01Day 1
Whichever Beijing airport you land at, your guide is waiting at the exit and the car takes you to your hotel. Nothing else is planned: sleep off the flight, or take a first walk around the neighbourhood.
13 DAYS / 12 NIGHTS · PRIVATE TOUR · NO SHOPPING
Beijing, Xi'an, Chengdu, Guilin & Shanghai: 13‑Day Private Tour
Five cities in one line across China, from the Great Wall to the Bund.
Ride the cable car up to the Great Wall at Mutianyu. Look down on the first emperor's army in Xi'an. Reach the panda base early, while the pandas are still awake. Spend four hours on the Li River among the hills on the back of the 20-yuan note, then finish on the Bund. Twelve nights in 4-star hotels, breakfast included.
Choose group size
Published price for selected groupUSD 2,090per person · 8 travellers · private tour · With hotels and breakfast · international flights not included
This is a per-person starting price for the group size shown. Holidays, group size and room type change it; the final price is the one in your written quote before you pay. USD amounts are indicative; the quote also confirms the currency and exchange rate.
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Need a different group size?We confirm room needs, luggage count and a suitable vehicle before sending a written quote.Plan this journey
- Route
- Beijing 3 · Xi'an 2 · Chengdu 2 · Guilin 3 · Shanghai 2 nights
- Between cities
- 2 high-speed trains + 2 flights, booked by us
- Stay
- 12 nights in 4-star hotels, breakfast included
- Price
- Published for 4, 6 and 8 travellers
Why this order
Emperors first, Shanghai last.
Beijing and Xi'an tell the imperial story: the Wall, the palace, the first emperor's army. Chengdu slows everything down with pandas and tea. Guilin is the landscape printed on the 20-yuan note. Shanghai comes last, so the trip ends in the China of today. The route runs one way, and no day is spent going back.
- 01
The Great Wall at Mutianyu, by cable car up and down
- 02
The Terracotta Warriors, then the Big Wild Goose Pagoda
- 03
Pandas first thing in the morning, tea in People's Park after lunch
- 04
Four hours on the Li River to Yangshuo, then the Bund to finish
Day by day
Thirteen days, four long hops, no backtracking.
The four intercity connections are Beijing–Xi’an by second-class high-speed train on Day 4 and Xi’an–Chengdu by second-class high-speed train on Day 6, each about four hours, followed by short economy flights from Chengdu to Guilin on Day 8 and Guilin to Shanghai on Day 11. Our team arranges the station and airport transfers at both ends. The actual trains and flights are confirmed for your dates; sightseeing times can be adjusted around those bookings.
First night in Beijing: your guide is at the airport when you land. - 02Day 2
About ninety minutes north of the city, the wall at Mutianyu follows the ridge from one watchtower to the next. The cable car takes you up; walk the restored section at your own pace, then ride back down. Lunch is near the wall. On the way back into Beijing, a short stop at the Olympic Park to see the Bird's Nest and the Water Cube from outside.
Up by cable car, along the ridge on foot, down by cable car. - 03Day 3
Cross Tiananmen Square and walk into the Forbidden City, home of the Ming and Qing emperors, for about three hours with your guide. Tickets are booked ahead in your passport names. After lunch, the Temple of Heaven, where emperors prayed for good harvests and where Beijingers still come to exercise, play cards and sing. Peking duck for dinner is your choice; we are happy to book the table.
About three hours inside with your guide, on tickets booked in your passport names. - 04Day 4
An early high-speed train covers Beijing to Xi'an in about four hours, and your Xi'an guide meets you at the station. After lunch, walk on top of the Ming-dynasty City Wall, which still rings the old city, and reach the Muslim Quarter at dusk, when the food stalls are at their busiest. Dinner there is yours to choose.
Walk on top of the Ming wall that still rings the old city. - 05Day 5
About an hour east of the city, walk the pits where the first emperor's army was found: rank after rank of life-size soldiers, no two faces alike. The site shuttle and audio headsets are included. After lunch, the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, built in the Tang dynasty, in the grounds of Da Ci'en Temple; the ticket covers the grounds, not the climb inside. The evening is free.
