Nihao China!

Take a once in a lifetime hike over the Great Wall of China, explore the history behind the enigmatic Terracotta warriers of Xi’an and enjoy the urban pleasures of Shanghai.

Everything you need to know for an enjoyable holiday in China’s most popular attractions!

Our Itinerary Summary

1. Day 1: Landed at Beijing (if traveling from South India, Singapore Airlines is a great option. If traveling from North India, you can consider China Eastern Airways). Attended the acrobatic show, which is a pleasant and relaxing way to start the trip. Then Indian dinner (easy to find in Beijing), and head to hotel (stay: Grand Mercure, Beijing)
2. Day 2: Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, and Summer Palace
3. Day 3: Great wall of China, shopping, Bird’s nest stadium. Then board the night train to Xian.
4. Day 4: Land at Xian, breakfast, freshen up, then visit the Terracotta Warriors, hang out at Muslim street. Head to hotel (stay: Sheraton, Xian)
5. Day 5: Xian city tour – visit the city square, the Big Wild Goose pagoda, lunch, then high-speed 6 hour train to Shanghai. Head to hotel (stay: Holiday Inn, Shanghai)
6. Day 6: Visited Jin-Mao tower for skywalking, roamed around the Bund, some shopping, break for lunch, then visited Jade Buddha temple, and AP Plaza for more shopping (high-end, well-made fakes). Dinner, then head to hotel.
7. Day 7: YuYuan gardens, Xintiandi (the French Quarter in Shanghai and the party district). Lunch, then Shanghai Musueum, and high-street and designer shopping at Nanjing Road.
8. Day 8: Check out from hotel, and leave for airport and back home.

Detailed summary of what to see and do in China

Beijing

Beijing – the capital city of China was the starting point of our travels. We flew into Beijing (via Singapore Airlines). The same day without even checking in, we watched a Chinese show that our travel agent described as a typical Chinese show highlighting their acrobatic feats.

We still had not unpacked our photographic equipment from our bags, so no videos from us, however, here is a YouTube video of a show that is very similar to what we saw.

After the show, it was a quick dinner at a local Indian restaurant and then head back to the hotel and check-in. The next couple of days were going to be devoted to sightseeing in Beijing – primarily focused on Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City, and the Great Wall of China.

Beijing

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Day 1: Our first full day of sightseeing in Beijing involved a rainy day in Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. We devoted around 4-5 hours to this activity, followed by lunch, and then visited the Summer Palace, which is pleasant to stroll around the lake and click photos of the palace from across the lake. Then, it was dinner where we tried the famous Peking Duck delicacy and fully surrendered ourselves to the various flavors of Chinese food in China.

Day 2: The next day was devoted to the Great Wall of China. We chose a more challenging but less crowded route and were rewarded with wonderful views all around us. We then did a little shopping looking for jade and pearl trinkets, which China is famous for. We really didn’t end up buying anything. We then ended the day by making a visit to the Birds Nest Stadium – again choosing to view and admire its beautiful architecture from the outside. Then, we boarded the night train to Xian to start our next leg of our trip.

Xian

Xian is a must-visit city in China – primarily for the famous Terracotta warriors. But there’s a lot more to see and do in the city as well.

Terracotta Warriors

Day 3.

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• Explored the Terracotta Warriors center.
• Had quite possibly my best meal in China here – very spicy food, closer to the Chinese food we get in India.
• Roamed around Muslim street trying out the various delicacies.

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Xian city

Day 3 and Day 4.

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• Explored the city walls
• Visited the Big Wild Goose Pagoda and temple
• Leisurely lunch, then move on to the train station to catch the high-speed train to Shanghai.
• Reached Shanghai around nine-ish, had a light dinner then turned in for the night.

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Temples

Day 4 and Day 7.

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• Visited the Big Wild Goose Pagoda and the Xian city square, which was magnificent.
• Then took the high-speed train (an experience in itself) to Shanghai

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Shanghai

Shanghai is the cosmopolitan side of China. Unlike Beijing and Xian, it doesn’t have a world-famous historical attraction, but it more than makes up for it with its cool shopping, museums, the Bund, and unique mix of east and west. Shanghai also has Disneyland and Ocean World, although we didn’t visit those places.

We spent approximately 48 hours sight-seeing in Shangahi and here are some highlights of what to see and do if you are in the area. Click the images for detailed posts on Shanghai.

Hope I have provided you all the information you need to visit China for a short trip. China is a massive country and the one week I spent there is nowhere close to enough time.

To cover China fully, I would suggest three weeks – one week devoted to Tibet, one week devoted to its urban attractions that I listed above, and then one more week devoted to the southern part of China where you can explore the beautiful rural and scenic parts of China such as Kunming , Dali, Lijiang and Shangri la.

Hope you enjoyed this write-up. Reach out to me if any questions!