ROUTE 702

Silk Road to Shanghai — 18 Days / 17 Nights

丝路到上海

🗓️ 18 Days / 17 Nights

Journey through the heart of China from Urumqi to Hangzhou, traversing 8 cities across 18 days. Each stop reveals another facet of a civilization five millennia deep — ancient walls, sacred temples, misty mountains, and bustling markets where tradition and modernity flow together like the rivers that shaped this land.

Urumqi (2) → Dunhuang (3) → Zhangye (1) → Xi'an (3) → Luoyang (2) → Nanjing (2) → Shanghai (2) → Hangzhou (2)
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Route 702
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📅 Day-by-Day Itinerary

Day 1
Arrival in Urumqi
Urumqi · 乌鲁木齐 · Heart of the Silk Road
Xinjiang Regional Museum 新疆维吾尔自治区博物馆
Home to the Tarim Mummies — 4,000-year-old naturally preserved bodies with European features, dressed in colorful woolen textiles, found in the Taklamakan Desert. The mummies challenge conventional narratives of East Asian isolation and prove that the Silk Road's cultural exchanges predate recorded history by millennia.
Tianchi (Heavenly Lake) 天池
A glacial lake at 1,980 metres in the Tianshan Mountains, 110 km east of Urumqi. Surrounded by snow-capped peaks and spruce forests, the turquoise lake — 3.4 km long — is sacred to both Daoist and Kazakh traditions. Kazakh yurts along the shore offer horse-milk tea and lamb to visitors.
Grand Bazaar 大巴扎
Central Asia's largest bazaar: a modern complex built in Islamic architectural style, housing 3,000 shops selling dried fruits, handwoven carpets, atlas silk, jade from Khotan, copper teapots, and Uyghur musical instruments. The food court serves the full spectrum of Xinjiang cuisine — lamb, flatbread, pomegranate, and pilaf.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Uyghur Polo (Pilaf) (抓饭) — Central Asia's iconic rice dish: long-grain rice cooked with lamb, carrots, onions, raisins, and chickpeas in rendered sheep fat. Eaten communally from a large platter with the hands (polo means 'to grasp'). The dish arrived on the Silk Road from Persia and became the staple celebration food of the Uyghur people.
🎨 Artifact: Tarim Mummies (楼兰古尸) — Over 200 naturally mummified bodies dating from 2000 BCE to 200 CE, found in the Taklamakan Desert. Their European features, woolen plaid textiles, and felt hats suggest Bronze Age migrations from the Pontic steppe — the earliest evidence of trans-Eurasian contact, predating the Silk Road by millennia.
🎵 Music: Uyghur Muqam (维吾尔木卡姆) — A monumental suite of music, song, and dance — the Twelve Muqam cycle runs for 24 hours if performed in full. UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage. The muqam blends Persian, Arabic, and Central Asian musical modes with Turkic poetry, creating one of the world's great classical music traditions.
Day 2
From Urumqi to Dunhuang
Urumqi · 乌鲁木齐 · Heart of the Silk Road
Xinjiang Regional Museum 新疆维吾尔自治区博物馆
Home to the Tarim Mummies — 4,000-year-old naturally preserved bodies with European features, dressed in colorful woolen textiles, found in the Taklamakan Desert. The mummies challenge conventional narratives of East Asian isolation and prove that the Silk Road's cultural exchanges predate recorded history by millennia.
Tianchi (Heavenly Lake) 天池
A glacial lake at 1,980 metres in the Tianshan Mountains, 110 km east of Urumqi. Surrounded by snow-capped peaks and spruce forests, the turquoise lake — 3.4 km long — is sacred to both Daoist and Kazakh traditions. Kazakh yurts along the shore offer horse-milk tea and lamb to visitors.
Grand Bazaar 大巴扎
Central Asia's largest bazaar: a modern complex built in Islamic architectural style, housing 3,000 shops selling dried fruits, handwoven carpets, atlas silk, jade from Khotan, copper teapots, and Uyghur musical instruments. The food court serves the full spectrum of Xinjiang cuisine — lamb, flatbread, pomegranate, and pilaf.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Uyghur Laghman Noodles (拉条子) — Hand-pulled noodles — thick, chewy, and stretchy — topped with a spicy stir-fry of lamb, tomatoes, peppers, and cumin. The technique of pulling noodles originated in Central Asia (laghman is a Turkic word) and traveled east to become the ancestor of all Chinese pulled-noodle traditions.
🎨 Artifact: Uyghur Atlas Silk (维吾尔艾德莱斯绸) — Handwoven ikat-dyed silk in brilliant patterns of red, gold, green, and purple. The tie-dye process — binding threads before dyeing, then weaving the pattern into the fabric — produces the characteristic blurred-edge motifs. Atlas silk dresses are worn by Uyghur women for celebrations and are the textile emblem of Xinjiang.
🎵 Music: Rawap & Dutar (热瓦普与都塔尔) — The rawap (plucked lute) and dutar (two-stringed long-necked lute) are the signature instruments of Uyghur music. Their sharp, metallic tones — accompanying love songs, dance pieces, and muqam suites — are the soundtrack of Silk Road bazaars and Uyghur weddings.

