss is about. Transport? No problem, return shuttle and cable cars are included too.  
• Beijing: Learn more about this popular emerald gemstone with a locally guided tour!
• Beijing: Sit down to one of Beijing’s most famous dishes: crispy Peking Duck. Served the traditional way, this local favourite is all about rich flavour, crisp skin and a meal that’s become a symbol of the city’s food scene.
• Beijing: See Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City and 798 Art Precinct for an arty take on this spellbinding city.
• Beijing: Ride through the narrow streets of Beijing like a native, then stop off for lunch with a local family. 
• Beijing: A rainbow feast of Insta-ops! With ornate gardens, colourful dragon boats and Oriental art around every corner.
• Beijing: Authentic Chinese culture, plus refreshing beverages? What more could you want?!
• Xi’an: Pick up a brush and try your hand at one of China’s oldest art forms. Guided by a Local Guide, you’ll learn the basics of traditional calligraphy and create your own characters while getting an insight into the history and meaning behind the practice.
• Xi’an: China’s got some jaw-dropping sights. But this epic work of art (2000+ sculptures of soldiers from 210–209 BCE) is still a fave. Don’t forget your camera!
• Xi’an: Hop on a bike and cruise along one of the world’s best-preserved city walls. Built during the Ming Dynasty, these historic fortifications now offer a unique way to see Xi’an, with sweeping views of the city both old and new as you ride.
• Chengdu: Meet one of China’s most iconic animals on a visit to a panda sanctuary. As part of a MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience, you’ll learn about panda conservation and the efforts being made to protect these much-loved bears in a responsible and ethical environment.
• Shanghai: Check out the maze of skyscrapers, rivers and roads as we head to the 118th floor of the Shanghai’s tallest building.
• Shanghai: Nothing in this world will awaken your senses like Shanghai. So hit up the alleys of this buzzing city and come see the God Temple and the glittering skyline with the Shanghai Tower. Unforgettable.
• Shanghai: Ready for the smoothest outing of your entire life? This one’s to dye for. If it’s not too materialistic, that is…

Contiki

Discover China’s emblematic fortification on a curated visit to the Great Wall at Mutianyu. Glide up by ride the cable car, stroll between watchtowers, and walk the crenellated ramparts above pine-clad ridgelines where the crowds thin and the vistas sharpen. Return shuttles and cable-car access keep the focus on the scenery and stories.

Encounter imperial ritual along the Sacred Way of the Ming Tombs, flanked by stone guardians and ceremonial arches. Your guide decodes feng shui beliefs and burial traditions that anchored the Ming emperors’ afterlife, adding depth to the landscape’s solemn grandeur.

Explore the civic heart of Beijing as you stand on Tiananmen Square, ringed by monuments that narrate modern China. Step through the Meridian Gate to tour the Forbidden City, from the Hall of Supreme Harmony to secluded courtyards where Ming and Qing emperors shaped an empire.

Shift to contemporary culture in the 798 Art District, a maze of Bauhaus-era factories reborn as edgy galleries and murals. If palace tickets are restricted, a guided visit to the Temple of Heaven offers an equally insightful window into ritual architecture.

Thread into old Beijing as you ride a rickshaw through the hutongs, passing the Drum Tower and quiet alleyways where daily life unfolds behind red-lacquered doors. Your guide reveals how these lanes evolved around courtyard homes and community wells.

Sit down for lunch with a local family in a traditional courtyard siheyuan. Taste homestyle dishes and hear stories of festivals, calligraphy practice, and old-Beijing lanes that still anchor the city’s character.

Immerse in China’s tea traditions on a guided workshop where leaves are withered, rolled and fired with precision. Sample regional teas—from grassy green to aromatic jasmine—while a tea master explains terroir, harvest grades, and the art of blending.

Practice the gongfu brewing method to coax flavor from successive infusions and appreciate why tea has fueled poetry, trade, and hospitality for centuries. This sensory encounter pairs craftsmanship with calm ritual.

Stroll the Summer Palace, a lakeside retreat of pavilions and willow-shaded pathways. Wander the painted Long Corridor, admire the marble boat, and watch dragon boats glide across Kunming Lake beneath Longevity Hill.

Pause at the Seventeen-Arch Bridge for sweeping views where imperial leisure met landscape design. Your guide unpacks empress dowager tales, court rituals, and the restoration that preserved this UNESCO-listed ensemble.

