You will make your own way to the railway station in Shanghai, taking the bullet train from Shanghai to Beijing. There are many bullet trains between Beijing and Shanghai. From 6:30 am to 7 pm, the train departs from Shanghai every 5 minutes to 30 minutes. Upon your arrival in Beijing, you can follow the sign at the railway station to get to the taxi station to your hotel in Beijing, it is easy.

Suggested tour attractions in Beijing:

There are hundreds of attractions in Beijing, and something for everyone. But at least, the following 6 places are the must for every tourist: Great Wall, the Forbidden City (include Tiananmen Square in the front of it), the Temple of Heaven, Summer Palace, Ming Tombs, hutongs (include Shichahai Lake area), and if you have time, Olympic Park (Birds Nest and Water Cube) would the 7th place worthy of a visit.

Of all these, going to the several sections of the Great Wall in Beijing is commonly considered as the No. 1 thing to do. The Great Wall is a symbol of Chinese civilization, and one of the wonders that the Chinese people have created. It was listed by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage Site in 1987. Normally there are 4 sections of Great Wall in Beijing are widely considered worthy of visit: Badaling, Mutianyu, Jinshanling and Simatai. Tourists can choose one from these 4 sections.

Badaling Section of Great Wall is the nearest section to downtown, only approximately 50 miles (80 km) / 1.5-2 hours drive from northwest of downtown Beijing. It is also the easiest section to climb. Tourists can directly get to watchtower on the rampart at the foothill, although there is cable car service which can reach to the highest point of this portion of the Wall. It was the first section of the wall to open to tourists and also the most visited section of Great Wall.

Mutianyu Section of Great Wall is also around 50 miles (80 km) / 1.5-2 hours drive from northwest of downtown Beijing. Compared with other sections of Great Wall, Mutianyu Great Wall possesses unique characteristics in its construction.

1. Watchtowers are densely placed along this section of the Great Wall - 22 watchtowers on this 2,250-metre-long stretch.

2. Both the outer and inner parapets are crenelated with merlons, so that shots could be fired at the enemy on both sides - a feature very rare on other parts of the Great Wall.

3. The Mutianyu Pass consists of 3 watchtowers, one big in the centre and two smaller on both sides. Standing on the same terrace, the three watchtowers are connected to each other inside and compose a rarely seen structure among all sections of Great Wall. 

Besides, this section of Great Wall is surrounded by woodland and streams. The forest-coverage rate is over 90 percent.

But this portion of Great Wall is on the very high ridge of mountains. Tourists can walk up 4000+ steps to ascend to the Great Wall. But I do not suggest you do so.  Because after so long upward climbing, you will have no energy to enjoy the magnificent view on this famous portion of the Great Wall. Tourists may choose between a two-rider chairlift or four-rider gondola lift up from the foothills to the level of the wall, which runs along the ridges above. These lifts may also be used to descend. Another feature of the wall at Mutianyu is an alternate method of descent by single-rider personal wheeled toboggan. This allows single riders to descend from the wall to the valley on a winding metal track.

* But the problem of it is it would cost a lot of money at the cable lift. One way is RMB80 and round trip is RMB100. Tourists are also asked to take the shuttle bus between the parking lot and the cable lift station. The round trip shuttle bus fee is RMB15.

Jinshanling and Simatai Section of Great Wall are around 140 km northeast of Beijing. So to visit either Jinshanling or Simatai would need one full day because it is really far from downtown Beijing. These 2 sections of the wall are connected with each other and the distance between Jinshanling and the western part of Simatai is around 10km+.

The Jinshanling Section of the Great Wall is 10.5 km long with 5 passes, 67 towers and 3 beacon towers. The initial section of the wall has been restored to original condition, but the condition of the wall deteriorates towards its natural state as it approaches Simatai. The cable car system is ready to take tourists to the highest point along the wall.

Simatai Great Wall is separated by a valley into eastern and western parts. The western part is gently sloped with 20 well-preserved watchtowers dotting along the wall. The eastern part is much steeper, following more rugged terrain that includes cliff edges and kilometre-high peaks.

Hanging precariously onto the Yanshan Mountain, Simatai Great Wall is known for its steepness. Open Air Gondolas provide a way to ascend partway up the wall. The 17 watchtowers are relatively closely spaced and provide spectacular views. 

Now the entrance ticket to Simatai Great Wall is related with Gubei Water Town – a charming ancient water town at the foothill of Simatai Great Wall. It is the set entrance ticket for these two attractions. 

