10 Days East China Tour with Mount Huang

The first greeting you receive after your flight arrives in Shanghai airport comes from our pickup fellows. Later you’ll be transferred to the hotel, having nice rest in the cozy room. The vibrant Shanghai night view you get outside the window reminds you of tomorrow’s exciting tour in the city, so you just need to store energy and enthusiasm for the coming travel.

Surrounded by the towering skyscrapers, you can hardly imagine the old look of Shanghai. However, it’s quite interesting to see the development of the buoyant metropolis from an unknown fishing village in Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center. Remember not to leave out the gorgeous 360 Deg. Experience Hall!

Walking out from Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center, you’ll be escorted to the essence of Shanghai-Nanjing Road, the Oriental version of New York 5th Avernue, and the Bund, the corridor of Shanghai. They show you why Shanghai is an ever-shining Pearl of the East. Moreover, the stunning silhouettes, like blocks of Gothic buildings and Huangpu River, which you used to see in movies about Old Shanghai from 1920s to 1950s, will all meet you themselves.

The last one of your playbill today is the 474-meter-high Shanghai World Financial Center. There is definitely nothing better than gaining the best aerial view of Shanghai standing at the summit of the city!

Shanghai is not all about dazzling shopping malls and towers, instead, the city wishes so much that you could ever go visiting its delicate streets, aged Longtang lanes, elegant gardens and temples. We recommend Yuyuan Garden, Yuyuan Market and Xintiandi for you to spend the first half day.

In the afternoon you’ll be at the spectacular China Pavilion, World Expo 2010. The state-of-the-art exhibits won’t disappoint you. The intense passion may last even through the 12 hours during which you are on the soft-sleeper train to Mt. Huangshan from Shanghai.

Ten hours of train travel would cause a little bit weariness, yet we won’t let it affect your interest in the Huangshan city. After adequate rest in the hotel and lunch, the Huangshan tour launches.

Tunxi Ancient Street and Hu Kaiwen Ink Stick Factory are two appetizers before you savor magnificent Mt. Huangshan. You’ll not only get attracted by the local products but the graceful Hui-style buildings along the Tunxi street. Then Hu Kaiwen Ink Stick Factory will fully entertain your curiosity for Chinese calligraphy. You may as well buy some ink sticks, trying painting the horse-head eaves, black tiles and white walls you’ve just seen at Tunxi street.

You have the biggest visual feast today! Seated in the cable car up the mountain, you’ll get the wonders of Mt. Huangshan unfolded. The strongest statements of eccentric rock are Beginning-to-Believe Peak and Flying Rock whereas weird pines have the best representative Lian Li Pine. When you dip into the West Sea Grand Canyon, you just can’t stop eulogizing the miracle of nature works in sea of cloud and parade of cliffs. Last but not least, the hotel on the mountain will promise you a fascinating night!

How stunning can the sunrise get spurting out from endless sea of cloud? All the words would fail, and you need to get up about 5:00 A.M. to watch the view at Lion Peak. The grand scene will complete your tour on Mt. Huangshan.

The cable car taking you down the mountain, another discovery begins after lunch. Visit the world-falous ancient village Hongcun, you’ll love Mt. Huangshan more cause without breeding of the miraculous landscape there is no existence of such an elegant ancient village. The whole Hongcun is a perfect combo of natural contribution and human intelligence. Hui-style carvings are here and there and the carefree lifestyle of the locals would definitely make you full of envy!

OK, time to wave goodbye to Huangshan and leave for city of garden, Suzhou by soft-sleeper train. The travel will last about 10.5 hours yet the thrill never ceases.

After train station pickup and hotel transfer, you’ve got approximately 2 hours to restore vigor for the next tour within Suzhou, the gorgeous city of gardens. The tour begins with Suzhou Flower and Bird Market. You’ll be in a color riot surrounded by the pots of bonsai and blossom while enjoying the sonata of various birds and crickets. It is right these lovely creatures that adorn up the houses of Suzhou people.

Along the Small Canal you’ll be impressed with the ink painting scroll of Suzhou panorama. The elements that make up a water town, like stone arch bridges, on-the-river markets, traditional yards shaded with willows are all presented. What’s more, the Small Canal sends you to Lingering Garden, one of the four most famous classic gardens in China. Looking into its sophisticated layout, exquisite pavilions, bridges and rockery, you’ll see why the garden wins over all the glorious titles.

The deepest exploration comes to Suzhou Silk Factory. You may marvel at the stunning Suzhou silk products yet you haven’t found the secret of silk manufacture. Through examining silkworm process and spinning wheel you’ll have the secret unveiled.

     It merely takes 1.5 hours to travel from one Paradise on Earth to the other Paradise on Earth by high-speed railway. After 1 hour or so of brief rest at the hotel, let’s start touring Hangzhou. The first and foremost spot, for sure, is West Lake. The breathtaking scenery of West Lake has won over countless odes by Chinese literates. The sad but splendid love story of White Snake and Xu Xian further adds more romantic tones to West Lake.

Serene West Lake is blessed by mighty Six Harmonies Pagoda (Liuhe Pagoda), which was built to calm the tidal water of Qiantang River and assist in navigation. So it’s quite pleasant to marvel at the guardian of West Lake and masterpiece among ancient Chinese pagodas. Afterwards, let’s enter Hefang Street and Museum of Traditional Chinese Medicine (Hu Qingyu Tang) to find what Hangzhou featured handicrafts, snacks and original herbal medicine are.

Southern Yantze River Basins (Jiangnan Area) never fall short of time-honored water towns, Wuzhen being the standout one. Drive about 2 hours and we reach Wuzhen. 2,000 years of Jiangnan Culture shapes every single old house, tree and bridge here elegant. We’ll show you around the main Wuzhen attractions like Museum of Jiangnan Hundred beds, on-the-river Platform and Couple of Interlaced Bridges. They demonstrate unbelievable workmanship and delicate life attitude of Jiangnan ancient water towns. In the late afternoon we’ll drive back to the downtown Hangzhou.

The wonderful ten-day playbill may have engraved a never-wither memory into you. We’ll see you off at Hangzhou airport and wish you a happy journey back to China in the future!