Beijing, China
NOTES:
Breakfast: Hotel breakfast buffet OR go out for local breakfast if we want
Lunch: Decide on the day. Area noted below
B
DAY 1 - SAT SEPT 5: ARRIVAL + WANGFUJING
06:00 Land Beijing Airport
06:30 Airport Transfer to Sofitel Beijing Central - Wangfujing/Dongdan area. 45min-1hr
08:00 Hotel breakfast or outside
08:30 Hotel check-in, shower, NAP
12:30 Lunch
15:00 Walk 5min to Wangfujing Street
WHY: Beijing’s most famous shopping street. Snacks, brands, night lights
18:30 Dinner:Peking Duck - Quanjude Wangfujing. 10min walk. BOOK Ahead (Optional) / HotPot
B
DAY 2 - SUN SEPT 6: FORBIDDEN CITY + HUTONGS
08:00 Breakfast: Hotel breakfast OR local spot
09:00 Metro Line 1 from Dongdan to Tiananmen East. 10min
WHY: Tiananmen Square = center of China. Big history + photos
10:00 Forbidden City. 10min walk from Square. 3-4hrs
WHY: 500 year old palace of Emperors. Must-see in Beijing
BOOK 7 DAYS Early (NEED to book)
14:00 Lunch + hotel rest 1-2hrs
16:00 Metro to Shichahai/Hutongs
WHY: Chill walk, lakes, shops. Rickshaw optional
18:30 Dinner: Dumplings, Zhajiangmian in Hutongs. Back early to rest
B
DAY 3 - MON SEPT 7: GREAT WALL + CHILL EVENING
07:00 Private car pickup. 1.5h to Mutianyu Great Wall
09:00 - 12:30 Great Wall. Cable car up, toboggan down
12:30 Lunch near Great Wall
14:00 Drive back. 1.5h
15:30 Back at hotel. SHOWER + NAP
18:00 Easy evening: Qianmen Street + Dashilar
WHY: 10min Didi. Old street, lights, snacks. No metro, no stairs
19:30 Dinner near Qianmen
B to X
DAY 4 - TUE SEPT 8: TRAIN TO XI'AN
08:30 Breakfast: Jin Ding Xuan or Jing Ji Chang
11:00 Didi to Beijing West Station. 20-35min
14:05 TRAIN TO XI'AN NORTH - 4 HOURS 13 MINUTES. ALREADY BOOKED
18:30 Arrive Xi'an North
18:40 Didi to Sofitel Xian. 30-40min
19:30 Check-in
20:00 Dinner: Muslim Quarter
X
DAY 5: WED SEPT 9 - XI'AN RELAXED CULTURE + FOOD DAY
07:30 Breakfast at hotel
08:30 Didi to TERRACOTTA WARRIORS. 1 hour drive
TIME: 3 hours. BOOK TICKETS IN ADVANCE
12:30 Lunch near Warriors
14:00 Back to city. Hotel rest / nap / shopping.
16:30 GAOJIA COURTYARD. 15min Didi
TIME: 1 hour
WHY: Live Shadow Puppet Show + traditional courtyard house
18:00 Dinner: YONGXINGFANG FOOD STREET. 10min walk
WHY: Xi'an's most famous food street
TRY: Rou Jia Mo, Cold rice noodles
20:00 BIG WILD GOOSE PAGODA. 15min walk. Fountain + Music Light Show
20:30 Back to Sofitel Legend. 10min Didi
X to SH
DAY 6: THU SEPT 10 - XI'AN → SHANGHAI
07:00 Breakfast, check-out Sofitel Legend Xi'an
07:30 Didi to Xi'an North Station. 30min
08:51 TRAIN TO SHANGHAI Hongqiao. 5h52m.
14:43 Arrive Shanghai Hongqiao Station
15:10 Didi to Shanghai hotel. 30-45min
16:30 Check-in, rest. No rushing
18:00 THE BUND. Walk + photos. 1 hour
WHY: Iconic skyline. Custom House Clock Tower at night
19:30 Dinner: Nanjing Road
TRY: Scallion Oil Noodles, Soup Dumplings
21:00 Back to hotel. Early night
SH
DAY 7: FRI SEPT 11 - SHANGHAI CULTURE + SHOPPING
09:00 YUYUAN GARDEN + OLD BAZAAR. 2 hours
BOOK TICKET IN ADVANCE
11:30 Lunch in Yuyuan - soup dumplings
13:30 FRENCH CONCESSION. Walk + herbal gelato + boutique shops
16:00 PLAZA 66 / IAPM MALL. Aircon shopping + rest. 2 hours
18:30 Dinner near hotel
20:00 Pack for Suzhou
SH to SZ
DAY 8: SAT SEPT 12 - SHANGHAI → SUZHOU OVERNIGHT
08:00 Breakfast. Check out hotel
09:00 Train: SHANGHAI HONGQIAO → SUZHOU. 30min
BOOK TRAIN TICKET IN ADVANCE
09:45 Arrive Suzhou. Drop bags
10:30 HUMBLE ADMINISTRATOR'S GARDEN. 2 hours
BOOK TICKET IN ADVANCE
13:00 Lunch
14:30 LION GROVE GARDEN. 1.5 hours
16:30 SHANTANG STREET. Canal + silk + boat ride
18:30 Dinner on Shantang
20:00 Check in Suzhou hotel. Sleep here
SZ HZ
DAY 9: SUN SEPT 13, 2026 - SUZHOU → HANGZHOU + TEA VILLAGE
07:30 Breakfast in Suzhou. Check out
08:30 Didi to Suzhou Station
09:30 TRAIN SUZHOU → HANGZHOU EAST 1.5 hours.
BOOK IN ADVANCE
11:00 Drop bags at hotel
11:30 Didi to West Lake
12:00 WEST LAKE - Boat ¥55 + walk. 2 hours
14:00 Lunch near lake
15:00 LINGYIN TEMPLE Book ticket ¥45 + ¥30. 1.5 hours
16:45 LONGJING TEA VILLAGE 龙井村 🍵
Green tea fields + free tasting. 1.5 hours. Sunset is pretty here
18:30 Didi to Hangzhou hotel. Check in
19:30 Dinner
DAY 10: MON SEPT 14, 2026 - QINGSHAN LAKE 青山湖
08:00 Breakfast + Check out
08:30 Didi to Qingshan Lake 青山湖. 1 hour
09:30 Boat ¥80 + walk + bike. 4 hours
13:30 Lunch near lake - try the local fish
14:30 Didi back to Hangzhou East 杭州东站
16:xx TRAIN HANGZHOU EAST → SHANGHAI HONGQIAO
17:xx Arrive Shanghai Hongqiao → Didi to hotel
19:00 Walk 10 min to The Bund 外滩 for night views
20:00 Dinner near hotel - lots of options on North Bund
DAY 10: TUE SEPT 15, 2026 SHANGAI
Free & Easy
**Shopping
**Starbucks Reserve Roastery + Jing'an Temple - 5 min walk
**Apollo Bakery for brunch
**The Bund + Nanjing Road walking/shopping
**Qiu Shu Lanting Spa - relax 2 hours
**Appley for dessert
DAY 11: WED SEPT 16, 2026 SHANGAI
09:00 Breakfast + walk around
11:00 Leave to Airport