The Forbidden City was the Chinese imperial palace from the Ming dynasty to the end of the Qing dynasty—the years 1420 to 1911. It is in the center of Beijing, and now houses the Palace Museum. It served as the home of emperors and their households as well as the ceremonial and political center of Chinese government for almost 500 years.

Constructed from 1406 to 1420, the complex consists of 980 buildings and covers 72 ha (over 180 acres). The palace complex exemplifies traditional Chinese palatial architecture, and has influenced cultural and architectural developments in East Asia and elsewhere. With its massive scale and historical significance, the Forbidden City must invoke visitors imaginations. Its clear lines, perfect proportions, and dramatic color scheme of vermilion walls, white marble terrace and staircases, and brilliant yellow-tiled roofs create one of the worlds most beautiful architectural complexes. Serving as the seat of imperial power during the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the Forbidden City houses numerous rare treasures and curiosities. The Forbidden City was declared a World Heritage Site in 1987, and is listed by UNESCO as the largest collection of preserved ancient wooden structures in the world. With over 14.6 million visitors in 2015, the Palace Museum is the most visited art museum in the world.

The Forbidden City is closed on Monday every week.

The Temple of Heaven is a dignified imperial complex of fine religious buildings set in gardens and surrounded by historic pine woods and situated in the southeastern part of central Beijing. The complex was visited by the Emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties for annual ceremonies of prayer to Heaven for good harvest. It has been regarded as a Taoist temple, although Chinese heaven worship, especially by the reigning monarch of the day, predates Taoism. 

The temple complex was constructed from 1406 to 1420 during the reign of the Yongle Emperor, who was also responsible for the construction of the Forbidden City in Beijing. The complex was extended and renamed Temple of Heaven during the reign of the Jiajing Emperor in the 16th century. 

In its overall layout and that of its individual buildings, it symbolizes the relationship between earth and heaven – the human world and Gods world – which stands at the heart of Chinese cosmogony, and also the special role played by the emperors within that relationship. The buildings in the Temple of Heaven everywhere show the specific meaning and a symbol of artistic expression in ancient China. Temple of Heaven collects ancient philosophy, history, mathematics, mechanics, aesthetics, ecology together, it is the masterpiece of ancient times. It was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998 and was described as "a masterpiece of architecture and landscape design which simply and graphically illustrates a cosmogony of great importance for the evolution of one of the world’s great civilizations..." as the "symbolic layout and design of the Temple of Heaven had a profound influence on architecture and planning in the Far East over many centuries."

The Summer Palace is a vast ensemble of lakes, gardens and palaces and the existing largest and best preserved imperial garden in China. It covers an expanse of 2.9 square kilometres (1.1 sq mi), three-quarters of which is water. Mainly dominated by Longevity Hill and Kunming Lake, modeled on the West Lake scenery in Hangzhou city, this large natural landscape garden drew some design techniques and the mood of the gardens on the Yangtze River Delta.

Longevity Hill is about 60 metres (200 feet) high and has many buildings positioned in sequence. The front hill is rich with splendid halls and pavilions, while the back hill, in sharp contrast, is quiet with natural beauty. The central Kunming Lake, covering 2.2 square kilometres (540 acres), was entirely man-made and the excavated soil was used to build Longevity Hill. 

In December 1998, UNESCO included the Summer Palace on its World Heritage List. It declared the Summer Palace "a masterpiece of Chinese landscape garden design. The natural landscape of hills and open water is combined with artificial features such as pavilions, halls, palaces, temples and bridges to form a harmonious ensemble of outstanding aesthetic value".

