TOUR ITINERARY:

DAY 1 • Monday/Tuesday/Thursday • Depart San Francisco for Beijing , China

Fly transpacific aboard United Airlines.

DAY 2 • Tuesday/Wednesday/Friday • Arrive Beijing

Upon arrival in Beijing , China 's capital, you will be escorted to check in to your Five-Star hotel.
The Peninsula Beijing or The Ritz Carlton

DAY 3 • Wednesday/Thursday/Saturday • Beijing

This morning, visit the exquisite Temple of Heaven to see local morning exercise and enjoy the temple. See the Imperial Vault of Heaven with its Echo Wall and the Nine-Dragon Cypress, more than 500 years old. Then on to Tiananmen Square and the Ming Dynasty Imperial Palace in the Forbidden City , including the jewelry section. Tonight, attend a Beijing Duck welcome dinner party with a glass of wine.
MEALS: American Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner Party

DAY 4 • Thursday/Friday/Sunday • Beijing

Experience a highlight of your trip to China as you walk along the ramparts of the ancient Great Wall. Later, stroll along the statue-lined Sacred Way to the Ming Tombs and Chang Ling Exhibition Hall. After lunch, visit a cloisonné factory and observe the skilled artisans at work. Tonight, buffet dinner at your hotel.
MEALS: American Breakfast, Lunch, Buffet Dinner

DAY 5 • Friday/Saturday/Monday • Beijing

Full day at leisure in Beijing . Perhaps take an optional Hutong tour with a pedicab ride through the narrow lanes of the ancient Hutong district with its courtyard-style homes, including a visit with a local family.
MEALS: American Breakfast

DAY 6 • Saturday/Sunday/Tuesday • Beijing/Xi'an

Fly to historic Xi'an this morning and check in to your hotel. Tonight, enjoy the dinner and entertaining show at the Tang Dynasty Theatre.
Shangri-La Golden Flower Hotel
MEALS: American Breakfast, Dinner Show

DAY 7 • Sunday/Monday/Wednesday • Xi'an

See the extraordinary terra-cotta legion of warriors and Bronze Chariot, buried with the emperor for over 2,200 years. Enjoy the Circle Vision Movie. Then enjoy a dumpling lunch at the Defachang Restaurant. Later, a highlight of your vacation as you tour the Shaanxi Provincial Historical Museum . Our exclusive visit to the private artifact room provides extraordinary access, as you white-glove handle some of the national treasures from the museum's collection.
MEALS: American Breakfast, Special Lunch, Buffet Dinner

DAY 8 • Monday/Tuesday/Thursday • Xi'an/Chongqing

This morning visit the exquisite Wild Goose Pagoda before flying to Chongqing . On arrival, tour the Stilwell Museum 's collection of World War II memorabilia, including exhibits of the Flying Tigers, American pilots who volunteered to aid the Chinese prior to Pearl Harbor . After dinner, board a Victoria Cruises' ship to begin your memorable cruise downstream, in outside cabin with balcony accommodations.
Board Victoria Cruises' Victoria Anna or Victoria Queen or Victoria Star
MEALS: American Breakfast, Buffet Dinner

DAY 9 • Tuesday/Wednesday/Friday • Yangtze Cruise Fengdu*

At Fengdu, a shore excursion shows the new resettlement town on the Yangtze's south bank, a farmer's home and a local market.
MEALS: American Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
*Alternate shore excursion may visit Wanzhou.

DAY 10 • Wednesday/Thursday/Saturday • Yangtze Cruise Qutang Gorge/Small Gorges Excursion/ Wu Gorge/Xiling Gorge

Cruise through the first of the fabled Three Gorges: Qutang Gorge hemmed by mossy cliffs. At Wushan, a cruiser excursion takes you up the Daning River to view the splendid Small Gorges. Continue by sampan to the picturesque mini-gorges of the Ma Du River with its clear, swift running water, unusual rock formations, and monkeys and goats along the banks. Alternative­ly, your excursion may be on Shennong Stream with its famed small gorges. Sail on through Wu Gorge, celebrated for its Twelve Peaks . Next sail through Xiling Gorge, the most scenic of all the gorges. Finally, sail through the Three Gorges ship lock.
MEALS: American Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

DAY 11 • Thursday/Friday/Sunday • Yangtze Cruise Xiling Gorge/San Dou Ping/Yichang to Shanghai *

This morning, stop at San Dou Ping for a shore excursion to see construction at the massive Three Gorges Dam, the world's largest hydroelectric project. Board the ship and pass through the lock at Gezhou Dam. Cruise on to Yichang, where you disembark. Fly to Shanghai , the cosmopolitan business center of China , and check in to your hotel.
Le Royal Meridien Shanghai
MEALS: American Breakfast, Lunch
*If direct flight is not available, travel by motorcoach to Wuhan and fly to Shanghai .

DAY 12 • Friday/Saturday/Monday • Shanghai

Sightsee Shanghai 's highlights: the Shanghai Museum , with an audio tour describing the special features of the museum's permanent collections, Nanjing Road or Huai Hai Road shopping streets, the Jade Buddha Temple , the city's colonial European past at The Bund, the Children's Palace and a renowned Shanghai carpet factory. Tonight, after dinner, enjoy an astonishing performance of the renowned Shanghai acrobats.
MEALS: American Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

DAY 13 • Saturday/Sunday/Tuesday • Shanghai

Full day at leisure to shop and explore on your own, or enjoy an optional tour. For information on optional tours in Shanghai , please contact us. Tonight buffet dinner at hotel.
MEALS: American Breakfast, Buffet Dinner

DAY 14 • Sunday/Monday/Wednesday • Depart Shanghai for San Francisco

Fly home today aboard United Airlines.
MEALS: American Breakfast

BOLD BLACK DATE INDICATES GUARANTEED DEPARTURE
BOLD RED DATE INDICATES GUARANTEED DEPARTURE WITH APPLICABLE DISCOUNT

Tour Package Includes:

• Round-trip transpacific air transportation
• All intra-China air/land transportation
• Fully Escorted by our professional, bilingual U.S. Tour Director
• 9 nights in Five-Star hotels; 3 nights aboard Victoria Cruises' ship in outside cabin with balcony (upper 2 decks)
• 12 breakfasts, 7 lunches, 9 dinners
• Round-trip transfers between airport and hotel, baggage handling, hotel taxes and service charges
• Comprehensive sightseeing, special cultural activities and performances as noted
• United Mileage Plus ® members: earn frequent flyer credit with the purchase of each air/land package