🚄 Transport Options

Rail (Number) Flight (Number) Depart from Hotel Arrival
G3583 InUse CZ5136 12:30 lunch, then Train G3583 at 14:00 17:30 Dunhuang
Day 3
Discovering Dunhuang
Dunhuang · 敦煌 · Gateway to the Silk Road
Mogao Caves 莫高窟
492 cave temples carved into a cliff face over a millennium (366–1368 CE), containing 45,000 square metres of murals and 2,415 painted clay sculptures. The caves preserve a complete visual record of Buddhist art, architecture, music, and daily life across ten dynasties — the richest repository of medieval art anywhere in the world.
Mingsha Mountain & Crescent Moon Spring 鸣沙山月牙泉
The 'Singing Sand Dunes' rise 250 metres above a crescent-shaped spring that has survived in the desert for over 2,000 years. When wind shifts the sand, the dunes produce a deep humming tone — a phenomenon recorded in Chinese literature since the 4th century. Camel rides at sunset offer a visceral connection to the Silk Road caravan experience.
Dunhuang Night Market 敦煌夜市
The Shazhou Night Market recreates the atmosphere of a Silk Road bazaar: dried fruits from Turpan, hand-knotted carpets, jade from Khotan, and Dunhuang's own specialty — apricot leather and sun-dried raisins. The market's architecture evokes Tang dynasty trade houses with wooden lattice facades and lantern-lit courtyards.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Dunhuang Donkey Meat Noodles (敦煌驴肉黄面) — Thin yellow noodles topped with braised donkey meat in a rich sauce flavored with Silk Road spices — cumin, dried chili, and star anise. The saying goes: 'Dragon meat in heaven, donkey meat on earth.' A Dunhuang staple since Tang dynasty caravansaries.
🎨 Artifact: Mogao Cave Murals (莫高窟壁画) — 45,000 square metres of paintings spanning a millennium — the most complete record of Buddhist artistic evolution. The murals depict Pure Land paradises, Jataka tales, celestial musicians, and intimate scenes of Tang dynasty trade, fashion, and daily life.
🎵 Music: Mogao Cave Music Reconstruction (莫高窟乐舞复原) — Musicologists have reconstructed Tang dynasty instruments — pipa, konghou harp, jiegu drum — depicted in Mogao murals, reviving Silk Road melodies silent for a thousand years. Cave 220's 'Paradise Concert' mural shows a 28-piece orchestra performing music that blended Chinese, Indian, Persian, and Central Asian traditions.
Day 4
Exploring Dunhuang
Dunhuang · 敦煌 · Gateway to the Silk Road
Mogao Caves 莫高窟
492 cave temples carved into a cliff face over a millennium (366–1368 CE), containing 45,000 square metres of murals and 2,415 painted clay sculptures. The caves preserve a complete visual record of Buddhist art, architecture, music, and daily life across ten dynasties — the richest repository of medieval art anywhere in the world.
Mingsha Mountain & Crescent Moon Spring 鸣沙山月牙泉
The 'Singing Sand Dunes' rise 250 metres above a crescent-shaped spring that has survived in the desert for over 2,000 years. When wind shifts the sand, the dunes produce a deep humming tone — a phenomenon recorded in Chinese literature since the 4th century. Camel rides at sunset offer a visceral connection to the Silk Road caravan experience.
Dunhuang Night Market 敦煌夜市
The Shazhou Night Market recreates the atmosphere of a Silk Road bazaar: dried fruits from Turpan, hand-knotted carpets, jade from Khotan, and Dunhuang's own specialty — apricot leather and sun-dried raisins. The market's architecture evokes Tang dynasty trade houses with wooden lattice facades and lantern-lit courtyards.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Lamb Skewers (烤羊肉串) — Fat-tailed lamb threaded on iron skewers and grilled over charcoal with aggressive cumin, chili flakes, and salt — the quintessential Silk Road street food, unchanged since Sogdian merchants introduced it to Chinese palates 1,300 years ago.
🎨 Artifact: Dunhuang Manuscripts (敦煌遗书) — In 1900, Taoist monk Wang Yuanlu discovered a sealed chamber (Cave 17) containing 50,000 manuscripts, paintings, and textiles dating from the 5th to 11th centuries — including the world's oldest dated printed book, the Diamond Sutra (868 CE). Written in Chinese, Tibetan, Sanskrit, Sogdian, and Khotanese, they document the Silk Road's multilingual reality.
🎵 Music: Pipa Behind the Moon (反弹琵琶) — The iconic Mogao image of a dancer playing the pipa lute reversed behind her back while dancing — a feat of artistic and physical virtuosity. This single image has become Dunhuang's global symbol, reproduced on stamps, logos, and the city's airport terminal.
Day 5
From Dunhuang to Zhangye
Dunhuang · 敦煌 · Gateway to the Silk Road
Mogao Caves 莫高窟
492 cave temples carved into a cliff face over a millennium (366–1368 CE), containing 45,000 square metres of murals and 2,415 painted clay sculptures. The caves preserve a complete visual record of Buddhist art, architecture, music, and daily life across ten dynasties — the richest repository of medieval art anywhere in the world.
Mingsha Mountain & Crescent Moon Spring 鸣沙山月牙泉
The 'Singing Sand Dunes' rise 250 metres above a crescent-shaped spring that has survived in the desert for over 2,000 years. When wind shifts the sand, the dunes produce a deep humming tone — a phenomenon recorded in Chinese literature since the 4th century. Camel rides at sunset offer a visceral connection to the Silk Road caravan experience.
Dunhuang Night Market 敦煌夜市
The Shazhou Night Market recreates the atmosphere of a Silk Road bazaar: dried fruits from Turpan, hand-knotted carpets, jade from Khotan, and Dunhuang's own specialty — apricot leather and sun-dried raisins. The market's architecture evokes Tang dynasty trade houses with wooden lattice facades and lantern-lit courtyards.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Apricot Leather (杏皮水) — Sun-dried apricot paste rolled into thin sheets and reconstituted as a sweet-tart drink. The Dunhuang oasis has cultivated apricots for millennia; caravans carried dried apricot leather as a lightweight, calorie-rich provision for desert crossings.
🎨 Artifact: Flying Apsara Figures (飞天) — Dunhuang's signature motif: celestial beings soaring through painted skies without wings, their scarves and ribbons creating the illusion of flight. Over 4,500 flying apsaras appear across the caves — a fusion of Indian gandharva, Greek Nike, and Chinese xian (immortal) traditions that occurred only on the Silk Road.
🎵 Music: Silk Road Ensemble (丝路乐团) — Modern ensembles in Dunhuang perform reconstructed Silk Road music using period instruments: the Persian tar, the Indian sitar, the Chinese erhu, and the Central Asian dombra — the same instruments that once shared stages in Tang dynasty Chang'an.