The Ming Tombs are a collection of mausoleums built by the emperors of the Ming dynasty of China (1368-1644 AD). The first Ming emperors tomb is located near then capital Nanjing city. However, the majority of the Ming tombs are located in a cluster within the suburban Changping District of Beijing the capital of whole China in the place of Nanjing, 50 kilometres (31 mi) north-northwest of Beijing city center, and collectively known as the Thirteen Tombs of the Ming Dynasty. The site, on the southern slope of Tianshou Mountain, was chosen based on the principles of feng shui (geomancy) by the third Ming emperor, the Yongle Emperor. After the construction of the Imperial Palace (Forbidden City) in 1420, the Yongle Emperor selected his burial site and created his own mausoleum, Changling Tomb, in the valley. The succeeding 12 emperors had their resting places built around Changling during the next 230 years, covering a total area of over 120 square kilometers (46.3 square miles). This is the best preserved mausoleum area with the most emperors buried in China. Every year millions of tourists come to the site to appreciate its long history and palatial architecture. In the scenic area, each mausoleum has its own independent unit. The layout and arrangement of all the thirteen mausoleums are very similar, but they vary in size as well as in the complexity of their structures. The tombs stretch out on the two sides of Changling Tomb in a fan shape, except for the Siling Tomb, which sits separately in the southwest corner. From site selection to design, great attention was paid to the harmony and unity with nature, pursuing a perfect situation of ‘made by God’ and reflecting the philosophy ‘the unity of heaven and humanity’. As outstanding representatives of the ancient Chinese mausoleum, the Ming Tombs demonstrate the richness of traditional Chinese culture.

In 2000, the Ming Tombs are designated as one of the components of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Imperial Tombs of the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

At present, only the Sacred Way, Changling Tomb, Dingling Tomb, Zhaoling Tomb are open to the public.

Sacred Way

The Sacred Way, also known as Changling Sacred Way, is the approach to the Changling Tomb. Along the Way from south to north, you will see a number of sites (or sights) of interest and beauty, including the Stone Tablet Archway, Great Red Gate, Tablet Pavilion, Ornamental Columns, Stone Figures, Lingxin Gate.

Changling Tomb

Walking along the Sacred Way to the end, you can see the Changling Tomb built in 1420, where lie the third Emperor of Ming Dynasty, Emperor Zhu Di and his Empress Xu. It is the largest, original and the best preserved among the 13 tombs, and has three courtyards in the front and a Treasure City in the round rear part. The magnificent Grace and Blessing Palace (Lingen Palace) in the second courtyard is highly recommended.

Dingling Tomb

Built from 1584 to 1590, it is the mausoleum of Emperor Zhu Yijun, the thirteenth emperor of the Ming Dynasty and his two empresses. The highlight part is the stone Underground Palace, which was discovered between 1956 and 1958, and had a great deal of precious relics unearthed. 

Zhaoling Tomb

Located in eastern foot of Dayu Mountain, Zhaoling is where the 12th emperor of the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Zhu Zaihou and his three empresses were buried. It features the special Dumb Yard in a crescent shape housing the imperial coffins.

Hutongs (include Shichahai Lake area)

Hutongs are a type of narrow streets or alleys, commonly associated with northern Chinese cities, most prominently Beijing. 

In Beijing, hutongs are alleys formed by lines of siheyuan, traditional courtyard residences. Many neighbourhoods were formed by joining one siheyuan to another to form a hutong, and then joining one hutong to another. The word hutong is also used to refer to such neighbourhoods. 

Literally means "the lake of ten temples", Shichahai is a historic scenic area consisting of three lakes (Front, Middle and Rear Lake) in the north of central Beijing in China. They are located to the north-west of the Forbidden City and north of the Beihai Lake. Around the lake there are ten famous Taoist and Buddhist temples and several formal royal mansions and gardens. The most well known are the Prince Gong Mansion and the Prince Chun Mansion. With the vast area to the east of the lakes, such as Nan Luoguxiang (South Luogu Lane), Shichahai area is the most famous hutong area in China.

Since the mid-20th century, a large number of Beijing hutongs were demolished to make way for new roads and buildings. However, many of Beijings ancient hutongs still stand, and a number of them have been designated protected areas. The older neighborhoods survive today, offering a glimpse of life in the capital city as it has been for generations.

Hutongs represent an important cultural element of the city of Beijing. Thanks to Beijings long history and status as capital for partial or whole China for six dynasties, almost every hutong has its anecdotes, and some are even associated with historic events. In contrast to the court life and elite culture represented by the Forbidden City, Summer Palace, and the Temple of Heaven, the hutongs reflect the culture of grassroots Beijingers. The hutongs are residential neighborhoods which still form the heart of Old Beijing. Many hutongs, some several hundred years old, in the vicinity of the Bell Tower and Drum Tower and Shichahai Lake are preserved amongst recreated contemporary two- and three-story versions. Today, as in the past, hutongs are home to celebrities, business owners and officials.

A virtual tour of one of Beijings Hutongs can be found here. This area abounds with tourists, many of which tour the quarter in pedicabs. 