Witness artisans at work as you learn how jade is carved into bangles, seals, and guardian pendants. See cutting, shaping, and polishing techniques that reveal the stone’s inner glow.

Discover the symbolism in Chinese jade—from bi discs that echo heaven to protective pixiu figures. In this artisan workshop, craftsmanship meets cultural meaning, illuminating why jade is cherished as the “stone of virtue.”

Settle in for a capital classic as you sample Peking Duck carved tableside. Wrap slices of crispy lacquered skin and tender meat in warm pancakes with scallion, cucumber, and sweet bean sauce.

Hear how this Beijing culinary icon journeyed from imperial kitchens to beloved city staple, and taste the balance of texture and aroma that makes it a rite of passage for food lovers.

Enter the vast pits to see the Terracotta Army, an UNESCO-listed wonder created to guard the mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang. Marching ranks of infantry, archers, and horses reveal intricate armor, topknots, and unique facial features.

Your guide traces the 1974 discovery by farmers and the engineering behind this subterranean empire. Stand before thousands of silent soldiers and grasp the ambition of China’s first emperor.

Swap streets for ramparts as you bike the Xi’an City Wall, a 14-km rectangle of Ming-era ramparts punctuated by watchtowers and gates. Smooth paving and gentle grades make an easygoing ride.

Enjoy sweeping city views that frame tiled rooftops and modern skylines, while your guide shares stories of signal fires, moats, and merchants who once streamed through these fortified corridors.

Learn Chinese calligraphy under the guidance of a local artist. Practice foundational strokes with brush and ink, exploring balance, breath, and rhythm on rice paper.

Handle the four treasures of the study and compose characters symbolizing luck or longevity, guided by a local artist who unpacks the philosophy behind script styles—from clerical to running hand.

Soar skyward to ascend the Shanghai Tower via high-speed lifts and step onto the 118th-floor observation deck. Gaze across Lujiazui’s spiraling skyscrapers, the Huangpu River and the Bund, and the grid of avenues far below.

Discover how the tower’s double-skin facade and twisting profile tame typhoon winds—an engineering feat that frames some of Asia’s most cinematic cityscapes.

Explore Shanghai Old Town around the City God Temple precinct, where incense curls above eaved roofs and stalls brim with silk, teas, and steaming soup dumplings. Architecture and aromas mingle in this living tapestry.

Follow your guide to walk the Bund, a riverfront gallery of Art Deco and neoclassical facades facing the neon skyline of Pudong. Stories of treaty ports and jazz-age finance animate each landmark.

Trace the journey from cocoon to cloth as you visit a Silk Museum. Observe silkworm lifecycles, reeling demonstrations, and hand-loom weaving that turn gossamer filaments into lustrous fabric.

Encounter patterns linked to court dress, merchants, and the ancient Silk Road. Handle sample weaves to appreciate sheen, drape, and craftsmanship that has defined Chinese luxury for millennia.

Broaden your eye for Chinese decorative arts with a craft-focused stop that pairs jade knowledge with porcelain aesthetics. Examine carving motifs beside kiln-inspired glazes that shaped imperial taste.

Guides highlight how court workshops set standards for color symbolism, auspicious animals, and refined forms—context that elevates your understanding when browsing ateliers and museum collections.

Try rock climbing in Yangshuo on beginner-friendly routes that scale karst limestone cliffs rising from rice paddies and river bends. Professional instructors handle safety, belays, and all equipment.

This guided and fully equipped adventure reveals pockets, tufas, and panoramic ledges unique to Guangxi’s landscape. Optional experience at additional cost, bookable on tour.

Experience ‘Impression Liu Sanjie’, a visionary open-air spectacle directed by Zhang Yimou. The Li River stage hosts hundreds of performers on bamboo rafts, with folk songs echoing across water and light dancing on mist.

Karst peaks become a karst hills as a natural backdrop, weaving legend, choreography, and local tradition into one atmospheric evening. Optional experience at additional cost, bookable on tour.

Catch a Shanghai acrobatic show where troupes deliver gravity-defying stunts—hoop dives, contortions, and aerial silks—under precise spotlights and live percussion.

Rooted in marketplace troupes and imperial entertainment, today’s productions blend tradition with modern staging for memorable evening entertainment. Optional experience at additional cost, bookable on tour.