🚄 Transport Options

Rail (Number) Flight (Number) Depart from Hotel Arrival
D6311 InUse CA6021 12:30 lunch, then Train D6311 at 14:00 16:30 Zhangye
Day 6
From Zhangye to Xi'an
Zhangye · 张掖 · Rainbow Mountains of the Silk Road
Zhangye Danxia National Geopark 张掖丹霞地貌
Rolling hills of layered sandstone painted in stripes of red, orange, yellow, green, and blue by iron and trace mineral deposits over 24 million years. The effect is so vivid it appears digitally altered. UNESCO Global Geopark — the most photographed geological formation in China after Zhangjiajie.
Giant Buddha Temple 大佛寺
Housing China's largest indoor reclining Buddha — 35 metres long, built in 1098 during the Western Xia dynasty. The clay figure reclines inside a wooden hall that has survived nine centuries of earthquakes and wars. Marco Polo reportedly visited in 1274.
Mati Temple Grottoes 马蹄寺石窟
Buddhist cave temples carved into a 300-metre cliff face in the Qilian Mountains. The 70+ caves span from the Northern Liang (397 CE) through the Ming dynasty, with murals showing the evolution of Buddhist art along the Silk Road. The 'Horse Hoof Grotto' contains a hoof print attributed to the Tibetan king's celestial horse.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Zhangye Sun-Dried Noodles (张掖炒炮) — Small tube-shaped pasta stir-fried with lamb, vegetables, and Hexi Corridor spices — a Silk Road fusion of Chinese noodle technique and Central Asian flavor. The 'chao pao' name imitates the sizzling sound of the wok.
🎨 Artifact: Danxia Geological Art (丹霞地质艺术) — The Rainbow Mountains are a 24-million-year geological canvas — Cretaceous sandstone layered with iron oxide (red), limonite (yellow), and chlorite (green). The formations are both natural wonder and inspiration for Chinese landscape painting's most vivid color palette.
🎵 Music: Hexi Corridor Folk Songs (河西走廊民歌) — Work songs of the Hexi Corridor farmers and herders — melodies shaped by the vast desert landscape, wide open skies, and the loneliness of the oasis frontier. The songs carry across the flat terrain like the wind itself.