There are still some other charming ancient attractions in downtown Beijing, such as Beihai Park (a royal garden just like Summer Palace but smaller), Yonghegong Temple (a famous lamasery where the representative of old Tibet once stayed in), Confucius Temple (where you can find all scholars name who have passed the senior emperor test) and Guozijian (the senior academy in the emperor period in China)... You can visit them if you have time and get interested in them.

We suggest you can take our Join-in Pick-up Bus Tour in Beijing. This kind of Tour means we have a van to pick up every tourist at their address in downtown Beijing, and become a tour group to tour in or around the city. In this way, it can be cheap and convenient for the individual tourists.

* For more detail about the Join-in Pick-up Bus Tour,

At computer, please kindly view our website at http://www.tripww.com/bigxl/JoinIinTour.html

At Mobile Phone, please kindly view our website at http://www.tripww.com/phone/trip/biglist.aspx?hname=JoinIinTour

* For the hotel in Beijing, we suggest you can stay at the 3-star or the express business Hotel. Although they are not as luxurious as the high grade hotel, some of them may have no breakfast service or only have the simple breakfast service, they are clean, convenient and comfortable, many of them are located in the downtown. 

If you have any questions/requirements, please kindly feel free to contact us. 

You can check out your hotel in the morning and leave your luggage in the hotel. After you completed your tour in Beijing, get back to the hotel to fetch the luggage and depart for the railway station in Beijing.

We suggest you can take the overnight Sleeper train departure from Beijing at late evening or early night. For it is cheaper than the bullet train and can save one night hotel cost. It will take around 12 hours to 14 hours to arrive in Xian.

You will arrive in Xian before noon. Check in your hotel in Xian and do sightseeing.

Suggested Tour Attractions in Xian: 

What to see and When to go largely depends on ones vacation time, weather preference, personal budget, and the tourist seasons in Xian. 

There are tens of attractions in Xian, and something for everyone. But at least, the following 6 places are the must for every tourist: Terracotta Army and Bronze Carriage of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, Giant Wild Goose Pagoda and the Da Cien Temple (Temple of Kindness and Grace) around it, ancient Xian City Wall, Shaanxi History Museum, Muslim Corner (well-protected old Xian streets, include the out view of Bell Tower and Drum Tower), Banpo Neolithic Village Museum.

If you have more time, you can also visit the Stele Forest (enjoy precious ancient Mandarin calligraphy steles) in downtown Xian if you are interested at the Mandarin calligraphy, Hanyangling Museum (mausoleum for Han dynasty emperor Liu Qi, completed in 126 BC) which is on the way to Xian Airport, 

The above attractions will be full for two days tour in Xian. If you have two more days, you can take the Western Xian One Day Tour and Eastern Xian One Day Tour as follows, 

The Western Itinerary of Xian Tour include Famen Temple (with the true finger bone sarira of the Buddha Sakyamuni), Qianling Mausoleum (built by 684 AD, the tombs complex for Gaozong (r. 649–83), the 2nd emperor of Tang dynasty and his wife Wu Zetian, the only female emperor in China, and some member of the imperial family of the Tang dynasty, include Prince Yide),

The Eastern Itinerary of Xian Tour to visit Mt.Hua (or Huashan Mountain, the western mountain of the Five Great Holy Mountains of China).

Of all these, going to Terracotta Army and Bronze Carriage of Emperor Qin Shi Huang is commonly considered as the No. 1 thing to do in Xian. 

Located at the northern foot of Lishan Mountain, 45 kilometers east of Xian, the Terracotta Army is the buried army of Qin Shi Huang, the emperor who united whole China and died in 210 BC. This army was made of clay and constructed to protect him in the afterlife. They are around life-size tall, with commanders in the army being the tallest. Although now looks in grey, in fact, they were decorated beautifully when they were made out. Now there are still some colorful pieces of terracotta army sculptures being discovered, but they should be immediately protected in advanced scientific means. The Terracotta Army was discovered in 1974 by farmers digging a well looking for underground water. Over a thousand terracotta warriors and horses have been uncovered since then. At least 6,000 more are thought to remain buried still at this archaeological site.

The sculptures are so detailed that it is possible to guess the age, rank and personality of each one. None of the soldiers are the same. Some carry weapons such as daggers, bows and arrows, swords, spears or axes.

The figures include warriors, generals, chariots and horses. Estimates from 2007 were that the 3 pits containing the Terracotta Army held more than 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses, the majority of which remained buried in the pits nearby Qin Shi Huangs mausoleum. Other terracotta non-military figures were found in other pits, including officials, acrobats, strongmen and musicians.

