www.TheDragonTrip.com
Tel: +86 156 1882 4415
Email:[email protected]
The Dragon Trip
Shanghai to Shanghai, 20 days
Highlights
 Bamboo Raft in Yangshuo
 See pandas in Chengdu
 See the Terracotta Army and stay on a mountain farm in Xian
 Learn Kungfu in an orphanage in Shaolin
 Camp on the Great Wall
 See Chairman Mao’s summer house in stunning bamboo forests in Hangzhou
 Destinations connected by night train with fully flat bed so no time is wasted travelling.
All activities with no price listed are included for free. All optional activities have their price listed (10rmb = £1/$1.5)
Date
Activities
D1
Meet your guide at Mingtown Hostel People's Square and transfer to Hongqiao Train Station
where you will board your night train to Hangzhou famed as China’s most beautiful city. Here
you will stay in a hostel near the Beautiful West Lake.
D2-D3
Visit West Lake, the stunning lake around which this ancient local capital was built, before
heading into the countryside, this time to a bamboo nature reserve called Moganshan, which
was a favored summer time retreat of Chairman Mao. Spend the afternoon splashing around
in the crystal clear mountain lagoon, before heading to a mountain lodge to stay the night.
The next morning hike to the peak of Moganshan Mountain, passing Chairman Mao’s former
residence on the way, before travelling on to Shanghai, China’s most cosmopolitan city.
Return to the train station to meet the other inters who arrive from Beijing on a night train.
Take time to explore West Lake before taking the short bus journey to Morganshan
D4-D5
Transfer to Nanjing where optional Activities include visiting the memorial Hall of Nanjing
Massacre (20rmb), Fu Zi Miao Night Market (free), Doctor Sun Yat Sen Mausoleum (100rmb).
D6
Return to Shanghai and meet up with CRCC interns from Beijing, who whilst you were in
Nanjing, were in Shanghai. Together board a train to Guilin.
D7-D10
Arrive in Guilin and transfer straight to Yangshuo, one of the most popular backpacking
destinations in China, famed for its stunning karst scenery. The first afternoon includes one of
our free Un-missable attractions: rafting down the Li River on bamboo rafts whilst the sun
sets over the karst peaks.
We stay in a hostel called Monkey Jane’s, which we chose mainly for its roof-top bar with a
stunning view; it’s a great place for a quiet beer or if you want something more lively, why not
challenge Monkey Jane herself to a game of beer pong in order to win a free crate of beers.
Optional activities in Yangshuo include visiting mud-baths in underground caves (65rmb), a
bike tour stopping at swimming spots and view points (40rmb), Deep Water Soloing - rock
climbing without ropes above a river (150rmb), sampling snake liquor in the various roof top
www.TheDragonTrip.com
Tel: +86 156 1882 4415
Email:[email protected]
The Dragon Trip
Shanghai to Shanghai, 20 days
bars, watching farmers use birds to catch fish for them (as seen on the HSBC advert, 45rmb),
or the Hollywood craze of cupping (suction cups on the back to withdraw impurities, the
Chinese had it first! 45rmb).
Take the night train to Chengdu.
D11-D12
Arrive in Chengdu, and enjoy a traditional Sichuan Hotpot, a bubbling broth in which you dip
strips of meat (70rmb). In the morning visit the Panda Breeding Research Center, arriving in
time to watch them tuck into breakfast. Relax with a massage from a blind masseur (40rmb)
before boarding the night train to Xian.
D13
In the morning we head off for another free Un-missable attraction, The Terracotta Warriors,
China’s Wonder of the Ancient World. In the evening, have the chance help out at a soup
kitchen for Xi’an’s homeless people.
D14
Today you can explore the Muslim quarter independently or join us for a bike tour around the
ancient city walls (60rmb with student card, 80rmb without).
In the evening you can see a fountain and light show, before experience a night out Chinese
style… needless to say it involves Karaoke or KTV as it is known here.
D15
In the morning we take a minibus deep into the heart of The QingLing mountains, stopping
en-route for tubing and sunbathing by a river. After arriving at the smallholding where we
stay the night, we have the choice of what animals walking in the yard we’d like on the menu
that night, and then hike into the mountains to a series of waterfalls.
The evening is spent eating the organic food from the farm and drinking Hans, the local beer,
under the stars.
D16
It’s an early start in the morning as we head back to Xi’an for a quick shower and breakfast in
the hostel before taking the train to Longmen, and bus to Dengfeng.
That afternoon we call in at the local market to buy supplies for the orphanage we’ll visit later
that evening. It’s up to you what supplies you’d like to get them, but normally if everyone
chips in about 60rmb it’s enough to get them half a pig as well as some oil, rice, sweets and
stationary.
All the children in the orphanage are trained in Kung Fu, and put on a Kung Fu show for us,
before we teach them a few games (dodge-ball always goes down well), and help them
practice their English. Their Kung Fu teacher, who himself trained in the Shaolin Monastery
then teaches us the basics of Kungfu in an optional lesson (150rmb, all proceeds go to the
orphanage).
D17
Rise early to visit the Shaolin Temple (the home of Shaolin Kung Fu, 100rmb), and in the
evening board a night train to Beijing.
D18-D20
After a morning spent relaxing in the hostel in Beijing we head off to our next Un-missable
attraction, The Great Wall of China. We go to a deserted section of The Wall, where we have
the place to ourselves! We hike along as the sun is setting, before pitching our tents for a
night camping on the Wall, then wake for what will be one of the most memorable sunrises of
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Tel: +86 156 1882 4415
Email:[email protected]
The Dragon Trip
Shanghai to Shanghai, 20 days
your life, before heading back to Beijing.
The remaining days in Beijing are spent seeing flag raising and Chairman Mao’s embalmed
body in Tiananmen Square (free), The Forbidden City (60rmb), The 2008 Olympic Village
including The Bird’s Nest Stadium (50rmb), The mesmerizing and incredible Beijing Acrobatics
Show (140rmb) The National Museum (free) and a visit to a food market where you can try
dog, snake, cat, scorpion and a host of other mouth-watering delicacies.
On the afternoon of Day 15 you’ll say goodbye to the rest of the group who are continuing on
longer itineraries, and our guides will put you on the bullet train back to Shanghai.
What’s included in the price?
 Transport on night trains with fully flat beds, high-speed trains or buses as well as all connections
to/from train stations.
 Mandarin tuition for beginners on the night trains.
 Accommodation in hostels which meet The Dragon Trip’s high standards. All hostels, have their
own unique Chinese charm, but at the same time are safe, clean and hygienic.
 A combination of Western and Chinese English-speaking tour guides.
 Tickets, transportation and guides for a selection of ‘Un-missable Activities’ – for example, rafting
down the Li river, a night on a peasant farm, hiking and camping on the Great Wall, a visit to The
Terracotta Warriors etc.
 All taxes and charges.
Please note:
 Typical Group size is 10-15 people. Minimum group size is 5 people.
 As this is a backpacker tour, we often use public transport on our activities and to transfer between
the hostel and the train station.
 Please note, we work hard to keep our published itineraries as up to date as possible. However, as
we are constantly striving to improve our trips, sometime the itineraries may change slightly
between the time you make a booking and the time you go on The Dragon Trip.
 In order to keep our prices as low as possible, occasionally on longer trains, one guide will put you
on a train, and another guide will collect you off the train in your destination.
 Published prices for the optional activities are subject to change as they are based on local prices,
but we always do our best to make sure we can offer you the best available price.