🚄 Transport Options

Rail (Number) Flight (Number) Depart from Hotel Arrival
G2408 InUse CZ1131 12:30 lunch, then Train G2408 at 14:00 17:45 Xi'an
Day 7
Discovering Xi'an
Xi'an · 西安 · Eternal Guardian of Empires
Terracotta Warriors Museum 秦始皇兵马俑博物馆
In 1974, farmers digging a well struck the 20th century's greatest archaeological discovery: 8,000 life-size terracotta soldiers with individualized faces, guarding Emperor Qin Shi Huang's tomb for 2,200 years. Bronze weapons found among them remain razor-sharp, thanks to a chromium-oxide coating that anticipated modern anti-corrosion technology by two millennia.
Xi'an City Wall 西安城墙
Completed in 1370 under the Hongwu Emperor, this is China's most complete ancient city wall: 14 km of rammed-earth-and-brick fortification standing 12 metres high and 15 metres wide — broad enough for two chariots abreast. The 98 watchtowers create overlapping fields of crossbow fire with no blind spots.
Great Mosque of Xi'an 西安大清真寺
Founded in 742 CE during the Tang dynasty, one of China's oldest mosques. Its architecture abandons domes and minarets for traditional Chinese pavilions and courtyards — yet every element is oriented toward Mecca. Arabic calligraphy rendered in Chinese brush strokes creates one of Asia's most striking cultural fusions.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Biang Biang Noodles (biángbiáng面) — Impossibly wide, belt-like hand-pulled noodles named for the sound they make when slapped against the counter. Dressed with blazing chili oil, Sichuan peppercorn, and vinegar. The character for 'biang' — 58 strokes — is the most complex in the language.
🎨 Artifact: Tang Sancai Pottery (唐三彩) — Tri-color glazed pottery of the Tang dynasty featuring amber, green, and cream glazes on horses, camels, and court ladies. Camel figurines laden with trade goods are vivid testimony to Silk Road cosmopolitanism.
🎵 Music: Qinqiang Opera (秦腔) — The oldest surviving Chinese opera form, originating in the Qin heartland 2,000+ years ago. Known as 'the roar of Qin' for its powerful vocal style and crashing percussion. It influenced every subsequent operatic tradition in China.
Day 8
Exploring Xi'an
Xi'an · 西安 · Eternal Guardian of Empires
Muslim Quarter 回民街
Home to 60,000 Hui Muslims — descendants of Arab and Persian Silk Road merchants who settled during the Tang dynasty. Narrow lanes lined with halal food stalls: lamb skewers with cumin, persimmon cakes fried in sesame oil, and roujiamo — China's original hamburger of slow-braised pork in crispy flatbread.
Huaqing Hot Springs 华清池
Natural springs at 43°C attracting rulers for 3,000 years. The Tang palace here staged the love story of Emperor Xuanzong and Yang Guifei, immortalized by Bai Juyi in 'Song of Everlasting Sorrow.' Excavated bathing pools reveal the luxurious scale of Tang imperial life.
Big Wild Goose Pagoda 大雁塔
Built in 652 CE to house Buddhist scriptures brought from India by the monk Xuanzang after his legendary 17-year pilgrimage. The seven-storey brick pagoda — 64 metres tall — became the architectural model for pagodas across East Asia. Xuanzang's journey inspired the classic novel 'Journey to the West.'

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Yangrou Paomo (羊肉泡馍) — Diners tear dense flatbread into tiny pieces, returned to the kitchen where the chef simmers them in rich mutton broth with vermicelli and cilantro. The hand-tearing ritual is considered meditative.
🎨 Artifact: Tang Gold & Silver (唐代金银器) — The Hejiacun Hoard (discovered 1970) yielded 1,000+ gold and silver objects buried during the An Lushan Rebellion (755 CE). Craftsmanship reveals Persian, Sogdian, and Byzantine influences absorbed via the Silk Road.
🎵 Music: Chang'an Court Music (长安宫廷乐) — Emperor Xuanzong personally composed music and trained a 30,000-member imperial orchestra. The 'Rainbow Skirt Dance' — performed by Yang Guifei — blended Indian, Central Asian, and Chinese traditions.
Day 9
From Xi'an to Luoyang
Xi'an · 西安 · Eternal Guardian of Empires
Terracotta Warriors Museum 秦始皇兵马俑博物馆
In 1974, farmers digging a well struck the 20th century's greatest archaeological discovery: 8,000 life-size terracotta soldiers with individualized faces, guarding Emperor Qin Shi Huang's tomb for 2,200 years. Bronze weapons found among them remain razor-sharp, thanks to a chromium-oxide coating that anticipated modern anti-corrosion technology by two millennia.
Xi'an City Wall 西安城墙
Completed in 1370 under the Hongwu Emperor, this is China's most complete ancient city wall: 14 km of rammed-earth-and-brick fortification standing 12 metres high and 15 metres wide — broad enough for two chariots abreast. The 98 watchtowers create overlapping fields of crossbow fire with no blind spots.
Great Mosque of Xi'an 西安大清真寺
Founded in 742 CE during the Tang dynasty, one of China's oldest mosques. Its architecture abandons domes and minarets for traditional Chinese pavilions and courtyards — yet every element is oriented toward Mecca. Arabic calligraphy rendered in Chinese brush strokes creates one of Asia's most striking cultural fusions.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Roujiamo (肉夹馍) — Often called China's hamburger: slow-braised spiced pork stuffed inside crispy flatbread baked in a clay oven. A street-food staple for over two thousand years along the ancient Silk Road.
🎨 Artifact: Shaanxi Bronze Chariots (秦铜车马) — Two half-scale bronze chariots found near the Terracotta Army, each with 3,400 components. The most complex bronze castings ever discovered from the ancient world, demonstrating Qin dynasty metallurgical mastery.
🎵 Music: Shaanxi Folk Music (陕北民歌) — Bold vocals and traditional instruments telling stories of rural life on the loess plateau. The raw, earthy sound contrasts with refined court music, representing the authentic voice of China's northwestern heartland.