The Terracotta Army was listed as the UNESCO World Heritage site in 1987. "the tomb is the largest in Chinese history, with a unique standard and layout, and a large number of exquisite funeral objects. It testifies to the founding of ... the Qin Dynasty, which during the 3rd BCE, wielded unprecedented political, military and economic power and advanced the social, cultural and artistic level of the empire. ", valued by UNESCO.

Pls note:

The entrance ticket will be checked 2 time: the gate to the park before the Museum and the gate into the Museum yard. So keep the ticket carefully is very important.

It will take around 20 minutes walking from the 1st gate to 2nd gate. So there is battery car service between the 2 gates.

Normally your tour in the Museum can go like this:

from left to right,

1. Enjoy a Movie in the Movie Hall to know a rough idea of the Terracotta Warrior and the Mausoleum.

2. Pit 1, the biggest and first pit to be found

3. Pit 3, the commander team of the Army

4. Pit.4. Crossbowman，War Chariot and some fine statues

5. Exhibition Hall to enjoy the most precious ones, such as the Bronze Chariots and Horses, and some thematic exhibitions

Giant Wild Goose Pagoda and the Da Cien Temple (Temple of Great Maternal Grace) around it

Standing in the middle of Da Cien Temple complex, Giant Wild Goose Pagoda is a well-preserved Buddhist pagoda located in downtown Xian. It was built in 652 during the Tang dynasty. One of the pagodas many functions was to hold sutras and figurines of the Buddha that were brought to China from India by the Buddhist translator and traveler Monk Xuanzang. He translated Sanskrit scriptures to Mandarin and developed Buddhism theories of consciousness, karma and rebirth that were adopted by some later popular schools of Buddhism. In 704, 5 new stories were added on the pagoda, but in around 1560 it was partially damaged in earthquake and immediately rebuilt to its current height of 7 stories, the style of the pagoda still exists as the original one in Tang Dynasty. Now it is 64 m (210 ft) tall and from the top it offers views over the city of Xian.

It was added to the World Heritage List on June 22, 2014, together with other sites along the ancient Silk Road. 

This whole scenic area includes the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda, the Da cien Temple, and the various squares with the statue of Monk Xuanzang standing in the middle, gardens and other facilities around.

Pls Note: Tourist should pay additionally to get into the pagoda. Entrance ticket of the temple does not include the pagoda fee, although the pagoda is in the middle of the temple. 

Built between 1374 and 1378, making it over 600 years old, the existing ancient Xian City Wall is the most well-preserved, most complete oldest city wall that has survived in China, as well being one of the largest ancient military defensive systems in the world. Along the top of the wall is a walkway, which would typically take 4 hours to cover on foot.

Located in the center of Xian City, the ancient City Wall is rectangular in shape and has a total length of around 14 kilometers long. The wall encloses an area of about 14 square kilometres. The city wall measures 12 meters high, 15-18 meters wide at the base and 12-14 meters wide at the top. It has four main gates: Changle Gate in the east, Anding Gate in the west, Yongning Gate in the south and Anyuan Gate in the north.

There are 5948 battlements on the outer side of the city wall, once used by archers to defend against enemies. Ramparts are built at intervals of 120 metres (390 ft) , projecting from the main wall. About every 40 or 60 meters, there are water channels made of green bricks used for drainage. The channels were very important for long term protection of the wall. The Xian City Wall is a complete and perfected defense system including a moat, suspension bridge, draw bridge and turrets.

The Xian City Wall is on the tentative list of UNESCOs World Heritage Site under the title "City Walls of the Ming and Qing Dynasties". 

Pls Note: Tourists can rent and ride a bicycle on the Wall. 

Shaanxi History Museum

Shaanxi Province is one of the important areas where Chinese nation lived and multiplied and also one of the cradles and development places of Chinese civilization. The rich cultural legacy and profound cultural heritage formed the Shaanxi unique historical cultural features. Built in 1983 and opened to the public on 20 June 1991, Shaanxi History Museum is China’s first large-scale modern national museum. The museum houses over 370,000 precious relics which were unearthed in Shaanxi Province, including bronze wares, pottery figures, and mural paintings in Tang tombs, as well as bronze, gold, and silver objects, dating from the simple stone that human used at the initial stage in ancient times down to all kinds implements in social life before 1840; the time span covers more than one million years. The cultural relics are rich in number and types and have high grade and wide value, among which Shang Dynasty bronze is exquisite; terracotta figurines of past dynasties are of varied types and postures; gold and silver ware of Han and Tang Dynasty is unique across the country; wall paintings of Tang tomb have no equals in this world. It is called a collection of variety of boutiques carnival.

