How to use this page
Each destination is a real itinerary we run, not a template we resell. The day count is the minimum that actually works — you can add days, but cutting below it means spending your trip in transit. The price is per person, two travellers sharing a room, and covers hotels, a private guide and driver, entrance fees and the transport between cities on the route.
If you already know roughly where you want to go, skip to three routes that work or send us your dates and we will tell you honestly whether the plan is realistic.
Imperial & modern
The three cities almost every first China trip runs through. Do them in this order and the geography works: Beijing north, Xi’an centre, Shanghai east.
Forbidden City before the tour buses, a sunrise on the Mutianyu wall, hutong lunch, Peking duck at night.
History, Silk RoadXi’anThe Terracotta Army with a guide who can read the excavation pits, then cycling the Ming city wall at dusk.
City breaks, foodShanghaiThe Bund at blue hour, the French Concession on foot, soup dumplings in a lane house kitchen.
Landscapes
Where you go when the cities are not the point. All four are reachable by high-speed rail from the imperial route, though Zhangjiajie needs a flight or a long connection.
A four-hour Li River cruise through the karst, then cycling the Yulong River backroads.
Hiking, dramatic viewsZhangjiajieThe sandstone pillars that inspired Avatar, the Tianmen glass walkway, and the world’s longest cable car.
Night photography, foodChongqingA city stacked on hills: Hongya Cave at night, the Yangtze cableway, and hotpot that will test you.
Village life, slow travelWuyuanHui-style whitewashed villages, Huangling’s terraced hillside, and rapeseed fields in March.
Southwest
Chengdu and Lijiang pair naturally: pandas and Sichuan food first, then a short flight into Yunnan for old towns and mountain air.
The panda base at feeding time, Leshan’s giant Buddha, teahouses, and a Sichuan cooking class.
Culture, mountain airLijiangCobbled Naxi old town, the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain cable car, and the road toward Shangri-La.
Northeast
A single-season destination. Harbin only makes sense between late December and mid-February, and it is worth planning the whole trip around the ice.
Greater Bay Area
Hong Kong and Macau sit 60 minutes apart by ferry or bus, and both connect to the mainland by high-speed rail. Easy to bolt onto a Shanghai or Guilin trip.
Victoria Peak before the queues, the Star Ferry, dim sum breakfasts and the Big Buddha on Lantau.
Food, heritage, easy add-onMacauPortuguese-Chinese food, the Ruins of St. Paul’s, Taipa’s back lanes, one day of old Macau.
All 12 at a glance
Days is the minimum we would book. Prices are per person, two sharing, 2026 rates, and rise over Chinese New Year, Golden Week and the Harbin ice season.
| Destination | Best months | Days | From | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beijing | Apr–May, Sep–Oct | 4 | $299 | First-timers, history |
| Xi’an | Mar–May, Sep–Oct | 3 | $269 | History, Silk Road |
| Shanghai | Mar–May, Oct–Nov | 2 | $199 | City breaks, food |
| Guilin & Yangshuo | Apr–May, Sep–Oct | 3 | $289 | Scenery, photography |
| Zhangjiajie | Apr–Jun, Sep–Nov | 3 | $329 | Hiking, dramatic views |
| Chongqing | Mar–May, Sep–Nov | 3 | $279 | Night photography, food |
| Wuyuan | Mar–Apr, Oct–Nov | 3 | $239 | Village life, slow travel |
| Chengdu | Mar–Jun, Sep–Nov | 4 | $349 | Pandas, families, food |
| Lijiang | Apr–Jun, Sep–Oct | 3 | $319 | Culture, mountain air |
| Harbin | Dec–Feb only | 4 | $379 | Winter, families |
| Hong Kong | Oct–Mar | 3 | $359 | City + nature combo |
| Macau | Oct–Mar | 2 | $229 | Food, heritage, easy add-on |
Three routes that work
These are the combinations we book most often. They are sequenced to minimise wasted travel days — China is the size of a continent, and the single most common planning mistake is underestimating the distance between two pins on the map.
### The classic first trip — 10 daysBeijing (4) → Xi’an (3) → Shanghai (3). High-speed rail the whole way, 4.5 hours then 6 hours. You get the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, the Terracotta Army, the Bund and the French Concession without a single internal flight. This is the route to pick if you have never been to China.
### Cities plus landscapes — 12 daysBeijing (3) → Xi’an (2) → Guilin and Yangshuo (3) → Shanghai (3). One internal flight (Xi’an to Guilin), then rail onward. It trades a day of Beijing for the Li River, which most travellers rate as the single most memorable landscape of the trip.
### Winter, done properly — 6 daysHarbin (3) → Beijing (3). Fly into Harbin, see Ice & Snow World on a weekday to avoid the weekend crush, then take the high-speed train to Beijing. Harbin only works between late December and mid-February; outside that window, the ice parks are not open and there is no reason to go.
What is included, and what is not
Included in every quote:
- Hotels you choose the class of — we quote 4-star and 5-star side by side, never a surprise downgrade.
- A private English-speaking guide and a private driver, every day, not a shared coach.
- All entrance fees on the itinerary, including the ones that sell out (Forbidden City, Terracotta Army, Zhangjiajie).
- High-speed rail and internal flights between the cities on your route.
- Airport and station transfers, with a driver holding your name.
Not included:
- International flights to and from China.
- China visa fees, if you need a visa — see our 2026 visa-free guide first, you may not need one.
- Lunches and dinners not listed on the itinerary, so you can eat where you like.
- Travel insurance. We ask every traveller to have it; we do not sell it.
Not sure which to pick?
Two rules of thumb from eleven years of booking these routes. If it is your first trip and you have under ten days, do the classic three and nothing else. If you have been to China before, skip Beijing and Shanghai and spend the whole time in the landscapes — that is where the repeat visitors go.
Still unsure? Read what a private China tour actually costs, or the 10-day first-timer itinerary that this page is built around.