🚄 Transport Options

Rail (Number) Flight (Number) Depart from Hotel Arrival
G2003 InUse — 12:30 lunch, then Train G2003 at 14:00 15:40 Luoyang
Day 10
Discovering Luoyang
Luoyang · 洛阳 · Cradle of Chinese Civilization
Longmen Grottoes 龙门石窟
Over 2,300 caves and niches carved into the limestone cliffs flanking the Yi River, containing 110,000 Buddhist statues, 60 stupas, and 2,800 inscriptions dating from 493 to 1127 CE. The centerpiece — the 17-metre Vairocana Buddha, said to be modeled on Empress Wu Zetian's face — gazes serenely across the valley. UNESCO World Heritage since 2000.
White Horse Temple 白马寺
Founded in 68 CE, this is the first Buddhist temple established in China — and thus the birthplace of Chinese Buddhism. Two white stone horses flank the entrance, commemorating the animals that carried the first Buddhist scriptures from India. The temple complex spans 13 hectares and includes Thai, Burmese, and Indian-style additions reflecting Buddhism's pan-Asian reach.
National Peony Garden 国家牡丹园
Luoyang has cultivated peonies for 1,500 years — the flower was the city's symbol during the Tang dynasty and remains China's unofficial national flower. The garden blooms spectacularly in April, when over 1,000 varieties in 360 colors transform Luoyang into a city-wide celebration. The annual Peony Festival draws millions.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Luoyang Water Banquet (洛阳水席) — A multi-course feast of 24 dishes — 8 cold and 16 hot — each served in soup or broth, hence 'water banquet.' Invented during the Tang dynasty, it is China's oldest surviving formal banquet style. The dishes flow one into another like water, and the meal begins with peony-shaped radish silk — a nod to Luoyang's floral identity.
🎨 Artifact: Longmen Sculpture (龙门石雕) — The Longmen Grottoes represent four centuries of Buddhist sculptural evolution — from the austere, elongated Northern Wei figures (493 CE) to the voluptuous, naturalistic Tang dynasty masterpieces (675 CE). The transformation tracks China's absorption of Indian Buddhist art into its own aesthetic language.
🎵 Music: Henan Opera (Yuju) (豫剧) — China's most widely performed regional opera, with an audience estimated at 100 million. Born in the fields of Henan, Yuju features powerful, emotive singing and vigorous percussion. Its stories draw from the same historical events that shaped Luoyang: the Three Kingdoms, the founding of the Tang, and the legends of the Shaolin monks.
Day 11
From Luoyang to Nanjing
Luoyang · 洛阳 · Cradle of Chinese Civilization
Longmen Grottoes 龙门石窟
Over 2,300 caves and niches carved into the limestone cliffs flanking the Yi River, containing 110,000 Buddhist statues, 60 stupas, and 2,800 inscriptions dating from 493 to 1127 CE. The centerpiece — the 17-metre Vairocana Buddha, said to be modeled on Empress Wu Zetian's face — gazes serenely across the valley. UNESCO World Heritage since 2000.
White Horse Temple 白马寺
Founded in 68 CE, this is the first Buddhist temple established in China — and thus the birthplace of Chinese Buddhism. Two white stone horses flank the entrance, commemorating the animals that carried the first Buddhist scriptures from India. The temple complex spans 13 hectares and includes Thai, Burmese, and Indian-style additions reflecting Buddhism's pan-Asian reach.
National Peony Garden 国家牡丹园
Luoyang has cultivated peonies for 1,500 years — the flower was the city's symbol during the Tang dynasty and remains China's unofficial national flower. The garden blooms spectacularly in April, when over 1,000 varieties in 360 colors transform Luoyang into a city-wide celebration. The annual Peony Festival draws millions.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Luoyang Soup Noodles (洛阳浆面条) — Hand-rolled noodles in a fermented mung bean soup, topped with shredded celery, fried tofu skin, and peanuts. The distinctive sour, slightly thick broth — fermented for three days — dates to a famine when resourceful cooks turned leftover bean water into a new culinary tradition.
🎨 Artifact: Han Dynasty Tomb Murals (汉代墓室壁画) — Luoyang's Han dynasty tombs contain China's earliest surviving painted murals — vivid scenes of banquets, chariot processions, celestial beings, and mythological creatures rendered in mineral pigments on tomb walls 2,000 years ago.
🎵 Music: Luoyang Peony Festival Music (洛阳牡丹节乐) — The annual Peony Festival features traditional performances of Tang dynasty court music — pipa ensembles, guzheng solos, and reconstructed imperial dance — in the gardens where Empress Wu Zetian once strolled. The music is as ornate and layered as the peonies themselves.