The museum is with a building area of 55,600 square meters, exhibition halls of 11,000 square meters. The Museum has the style of Tang dynasty buildings of “central palace hall with four worship houses around” with orderly, harmonious, vigorous and grave construction, with a combination of traditional architecture and modern technology, which embodies folk tradition and local features.

Please note: The Museum is closed on every Monday.

Muslim Quarter in Xi’an

Covering many blocks and inhabitated by over 20,000 Muslims, Muslim quarter is a very large area of well-preserved old Xian streets, alleyways with some elaborate Mosques, ancient courtyards, local specialty stores, local food restaurants, a vegetable market, a bird and flower market (also sell goldfish and turtles) in the current middle west old Xian city, by the side of the Bell Tower and Drum Tower, the landmark of Xian. There are around ten mosques in the area, among which the Great Mosque in the Huajue Lane is the most famous and popular.

Muslim food and souvenir market is another feature of the area. The Beiyuanmen Muslim Market located just to the north of the Drum Tower is a great choice after the sightseeing in the city center. About 500 meters in length from south to north, this street is paved with dark colored stone and green trees providing heavy shade during summer. The buildings on both sides of the street are modeled on the styles of both the Ming (1368-1644) and the Qing Dynasties (1644-1911). Some of the constructions are restaurants; while others are stores. But here there is one thing in common: the owners are all Muslims.

It is stated that once you have been to the Beiyuanmen Muslim Street, you wont feel regretted for the snacks of Xian. Crumbled Unleavened Bread in Mutton Stew (Yangrou Paomo) is a very distinctive snack of Xian, and is extremely delicious. Fried rice with pickled Chinese cabbage and little capsicum is extremely savoury. And it is a real enjoyment for you to eat it on a hot summers day. Roast beef, mutton or lamb is another snack that can make your mouth water. After broiling on a charcoal fire with some flavorings on the meat, it is ready for you to enjoy. While the most famous snack on this street is the steamed stuffed bun of Jiasan. The main ingredients of the steamed stuffed bun here are beef or mutton mixed with the soup decocted from the bones of sheep or cattle.

There are also fruit pies made with persimmon here which are considered as the unique refreshment in Xian. These pies take the bright red, glittering and translucent persimmons from the Lintong District of Xian City as the basic ingredients. When making the pies, firstly people will get rid of the skin of the persimmons, pounding the flesh, mixing it with flour, then putting the sweet-scented osmanthus and white sugar inside as the stuffing, then frying them in oil until they are cooked. When eating them, you will feel savory, sweet and soft.

There are also a great many other snacks to be found along this street, such as preserved meat, casserole, various noodles, and so on. They are waiting for you to enjoy.

Walking along the twisted, narrow streets in this area which is aligned with stores on both sides, you can see that Muslim men with white hats sit inside the stores and talk leisurely with each other. In front of the doors of some stores, old men with white beards sit on the cane chairs enjoying the tender touch of the sun and having fun with the little children running along the street.

The area is well worth exploring, if not for all the sights, scents and noises, then for the intriguing window into Chinese culture it offers.

Banpo Neolithic Village Museum

Located around 18 km east from the center of Xian and discovered in 1953, the Neolithic Village of Banpo is a typical matriarchal community of the Yangshao Culture in the Neolithic Age. This archaeological site contains the remains of several well organized Neolithic settlements carbon dated to 5600–6700 years ago. At that time, the Banpo people used tools made primarily of wood and stone. Women, the crucial labor force, were responsible for making pottery, spinning, and raising the family, while men fished.

The area of 5 to 6 hectares (12 to 15 acres) is surrounded by a ditch, probably a defensive moat, 5 to 6 meters (16 to 20 ft) wide. The houses were circular, built of mud, supported by timber poles and with steeply pitched thatched roofs. Many of the houses were semi-subterranean with the floor typically 1 meter (3 ft) below the ground surface. There appear to be communal burial areas. 5 excavations between 1953 and 1957 have unearthed about a fifth of the total village (about 10,000 square meters). As the first museum at the prehistoric sit, the onsite Banpo Museum was opened in 1958.

