Three weeks in China: classic sights, mountains and a Yangtze cruise

Three weeks is enough for China's classic sights, a mountain stop and a Yangtze cruise, if you accept two long travel days. The 21-day private route of Homeground China, a licensed Beijing travel agency (licence L-BJ10587), spends 4 nights in Beijing, 2 in Xi'an, 2 in Chengdu, 3 around Guilin and Yangshuo, 3 at Zhangjiajie, 1 in Chongqing, 3 on a downstream Yangtze ship and 2 in Shanghai. For a couple sharing, it costs USD 5,920 each (USD 11,840 together), about USD 282 per person per day; six travelling together pay USD 4,010 each. International flights are extra. Go in April–May or September–October, and avoid the first weeks of May and October if you can.

How do three weeks split between the stops?

Beijing gets the longest stay, four nights; Guilin and Yangshuo, Zhangjiajie and the ship get three each, and Chongqing is the only one-night stop.

On Grand China with Zhangjiajie & the Yangtze: 21-Day Private Tour, the 17 hotel nights include breakfast and use the four-star standard (4 diamonds on Trip.com, also called Ctrip); the three cruise nights are in a standard balcony cabin on a five-star-rated ship, normally with Gold Cruises. The ship is shared with other passengers and runs its own programme; your private guide and vehicle cover the land days.

How much does three weeks in China cost?

Per person per day, Homeground's 21-day route costs between about USD 191 for six travellers and USD 282 for two, before international flights.

What the price includes: The 20 nights comprise 17 breakfast-included hotel nights and three in a balcony cruise cabin. Local private guides and vehicles on land touring days, transfers, named tickets, trains, domestic flights and the cruise with onboard meals are included. Guides change by city; the ship runs its own programme. There are no shopping stops on Homeground China tours.

• Not included: International flights to and from China
• Not included: Lunches, dinners and drinks on land (hotel breakfasts and onboard cruise meals are included)
• Not included: Travel insurance, visas, tips and personal expenses
• Not included: Room upgrades and public-holiday surcharges
• Not included: Single-room and single-cabin supplements (a cabin for one is charged at close to twice the shared per-person cruise fare)
• Not included: Cruise gratuities, paid shore options sold on board (such as White Emperor City and the dam's ship lift) and cabin upgrades
• Not included: Peak-date cruise surcharges above the base balcony cabin

Is three weeks too much moving?

Over 20 nights you sleep in ten places, counting the ship, and two days are mostly travel:

• Day 12 starts with about 1.5 hours by road from Yangshuo back to Guilin, then about 7–7.5 hours on the direct high-speed train to Zhangjiajie West.
• Day 19 begins at the Three Gorges Dam; the cruise company's coach reaches Yichang at about 12:30, and the train to Shanghai takes about six hours, or you take an evening flight, so you arrive late.

Most stops get at least one full day, the first and last days have no sightseeing, and the three nights on the ship reduce hotel changes.

What can you cut if three weeks is too much?

Each shorter Homeground route below drops whole stops rather than rushing the ones that are left; the 14-day Zhangjiajie route and the 12-day cruise route also spend one night less in Beijing. Leaving out Guilin and Zhangjiajie removes the longest travel day.

Which mountains: Zhangjiajie, the Yellow Mountain or Yunnan?

The 21-day route gives Zhangjiajie three nights, for Zhangjiajie National Forest Park and Tianmen Mountain, between the Li River and the Yangtze cruise.

To change the mountain rather than drop it, the 14-day Beijing–Xi'an–Huangshan–Hangzhou–Shanghai route (USD 3,580 each for two) has the Yellow Mountain, and the 14-day Beijing–Xi'an–Yunnan route (USD 4,110) goes to Dali, Lijiang and Shangri-La at about 3,300 metres. Neither includes the Yangtze. We quote a changed route, such as a 14-day route with a Yangtze cruise or extra nights added, in writing before you pay.

When is the best time for three weeks in China?

• April–May and September–October suit the whole route best: Zhangjiajie has more clear days and the heat is easier. Mist around the pillars is common even then, so a clear day is not guaranteed.
• The downstream Yangtze ships we normally book, with Gold Cruises, left Chongqing from late February to late December in their 2026 timetable, five or six times a week from late March to mid-December. The 2027 timetable is not final, so we set the land days around a confirmed sailing.
• July and August are hot and humid in Xi'an and Guilin and hot in Chongqing, and the pandas are less active.
• Low winter water can shorten the Li River boat trip.
• The first weeks of May and October are Chinese holiday weeks, when trains and sights are especially busy.

For the 2027 holiday dates, see our China public holidays calendar.

Private tour or small group for three weeks?

Homeground has no 21-day small group, so for the full three weeks the private tour is the only format we offer. The nearest fixed-date option is the 17-day Beijing–Xi'an–Chengdu–Yangtze–Shanghai small group at USD 3,150 per person, sharing, on 19 May–4 Jun 2027 or 1–17 Sep 2027, with 8–12 guests.

For how the two formats compare on price, pace and booking terms, see private tour or small group.

Do you need a visa for three weeks in China?

Three weeks is longer than the 240-hour (10-day) visa-free transit allows, so check the China entry requirements for your passport before you book flights.

How do you pay, get online and get help in China?

Paying: link a Visa or Mastercard to Alipay or WeChat Pay before you fly and pay by QR code; you need no Chinese bank account or phone number. See how to pay in China.

Phone and data: a travel eSIM is often the simplest data-only option; compare it with a local SIM and roaming before you go.

Language: an English-speaking local guide and vehicle serve your party on land touring days in each city. On the ship you join its own programme with the other passengers.

If something goes wrong: Homeground China's guides and drivers are its own. The private-tour terms add: “If a confirmed hotel, guide, vehicle or ticket falls through on our side, we arrange an equivalent or better alternative. If that is not possible or you do not accept it, we refund that item in full.”