🚄 Transport Options

Rail (Number) Flight (Number) Depart from Hotel Arrival
G6887 InUse MU3148 12:30 lunch, then Train G6887 at 14:00 17:30 Nanjing
Day 12
Discovering Nanjing
Nanjing · 南京 · Southern Capital of Six Dynasties
Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum 明孝陵
The tomb of Zhu Yuanzhang, the peasant rebel who overthrew the Mongol Yuan dynasty and founded the Ming — one of Chinese history's most consequential figures. The Sacred Way — flanked by 12 pairs of stone animals and 4 pairs of officials — leads through ancient cypress forest to the burial mound. UNESCO World Heritage.
Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum 中山陵
A monumental staircase of 392 steps ascending Purple Mountain to the tomb of the father of modern China. The blue-tiled roof symbolizes the sky, the white marble walls the sun — together representing the Republic's flag. The 80,000-tree forest surrounding it was planted by citizens in the 1920s, now a UNESCO-listed ecosystem.
City Wall & Zhonghua Gate 明城墙·中华门
At 35.3 km, Nanjing's city wall is the longest ancient city wall in the world. Built 1366–1393 using 350 million individually stamped bricks, each traceable to its kiln and the official who supervised its firing. The Zhonghua Gate — the largest surviving castle-gate in the world — has four concentric enclosures that could trap and annihilate an invading army.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Nanjing Salted Duck (南京盐水鸭) — Nanjing's most iconic dish: whole duck brined for days in a spiced salt cure, then gently poached until the skin turns pale gold and the meat is tender, juicy, and subtly perfumed with star anise and Sichuan pepper. Served cold in slices — the definitive picnic food for outings to Purple Mountain.
🎨 Artifact: Ming Dynasty City Bricks (明代城砖) — Each of the 350 million bricks in Nanjing's city wall is stamped with the names of the kiln, the supervisor, the brickmaker, and the date — the most extensive quality-control documentation system in premodern history. If a brick was substandard, the entire chain of production could be held accountable.
🎵 Music: Kunqu Opera (Nanjing Tradition) (昆曲（南京派）) — Nanjing was the Ming dynasty capital where Kunqu opera reached its artistic zenith. The city's Kunqu troupes preserve a distinct performance style — more restrained and literary than the Suzhou tradition — that reflects Nanjing's identity as a capital of scholars and officials.
Day 13
From Nanjing to Shanghai
Nanjing · 南京 · Southern Capital of Six Dynasties
Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum 明孝陵
The tomb of Zhu Yuanzhang, the peasant rebel who overthrew the Mongol Yuan dynasty and founded the Ming — one of Chinese history's most consequential figures. The Sacred Way — flanked by 12 pairs of stone animals and 4 pairs of officials — leads through ancient cypress forest to the burial mound. UNESCO World Heritage.
Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum 中山陵
A monumental staircase of 392 steps ascending Purple Mountain to the tomb of the father of modern China. The blue-tiled roof symbolizes the sky, the white marble walls the sun — together representing the Republic's flag. The 80,000-tree forest surrounding it was planted by citizens in the 1920s, now a UNESCO-listed ecosystem.
City Wall & Zhonghua Gate 明城墙·中华门
At 35.3 km, Nanjing's city wall is the longest ancient city wall in the world. Built 1366–1393 using 350 million individually stamped bricks, each traceable to its kiln and the official who supervised its firing. The Zhonghua Gate — the largest surviving castle-gate in the world — has four concentric enclosures that could trap and annihilate an invading army.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Duck Blood Soup with Tofu (鸭血粉丝汤) — Silky vermicelli noodles in a clear duck broth with cubes of duck blood pudding, fried tofu puffs, and duck gizzard slices. A Nanjing morning ritual — queues form at dawn outside the most celebrated shops.
🎨 Artifact: Nanjing Brocade (Yunjin) (南京云锦) — Cloud brocade — named for its patterns resembling clouds — has been woven in Nanjing for 1,600 years. The most complex patterns require two weavers operating a loom with 14,000 threads, producing only 5 cm of fabric per day. The imperial dragon robes were woven exclusively in Nanjing. UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage.
🎵 Music: Jinling Qin Music (金陵琴派) — The Jinling (Nanjing) school of guqin playing emphasizes bold, resonant tones and dramatic pauses — reflecting the city's history of political upheaval and philosophical depth. The tradition dates to the Six Dynasties period (220–589 CE).

