Tours

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Tibet Express (Tourcode: EF)

Discover mystical Tibet-the "roof of the world" on this 15 nights, 16 days tour to Shanghai, Chengdu, Lhasa, Xining and Beijing, land price from NZ$5610

Day 01 Arrival/Shanghai

Arrival Shanghai. Upon arrival in Shanghai, you will be greeted by our CTS guide and transferred to your hotel.

Day 02 Shanghai (B/L)

In the morning tour we will visit the Bund, a popular promenade along the Huangpu River, where the old meets the modern in Shanghai. You may see the local people performing Tai Chi during your stroll along the bund. Afterwards, we will visit the Old Town with its winding alleyways, lined with shops, teahouses and restaurants, and then to the elegant and tranquil Yu Garden. Afternoon tour the Shanghai Xintiandi, which is a new tourist attraction in downtown Shanghai, featuring the city's unique ‘Shikumen’ houses and a maze of narrow alleys, which have been converted into cafes, restaurants, bars, art retail shops. Dinner will be on your own arrangement.

Day 03 Shanghai/Chengdu (B)

Free till transfer to the airport for a domestic flight to Chengdu.

Day 04 Chengdu (B/L/D)

Today we will take an excursion to the fascinating, 2,000-year-old Dujiangyan Dam, which is an irrigation scheme to harness the notorious Min River, a tributary of the Yangtze. The dams, reservoirs and pumps that were established in 250 years BC irrigate over 3 million hectares of surrounding countryside. After lunch, you will visit the Panda Breeding and Research Center and a local tea house. This evening enjoy a local Sichuan dinner.

Day 05 Chengdu/Lhasa (B/L/D)

Take a morning flight to Lhasa and transferred to your hotel. This afternoon take it easy in order to acclimatise to the altitude.

Day 06 Lhasa (B/L/D)

Today's excursion features the renovated Potala Palace, which rises majestically from the face of sacred Putuo Hill and recently listed as a world heritage site, the Norbulingka Palace, which was the Summer Palace of Tibetan Kings.

Day 07 Lhasa (B/L/D)

Today's sightseeing begins with the Bakhor, the famous bazaar at Eight-Corner Street, and 7th century Jokhang Monastery, one of the holiest shrines in Tibet. In the afternoon, visit the cliff-top Drepung Monastery.

Day 08 Lhasa (B/L/D)

Today's tour includes Sera Monastery, visiting a Tibetan Clinic and a typical Tibetan Family.

Day 09 Lhasa - Xining (B/L/D)

Transfer to the railway station after breakfast and start your expedition journey. Along the way we will make several stops at Nachu Damshung, the Headstream of the Yangtze River of Kekexili and at the scenery sightseeing Stop at Kunlum Mountain.

Day 10 Xining (B/L)

Upon arrival in Xining in the evening you will be transferred to your hotel.

Day 11 Xining (B/L/D)

City Tour in Xining including an excursion tour to Ta'er Monastery (Kumbum Monastery), which is one of the six biggest monasteries of the Yellow Hat Sect (Gelugpa Sect) of Tibetan Buddhism. In memory of the founder of the Yellow Hat Sect, Tsong Khapa (1357-1419), an 11-meter-high pagoda was built at his birthplace, today's Huangzhong County about 30 kilometers southwest of Xining, Qinhai Province in 1577. Later it was enlarged into a monastery continually, a perfect complex of both the Tibet style architecture and the Han style buildings. Qinghai Lake and Bird Island is the most charming and attractive place in the Qinghai Lake. Situated on the western shore of Qinghai Lake, the island has attracts hundreds of thousands of migrating birds in spring and summer. Birds of different species such as geese, gulls, sandpipers and cormorants, nest on the island and the sound of its calls, twitters are carried far and away. For birds as well as bird watching enthusiasts, the island represents nothing short of a piece of heaven.

Day 12 Xining/Beijing (B)

Transfer to the airport and fly to Beijing. Upon arrival in Beijing, you will be met & transferred to the hotel.

Day 13 Beijing (B/L/D)

Tour the Tian'anmen Square, the biggest public square in the world. If permitted, we visit Mao's Mausoleum. After lunch, visit Forbidden City, the vast complex of palaces, which was the home to successive emperors for more than 500 years. Included is admission to the living quarters, museum and jewellery sections. Tonight you will experience the famous Beijing Duck Banquet for your welcome dinner.

Day 14 Beijing (B/L/D)

Morning tour to the Great Wall, stretching almost 4,000 miles from the Pacific Ocean to the sands of Central Asia and befittingly crowned one of the ten wonders of the world. Along the way, you will stop at a jade carving factory where you can watch artisans at work. Continue to the Summer Palace, the largest and the best preserved of all imperial palace gardens, which boasts such delights as the famous Marble Boat and the ornately painted ?Long Corridor', and take a boat ride on its Lake Kunming if the weather permits. After dinner, you will witness the amazing Beijing Acrobatic Show.

Day 15 Beijing (B/L)

In the morning, enjoy a pedicab tour of the Hutong , the ?old city' with neighbourhoods of narrow alleyways and courtyard gardens. Here you will experience local life on a family visit and a kindergarten school. After our special lunch in a local family home, tour to the Temple of Heaven, the 500 year old Temple houses altars on which sacrifices and offerings were laid to the gods in a glorious setting of gardens, trees and sculptures. Visit a local market if time permits. Evening at leisure.

Day 16 Beijing/Departure (B)

Today you are free for some last minute shopping before being transferred to the airport for your flight back home.

Inclusions:

• 3-4 star hotel accommodation or similar on twin shared basis
• All road transport by modern air-conditioned vehicles from arrival until end of the tour in China
• Meals, sightseeing and entrance fees as specified in the itinerary
• English-Speaking local guides
• English-Speaking national guide (only for 10+ group size)
• Travel wallet and CTS Backpack

Exclusions：

• NZ Departure tax
• Chinese visa fee
• Tour Extension
• Personal travel insurance and expenses
• Compulsory Tipping for Guides and drivers

Remark: The flyer was correct at time of printing, but is subject to change without notice.