Cultural China - A Beginner’s Luxury Tour

11 days from £7,270 for 2025 per person

• Beijing
• Xi'an
• Guilin
• Yangshuo
• Shanghai

If you have never been to China before, this is the trip for you. It has been tailored to strike a balance between the fascinating and historical cities to the stunning rural countryside. Begin the trip in the capital, Beijing and by staying in the skyscraper hotel the China World Summit Wing. After cycles of destruction and reconstruction, Beijing's mix of new and old is truly unique and you will explore it all from Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City and the Great Wall to practicing Taiji in the Temple of Heaven.

From here fly on to Xi'an to have dinner in the vibrant Muslim Quarter of the city and be dumbstruck by the sheer scale and wonder of the Terracotta Warriors Army. After 4 nights in cities it's time to head south to Guangxi province and experience the abundance of natural beauty here. Spend a night in the city of Guilin before driving south to Yangshuo, truly a gift from the Gods. The karst mountains that surround the town look out of place in the otherwise flat surroundings of paddy fields, which makes it the perfect area to explore by bike or gliding along the Li River.

End the holiday in the glitzy and smart metropolis of Shanghai. This is one of our favourite cities in Asia with opportunities to walk along the Bund with the famed skyline as a backdrop, visit world class museums, shop, party into the early morning and dine extremely well. After this trip you'll be desperate to return year on year!

This is purely a suggested itinerary, it can be booked as it is or used as a starting point for creating your own luxury tailor-made tour of China. If you'd like to see similar holidays, take a look at our favourite Honeymoons and Culinary Tours.

I can't think of anything that excites a greater sense of childlike wonder than to be in a country where you are ignorant of almost everything.
Bill Bryson