🚄 Transport Options

Rail (Number) Flight (Number) Depart from Hotel Arrival
D3918 InUse CZ2637 12:30 lunch, then Train D3918 at 14:00 16:15 Shanghai
Day 14
Discovering Shanghai
Shanghai · 上海 · Paris of the East
The Bund 外滩
This 1.5-km waterfront esplanade is Asia's most iconic architectural ensemble. Built 1868–1937, its 52 buildings form a catalogue of Western styles: neoclassical HSBC (1923), Art Deco Sassoon House (now Fairmont Peace Hotel, 1929), Gothic Holy Trinity Cathedral, and the Beaux-Arts Customs House with its Big Ben clock tower.
Yu Garden 豫园
Constructed 1559–1577 by Ming official Pan Yunduan as a gift to his father ('Yu' means 'to please'). A masterwork of Jiangnan scholarly garden tradition: craggy Taihu rockeries, murmuring water, ancient ginkgos, and latticed windows framing composed 'living paintings.' The 3.3-metre Exquisite Jade Rock was originally destined for Song Emperor Huizong.
Shanghai Tower 上海中心大厦
At 632 metres, China's tallest building. Its spiraling form — inspired by a dragon's twist — reduces wind load by 24%. The 118th-floor observation deck at 561 metres offers views across the Yangtze Delta to the East China Sea on clear days.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Xiaolongbao (小笼包) — Soup dumplings: wheat wrapper pleated into 18 folds, encasing pork and collagen broth that liquefies during steaming. Lift with chopsticks, place on spoon, pierce, sip broth, dip in black vinegar and ginger. Invented 1875 at Nanxiang.
🎨 Artifact: Shanghai Art Deco (上海装饰艺术) — Between 1920 and 1940, Shanghai built more Art Deco structures than any city except New York and Miami. The Paramount, Park Hotel, and Broadway Mansions blended Streamline Moderne with cloud scrolls and dragon panels — a hybrid style found nowhere else.
🎵 Music: Shanghai Jazz (上海爵士乐) — 1930s cabarets nurtured a unique fusion of American jazz with Chinese instruments and vocals, popularized by Zhou Xuan. The Peace Hotel Jazz Bar, operating since 1929, is the world's longest-running jazz venue.
Day 15
From Shanghai to Hangzhou
Shanghai · 上海 · Paris of the East
French Concession 法租界
Established 1849, this 10-km² district retains its canopy of London plane trees (planted 1902), Art Deco apartments, and cafe culture. The lane houses (lilong) — blending Western structure with Chinese courtyards — represent one of the most successful architectural hybrids ever created.
Jade Buddha Temple 玉佛禅寺
Founded in 1882 to house two jade Buddha statues brought from Burma. The Sitting Buddha, carved from a single piece of white Burmese jade adorned with agate and emerald, weighs nearly a tonne. An active Chan (Zen) monastery with 70 resident monks.
Shanghai Museum 上海博物馆
Shaped like a ding (ancient ritual vessel), housing 120,000 objects across eleven galleries. Its ancient bronze collection — 400 pieces spanning Shang through Han — is the world's finest. Ceramics gallery traces 8,000 years from Neolithic Yangshao through Tang sancai to Qing famille rose.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Shengjianbao (生煎包) — Pan-fried pork buns: bottom crisped golden in cast iron, top scattered with sesame and chives, interior bursting with soup. Invented in 1920s Shanghai teahouses as breakfast for dockworkers.
🎨 Artifact: Suzhou Embroidery (苏绣) — One of China's Four Great Embroideries, using split silk threads finer than a human hair to create works resembling oil paintings. A masterpiece may require 100 million stitches and two years. 2,000 years old, UNESCO recognized.
🎵 Music: Pingtan (评弹) — A 400-year-old storytelling art combining narrative recitation with pipa and sanxian accompaniment. Performers retell episodes from classical novels in Suzhou-accented Shanghainese. Best experienced in a dim teahouse.