Banpo Museum is divided into two Exhibition Halls and a Site Hall. 

The Stele Forest

Steles are huge stone slabs which depict important calligraphic writing, often dating back to ancient times. They are held in high regard in China and many people study the artistry of these mammoth pieces.

The Stele Forest is a museum for steles and stone sculptures. The museum is in the former Confucian Temple and the building was first built to preserve the Thirteen Classics of Filial Piety which were engraved during the Tang Dynasty. This Museum has housed a growing collection of Steles since 1087, altogether, there are 3,000 steles in the museum, which is divided into 7 exhibitions halls, mainly display works of calligraphy, painting and historical records. Most of its exhibits are steles of the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD) . Ink rubbings of the steles are available for sale.

Exhibition Hall One mainly displays the text of twelve Confucian classics carved on 14 steles. The twelve works including the Analects of Confucius, Books of Changes, Books of Songs and some others. These twelve classics are must-be readings for intellectuals of Chinas feudal society. The stones were engraved over thousands of years ago when the printing was not yet invented. In order to well preserve these works and pass down to the later generations, the rulers ordered to carved them down on these stones.

It is a professional art museum which collects, studies and displays various Steles and stone sculptures. If you are interested in Chinese art and calligraphy, there are some interesting objects on display here. If not, possibly give this one a miss!

An ink rubbing of one of the calligraphy stela at the Museum, called the "God of Literature Pointing the Dipper." It depicts the figure, made up of the characters describing the four Confucian virtues, "pointing the dipper" (an expression for coming first in the imperial civil service examinations).

Hanyangling Museum (mausoleum for Han dynasty emperor Liu Qi, completed in 126 BC) 

Situated near Wei River in the northern suburb of Xi`an city, Han Yang Ling Mausoleum is the historical site designated for state protection. This mausoleum which combines modern technology, ancient civilization, historical culture and garden scenery, is built at the base of the joint tomb of Emperor Jindi and his Empress. It is the largest museum in China.

Emperor Jindi (188BC—141BC), named Liu Qi, was the fourth Emperor of the Western Han Dynasty. Emperor Jindi, together with his father Emperor Wendi, started a golden era of harmony in the early feudal society, which was later regarded as “the Great Reign of Wen and Jin”. 30 odd years of excavation shows that the Yangling Mausoleum is mainly composed of the Emperor and Empress` graveyards, southern and northern burial pits, ritual building, the satellite and criminal`s graveyards, and Yangling town. The emperor`s tomb is surrounded by 81 burial pits radiating from the central mound. A 110-meter wide Sacred Road, flanked by 10000 odd satellite tombs of ancient high officials, leads directly to Yangling Town. This scene is similar to ancient morning court held by the emperor. Objects unearthed from the 200 odd burial pits include armored warrior figures with weapons, elegant palace maids with Han costumes, countless animals with vivid expressions. This mausoleum is considered to represent the ancient burial custom, “ to attend to the dead as if to attend to the living”. It is the most intact royal mausoleum and the most important tangible document in the research of burial customs and civilization of the Han Dynasty.

Anyway, We suggest you can take our Join-in Pick-up Bus Tour in Xian. This kind of Tour means we have a van to pick up every tourist at their address in downtown Xian, and become a tour group to tour in or around the city. In this way, it can be cheap and convenient for the individual tourists.

* For more detail about the Join-in Pick-up Bus Tour,

 At computer, please kindly view our website at                            http://www.tripww.com/bigxl/JoinIinTour.html

At Mobile Phone, please kindly view our website at http://www.tripww.com/phone/trip/biglist.aspx?hname=JoinIinTour

* For the hotel in Xian, we suggest you can stay at the 3-star or the express business Hotel. Although they are not as luxurious as the high grade hotel, some of them may have no breakfast service or only have the simple breakfast service, they are clean, convenient and comfortable, many of them are located in the downtown.

If you have any questions/requirements, please kindly feel free to contact us.

You can check out your hotel in the morning and leave your luggage in the hotel. After you completed your tour in Xi’an today, get back to the hotel to fetch the luggage and depart for the railway station in Xi’an.

We suggest you can take the overnight Sleeper train departure from Xian at late evening or early night. For it is cheaper than the bullet train. It will take around 15 hours to arrive in Shanghai. 

You will arrive in Shanghai at noon.

* If you have any problem to book the hotel or tour in these cities, please feel free to contact us. Thank you very much!