Life-size, rank after rank, and no two faces alike. - 06Day 6
Sleep in, or go back to the wall or the Muslim Quarter on your own. Lunch is yours. In the afternoon the driver takes you to Xi'an North for the high-speed train to Chengdu, about four hours, and another driver is waiting when you arrive.
Chengdu by evening: a driver meets your train. - 07Day 7
Be at the Giant Panda Base early, when the pandas are eating and moving about; by afternoon most of them are asleep. The park shuttle is included. After lunch, the restored lanes of Kuanzhai Alley, then tea the Chengdu way in People's Park, where locals play mahjong and dance. Sichuan opera with its face-changing act is an evening option at your own cost.
Go early: by afternoon most of them are asleep. - 08Day 8
A slow morning in the centre: Taikoo Li, the old Daci Temple right beside it, and the giant panda climbing the IFS building on Chunxi Road. In the afternoon, transfer to the airport for the economy flight to Guilin, about an hour and a half; a driver meets you on arrival.
The city centre on your last Chengdu morning, before the flight to Guilin. - 09Day 9
About four hours on a three-star cruise boat through the limestone hills printed on the back of the 20-yuan note, with lunch on board. From Yangshuo, drive through the countryside and view Moon Hill from a distance, either from the vehicle or the roadside outside the scenic area, then walk West Street before the drive back to Guilin, about ninety minutes.
About four hours on the river, lunch on board. - 10Day 10
An easier day after the river. Reed Flute Cave in the morning, lunch, then Elephant Trunk Hill, the symbol of the city. Finish with a walk along the lakes as the Sun and Moon Pagodas light up at dusk; you see them from outside.
The symbol of the city. - 11Day 11
Fly to Shanghai, about two hours. Your guide meets you and takes you to the Bund, where the old banks and trading houses face the towers of Lujiazui across the river, then along Nanjing Road. The evening is yours.
Old banks on one side of the river, Lujiazui on the other. - 12Day 12
Go early to Yu Garden, a Ming-dynasty classical garden, and the lanes of the City God Temple around it, before the crowds. After lunch, the plane-tree streets of the former French Concession, Wukang Road and Anfu Road, ending at Xintiandi.
Go early, before the crowds. - 13Day 13
The driver takes you to the airport in time for your flight. Breakfast is at the hotel. Departure day is the transfer only.
Departure day is the airport transfer only.
Day 1 · Arrive in Beijing
Where you sleep, who looks after you
4-star hotels, and a local guide in every city.
Each city has its own English-speaking guide and a private vehicle sized to your group. We book every train and flight in your passport names, with a checked bag on both flights.
Twelve nights, five cities
Twelve nights in central 4-star hotels (four diamonds on Trip.com), with breakfast every morning: three in central Beijing, two inside Xi'an's old city wall, two in central Chengdu, three in central Guilin and two in central Shanghai. We send the hotel names and room types for your approval before you pay a deposit.
Guides, vehicles, trains, flights and tickets
A private vehicle sized to your group in every city, an English-speaking local guide on every sightseeing day, and a driver on the transfer-only legs. Two second-class high-speed trains and two economy flights with a checked bag, all booked by us in your passport names. Every admission on the plan, eight lunches (Days 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10 and 12), travel accident insurance while you tour in China, and one WhatsApp contact before and during the trip. No shopping stops: no factory visits and no sales talks anywhere on the route. A tour escort who travels with you from Beijing to Shanghai can be added at extra cost.
Before you choose
How much does this tour cost?
Per person, two sharing a room: USD 2,580 for 4 travellers, USD 2,310 for 6 and USD 2,090 for 8. That includes the 4-star hotels with breakfast, guides, vehicles, both trains, both flights, the named tickets and eight lunches. Other group sizes and single rooms are quoted separately, and the total for your dates is confirmed in writing before you pay anything.
How is this different from the 14-day five-city private tour?