🚄 Transport Options

Rail (Number) Flight (Number) Depart from Hotel Arrival
G7501 InUse — 12:30 lunch, then Train G7501 at 14:00 14:50 Hangzhou
Day 16
Discovering Hangzhou
Hangzhou · 杭州 · Heaven on Earth
West Lake 西湖
The UNESCO-listed lake that defined Chinese garden aesthetics for a millennium. Its ten classical views — 'Autumn Moon over the Calm Lake,' 'Spring Dawn at Su Causeway,' 'Three Pools Mirroring the Moon' — have been painted, poeticized, and replicated across East Asia. The lake is 6.5 km² of legend made landscape.
Lingyin Temple 灵隐寺
Founded in 328 CE, one of China's ten great Buddhist monasteries. The Hall of the Great Hero houses a 19.6-metre gilded camphor-wood statue of Sakyamuni — the largest in China. The cliff face outside bears 470 Buddhist rock carvings spanning five dynasties.
Longjing Tea Village 龙井村
The birthplace of Dragon Well green tea, China's most prized variety. The village sits in a valley of mist-shrouded tea terraces tended by families who have cultivated the same plots for centuries. The 'pre-Qingming' harvest — picked before April 5 — commands prices exceeding gold.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Dongpo Pork (东坡肉) — Named for Song dynasty poet-governor Su Dongpo, who slow-braised pork belly in Shaoxing wine while serving in Hangzhou. The dish — cubes of meltingly soft pork in dark sauce — is inseparable from the literary culture of West Lake.
🎨 Artifact: Southern Song Celadon (南宋青瓷) — When Hangzhou served as capital of the Southern Song dynasty (1127–1279), imperial kilns produced celadon of incomparable jade-green translucency. The crackle-glazed pieces — deliberately imperfect — embody the Song aesthetic of restrained beauty.
🎵 Music: Yueju Opera (越剧) — Born in the rice paddies of Zhejiang, Yueju Opera is the second-most popular opera form in China. Performed almost exclusively by women, its lyrical singing style and romantic repertoire earn it the nickname 'the opera of love.'
Day 17
Exploring Hangzhou
Hangzhou · 杭州 · Heaven on Earth
West Lake 西湖
The UNESCO-listed lake that defined Chinese garden aesthetics for a millennium. Its ten classical views — 'Autumn Moon over the Calm Lake,' 'Spring Dawn at Su Causeway,' 'Three Pools Mirroring the Moon' — have been painted, poeticized, and replicated across East Asia. The lake is 6.5 km² of legend made landscape.
Lingyin Temple 灵隐寺
Founded in 328 CE, one of China's ten great Buddhist monasteries. The Hall of the Great Hero houses a 19.6-metre gilded camphor-wood statue of Sakyamuni — the largest in China. The cliff face outside bears 470 Buddhist rock carvings spanning five dynasties.
Longjing Tea Village 龙井村
The birthplace of Dragon Well green tea, China's most prized variety. The village sits in a valley of mist-shrouded tea terraces tended by families who have cultivated the same plots for centuries. The 'pre-Qingming' harvest — picked before April 5 — commands prices exceeding gold.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: West Lake Vinegar Fish (西湖醋鱼) — Grass carp from West Lake, poached and dressed in a sweet-sour vinegar sauce infused with ginger. The legend: a widow invented the dish as a farewell gift to her brother-in-law before he left to seek justice at the imperial court.
🎨 Artifact: Silk Brocade (杭州丝绸) — Hangzhou has been China's silk capital for 5,000 years. The National Silk Museum traces the journey from cocoon to fabric. Song dynasty silk brocades — with their cloud-and-crane motifs — set patterns still woven today.
🎵 Music: Guzheng by West Lake (西湖古筝) — The 21-stringed zither has been associated with West Lake since the Southern Song court relocated to Hangzhou. Evening guzheng performances on lakeside pavilions — with mist, moonlight, and the distant chime of Leifeng Pagoda's bells — define the Hangzhou aesthetic.
Day 18
Departure — Farewell to Hangzhou
Hangzhou · 杭州 · Heaven on Earth
West Lake 西湖
The UNESCO-listed lake that defined Chinese garden aesthetics for a millennium. Its ten classical views — 'Autumn Moon over the Calm Lake,' 'Spring Dawn at Su Causeway,' 'Three Pools Mirroring the Moon' — have been painted, poeticized, and replicated across East Asia. The lake is 6.5 km² of legend made landscape.
Lingyin Temple 灵隐寺
Founded in 328 CE, one of China's ten great Buddhist monasteries. The Hall of the Great Hero houses a 19.6-metre gilded camphor-wood statue of Sakyamuni — the largest in China. The cliff face outside bears 470 Buddhist rock carvings spanning five dynasties.
Longjing Tea Village 龙井村
The birthplace of Dragon Well green tea, China's most prized variety. The village sits in a valley of mist-shrouded tea terraces tended by families who have cultivated the same plots for centuries. The 'pre-Qingming' harvest — picked before April 5 — commands prices exceeding gold.

Cultural Highlights

🍜 Signature Dish: Longjing Shrimp (龙井虾仁) — Fresh river shrimp flash-fried with Dragon Well tea leaves, the tea's vegetal sweetness complementing the shrimp's delicate brine. A dish that distills Hangzhou's identity into a single plate.
🎨 Artifact: West Lake Painted Fans (西湖绢扇) — Round silk fans painted with West Lake scenery have been produced since the Southern Song dynasty. The finest incorporate real gold leaf, poetry calligraphy, and miniature landscapes so detailed they require magnification to fully appreciate.
🎵 Music: Hangzhou Nanyin (杭州南音) — An ancient chamber music tradition combining voice with pipa, dongxiao flute, and erxian. Originated in the Southern Song court and preserved in Hangzhou's teahouses, it is considered the living fossil of Chinese classical music.

📸 Journey Reflections — Photographs You'll Treasure Forever

As you depart, carry with you not just photographs but the weight of lived experience across 8 cities and 17 nights.

📷 Urumqi: The unforgettable sight of Xinjiang Regional Museum — a moment etched in memory.
📷 Dunhuang: The unforgettable sight of Mogao Caves — a moment etched in memory.
📷 Zhangye: The unforgettable sight of Zhangye Danxia National Geopark — a moment etched in memory.
📷 Xi'an: The unforgettable sight of Terracotta Warriors Museum — a moment etched in memory.
📷 Luoyang: The unforgettable sight of Longmen Grottoes — a moment etched in memory.
📷 Nanjing: The unforgettable sight of Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum — a moment etched in memory.
📷 Shanghai: The unforgettable sight of The Bund — a moment etched in memory.
📷 Hangzhou: The unforgettable sight of West Lake — a moment etched in memory.

再见中国 — Zàijiàn Zhōngguó. Until we meet again.

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