Both private tours visit Beijing, Xi'an, Chengdu, Guilin and Shanghai. This 13-day route spends three nights in Beijing and three in Guilin, visits Yangshuo without staying overnight, and includes eight lunches. The 14-day route spends four nights in Beijing, one in Guilin and two in Yangshuo, with the Summer Palace and a Yulong River bamboo raft; lunches and dinners are extra. Compare written quotes for the same party size, room type and inclusions, rather than starting prices for different groups.
Which meals and tickets are included?
Lunch is included on Days 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10 and 12; Day 9 lunch is on the Li River boat. The named admissions include Mutianyu with return cable car and shuttle, Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, Xi'an City Wall, Terracotta Warriors with shuttle and headsets, Big Wild Goose Pagoda grounds, Panda Base with shuttle, Li River cruise, Reed Flute Cave and Yu Garden. Moon Hill is viewed from a distance, from the vehicle or the roadside outside the scenic area. Sun and Moon Pagodas are seen from outside; dinners and other lunches are separate.
Do we stay overnight in Yangshuo?
The published itinerary uses Guilin as the base for three nights. Day 9 is planned as a Li River cruise, distant views of Moon Hill from the vehicle or the roadside outside the scenic area and a walk along West Street in Yangshuo, then a private drive back to Guilin. There is no overnight stay in Yangshuo in this route.
What happens if the Li River is low?
In dry winters the operator sometimes shortens the cruise to a round trip on the middle stretch from Yangdi, which keeps the best-known scenery. We check the water a few days before; if that happens, we drive you on to Yangshuo, and distant views of Moon Hill from the vehicle or the roadside outside the scenic area and the West Street visit stay in the plan.
Will one person travel with us the whole way?
Each city has its own English-speaking guide for the sightseeing days, and drivers handle the transfer-only legs, so you always have someone who knows that city. If you would like one escort to travel with you from Beijing to Shanghai as well, we can add it to your quote.
Clear before payment
What is separate—and what your written quote will confirm.
The listed starting prices are per person for 4, 6 or 8 travellers, two sharing a room; other group sizes are quoted separately. Send your travel dates, group size, rooms, arrival and departure flights and luggage. We check every hotel, guide, vehicle, ticket and seat, then send the total and the booking terms in writing before any deposit. An inquiry does not hold flights, trains or timed tickets.
Not included
- International flights to and from China
- Dinners, drinks and lunches other than the eight specified days
- Tips, visas, personal medical/cancellation insurance and personal spending
- Single-room supplements and optional evening shows or meals
- Anything added outside the confirmed itinerary
Confirmed in writing
- Your dates, arrival and departure details
- The hotel, room arrangement and vehicle for the actual group
- Bookable admissions and the final total before payment
Plan the destination
Check the route against the destination guides.
Use these city hubs and decision guides to test the route's stay base, gateways and day order before enquiring.
Destination hubs
Decision guides
Compare a related published route
Photo credits
The location-specific external photographs are credited below. Only conventional cropping, resizing and WebP conversion were applied; no generative edits were made. Adapted CC BY-SA photos are shared under the linked CC BY-SA license.
- Mutianyu Great WallPhoto by Lloyd Tudor · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Great Wall at Mutianyu in autumnPhoto by Francesco Bini · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Temple of HeavenPhoto by xiquinhosilva / Xiquinho Silva · CC BY 2.0
- Terracotta Army Pit 1Photo by BrokenSphere · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Terracotta warriors, Pit 1Photo by Gary Todd from Xinzheng, China · CC0
- Big Wild Goose PagodaPhoto by 颐园新居 · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Anshun Bridge, ChengduPhoto by tyrosin · CC BY 2.0
- The Bund, ShanghaiPhoto by Another Believer · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Yu GardenPhoto by King of Hearts · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Former French ConcessionPhoto by Fabio Achilli · CC BY 2.0
All remaining photographs were selected from the Homeground project library and authorised by the site owner for this website. Only routine cropping, resizing and format conversion were applied.